Well, color us surprised: the Google Pixel 7 is official. Somehow. At Google IO 2022, the company gave us a longer look at the upcoming Android phone, and now we know a lot about it.
We weren’t expecting that at all, as the expected launch window for Google’s next main-series phone is around October 2022. We also saw the Google Pixel 6a, which is what we were expecting.
Even though the Pixel 7 launch is months away, we now know quite a bit about the phone – so here are some of the key facts we just learned.
There are two more family members
As with the Google Pixel 6 lineup, there will be a Pixel 7 and a Pixel 7 Pro.
Last year’s dual-phone approach has clearly worked – and it also suggests that the XL name Google used for its “Pro-like” phones for a number of years is gone.
The image you see at the top of this article is the Pixel 7 Pro.
We know what they look like
We know there are two Pixel 7 phones because Google showed us both.
Visually, the phones aren’t all that different from their Pixel 6 predecessors, with the large camera bar remaining the eye-catching design feature.
One change now, according to Google, is that the camera bump is now the same continuous piece as the frame – these are made from recycled aluminium.
We also know our way around the colors: both phones come in white and black, while there’s a yellow Pixel 7 and green Pixel 7 Pro.
We know how many cameras they’re going to have
There are no changes when it comes to the number of cameras in the Pixel 6 series: expect two on the Pixel 7 and three on the Pixel 7 Pro.
The layout of those on the back have been rearranged a bit, and we could see newer sensors in game, but the count itself is the same. We can also say that the Pixel 7 Pro uses a telephoto zoom lens and not a periscope zoom lens.
They will use a new Google chipset
While the Pixel 6 series used Google’s Tensor chipset, the next few phones will get the second-gen version of this homegrown chipset.
We don’t know what changes the new version will bring, but hopefully it will be a tiny bit faster than the original one in the Pixel 7 phones. It might also support some cool new AI camera modes.
You will be running Android 13
What we really could have guessed, the Google Pixel 7 phones will come with Android 13.
In fact, based on precedent, these will likely be the first phones to come with the built-in software. Google didn’t say that much, but that’s how it’s been for most years so far.
You get a whole tease cycle
Something that Google did new for the Pixel 6 series is that it started teasing the phones very early on, so we knew quite a bit about them by the time they were properly launched.
Apparently that’s happening again this year, as the Google IO announcement no doubt made clear. But there’s more: Google is opening a new hardware store in New York in mid-2022, and it’s clear that the upcoming cell phones will be on display there.
So Google is apparently planning an entire tease cycle for these next devices.
They come bundled with the Pixel Watch
The Google Pixel Watch was also shown at Google IO and we got a little more information about it than we did with the Pixel 7. It will have some Fitbit modes, as well as an NFC chip.
Apparently this smartwatch will get off to a decent start if the Pixel 7 does, and we’ll likely see some great pre-order bundles combining the new phone and watch.