Google Tensor

Back in 2021, Google effectively rebooted its efforts with Pixel hardware with the arrival of the first Tensor processor. That’s led to some big changes but 2024 finally marks the year that the transition is entering its final stage.

Google’s Pixel phones, especially those powered by Tensor chips, aren’t known for their gaming performance, but there seems to be a considerable upgrade coming with the December 2023 update as a GPU upgrade behind the scenes should lead to better performance.

The Tensor G3 chipset in the Pixel 8 series is a considerable step up from past iterations of Google’s Samsung-made custom chip, and amid rumors that the company will eventually move to TSMC, a new report says that Tensor G4 will be once again produced by Samsung, but on an updated process.

Google Tensor has always pitched itself on AI, and when it launched in 2021, it blew away the competition. But, now, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 is showing off truly incredible on-device AI capabilities, and it really demands the question of if Google Tensor should still exist.

Google this week debuted the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro, which, on paper, look fantastic. But as we mentioned in our hands-on coverage, it all depends on Tensor G3, which literally just needs to pass the bar of being not terrible.

Google Tensor has had a bit of a rough history, but things are looking brighter for the upcoming third-generation. Alongside improvements to Samsung’s manufacturing, a new rumor suggests that Tensor G3 will adopt a new packaging method to keep the chip from building up too much heat and running more efficiently overall.

Google Tensor has been a show of faith for the future of Pixel hardware, but it’s also been holding the lineup back. That’s set to change, hopefully, in a few years, but that wait is going to be rough on Pixel releases in the meantime.

According to a new report today, Google is indeed working to replace Samsung with TSMC for Tensor G5 development.

Google’s latest A-Series smartphones have felt faster than ever thanks to an upgrade to the same Tensor chips as their more expensive siblings, but in the case of the Pixel 7a, it appears that the Tensor G2 processor inside is slightly different.

Google is preparing for the next round of its Tensor chipset, with some leaks pointing to big changes but also performance on Tensor G3 that won’t really put the Pixel 8 series outshining other Android phones. But really, does it even need to?

While we still have two more Tensor G2-based devices coming this month, Google’s next upgrade to Tensor G3 in the Pixel 8 series will apparently bring some drastic upgrades to the chip’s specs.

As chips have pushed for better efficiency, the gap between Samsung and TSMC has become all the more clear. Now, it’s being reported that Samsung is seeing improvements to its 4nm process, which is apparently set to be used on Google’s Tensor G3 in future Pixel phones.

Google’s first Tensor-powered smartphones had an unfortunate downside in their modem, which often made cellular connections unreliable or slower than on other phones. With the Pixel 7 series and Tensor G2, though, Google made big improvements to the modem, as is proven by the Pixel 7 Pro outranking the iPhone 14 Pro in a speed test report.

After two generations of the internally developed Tensor processor, just where does Google go from here? Let’s examine just what we would like to see and what this might mean for the wider smartphone space.

As part of December’s Pixel Feature Drop, Google’s excellent Recorder app gained Speaker Labels that can identify multiple people. As with previous editions, the team behind it is out with an explanation of how the feature came to be.

One of the biggest problems that Google’s Pixel 6 series suffered from over time was an unreliable modem. Compared to other Android devices, the Samsung modem used with Google Tensor just wasn’t up to the task. How does Google Tensor G2 compare in the modem department? We put the Pixel 7 and Pixel 6 head to head to see how they compare with signal strength and speed to find out.

Qualcomm has always dominated the high-end smartphone space, but that’s slowly changing. MediaTek this week unveiled its Dimensity 9200 SoC for high-end Android phones, which appears to be a very strong option, but it’s happening as Google is also pushing its Samsung-produced Tensor chip forward. Could MediaTek turn out to be the better partner for Google?

While Pixel 7 and its Tensor G2 chip has only been available for a month, rumors are already coming out regarding the next generation. According to a new report, “Tensor G3” will stick with the same modem as the Pixel 7 series and pull from Samsung’s latest chip developments.