Details about Google’s upcoming Pixel 6 and 6 Pro pricing have leaked, giving us an idea of just how much the smartphone may cost.
The info comes from YouTuber Brandon Lee (This is Tech Today), who cited a source working for a cellular retailer in Europe. According to the source, the Pixel 6 will cost around €649, while the Pixel 6 Pro may cost €899 (roughly $960.37 and $1,330.31 CAD respectively). Lee also recently shared a video clip of a prototype Pixel 6 Pro.
However, it’s important to keep in mind that converting the cost of a phone in one currency to another isn’t usually accurate to how much a device will actually cost in a country. In other words, Google may charge less (or more!) than $960 for the Pixel 6 in Canada.
As an example, the Pixel 5 costs $799 in Canada (although it’s currently not available on the Google Store). In Europe, the Pixel 5 costs €629, or about $930.78 CAD.
The bigger takeaway from this leak is that Google will likely price the Pixel 6 slightly higher than the Pixel 5, which is pretty great news considering the Pixel 6 is supposed to be a more flagship device.
As for the Pixel 6 Pro, it seems priced accordingly for a higher-end flagship, although it remains to be seen how the phone will stack up against other similarly priced handsets. Assuming the pricing information is accurate, and the 6 Pro retails for around $1,300 in Canada, that would put it in the same price range as Samsung’s Galaxy S21+ and the iPhone 13 Pro.
Of course, that assumes the pricing is correct. Given how leaks and rumours have panned out so far this year, I wouldn’t put a lot of confidence in this information — things could change before Google launches the phone.
Along with the pricing, Lee’s source also noted that the Pixel 6’s black and green colours were labelled ‘carbon’ and ‘fog’ in the retailer’s system. It’s not clear if those are the actual colour names Google has for the phone, but both names would fall in line with the search giant’s naming convention for its other products. However, the Pixel line, historically, has had cheeky names like ‘Clearly White’ and ‘Just Black.’ We may see the same with the Pixel 6 series — ‘Certainly Carbon’ and ‘Frankly Fog,’ anyone?
Images, renders and videos of upcoming smartphones continuously leak. These leaks can be challenging to follow, so we compiled a list of the past week’s hottest rumours.
From September 18th to September 24th, we saw a couple of leaks about the Pixel 6, Galaxy S22 and even a foldable iPhone.
Below are all the major smartphone leaks from September 18th to September 24th:
Samsung
Google’s support page lists Android devices that are certified to support Play Services for ARCore, and mysteriously, the still-not-officially-announced Galaxy S21 Fan Edition is now on it.
Well-known tipster Ice Universe tweeted that “Note is over, but it’s not over. S becomes Note!” This likely means that at least some upcoming S series smartphones will be a bit more Note-like.
Update: Note is over, but it's not over. S becomes Note!
Perhaps this means that the S22 Ultra will include an S-Pen slot next year? While the Galaxy S21 Ultra worked with the S-Pen, users had to buy it separately. This could also mean we might get a more square-shaped Note smartphone this year.
Samsung isn’t working with Olympus on its cameras like was previously leaked. According to LetsGoDigital, Olympus/OM Digital Solutions GmbH, told the publication that the company isn’t planning to work with Samsung.
Further, Olympus didn’t say whether or not the partnership was on the table at one point. With that, it seems that the Galaxy S22 series won’t feature Olympus branding of any kind.
The Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra will reportedly sport a slightly curved display with a 6.8-inch display and a high refresh rate. The dimensions OnLeaks provided measured in at roughly 163.2 x 77.9 x 8.9mm with a thickness of 10.5mm if you include the camera bump.
It also seems that the device features a P-shape camera module with a quad-camera setup with a variety of sensors. One of the lenses is evidently a square-shaped periscope lens, which means the phone will have probably 10x zoom.
Over the weekend, OnLeaks released renders of the Galaxy S22 and S22+ that show off a slightly tweaked design. Both phones are reportedly smaller than their predecessors.
We now have another leak indicating that a second Pixel foldable, dubbed ‘Jumbojack’ internally at Google, might be on its way.
Uncovered in the upcoming Android 12.1 code by 9to5Google, the foldable reportedly features a dual-display setup similar to the Samsung Z Fold 3, with main and cover displays that shut off depending on how you’re using the device.
Heard from someone I trust that the foldable Pixel — codename: Passport, retail branding: unknown — will indeed launch before the end of the year. Apparently they've been working on this device for over two years, and if the P6 is any indication, it'll be worth a look.
Google’s upcoming Pixel 6 Pro has turned up in a hands-on video posted online, giving viewers a good look at the back of the device and what appears to be a refreshed setup screen.
I think this may be the first hands on video leak of a Google Pixel 6 Pro.
