The Google Pixel 4 and 4 XL are now official: Here are all the specs and features
Earlier this year, we were very quick to proclaim the Pixel 3a as one of the most leaked devices in recent history, but little did we know that just a few months later yet another Google smartphone will receive the same accolades. That’s right, the Google Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL were the industry’s worst kept secret in the past few months, with leaks and rumors all boiling to a rather anticlimactic official announcement, which just took place!
Design & Display
Unlike most contemporary flagship phones, the Pixel 4 series don’t feature any groundbreaking design elements; actually, some might even say they look quite dated from a purely design perspective, and they’d have a point. There’s a thick top bezel that’s creating a rather asymmetric, top-heavy look for the new Google flagships, but its existence could be justified by the large array of sensors that are housed underneath. The bump housing the two cameras at the rear is not only quite large, but also bears a heavy resemblance to the camera bump of the new iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max.
There’s no fingerprint scanner at the rear as Google has moved to an in-display scanner solution. The phones themselves are IP68 water-resistant and have those coveted dual stereo speakers.
The smaller Pixel 4 comes in with a 5.7-inch, 19:9 OLED display with an FHD+ resolution that works out a pixel density of 444ppi. Meanwhile, the larger Pixel 4 XL has a 6.3-inch QHD+ OLED display that has a very high pixel density of 533ppi.
Motion Sense
The big new thing with the Pixel 4 series is the Motion Sense user interface, which allows you to control various aspects of your phone and most apps with the help of gestures that you conjure in thin air. Thanks to the large Motion Sense radar in the gargantuan top bezel, interacting with you phone is as simple as waving at it, and it can reportedly “track sub-millimeter motion at high speeds with great accuracy.” Yes, it also works in extreme low-light scenarios as it relies on reflecting electromagnetic waves. Google says that gestures “come more natural than pushing against a piece of glass,” yet so far the technology for their recognition on a phone has been imperfect as it relied on camera sensors.
Camera
Let’s face it, the strongest suit of Pixel phones has always been their great performance and image quality. Chances are that the Pixel 4 series will perform marvelously as well. Unlike all previous Pixel generations, the Pixel 4 series comes along with two cameras at the rear – a regular one and a telephoto one. No fancy-schmancy ultra wide-angles here – probably next year, Google?
The Pixel 4 and 4 XL come along with a 12.2MP main F1.7 camera with and a 16MP F2.4 telephoto camera. Both sensors are equipped with optical and electronic stabilization as well as Dual Pixel phase detection autofocus. Fan-favorite Night Mode is back on steroids and will now even allow for some entry-level astrophotography. The portrait mode of the camera will surely benefit from the inclusion of the telephoto camera for a greater depth separation. A great new addition to the Pixels’ camera prowess is a Dual Exposure feature that lets you control the exposure levels of both the highlights and the shadows of the image separately. This will enable you to bring up details in extreme lighting conditions, such as shooting against the sun where multiple things in the scene could get “burned” and lost.
Interface & features
No surprises here – the new Pixels come with Android 10 right out of the box. We’ve covered this one enough already (you can check it out right here), but the gist of it is that it brings a long-awaited dark mode, more parental controls and digital wellbeing monitoring, as well as a Google Assistant on steroids. The Assistant is now capable to effortlessly jump from task to task without any hesitation and without needing an active Internet connection.
Another intriguing new feature is the 3D Face Unlock, which would work similarly to Apple’s Face ID.
Performance
Developing…