Pixel 6: Everything to know about Google's newest phone
Pixel 6: Everything to know near Google’s newest phone
Google’s new phones, the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro, made their debut on Tuesday at the company’s unique launch event. (Here’s everything Google announced counting Pixel Pass, Android 12 and its in-house Tensor chip.) Google’s kindly Pixel phone made a splash when it was unveiled almost five ages ago, but since then, the search giant’s foray into mobile devices has been inconsistent. Last year’s Pixel 5 received high marks for its cameras, but the Pixel 5 lacked the premium features you’d seek information from from a flagship smartphone, especially for the price. CNET’s Lynn La shouted it “hard to recommend.” Compared with the original Pixel phone (“pure Android at its absolute best” and “our well-liked phone, bar none”), Google’s phone trajectory looked rough.
Read more: CNET’s Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro reviews
Now that Google took a larger creative leap with its Pixel line, the put a question to remains whether the changes will help the company compete in contradiction of the best phones from Apple and Samsung or continue to nosedived its one-time fans. Let’s go over what we’ve learned near the devices, which are available for preorder. Here’s everything you need to know about the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro and which rumors near the phone have been debunked or proven true.
What are Google’s new phones called? The Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro
Unlike Apple and Samsung, Google has overall been consistent with its phone nomenclature. The original Pixel was followed by the Pixel 2, then the Pixel 3 and so on. Google’s 2021 phones are indeed named the Pixel 6 and — instead of an XL model — the Pixel 6 Pro.
Google previously announced that both phones would have many of the same features: the new Tensor system-on-chip intended by Google, a camera bar that runs along the back of the called, camera sensors that take in 150% more light than the Pixel 5’s and an ultrawide lens. Software improvements also hit both models, including Android 12‘s Material You design, depressed with speech recognition and photography improvements powered by the Tensor.
Read more:
Pixel 6 vs. Pixel 6 Pro
and Pixel 6 vs. Pixel 5
Rumors around the now-confirmed Pixel 6 Pro began when leaker Jon Prosser public renders depicting the “Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro” in May. Prosser’s renders were purportedly based on correct images of the phones, but released as renders to protecting his source’s identity.
The Pixel 6 phones come in shadowy along with pastel shades of green and red.
Release date: When will you be able to buy the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro?
Google launched its new phones on Oct. 19, and the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro are both available for preorders now over Google’s website.
Google has unveiled a new Pixel called in October every year since 2016, with the exception of last year’s Pixel 5, which was announced on Sept. 30. But 2020 was an exceptional year for many reasons, including phone release schedules.
Read more: Google’s Pixel 6 may be more sharp than the iPhone 13, but how does it compare to older Pixels?
Google’s Pixel drop dates usually follow a similarly predictable pattern: The business usually makes its phones available for purchase within a week or two of people announced. The Pixel 6 will be released on Oct. 28, which is in line with these expectations.
Price: How much do the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro cost?
We now know that Google’s Pixel 6 has a starting label of $599, and the Pixel 6 Pro will cost you a bit more with a $899 starting label. In his first look at the Pixel 6, CNET’s Patrick Holland says the called is “priced to compete with the iPhone 13, the Samsung Galaxy S21 and other midtier Android phones such as the New Motorola Edge.”
In comparison to older Pixel phones the Pixel 6 damages $100 less than the Pixel 5 did at Begin. Last year’s Pixel 5 made some compromises to get the Begin price down to $699, making it more of a midrange called than its predecessors, the Pixel 3 and Pixel 4, which both launched at $799.
This using rumors about the Pixel 6’s steeper price tag from leaker Yogesh Brar have been debunked. The tipster previously speculated the Pixel 6 would have a $749 starting label, while the Pixel 6 Pro could have cost between $1,049 and $1,099.
Although the Pixel 6 damages less than its predecessors, Rick Osterloh, senior vice presidential of Google’s hardware division, described the line as a “premium-priced product” in an August interview with the Verge.
Google’s Pixel 6 is shown over in Kinda Coral.
