Here’s everything we know about the Google Pixel 7
It appears that Google is tired of seeing its devices leak months before the official announcement, and it wants to get ahead of the rumors by teasing its devices in advance. Google hasn’t been good at keeping any of its devices under wrap, and the move isn’t surprising. The company revealed the design of the upcoming Google Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro devices, giving us a closer look at what to expect in the fall.
At the Google I/O 2022 Developer event yesterday, Google also revealed the much anticipated Google Pixel Watch, Google Pixel 6A smartphone, and the Google Pixel Buds Pro wireless earbuds. The company also teased an upcoming Google Pixel Tablet, AR glasses, and introduced a plethora of new features that will soon be making their way to Google products and services.
In this article, we collected our thoughts, official information, and the leaks that we have of the upcoming Google Pixel 7 flagship device. We have a separate article for the Google Pixel 7 Pro that we encourage you to check out.
Price & Availability
The Google Pixel 6 launched at $599 in the US, while the Pixel 6 Pro started at $899. Google didn’t reveal the pricing for the upcoming Pixel 7 series, but it’s fair to assume that the Google Pixel 7 will cost at least $599 when it launches in October.
It’s unclear if the Pixel 7 will receive a higher price tag in the US and elsewhere, but it’s possible given the current inflation and high prices worldwide. If we had to guess, we would say that it’ll cost anywhere between $599 and $649, but we’ll surely find out more in the coming months as we see more rumors and leaks.
As for availability, we would expect the Pixel 7 to be for up pre-orders when it is announced in the fall. Google usually releases its devices in early to mid-October, so we would expect the Pixel 7 series to ship sometime in late October or November.
The table below shows the estimated price. Be sure to keep an eye on this page, as we’ll regularly update it as more information becomes available.
| Device | United States (USD) | United Kingdom (GBP) | Germany (EUR) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Google Pixel 7 – 128GB | $599 | £599 | €649 |
| Google Pixel 7 – 256GB | $699 | – | – |
Google Pixel 6
The Google Pixel 6 is the more compact and affordable variant from the new flagship series. It features most of the same features, and it comes with the same primary and ultrawide camera as the Pixel 6 Pro.
Colors
Google confirmed that the Google Pixel 7 will be available in three color options: Obsidian (Black), Snow (White), and Lemongrass (Yellow). The Google Pixel 6 was available in Sorta Seafoam (Yellow and Green), Kinda Coral (Red and Pink), and Stormy Black options.It looks like Google is going for more toned-down colors this year, and we’re a fan of the new Snow and Lemongrass configurations.
Specifications
Google Tensor is the first smartphone chip from the company, and Google is rumored to be hard at work developing the second generation SoC. Benchmark-wise, the first generation Google Tensor chip was disappointing, but we all know that benchmarks are different from real-life experience. The Tensor chip was fast and smooth, and it provided a great overall performance while multitasking or playing graphics-intensive games.
The first generation Google Tensor chip was manufactured on the 5nm process, and it had an Octa-core chipset, including two cores at 2.80 GHz, two cores at 2.25GHz, and four cores clocked at 1.80 GHz. It had a Mali-G78 MP20 GPU, and 8GB of RAM. The second generation of the Google Tensor chip is believed to have performance improvements, and it’s expected to be more power-efficient.
Design
The Google Pixel 6 series introduced a brand new design language for the Pixel smartphones, and the Pixel 7 series will follow suit with nearly identical aesthetics. Based on the images that Google shared at I/O 2022, the software giant isn’t trying to make any significant changes this year; instead, build on top of an already unique and premium blueprint.
The front of the device wasn’t shown on any of the render images, but we assume it’ll look nearly identical to the Pixel 6 series with a selfie camera cutout on the top center. As for the back, the colors are different, but it still comes with a massive raised camera strip.
The strip, however, will be a differentiator this time around, and it won’t be painted in black; instead, it appears to be made out of aluminium. The raised edge will back the camera sensors, and the cutout for the camera, microphone, and the LED flash will be clearly visible, giving the device an R2D2 look, in my opinion. And that’s about it; we haven’t noticed any other major design changes apart from the camera module.
