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It's the fourth dimension of twelvemonth when Google announces its annual in-business firm phone release, but something is very different this time. For about half dozen years, we've had Nexus phones from Google as a showcase of what Android tin can be when device makers don't muck effectually with it. This fourth dimension, all signs point to an expansion of the Pixel brand in place of Nexus. Two Pixel phones are expected to be appear tomorrow at the October fourth event, and a Great britain retailer has accidentally dropped spec sheets and images for the devices.

There have been a few leaks of the Pixel phones thus far, only none of them take been as detailed equally the new leak from Carphone Warehouse. The listing pages that went live over the weekend (now removed) volition likely be the same ones that go up for consumers to pre-guild devices in the coming days. They confirm a lot of details that were just based on rumors previously.

In example you haven't been paying attention, there will be two Pixel phones, the Pixel and Pixel XL. The regular Pixel will have a 5-inch 1080p AMOLED brandish, and the Pixel XL will have a larger 5.5-inch 1440p AMOLED. Other than the size differences, these devices will be about identical, as confirmed by the specs on Carphone Warehouse.

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The Pixel phones will run the brand new Snapdragon 821 SoC, 4GB of RAM, 12.3MP cameras with optical stabilization, and 32/128GB of storage. The Pixel has a 2770mAh battery and the XL bumps it up to 3450mAh. And yep, they'll take headphone jacks (strange you lot need to specify that these days) and a rear-facing fingerprint sensor. These should exist the outset phones to ship with the Snapdragon 821, which was announced by Qualcomm in July. Google'due south phones don't usually debut new hardware, but that'south only one of the reasons these phones are unusual.

The Pixels are beingness manufactured by HTC (based on FCC filings and rumors), but the Carphone Warehouse listings confirm that there'south zero mention of HTC — no logos, no branding, non even a note in the specs. Although, the design of these phones does announced to have some clear similarities to recent HTC devices like the One A9 and HTC 10. Google is taking full command of the Pixel brand, and going after other premium phones like the iPhone and Galaxy S7.

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The leaked listings also ostend one more important detail — the Pixels will launch with Android 7.one Nougat. The 7.0 variant of Nougat just started rolling out to Nexus devices, and the LG V20 has launched in Korea running it. We don't have all the details on what Android 7.i volition include in full general, simply on the Pixels it will come bundled with an updated dwelling screen UI, Google Assistant integration, and unlimited photo backup via Google Photos.

One affair missing from the Carphone Warehouse listings was a confirmation of pricing. The consensus is that Google will charge more for these phones than well-nigh of the recent Nexus devices. Rumors have pointed to a $650 starting price for the Pixel, though there may be financing bachelor.