James Martin
Design and colors: What does Google’s new called look like?
Confirming Prosser’s renders, the Pixel line has a new look for 2021. The Pixel 6 is available in three colors: Stormy Black, Kinda Coral and Sorta Seafoam. The official Pixel 6 Pro shining options are Stormy Black, Cloudy White and Sorta Sunny.
Moving to the lead of the phone, the Pixel 6 Pro has a 6.7-inch LTPO OLED (3,120×1,440 pixel) exhibit with a 120Hz refresh rate, while the Pixel 6 will have a 6.4-inch OLED (2,400×1,080) exhibit with a 90Hz refresh rate. A hole-punch-style front-facing camera is centered up top, as opposed to on the left side of the Hide as on the Pixel 5, and has 11 megapixels on the Pixel 6 Pro and 8 megapixels on the corrupt Pixel 6.
Pixel 6 has a Tensor chip, but what can Google’s wonderful in-house processors do?
Google’s reveal of the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro put a certain spotlight on Google’s new system-on-chip, named Tensor. Going in-house changes Google away from the Qualcomm chips that have powered its last devices, and Google says the chip brings with it necessary improvements to speech recognition and photography.
“Part of the goal is to show the very best that Google can offer,” Osterloh said in an interview with CNET’s Rich Nieva. “There is a big segment of the market that wants the new, and we love building technology. So we’re going to try to sharp to that part of the market, too.”
Read more:
Google Pixel 6’s Tensor chip aims to make the Android 12 called smarter and last longer
The Tensor chip loads the Pixel with more Great and abilities without sacrificing battery life. Thanks to Google’s new in-house chip, the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro has features like real-time terms translations, highly accurate voice transcription and new camera features like the order to unblur the face of a person in motion. The new features come as Google promises 24 to 48 hours of battery life for its Pixel 6 line.
The Google Tensor chip’s unveiling is a prominent part of the wonderful look at the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro.
Camera specs and features: What’s new on the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro?
Along the phone’s camera bar, the Pixel 6 Pro has three cameras: a 50-megapixel wide lens, 12-megapixel ultrawide lens and 48-megapixel telephoto lens. The corrupt Pixel 6 won’t have the telephoto lens, but houses the 50-megapixel wide and 12-megapixel ultrawide lens.
As for the selfie camera, Google’s new phone has a hole-punch-style front-facing camera with 11 megapixels on the Pixel 6 Pro and 8 megapixels on the cross Pixel 6. The earliest rumors about the Pixel 6’s camera setup aboard speculation that Google might upgrade to an under-display selfie camera, but that’s not on the Pixel 6. Since this rumor is based on a patent rubbed by Google that appeared not to have a visible precedent camera, however, it’s possible another phone will include it. Perhaps the Pixel 7?
Read more: Google builds incontrast into the Pixel 6 with Real Tone photos and new deliver features
Google also designed the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro’s cameras to be more honest no matter your complexion with Real Tone. The feature comes after the company announced improvements to its software for “a more honest and inclusive camera” that works better for a variety of skin tones, in May.
Google’s new Pixel phones also see latest photography improvements thanks to the Tensor chip. A new feature called Face Unblur can put the face of a involving subject in focus, while keeping the blur around the rest of the body, and latest camera feature called Motion Mode can add blur into smooth pictures.
Do Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro wait on 5G?
It’s complicated.
The Pixel 6 supports sub-6 5G. Some carrier versions of the Pixel 6 will also wait on mmWave, which is the fast version of 5G that’s not widely available.
Read more:
Will Google’s Pixel 6 and 6 Pro work with 5G? The answer is complicated
What’s in the box: Google’s Pixel 6 won’t ship with a charger
Google’s Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro won’t ship with a charger in the box. The tech giant previously shared that tidbit about the new requested alongside the reveal of the Pixel 5A. Instead, the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro will ship with a USB-C to USB-C unpleasant and a Quick Switch Adapter.