FYI: The logo would indicate that this is likely an early production test unit, so that means there may be some differences between what you see here and the actual production device. #teampixelpic.twitter.com/4QSvdktqA7
— M. Brandon Lee | THIS IS TECH TODAY (@thisistechtoday) September 21, 2021
Google’s upcoming Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro recently turned up on Canada’s Radio Equipment List (REL).
We’ve known the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro would come here for a while, but it’s nice to see actual confirmation courtesy of the government.
It looks like Google will finally offer improved camera hardware in a smartphone with the upcoming Pixel 6 and 6 Pro.
Starting with the primary camera, the hardware will leap significantly to Samsung’s ISOCELL GN1 50-megapixel sensor. The ultra-wide camera will use a 12-megapixel IMX386 sensor, while the 4x optical telephoto camera on the 6 Pro will use a 48-megapixel IMX586 sensor. The phone will reportedly support up to 20x zoom with photos and videos (except 4K, where zoom is capped at 7x) and 4K/60fps video recording.
This is just a concept of the aforementioned Jumbojack Pixel leak.
The designer added the look of the Pixel 6 Pro on the back, along with the same type of camera design. There’s also a hole-punch camera on the cover screen in the top left corner, and on the larger inner display, a hole punch shooter on the right side.
The iPhone 14 Pro is rumoured to feature a hole-punch design with a 48-megapixel wide camera.
According to reliable analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, 2022 will see the release of “two new high-end models equipped with a punch-hole display (replacing the notch area design) and a 48MP wide camera.” Kuo says these phones, which are expected to be called the iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max, will be the only ones in Apple’s 2022 lineup to feature the “punch-hole display.”
In addition to the 14 Pro and Pro Max, Kuo says there will be a “new and more affordable 6.7-inch iPhone” (presumably the iPhone 14) coming in fall 2022 as well. Ahead of that reveal, though, they expect a new iPhone SE with 5G support in the first half of 2022.
Apple might be going for a significant design refresh with its rumoured future foldable, according to Business Korea.
The report states that the Cupertino, California-based tech giant’s first foldable smartphone will feature a 7.5-inch display panel developed by LG. We recently reported that LG is currently developing a new ‘Real Folding Window’ display material that doesn’t leave creases, a problem that is still prevalent in new Flip 3 and Fold 3 smartphones. Considering Apple’s focus on perfection, the ‘Real Folding Window’ is definitely a component could be integrated into Apple’s foldable.
It looks like Google will finally offer improved camera hardware in a smartphone with the upcoming Pixel 6 and 6 Pro.
Don’t get me wrong — Pixel phones have always had great cameras. But Google has used the same 12.2-megapixel IMX363 sensor since the Pixel 3. As good as Google’s software wizardry is, that sensor has started to show its age.
However, according to details from XDA Developers, the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro could bring a significant camera hardware improvement. The publication obtained an unreleased version of Google’s Camera app and details about the new Pixel camera system.
Starting with the main camera, the hardware will leap significantly to Samsung’s ISOCELL GN1 50-megapixel sensor. The ultra-wide camera will use a 12-megapixel IMX386 sensor, while the 4x optical telephoto camera on the 6 Pro will use a 48-megapixel IMX586 sensor. The phone will reportedly support up to 20x zoom in photos and videos (except 4K, where zoom is capped at 7x) and 4K/60fps video recording.
Although certainly some exciting hardware, it wouldn’t be a Pixel camera without software enhancements to match.
The Pixel 6 cameras will reportedly allow for manual white balance, giving photographers more control over how their images look. There’s also a ‘magic eraser’ feature, which sounds like it could be a tool for removing objects from an image. Android Police points out that this could be a version of the object removal promised (but never delivered) for Google Photos.
XDA highlights a few other possible camera features, including a ‘face deblur’ feature already confirmed by Google. It works to deblur faces in HDR images by capturing multiple photos with the main and ultra-wide sensors and combining the information to fix faces.
Finally, there were mentions of ‘motion blur,’ ‘portrait spotlight,’ ‘nima aesthetic’ and ‘baby mode,’ which might work as follows (based on the limited information we have so far):
Motion blur: in-development feature will add “creative blur effects to your photos.”
Portrait spotlight: Not entirely clear what it is, but XDA notes the feature is enable in Pixel 6 and 5a configuration files.
Nima aesthetic: Appears to be related to existing ‘Top Shot‘ feature, but unclear what it does.
Baby mode: Possibly a feature meant to detect babies and capture photos of them, but unclear.
All in all, it sounds like the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro could have really powerful camera hardware and software, a welcome change for the Pixel line. Of course, it’s essential to keep in mind that these are leaks, and some of the information may be inaccurate or could change in the future.