According to the leaks and previous rumors, the Pixel 7 may be slightly narrower than the Pixel 6, which is a welcome change given how wide the device felt. We also expect to see IP68 water and dust resistance certificate to keep the device safe in all environments. There isn’t much else that we know so far, so keep an eye out for this page as we’ll update it regularly with more information.
Display
The current-generation Pixel 6 packs a 6.4-inch AMOLED display that sports 90Hz refresh rate. The Pixel 6 Pro has an LTPO panel that supports 120Hz refresh rate, and both devices support HDR10+. Current leaks suggest that the Pixel 7 may have a slightly smaller 6.3 or 6.2-inch display, hence making the device’s overall size smaller and hopefully bezel-free.
It makes sense to give the Pro variant more flashy and better features, and we expect Google to maintain its stance on the two devices, but we’d still love to see a 120Hz panel on the non-Pro Pixel smartphone.
Google has also been rumored to be working on an under-display selfie camera, but it’s unclear if it’ll make it to the Google Pixel 7 series in October. The company didn’t show the front of the device on any of the render images, and there is a potential that Google may be finalising the design and features to make it all work together. It’s unclear if the under-display front camera could make it for the standard Pixel 7, or only the Pixel 7 Pro.Unfortunately, we also have no information if Face Unlock is making a comeback, given how tremendously slow the fingerprint sensor was at the beginning of the Pixel 6 series.
Camera
Judging how long it took for Google to switch over from the 12MP camera sensors from previous Pixel devices, we expect the Pixel 7 to keep the current setup, and come with major software improvements to enhance and improve the quality. The Pixel 6 had a 50MP f/1.9 sensor, and a 12MP f/2.2 ultrawide. The telephoto sensor is reserved for the Pixel 6 Pro, and the renders confirm the same setup for the next generation.
The Pixel 7 will likely keep the primary camera sensor and the ultrawide. As for the features and improvements, it’s hard to tell. Google did confirm that the camera will be much better at optimizing the image quality for different skin colors, and the low-light capability will likely get a significant upgrade.
Battery
There is a lot of uncertainty regarding the battery. Google didn’t talk about any of the specifications. Given that we expect the Pixel 7 to be smaller and more compact than its predecessor, it makes sense to assume that it’ll have a smaller battery capacity.
The Pixel 6 arrived with 4,614 mAh cell, and while it could easily last a full day on a single charge, it didn’t have an amazing battery life. The phone came with an AMOLED panel and only 90Hz panel, and everyone expected it to perform better, yet it didn’t. We don’t have any information from reputable sources, and we’ll have to wait until we hear more.
The Pixel 7 series will likely support the already existing Google Pixel Stand, but we hope that Google will increase the charging speeds to at least 45W, like on many other competing smartphones. We also would love to see a 0 to 80% charge in 30 minutes.
Google Pixel Stand (2nd Generation)
The latest wireless charger from Google provides up to 23W of wireless charging to the Pixel 6 Pro, and 21W charging to the standard Pixel 6.
What we want to see
A problem-free smartphone, is that too much to ask?
- A smartphone without problems: Google hasn’t had a smooth ride ever since it launched its first Google Pixel-branded smartphone back in 2016. Nearly all Pixel smartphones were flawed with software and hardware issues affecting the charging, user experience, battery, fingerprint sensor, and display. It’s fair to say that Google’s quality control is equal to none, and it’s about time that Google steps up its game and releases a device without any issues. We understand that releasing a device and testing it can be difficult. Still, if Google wants to take on Samsung, and especially Apple, it has to invest in a more sophisticated method to ensure its devices are working properly the moment customers open them.
- Better support: Samsung revealed that its existing and future flagship devices are eligible for four major Android updates, and they’ll all receive five years of security updates. Google still_only_ offers three major Android updates, and five years of security updates. Given that Google is also the one developing Android, we’d expect at least the same support as Samsung, or even better, and it has no excuse not to provide it.**
- Better display: Although the display was great on the Pixel 6, we would love to see a 120Hz panel on the Pixel 7.
- Improved battery life: The Google Pixel 6 already had a great battery life, and we hope that Google maintains and improves it for the Pixel 7.
- Fast charging speeds: In a world where 60W+ charging speeds are more common, we have to ask Google to up its charging game by providing 0-80% charge in about 30 minutes.
