Pixel 3 And Our Desperate Need To Be Surprised And Delighted
Today we're talking about a conspiracy theory that says Google released fake Pixel 3 XL units into the wild just to throw leakers off the scent of their true device design. If this is true, it's awesome. It's fun, and it creates the potential for some big surprise on behalf of Google. It's as if we want Google to reveal a surprise device more than an already-leaked high quality product.
There's a rumor going around right now that Google's got a secret plan. That plan is to get clips of YouTube vloggers yelling about how the Google Pixel 3 XL's design is bad. With these clips, the rumors suggest, Google will show how they tricked us all!
SEE: Surprise and Delight
These rumors say Google will show how they released some Pixel 3 XL units into the wild with a design they never intended on using at all! Because why get a bunch of clips of popular YouTube people talking trash about their phone design unless they never planned on releasing that design in the first place, right?
While I'd love for that to be true, I don't think it's entirely accurate. It's because I'd absolutely GREATLY enjoy Google to have a big surprise of a conspiracy in store that I believe it's not true.
Ockham's razor, or lex parsimoniae (the law of briefness) suggests that "more things should not be used than are necessary." The most likely explanation is the simplest. In this case, the simplest explanation is as follows.
1. Supply chains and manufacturing plants are also leak factories
2. Google Pixel 3 XL leaked (more than once)
3. Google wants YouTube clips for a montage of nay-sayers because they know that the average consumer doesn't dislike the notch display design.
4. Google wants to show that they see these YouTubers saying they hate the notch, but they're going to deliver it anyway because they want to give the end consumer what they want, not what YouTubers demand.
There are some inconsistencies in the situation with the black market sale of the Pixel 3 XL earlier this year by a 3rd-party salesperson. They don't prove anything one way or the other, but they do exist. One is that the Telegram channel where the seller operated went dark on the 25th of August, just a few days after it last spoke about the Pixel 3 XL. Another oddity is that this sort of multiple-unit leak through 3rd-party seller hasn't ever happened to any other phone ever before – not that we know of, anyway.
But the truth is this: We want that hype. We want so extremely badly to get excited the way we were when Steve Jobs first revealed the iPhone. We want there to be "one more thing" in every product reveal event – but we also can't help but want to know as much information as possible, as early as possible.
It's a bit of a paradox, or just a nonsensical set of wants and wishes. We can't have it all. But would't it be awesome if Google could deliver it all anyway? We'll see on October 9th, 2018. Stick around for the Made by Google event where we'll get our hands on whatever they've got to offer.