Those paying close attention to Google’s Pixel 6 ads may have noticed a fancy new weather widget. However, that widget so far hasn’t been available to older Pixel phones — it seems that may change.
9to5Googleuncovered two new weather widgets in a teardown of the Google app beta version 12.37 APK file. There are two versions of the widget: a pill shape on an angle and a boring old square with rounded corners.
Although more interesting, the weird angled pill widget doesn’t show nearly as much information. It offers up the temperature and an icon indicating the current weather condition. The square version, on the other hand, offers temperature, current weather, the day’s high and low and your location.
Both widgets look nice and adapt their colours to your wallpaper in Android 12. At the moment, it’s not clear if these widgets will be available on older versions of Android.
Also, for anyone desperately wanting to get their hands on the new weather widgets, they’re not officially available yet. You’ll have to wait for them to launch, presumably alongside Android 12 and the Pixel 6 later this year.
Google’s upcoming Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro recently turned up on Canada’s Radio Equipment List (REL).
The REL is an online database of devices and radio equipment certified for use in Canada — smartphones tend to pop up on the REL ahead of launching in Canada.
We’ve known the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro would come here for a while, but it’s nice to see actual confirmation courtesy of the government.
Unfortunately, the REL doesn’t offer much else beyond that. It confirms the names of the phones and their model number (GB7N6 for the Pixel 6 and GLU0G for the 6 Pro). The list also notes that the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro are phones, but we already knew that. Finally, the REL lists both devices as being approved on September 20th.
If you want to check out the listing for yourself, head to the REL website. Due to how the website is set up, we can’t offer a direct link to the listing, but if you search ‘Pixel 6’ in the ‘Product Marketing Name’ section, the REL should surface both results.
The company’s latest stunt? Putting the phones in its New York City retail store. That may sound normal at first, but the phones are inside giant glass cases.
It’s the epitome of “look, don’t touch.”
According to details shared by Reddit users and reported by Android Police, the glass boxes are placed in front of the store’s windows, so even passersby on the street can marvel at the new Pixel phones. The Pixel 6 Pro is on display in its gold colour, while the regular Pixel 6 sports its peach/orange colour.
Under each phone is a QR code that people can scan to see the Google Store page for the phones.
While the display is, in my opinion, kinda neat in the way it makes the phones look like they’re floating in midair, I also agree with the general sentiment that all this is rather weird. Most tech companies keep their products tightly under wraps in the lead-up to the reveal event — not so with Google this time around. The search giant has steadily dropped Pixel 6 teasers over the last few months.
Granted, there’s still a lot we don’t know about the phones, but also, there’s a lot Google has outright told us. Plus, it’s just strange to see a company working hard to hype a product that isn’t available yet. Google hasn’t even shared a release date, beyond that the Pixel 6 series will arrive in Fall 2021 (rumours point to an October release).
Ultimately, I suspect that at least some of Google’s early marketing is an effort to battle leaks. The search giant has struggled with leaks in the past. Most notably, the Pixel 3 series leaked extensively before the launch. After that, Google started doing weird pre-announcements with the Pixel line to get ahead of leaks. I suspect the Pixel 6 reveals are at least partially trying to achieve the same goal — I mean, it’s hard to leak a product that’s already been revealed.
Images, renders and videos of upcoming smartphones continuously leak. All of these leaks can be difficult to follow, so we’ve compiled a list of the past week’s hottest rumours.
From September 4th to September 10th, we saw a couple of leaks about the iPhone 13 mini, the iPhone 14 and even a Pixel 6 teaser.
Below are all the major smartphone leaks from September 4th to September 10th:
Apple
According to PineLeaks, a Twitter account run by Max Weinbach, Apple could solve the mini’s battery life issue with the iPhone 13 mini.
The Pro Max variant will continue to be the true flagship smartphone from Apple, differentiating itself from the standard Pro model.
We expect the iPhone mini variant to offer an additional ~1 hour of battery life.
Weinbach says that the iPhone 13 mini will offer an “additional 1 hour of battery life,” indicating that either through software optimization or more likely, cramming a larger battery into the smartphone’s case, the company has managed to extend the mini’s battery life.
Apple’s iPhone 14 will reportedly lack both a notch and a camera bump.
Instead, the smartphone will sport a Samsung-like front-facing hole-punch camera. The iPhone 14 is also tipped to feature a slightly thicker body, allowing its several lenses, flash, and LiDAR scanner to sit flush with the phone’s rear.
Google has dropped the first teaser trailer for the upcoming Pixel 6 and 6 Pro, giving fans a first look at the device being used in the real world. While this isn’t really a leak in the traditional sense, it’s still pretty cool.
Google also posted a picture on Instagram that said Tuesday the 19th, which indicates that the next Pixel will launch on October 19th.