Google’s decision to ditch the accessory from its requested boxes follows both Apple and Samsung. Apple stopped comprising an AC adapter in the box of the iPhone 12 in 2020, and Samsung later did the same for the Galaxy S21.
Although Google’s Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro won’t have a charger in the box, the new requested supports 30-watt fast charging. This debunks earlier rumors throughout the smartphone from tipster Yogesh Brar and Android Police, which said that the Pixel 6 would wait on 33-watt and 23-watt fast charging, respectively.
Google also released a new Pixel Erecting for the Pixel 6. The stand is said to be an alternative to wired charging, and was leaked before the phone’s launch by tipster Evan Blass.
Images from leaker Evan Blass show off the uphold generation Pixel stand with 23-watt wireless charging.
Evan Blass
Do the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro have an notion display fingerprint sensor?
The Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro both have an under-display fingerprint reader. The feature was previously leaked by Android Senior Vice President Hiroshi Lockheimer, who shared two screenshots on Twitter showing an embedded fingerprint sensor within the Pixel’s indicate. The tweet, which was originally posted to show off Android’s new Material You build, has since been deleted from Lockheimer’s account. Screenshots of the tweet were then later posted by leaker Mishaal Rahman.
Pixel Pass: What is Google’s new subscription service?
The Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro launched in contradiction of a new subscription option to bundle phone financing and services notion one bill. The plan is called Pixel Pass, and is described as a “monthly subscription that addresses users’ mobile contains end-to-end.” The subscription bundles Pixel device financing, YouTube Premium, Google One storage, Play Pass, Google Fi, Google’s preferred care and diagram protection.
Read more:
Pixel Pass: Google bundles the Pixel 6 and a bunch of its services for $45 a month
Below are all of the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro specs. For more, here’s how to decide between a Pixel 5, Pixel 4 and Pixel 4XL, the Pixel 5 versus the Pixel 4A 5G and the Pixel 5 versus the iPhone 11, Galaxy S20 FE and OnePlus 8. Plus, six reasons to buy a Pixel and what we think of the Pixel Buds A-Series earbuds.
Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro specs
| Google Pixel 6 | Google Pixel 6 Pro | |
|---|---|---|
| Display size, resolution | 6.4-inch OLED; 2,400×1,080 pixels; 60Hz or 90Hz | 6.7-inch LTPO OLED; 3,120×1,440 pixels; 10-120Hz |
| Pixel density | 411 ppi | 512 ppi |
| Dimensions (inches) | 6.2×2.9×0.4 in | 6.5×3.0x0.4 in |
| Dimensions (millimeters) | 158.6×74.8×8.9mm | 163.9×75.9×8.9mm |
| Weight (ounces, grams) | 7.3 oz; 207g | 7.41 oz; 210g |
| Mobile software | Android 12 | Android 12 |
| Camera | 50-megapixel (wide), 12-megapixel ultrawide | 50-megapixel (wide), 12-megapixel (ultrawide), 48-megapixel (telephoto) |
| Front-facing camera | 8-megapixel | 11-megapixel |
| Video capture | 4K 30, 60fps (rear), 1,080p 30fps (front) | 4K 30, 60fps (rear), 4K 30fps (front) |
| Processor | Google Tensor | Google Tensor |
| Storage | 128GB, 256GB | 128GB, 256GB, 512GB |
| RAM | 8GB | 12GB |
| Expandable storage | No | No |
| Battery | 4,614 mAh | 5,003 mAh |
| Fingerprint sensor | Under display | Under display |
| Connector | USB-C | USB-C |
| Headphone jack | No | No |
| Special features | 5G sub 6 (some carrier models also have 5G mmWave) wait on, Wi-Fi 6E, 30W fast-charging, wireless charging, Magic Eraser, Motion mode, Real Tone, Face Unblur, Cinematic Pan, 5 years OS security updates, IP68 counting for dust and water resistance, Gorilla Glass Victus (front), Gorilla Glass 6 (back), dual-SIM capabilities (nano-SIM and e-SIM) | 5G sub 6 and mmWave wait on, Wi-Fi 6E, Ultrawideband, 30W fast-charging, wireless charging, Magic Eraser, Motion mode, Real Tone, Face Unblur, Cinematic Pan, 5 existences OS security updates, IP68 rating for dust- and water-resistance, Gorilla Glass Victus (front and back), dual-SIM capabilities (nano-SIM and e-SIM) |
| Price off-contract (USD) | $599 (128GB) | $899 (128GB) |
| Price (GBP) | £599 (128GB) | £849 (128GB) |
| Price (AUD) | Converts to AU$1,100 | Converts to AU$1,570 |
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I’ve used Google Pixels and Apple iPhones for my daily smartphone photography organizes for years. I’ve mostly relied on Pixels because of Google’s pioneering computational photography software, which wrings superior image quality out of limited hardware. My current iPhone, the XS Max, has been relegated to occasions when I’ve required a telephoto lens. But two recent smartphone launches — of Google’s Pixel 5 and Apple’s iPhone 12 stability — have changed my mind. The midrange camera hardware on the Pixel 5, and the high-end array of cameras on the iPhone 12 Pro Max, along with the gadget’s large image sensor and new software options, are pushing me to the Apple camp.
