Google has stopped selling the Pixel Buds in the U.S. and Canada

By Michael Allison July 22, 2021

Google appears to have discontinued its Pixel Buds, as evidenced by their newfound absence from the Google Store in the U.S. and Canada. Now, searching for the Pixel Buds on either store will give you the option to see the Pixel Buds A as well as a banner telling you that the Pixel Buds are out of stock, as spotted by Android Police.

While being out of stock would not ordinarily be an issue, Google has also appeared to remove all the information about the Pixel Buds from its storefront, making it likely that the sales run of the Buds has concluded.

Though Google has yet to comment on whether the Buds have been discontinued, a Google spokesperson shared the following statement to Digital Trends: “Pixel Buds are out of stock in the Google Store in the US and Canada and at this time, we do not have additional stock in those markets. Some third-party retailers may still have inventory available and they remain on sale in other markets as inventory allow.”

The Pixel Buds are still on sale in several other countries including the U.K. and Japan, but it may be just a matter of time before Google pulls them from those markets too. Google’s Pixel Buds were an excellent AirPods rival when they came out. Their design and thoughtful software features stood out among other true wireless earbuds and the way they integrated with the Pixel line of phones made for a truly seamless experience.

Unfortunately, they also presented with endemic hardware issues. Some users reported a cracking and hissing noise in the Buds, others reported audio cutouts and similar performance frustrations. While Google promised it would be fixing those with firmware updates, it never quite managed to quash the issue. The Pixel Buds A, on the other hand, appeared to fix the issues with the Buds’ hardware. Our review for the Pixel Buds A found that they offered pretty good value over the original Pixel Buds. Google might just have agreed.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Michael Allison

Mobile News Writer

A UK-based tech journalist for Digital Trends, helping keep track and make sense of the fast-paced world of tech with a…

Mobile

The Google Pixel Fold 2 could get a massive display upgrade

A game running on the Google Pixel Fold's open screen.

It seems Google’s next foldable phone will go big — quite literally. According to Ross Young of DSCC (which is now a part of industry analysis heavyweight Countepoint Research), the screen size of the Pixel Fold 2 will be bigger than what other leaks have suggested.

When the first set of Pixel Fold 2 leaks came out with alleged renders, they predicted a 7.9-inch inner foldable screen. Young writes in a post on X (formerly Twitter) that the inner flexible panel measures 8.02 inches, which is a major bump compared to the 7.6-inch OLED panel on the first-gen Google Pixel Fold.

Mobile

Have a Google Pixel phone? You’re about to get these new features

A person holding the Google Pixel 8 Pro.

One of the great things about Google’s Pixel phones is how often the company sweetens the pot with its Pixel Feature Drops. While they’re not always the most exciting updates, every so often, we get some pleasant surprises; this month’s Feature Drop fits into that latter category with some new goodies that will be of particular interest to owners of phones in the recent Google Pixel 7 and Google Pixel 8 lineups (and of course the Google Pixel Fold).

That doesn’t mean older Pixel phones are entirely left out of the party, though. There’s at least one helpful enhancement here for the Pixel 6 and even some smaller improvements that go back to the Pixel 5a. Let's dig into everything that's new.
New features coming to Pixel phones
Circle to Search Andy Boxall / Digital Trends

Mobile

The Google Pixel Fold 2 just leaked. Here’s everything that’s new

Schematics of Google Pixel 2 according to leaks.

Google’s next foldable phone is going to be a screamer, and not solely for good reasons, if the latest leaks are to be believed. SmartPrix (via OnLeaks) has shared alleged renders depicting the Google Pixel Fold 2, and it looks like a mixed bag of regressive design and positive developments.
The biggest change compared to the first-gen Google Pixel Fold is a camera bump that ditches the stretched bar look on the current-gen Pixel smartphones. Instead, we now have a rectangular design with two rows of pill-shaped black outlines, hosting three camera lenses and a bunch of other sensors.
It’s a stark departure from the mainstream Pixel camera bar, and it revives a look that was last seen on the Pixel 5 and Pixel 4 series phones. Looks aside, the side placement also means the phone will keep wobbling if you place it on a flat surface. I’m not exactly a fan of this approach, to be honest.

Another notable change is the side profile. The curved edges of the Pixel Fold have been flattened, a look that will also appear on the Google Pixel 9 series phones, according to leaked renders.
But if you look closely and ignore the ugly camera hump shape, the Pixel Fold 2 looks identical to the OnePlus Open in its leathery black trim. The side rails, those curved bezels, and the front camera placement are all identical.
Even the ridge seems to have been lifted straight from the OnePlus Open, down to its polished metal aesthetics. It’s not a bad thing, as the OnePlus Open is one of the best-built phones I’ve ever used, and the form factor is an absolute joy to handle.
The most progressive change happens once the phone is opened. The thick bezels are gone, and what we see on the Pixel Fold 2 renders are uniformly thin bezels on all sides, a trend that we first noticed on the foldable phones offered by Oppo.