The Google Pixel 6 and 6 Pro were unveiled on October 19, 2021, and the Pixel 6a was announced on May 11, 2022. A few significant leaks revealed essentially everything before the announcement confirmed them: a significant physical design change with an under-display fingerprint reader, Google’s custom-made Tensor chip with an 80% performance boost, and new cameras that do a better job capturing more light and detail.

Pixel 6 Release Date

Google made an official announcement on August 2, 2021, confirming rumors that we’d see both a regular Pixel 6 and a Pixel 6 Pro. After a cryptic “coming later this year” tweet in early August, the company finally confirmed the new phone at the October 19, 2021, Pixel Fall Launch event.

The 2021 Pixel was available for pre-orders after the unveiling event. Online and in-store orders began October 28.

The Pixel 6a (codenamed Bluejay) was first announced at Google I/O on May 11, 2022. It was available from the Google Store for pre-ordering on July 21, with availability and in-store purchases starting July 28, 2022.

Here are the Google Store links: Pixel 6 Pro, Pixel 6, and Pixel 6a.

Pixel 6 Price

There are various options, depending on the amount of storage you want:

  • Pixel 6a: $449 (128 GB)Pixel 6: $599 (128 GB) or $699 (256 GB)Pixel 6 Pro: $899 (128 GB), $999 (256 GB), $1,099 (512 GB)

For comparison, the Pixel 5 started at $699 for 128 GB of storage.

Pixel 6 Features

Most features stick around with a new Pixel phone, such as NFC and Nearby Share. Here are some new additions:

  • Extreme Battery Saver to make the phone last up to 48 hours
  • Translate live video captions and signs in up to 55 languages, completely offline
  • Post-processing effects like Magic Eraser to remove things from photos and edit colors, Face Unblur, and Motion Mode
  • Real Tone to more accurately show different skin tones and better highlight the details
  • At least 5 years of Android security updates
  • Android 12 includes a widget for your most important conversations, scrolling screenshots, quick-access mic and camera controls, and more privacy controls

Pixel 6 Specs and Hardware

The Pixel 6 is built from Corning Gorilla Glass Victus, which means twice the scratch resistance as previous Pixel phones. There’s also IP68 water and dust protection.

The Pixel 6 has a 6.4-inch screen, the Pixel 6 Pro has a 6.7-inch screen, and the Pixel 6a has a 6.1-inch screen. Here’s a video showcasing the Pixel 6:

There’s a wide housing for the back-facing cameras (two on the regular version and three on the Pro model) that creates a substantial bump. The Pro models has three cameras, including a telephoto lens with 4x optical zoom. The Pixel 6 (regular) has the same cameras, but no telephoto.

The Pixel 6a uses a 12.2 MP primary sensor, the same sensor used in Google’s older Pixel phones. On the back of the phone is a 12 MP ultrawide and the same 8 MP selfie camera from the Pixel 6.

The Pixel 6 and 6a are powered by Tensor, the company’s own chip. This is where the phone outshines previous models. It “makes Pixel 6 Pro the smartest and fastest Pixel yet.” The chip enables maximum power efficiency for better battery life, and the phone is said to be 80% faster than the Pixel 5, and includes on-device AI and built-in computational photography for enhanced photos and videos.

One neat thing that comes from this is improved on-device power and machine learning qualities. This means better-developed processing of accents and other languages, things that are necessary for improving voice recognition, translations, closed captioning, etc.

The 2021 Pixel also has the next-gen Titan M2 security chip, which Google says works with Tensor to protect sensitive details like your passwords.

Early rumors suggested we’d see an under-display fingerprint reader in this phone, and it’s true—this is available in the whole lineup. The sensor is built-in under the display, but you can also use a pattern, PIN, or password to secure it.

All three phones are available in three colors. The Pixel 6 can be had in Stormy Black, Kinda Coral, or Sorta Seafoam; the 6 Pro comes in Cloudy White, Sorta Sunny, or Stormy Black; and the 6a is available in Chalk, Charcoal, and Sage.

The Pixel Pro has the biggest battery capacity of any past Pixel. No models support Active Edge (the squeeze for Google Assistant feature).

The Latest News About the Pixel 6

You can get more smartphone news from Lifewire. Here are the latest stories, and some of those early rumors, regarding the Google Pixel 6:

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