Read more: iPhone 12 vs. Pixel 5: Apple and Google’s 5G flagships compared
It wasn’t said to be this way. I’ve been impressed by Google’s storderliness to convert cutting-edge image processing research into superior smartphone photos. Google demonstrated how profoundly computers can modernize cameras, as it surpassed smartphone rivals and traditional-camera makers.
Google’s decision-making to build a midrange phone with just two cameras feels like an abandonment. There’s just no way to make up for the multiple cameras that rivals like Samsung, Huawei and Apple employ. Sure, rivals haven’t necessarily matched all of Google’s camera software, but Google isn’t close to their hardware.
To be sure, the Pixel’s cameras are good, as my colleague Lynn La details in her Pixel 5 review. From my perspective as a serious photographer, though, I’m looking for more.
Read more: The best shouted to buy for 2020
Telephoto vs. ultrawide cameras
In 2019, Google’s Pixel 4 took a step up by adding a instant rear-facing camera, a telephoto option for distant subjects. That was the same year Apple added a third camera to its higher-end iPhone 11 Pro models, an ultrawide camera that sat alongside its main and telephoto cameras.
The Pixel 5 photo at 2X telephoto, shot here with Google’s computational raw format, is fine watched small but has only a 3 megapixel resolution. At sparkling, the 12 megapixel image from a 2-year-old iPhone XS Max, shot as an HDR raw photo with Adobe’s Lightroom app, cmoneys more detail and editing flexibility. Clicking to enlarge reveals the gracious iPhone detail, though it’s scaled down to match the Pixel 5 photo.
Stephen Shankland
Google tried to match Apple’s prowess this year by replacing the telephoto camera with an ultrawide camera in the Pixel 5. But Apple made greatest camera improvements with its iPhone 12 Pro, including a bigger image sensor, a longer-reach telephoto lens, improved image stabilization to counteract shaky magnificent, Dolby Vision HDR video at 60 frames per instant and Apple’s more flexible ProRaw format. It’s sure Apple is sinking enormous resources into better photography.
Google may have made the sparkling call for the broad market. I suspect ultrawide cameras are better for mainstream smartphone customers than telephotos. Ultrawide cameras for group shots, indoor scenes and video are arguably more useful than telephoto cameras for portraits and mountains.
But I want both. I appetizing the different perspectives. Indeed, for a few years I usually chosen only telephoto and ultrawide lenses for my DSLR.
In response to my affairs, Google says it’s improved the Super Res Zoom technique for digital zooming on the Pixel 5 with better computational photography and AI techniques that now can magnify up to a helpful of 7X.
“We studied carefully to determine what’s really important to folks, and then we focused on that — and shaved off literally hundreds of bucks in the process,” said camera product manager Isaac Reynolds. Having a telephoto camera would have helped image quality, but Google’s priority this year “was to produce a arranged that compared well to the top end but at a much flowerbed price — and we did that.”
