Skip to main content

Digital Trends may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site. Why trust us?

Waiting on a Google Pixel? Verizon may treat you to a free Daydream View

Google Daydream View
Julian Chokkattu/Digital Trends
Google is having a very good problem — orders of its new phone, the Pixel and Pixel XL, are “exceeding expectations,” a Google spokesperson recently told Digital Trends. But that also means angry customers that have been waiting weeks if not months to receive their Google smartphone.

Verizon is stepping up to the plate to keep customers happy. Big Red is offering a free Daydream View headset to Pixel customers that have not received a device yet due to shipment delays. The Daydream View headset is a virtual reality headset used to jump into Google’s Daydream VR platform. It only works with the Moto Z and the Pixel smartphones.

The headset retails at $80, though there’s a temporary price cut that brings the price down to $50 — this deal lasts until February 25.

A Verizon spokesperson told Digital Trends the free headset offer only applies to a “certain subset” of people who have experienced an abnormal shipment delay period. Verizon is offering the headset as a “thank you” for customers staying loyal and not canceling their orders.

The carrier says while the product is back-ordered on its website, there’s a “rolling inventory” and the product gets shipped out as soon as it comes in. Verizon couldn’t comment on sales numbers, but the representative said it’s safe to say that the Pixel is “very popular.”

An erroneous email from Telus, a Canadian carrier, suggested Google had ceased production of the Pixel, but it turned out to be false.

“We’re really excited by the demand for the Pixel XL in Canada,” a Google spokesperson told Digital Trends. “Telus is currently out of stock of the Pixel XL. We’re working with our partners to restock inventory across our retail channels and we can confirm that production of the Pixel has not stopped.”

While high demand is a good, shipment delays three months after the product was released may put people off from purchasing the phone.

Julian Chokkattu
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Julian is the mobile and wearables editor at Digital Trends, covering smartphones, fitness trackers, smartwatches, and more…
The 10 most important things to know about the Google Pixel 8a
Promo image for the Google Pixel 8a, showing renders of the phone in all four colors.

Google has just announced the next Pixel A-series device -- the new Google Pixel 8a. The A-series is the more budget-friendly Pixel option, and it comes out halfway in the cycle to the next mainline Pixel device.

This year, the Pixel 8a offers some big upgrades over its predecessor, the Google Pixel 7a. It’s also more similarly matched with the standard Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro, both of which came out in October 2023.

Read more
The Google Pixel 8a is official. Here’s everything that’s new
Someone taking a phone call on the aloe Google Pixel 8a.

A week ahead of its annual developers' conference, Google has dropped a new budget phone in its Pixel-A series. The Google Pixel 8a retains the line’s signature look with a horizontal camera island at the back, but serves it in a package that embraces rounded corners and also happens to be fractionally smaller and lighter

The most meaningful changes are reserved for the display, silicon, and battery. The OLED screen’s size remains the same at 6.1 inches with a resolution of 1080 x 2400 pixels. However, the refresh rate has been increased to 120Hz, up from the Google Pixel 7a's 90Hz display. This HDR-ready panel offers a peak brightness of up to 2,000 nits and also features a fingerprint sensor underneath.

Read more
Google just launched a new Pixel Tablet … kind of
The Google Pixel Tablet sitting outside with its screen on.

With the excitement of the Google Pixel 8a launch, it might have passed a little unnoticed that Google also launched a new Pixel Tablet — though not exactly. For one thing, the “new” Pixel Tablet is the exact same device as the “old” Pixel Tablet. We mean that literally: same specs, same look, same screen. The only difference with the newly launched Pixel Tablet is that it’ll be sold without its charging/speaker dock, unlike the previous model, which included it.

At $399, the new Pixel Tablet is $100 cheaper than the earlier model, but that’s to be expected — both because it doesn’t come with any hardware refresh and also because it cuts the dock. It's also worth noting that it will not be launched with any new first-party accessories like a keyboard or stylus, which were previously rumored for the tablet.

Read more