Google’s big event was earlier this week, and during the announcements they unveiled a bunch of new hardware, included in which were the Pixel and Pixel XL, their newest batch of smartphones which come sporting USB Type-C charging and data transfer ports. While the phones will come with their own chargers in the box, Google would also be offering up standalone power adapters meant for these two new devices and as of today anyone who will be wanting to have a spare charger on hand can go to the Google Store and pick one up, so long as they’re willing to let go of $35 as this is the cost associated with the purchase.
While there are a few things that are different or have been updated from Google’s past USB Type-C chargers that were launched alongside the Nexus 5X and Nexus 6P, its still worth remembering that these are USB Type-C chargers and as such, are interchangeable with other USB Type-C chargers. Having said that, Google notes that this was designed specifically for the Pixel and Pixel XL so it’s highly likely that these will work better than other chargers that are made for the same USB port spec.
In addition to being designed specifically for the Pixel and Pixel XL, this particular charger also charges at 18W whereas last year’s USB Type-C chargers only charged at 15W, which means these will end up charging just a little bit faster, which of course means more time using the phone and less time waiting around for it to finish regaining power. It carries one single USB Type-C port on the AC adapter, and one USB Type-C cable that offers USB power delivery. Other than those couple of details there is nothing else that’s too special about this power adapter, but consumers that are thinking about picking this up can probably be assured that Google has designed this to live up to a particular standard of safe charging. The adapter also only comes in one color, Gray, and although you can purchase the device now Google lists that it won’t start shipping until October 20th, so there will be a bit of a wait on it, although due to the ship date it’s likely to show up at the same time as pre-ordered Pixel and Pixel XL devices.