The Pixel 6 is rumored to be the first smartphone to feature a Google Silicon processor and although the release date has not been announced yet, more details are starting to surface. Making an educated guess is also possible by reviewing the launch dates of the previous Pixel phone release dates. With the potentially big change to the main processor, there is a surge of interest in Google’s upcoming smartphone and this could affect the design of other Google products, notably the Chromebook, which might also use Google Silicon.
The very first Pixel phone had two models, the standard size and the extra-large XL version. It became available on October 4, 2016. This was the phone that really drove home the value of computational photography, shocking the smartphone and compact camera industry with unexpectedly sharp and rich photos from a small image sensor. The following year, the Pixel 2 and 2 XL matched the release to the day, with the announcement arriving on October 4, 2017. This incorporated the Pixel Visual Core, which sped up and improved the image processing of the first generation Pixel. In 2018, Google shifted the launch date of the Pixel 3 and 3 XL by only a few days to October 9. The Pixel 3 saw the Neural Core replace the Visual Core, with an increased focus on AI and machine learning, though this Google-designed chip still assisted with enhanced photography. The Pixel 4 and 4 XL once again landed the following year and within days of the original date, this time falling on October 15, 2019. The focus on photography and AI continued and the Neural Core assisted the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 with those tasks.
The biggest deviation to the launch date came in 2020, with the Pixel 5. Whether that signals an overall change in Google's plans isn’t clear, however, 2020 was also the year of the pandemic, which threw the plans of many tech companies into disarray. In most cases, product launches were delayed. For example, the Apple event for the new iPhone 12 came in October rather than the usual September. Google did the opposite, with the Pixel 5 announcement coming on September 30, 2020. While this is only a few days earlier in the year than the original release date, it precedes the 2019 schedule by over two weeks. This means the Pixel 6 could arrive as early as late September and still be following a historical pattern. Samsung also deviated from their normal launch schedule, the latest Galaxy S21 came a month early, following several years of releasing the new Galaxy S-series phone in February. To sum up, most major smartphone manufacturers keep to a fairly predictable one-year span of time between new models, but it can vary. That said, Google does also sell a budget version of the Pixel, appending an ‘a’ to the model number, and a Pixel 5a may come earlier in the year. Regarding the flagship, the potential switch to Google Silicon could result in a different launch date.
Google Silicon & Pixel 6
The Pixel 6 is rumored to be among the first devices to use Google Silicon. The rumored GS101 system-on-a-chip may rely upon a partnership with Samsung for production and possibly even design assistance. Whether this might affect the Pixel launch date can’t be known for sure, but Samsung typically launches its newest and best Exynos SoC in the first quarter of the year, while Qualcomm has favored fourth-quarter announcements for its flagship Snapdragon chips. Of course, it isn’t known whether the rumored Google GS101 processor will be produced in the same timeframe as Samsung’s flagship chips, earlier or later. If it comes a few months later than the Snapdragon, it could mean a later launch date.
If Google actually proceeds with its own SoC, perhaps the GS1010, it will be the first proper mobile processor the company will have made. This makes it seem more likely that it would take longer than usual to test a Pixel 6 based on a completely new chip, increasing the odds of a November or December release. So far, Google has launched a new Pixel phone every year, so it is a solid bet that some type of Pixel 6 will come in the fourth quarter of 2021. Based on the rumors, Google Silicon could usher in an era of even more impressive computational photography, a smarter personal assistant, and/or a super long battery life on Pixel phones.
Source: Google