Google and Lenovo launch the first Project Tango smartphone, and it's (literally) huge
The first smartphone equipped with Google's novel 3D-scanning technology is finally here.
Lenovo unveiled the Phab2 Pro, the first flagship Project Tango smartphone, on Thursday at the company's Tech World event in San Francisco. The unveiling comes more than two years after Google first introduced Project Tango, its (at the time) experimental effort to bring computer vision and 3D-sensing abilities to smartphones and tablets.
In addition to the typical cameras and sensors that power most smartphones, Tango devices are equipped with motion and depth sensors, along with computer vision software, to create augmented-reality experiences that wouldn't be otherwise be possible on a smartphone.
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The Phab2 Pro is massive, weighing more than half a pound.
These extra components (and the types of experiences they create) help account for the Phab2 Pro's massive size -- and it is massive. Its Quad HD display clocks in at a plus-size 6.4 inches, and it weighs more than half a pound.
"It was a tough engineering feat," Lenovo's VP of Android Jeff Meredith tells Mashable."You need a relatively large screen to be able to fully take advantage and enjoy the experience of what Tango offers... we felt that 6.4 was the right selection for us at this stage."
Display aside, the handset is also equipped with a 4K-ready 16MP camera, 4GB of RAM and dual SIM slots all powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 octa-core processor. It comes in two color variants: champagne gold and gunmetal gray and comes with 64GB of storage, along with a microSD slot.
Those would be more than respectable specs by most Android flagship standards but more impressive may be the price: The Phab2 Pro will cost just $499 when it goes on sale in August.
For those who want to spend a little less, Lenovo is also introducing two otherZZ handsets, the $199 Phab2 and $299 Phab2 Plus, which have the same form factor as the Phab2 Pro but aren't Tango-enabled.
The $199 Phab2 also has a 6.4-inch HD display and is equipped with a 13MP camera. The $299 Phab2 Plus, on the other hand, is being positioned as a midrange device that doesn't skimp on the camera. The device, also 6.4-inches, has two 13MP rear-facing cameras with f/2.0 lenses. The cameras are powered by the same image processor inside of a Leica camera, Lenovo says.
Of course, extra cameras, 3D-sensing, and advanced computer vision are only as good as the apps that can actually take advantage of them. There are already more than 100 Tango-ready apps in Google Play, including several augmented reality games. Gaming, says Meredith, will likely be one of the biggest use cases for Project Tango since it marks the first time gamers can get a true augmented-reality experience on a smartphone.
But AR is good for more than just games: Lenovo also showed off an app from Google called Measure, which allows people to measure the dimensions of the spaces around them just by pointing the device at the area. Lowe's, one of the first retailers that will sell the Phab2 Pro, also has an app that allows users to see visualizations of how new appliances and other items will look in their houses before they buy them.
The Phab2Pro will go on sale in August for $399, the $299 Phab2 Plus and $199 Phab2 will both be available in September.
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Karissa was Mashable's Senior Tech Reporter, and is based in San Francisco. She covers social media platforms, Silicon Valley, and the many ways technology is changing our lives. Her work has also appeared in Wired, Macworld, Popular Mechanics, and The Wirecutter. In her free time, she enjoys snowboarding and watching too many cat videos on Instagram. Follow her on Twitter @karissabe.
