Well, “reveal” is a bit of a stretch. Google itself has already given us a solid look at the phone’s exterior design and announced its most notable specification: the new in-house Google Tensor processor. The company has also given us a few details about the camera and other features. Here’s what we know officially so far:
There are (at least) two new devices, the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro. The Pro has 3 cameras, the regular model just two. Both phones feature a standard and ultrawide camera, but the latter is missing a telephoto lens. Google Tensor’s claim to fame will be its AI and machine learning chops, which Google claims will improve the camera, voice commands, translation, captioning, and dictation. The front-facing camera is now in the middle of the phone. The smaller Pixel 6 has a 6.4-inch screen with a 90Hz refresh rate. The Pixel 6 Pro has a 6.7-inch screen with a 120Hz refresh rate. The phones will use Google’s new Material You UI in Android 12, because of course. Google says the devices are “built with the most layers of hardware security of any phone.”
That said, just because we know so much already doesn’t mean Google doesn’t have some surprises up its sleeve. Pixel phones have always been more about the software than the hardware, after all, and we know little of what Google is planning in that regard. It’s also very well possible that the company will have more hardware to announce. Rumors have pointed to a folding Pixel phone, for instance, since as far back as 2019, and evidence has piled up in the last few months. At this point, it seems likely Google is working on a folding Pixel that will show up eventually, but rumors suggest it could also launch in early 2022. You can watch the Pixel 6 event at Google’s launch site on October 19 at 10 AM PT. The phones themselves are likely to launch shortly after the event. We’ll be covering the news as it happens, so stay tuned to TNW for more.
