With the release of the Pixel Tablet last week, Google made the unusual but refreshing decision to hold its first community Q&A on the tablet since the Pixel Slate

The Q&A has some pretty interesting insights, and to Google's credit, it doesn't appear to have moderated criticism about missing features or the unexplained price hikes endured by users outside the US

Perhaps the biggest missed opportunity for the Pixel Tablet is the included dock; the Pixel Tablet and dock together make a smart screen, but many users are frustrated that they cannot use the dock as a speaker when the tablet is placed elsewhere

That's because the dock has no WiFi or Bluetooth, so without the Pixel Tablet, nothing can be connected, leaving a gap

Google's support team justifies this in terms of price: "By not making the speaker dock a Nest Mini, we were able to focus on providing the best possible experience for the tablet and dock together, while also offering the dock to customers at a lower price"

This response

This response probably refers to the bundle itself, but the stand-alone additional dock is $129, $29 more than the Nest Audio and $79 more than the Nest Mini

Other users asked why it doesn't work as a Nest Cam, since the Pixel tablet acts like a Nest Hub in many ways when docked

"Ultimately, we decided not to pursue this use case at launch due to the narrow width of the front camera and the fact that the tablet is not always on the dock," a company representative replied

Another question related to the camera topic was why the Pixel Tablet does not support Face Unlock and relies on biometric authentication with fingerprints That is because the front camera does not have DPAF: Google's support team responded, "Given the specs of the front camera, it will unfortunately be tough on the Pixel Tablet"

The good news is that in some cases, shipped features will be expanded For example, Nest doorbell alerts are "coming soon" as well as more Hub mode features: "This is just the beginning

UWB, for one, will appear later Google writes, "It will be used for a future feature that will allow tablets to communicate with other UWB-enabled devices like the Pixel 7 Pro" No news to share right now, but stay tuned for updates :)"

On the accessories front, the company said it will work on "more cover options available over time" There was no mention of an official stylus or keyboard, but there are some hints elsewhere that such extras may be on the way

However, a cellular model is not likely to appear" The Pixel tablets are focused on a great tablet experience at home, where tablets are most used," a Google rep wrote, while emphasizing that they remain "great on the go" if you can connect to WiFi

One of the biggest points of contention for users outside the US is the huge difference in pricing: the Pixel Tablet sells for $499 in the US, but £599 (~$762) in the UK and £679 (~$742) in Europe

Google defends the difference as being due to the inclusion of sales tax outside the US, but that clearly doesn't tell the whole story: the Pixel 7a is also $499 in the US, but across the Atlantic it costs £449 (~$570) and £404 (~$557) The Q&A has so far ignored at least two follow-up questions that underscore this point

This Q&A session has been going on for several days, but Google's community managers appear to still be posting answers in the last few hours