Pixel 9 series specs leak; ‘game-changing’ Tensor G4, 16GB RAM minimum on Pro

Ben Schoon | Jul 25 2024 - 6:13 am PT

Google’s upcoming Pixel 9 series isn’t expected to be a major leap for the company’s Tensor chipset, but leaked specs have revealed that the whole lineup will include a lot more RAM.

Last year’s Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro brought a considerable upgrade to the Tensor G3 chipset, and the Pixel 9 series is expected to build on that with a relatively minor bump. Google, however, calls Tensor G4 “game-changing” in newly leaked promo materials published by 91Mobiles.

There’s no context to this claim, but Google will be using Tensor G4 across all four new Pixel 9 series devices.

Breaking down the specs of the whole Pixel 9 series, there are some notable upgrades across the lineup. Starting with the base Pixel 9, Google is using a 6.3-inch “Actua” display which is slightly bigger than the Pixel 8’s display. The cameras are also upgraded. The main camera is still a 50MP shooter and there’s a 10.5MP selfie camera, but the rear ultrawide camera has been upgraded from a 12MP sensor to a 48MP sensor. The base Pixel 9 is also bumped up from 8GB of RAM to 12GB of RAM, likely for the sake of Gemini Nano, which Google initially wasn’t going to bring to the base Pixel 8 before it reversed course.

Stepping up to the Pixel 9 Pro duo, Google’s promo materials confirm a 6.3-inch display on the smaller 9 Pro (though it might be a little bigger than the regular 9 according to other leaked specs) with a 6.8-inch display on the Pixel 9 Pro XL, up from the Pixel 8 Pro’s 6.7-inch display. Both are “Super Actua” displays (essentially meaning they are higher-resolution).

The Pixel 9 Pro and Pro XL will then use the same 50MP main camera, backed up by two 48MP sensors used for ultrawide and telephoto lenses. The front camera is also upgraded to 42MP.

Meanwhile, and perhaps most exciting, is that Google is shipping all Pixel 9 Pro variants (including the Fold) with 16GB of RAM. That pushes the Pixel series past its previous limit of 12GB, and is probably good news for the next few years of AI features.

Pixel 9 Pro Fold, finally, gets a 6.3-inch “Actua” display on the outside and an 8-inch “Super Actua Flex” display inside.

The camera setup on Pixel 9 Pro Fold, like the original Pixel Fold, varies from the rest. The main camera is a 48MP sensor; the ultrawide uses a 10.5MP sensor, and the telephoto a 10.8MP sensor. The selfie camera is 10MP, the lowest of the whole series. Sadly, it continues the trend of foldables not getting the same camera hardware as traditional flagships, but Google’s software will likely help bridge that gap as we saw in last year’s similarly-under specced Pixel Fold.