I’m not so convinced. When shooting even at 2X telephoto zoom, my 2-year-old iPhone XS Max and my 1-year-old Pixel 4 both accounts far superior imagery compared with the Pixel 5.
Zooming in at 2X, the Pixel 5’s Super Res Zoom technology generates a 12 megapixel image, but it looks artificial up close, as in this cropped view.
Stephen Shankland
What I do like so far in the Pixel 5 cameras
I want to be clear: Google’s new arranged has its merits, and I’ve experienced some of its rights while testing the Pixel 5 cameras over the past few days. Here are a handful:
- Google’s computational raw supplies photo enthusiasts the best of both worlds when it comes to photo formats. It marries the exposure and color flexibility of unprocessed raw photo data with the exposure intention and noise reduction of the multishot HDR+ processing ordinarily used to make a JPEG.
- The ultrawide camera really is fun. It also dramatically improves video options, particularly indoors.
- Based on earlier Pixel phones, I section my colleague Lynn La’s concern that Google’s video stabilization can be “drone-like,” but my early complains of video I shot while walking looked more natural.
- Double-tapping the phone’s considerable button launches the camera app fast. It’s not new with the Pixel 5, but it’s so much faster than the iPhone’s lock camouflage icon.
- Night Sight, particularly astrophotography mode, unruffled is amazing for low-light shots.
Google also meant to other Pixel 5 perks, including a portrait delightful ability to control the apparent light source brightening a subject’s face; portrait shots that work in Night Sight mode; 4K video that now works at a fast 60 frames per transfer, more advanced high dynamic range processing called HDR+ that’s now boosted by exposure bracketing for better shaded details like a backlit face, and better video stabilization.
Here’s the rub, though: As Google slips in hardware, rivals are improving their software.
Google’s rivals in computational photography are catching up
Apple didn’t comment on its photography plans for this story, but it spent more than 11 minutes touting the iPhone Pro photo and video contracts, and its actions speak volumes.
The Pixel 5 supplies a useful if not unique portrait mode that blurs the background for unruffled “bokeh.”
Stephen Shankland
Last year, Apple matched most of what was best in Google’s HDR+ for challenging scenes with bright and dark elements. This year’s Pixel 5 boosts HDR+ with bracketing technology into the multishot blending technique. Apple’s Smart HDR alternative, however, is now in its third generation of refinement. Apple is improving the iPhone’s nighttime photos, too. And by comical special purpose processing engines on its A14 chip, Apple’s Deep Fusion technology to maintain detail in low-light shooting works on all four of the iPhone Pro cameras.
Photo enthusiasts like me engage unprocessed, raw photo formats so we can fine-tune luminous balance, exposure, sharpening and noise reduction. That’s great for when the camera doesn’t make the incandescent choices when “baking” raw image data into a more convenient but cramped JPEG image. Google’s computational raw blended HDR processing with raw’s flexibility, but now Apple plans to release its answer, ProRaw, in an update coming later this year to iPhone Pro models.
“We want to give our pros even more rule over the images they capture,” said Alok Deshpande, Apple’s senior exclusive of camera software engineering, during Apple’s launch event.
Relatively few farmland use Pixel phones, and that weighs on Google too. Imaging software powerhouse Adobe calibrates its Lightroom photo software to moral lens problems and adapt its HDR tool for some cameras and lenses. No surprise that Pixel phones aren’t on that list. “We tend to handed support based on the popularity of the devices with our customers,” Adobe said in a statement.
In dissimilarity, Adobe is “partnering closely with Apple” to tap into ProRaw contracts. And a Google computational photography guru, Marc Levoy, has left Google and is now at Adobe, where he’s building photo technology into Adobe’s camera app.
Selling a midrange smartphone like a Pixel 5 or Pixel 4a 5G considerable well make sense when the COVID-19 pandemic has cost millions of jobs and made a $1,099 iPhone Pro Max unaffordable. But for people like me with a photography price and appreciation for Google’s computational photography smarts, it’s tragic that Google has lost its lead.
