Google is to host a product launch event in New York City on October 15, where it is highly likely to reveal the new Pixel 4 smartphone

The event comes a year after Google announced the Pixel 3 and 3 XL, and two years after the Pixel 2. It's safe to say then, that Google will be showing off the fourth-generation Pixel 4 and 4 XL on October 15.

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• Google Pixel 4 has face unlock, hand gestures and radar
• Nest Mini: Google lines up wall-mountable smart speaker for a fall launch
• Google Pixel 4 and 4 XL: Everything we know so far

The smartphones, especially the larger 4 XL, have leaked heavily over the past couple of weeks. Initially, Google got ahead of the rumor mill by publishing a teaser image of the phone itself, then announcing it would feature a new facial recognition system with 'Project Soli' radar.

But after this, several Pixel 4 XL handsets leaked out into the wild, reportedly via a Vietnamese retailer which sold pre-production phones fresh out of the factory.

The phones also feature a new hand gesture system, where they can be interacted with via a wave of a hand. Google has confirmed this system, but hasn't said exactly what it will be used for.

Teaser image of the Pixel 4 Google

But there is plenty to get excited about beyond the Pixel 4. Google's invitation to the October 15 event says: "Come a see a few new things Made by Google." That Made by Google sub-brand includes the Pixel range, but also the company's Nest smart home division.

A new smart speaker dubbed the Nest Mini was recently leaked as a wall-mountable update to the two-year-old Google Home Mini. And with the original Google Home now being three years old, we expect to see this updated (and brought into the Nest division) soon, too.

We also hope to see some new features and intelligence from Google Assistant, but the company tends to save those announcements for its I/O event in June. A Pixel-branded smartwatch was tipped to launch last year but never arrived, and this year the rumor mill has offered little on this. We hope Google will surprise us with its first own-brand smartwatch, but we are starting to doubt this will happen, at least in 2019.

Either way, it will be our first opportunity to see the Pixel 4 as intended, and learn about what it has to offer. High up on the list of expectations of a super-smooth 90Hz display and a new dual-lens rear camera system with an astrophotography mode - no doubt powered by Google's market-leading photographic artificial intelligence.