The Google Pixel 6 has arrived. After a seemingly endless buildup with countless rumors and leaks — and even an in-depth look at the Tensor chip earlier this year — Google finally announced the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro at their Pixel 6 Launch Event on October 19, 2021.
Arguably the most highly anticipated Android phones of the year, the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro pack plenty of new features, a revolutionary custom processor, phenomenal cameras, and some seriously smart software that brings it all together into a very compelling package.
With a scheduled Pixel 6 release date of October 28, you may be wondering if the Pixel 6 is worth the upgrade. Keep reading to learn everything you need to know about the Pixel 6 and how you can get one for less.
Google Pixel 6 Models
Google released two Pixel 6 models this year: the 6.4-inch Pixel 6 and the 6.7-inch Pixel 6 Pro. There are a few noteworthy differences, but the two phones are built around the same DNA — from the custom Google Tensor chip to the unique exterior design and polarizing camera bar.
Google Pixel 6 vs Pixel 6 Pro Specs Comparison
Here’s how the Pixel 6 and Pixel stack up against each other and to Google’s previous offerings.
| Google Pixel 6 | Google Pixel 6 Pro | Pixel 5 | Pixel 4 | Pixel 4 XL | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Processor | Google Tensor | Google Tensor | Snapdragon 765G | Snapdragon 855 | Snapdragon 855 |
| Display | 6.4-inch OLED, 90Hz | 6.7-inch OLED, 120 Hz | 6-inch OLED, 60 Hz | 5.7-inch OLED, 90 Hz | 6.3-inch OLED, 90 Hz |
| Resolution | 1080 x 2400 pixels (411 ppi) | 1440 x 3120 pixels (512 ppi) | 1080 x 2340 pixels (432 ppi) | 1080 x 2280 pixels (411 ppi) | 1440 x 3040 pixels (537 ppi) |
| Cameras | Ultrawide: 12MP sensor with f/2.2 lens and 114-degree FOV Wide-Angle: 50MP with 26mm, f/1.9 lens | Ultrawide: 12MP sensor with f/2.2 lens and 114-degree FOV Wide-Angle: 50MP with 26mm, f/1.9 lens Telephoto: 48MP with 104mm, f/3.5 lens and 4x optical zoom | Ultrawide: 16MP sensor with f/2.2 lens and 107-degree FOV Wide-Angle: 12MP with 26mm, f/1.9 lens | Wide-Angle: 12MP with 27mm, f/1.7 lens Telephoto: 16MP with 50mm, f/2.4 lens and 2x optical zoom | Wide-Angle: 12MP with 27mm, f/1.7 lens Telephoto: 16MP with 50mm, f/2.4 lens and 2x optical zoom |
| Storage | 128GB, 256GB | 128GB, 256GB, 512GB | 128GB | 64GB, 128GB | 64GB, 128GB |
| RAM | 8GB | 12GB | 8GB | 6GB | 6GB |
| Battery | 4614 mAh | 5003 mAh | 4080 mAh | 2800 mAh | 3700 mAh |
| Charging | 30W USB Fast Charging 21W Fast Wireless Charging Reverse Wireless Charging | 30W USB Fast Charging 21W Fast Wireless Charging Reverse Wireless Charging | 18W USB Fast Charging 12W Wireless Charging Reverse Wireless Charging | 18W USB Fast Charging Qi Wireless Charging | 18W USB Fast Charging Qi Wireless Charging |
| Dimensions | 158.6 x 74.8 x 8.9 mm (6.24 x 2.94 x 0.35 in) | 163.9 x 75.9 x 8.9 mm (6.45 x 2.99 x 0.35 in) | 144.7 x 70.4 x 8 mm (5.70 x 2.77 x 0.31 in) | 147.1 x 68.8 x 8.2 mm (5.79 x 2.71 x 0.32 in) | 160.4 x 75.1 x 8.2 mm (6.31 x 2.96 x 0.32 in) |
| Weight | 207g (7.30 oz) | 210g (7.41 oz) | 151g (5.33 oz) | 162g (5.71 oz) | 193g (6.81 oz) |
| Water Resistance | IP68 | IP68 | IP68 | IP68 | IP68 |
| Release Date | October 19, 2021 | October 19, 2021 | September 30, 2020 | October 22, 2019 | October 22, 2019 |
| MSRP | Starts at $599 | Starts at $899 | $699+ | $799+ | $899+ |
Google Tensor Chip
The Google Tensor chip sits at the heart of the Pixel 6 Lineup. This all-new, fully-custom system-on-chip was built from the ground up for class-leading performance in artificial intelligence and machine learning tasks. Google accomplished this by adding an aptly named TPU (Tensor Processing Unit), as well as a Context Hub processor for low-power contextual processing.
The most helpful smartphone yet?
Google set out to make the Pixel 6 the most personal and most helpful smartphone. Tensor helps accomplish this goal by improving how you interact with your device. You get smarter and faster on-device voice recognition with phonetically-based correction models and contextually relevant suggestions, Live Translate, Live Caption, plenty of phone and camera features, and much, much more. All these features combine to deliver an overall experience that is fundamentally different from what you can get on other smartphones today.
Performance everywhere
Google Tensor isn’t just good at AI and ML. Tensor also packs plenty of horsepower for traditional apps, thanks to its 8-core CPU, featuring 2 high-performance cores, 2 mid-performance cores, and 4 high-efficiency cores. And with 20 GPU cores and a large system cache, you can expect great gaming performance as well.
- High-Performance Cores: 2x 2.8 GHz ARM Cortex-X1
- Mid-Performance Cores: 2x 2.25 GHz ARM Cortex-A76
- High-Efficiency Cores: 4x 1.80 GHz ARM Cortex-A55
- Graphics Engine: 20-core Mali-G78 GPU
All in all, Google is promising 80% faster CPU performance and 370% faster GPU performance compared to last year’s Pixel 5. And although direct performance comparisons against other devices cannot be made yet, you can rest assured knowing that the Pixel 6 is a fast phone.
Google Pixel 6 Display
A smartphone is only as good as its display. After all, the display is your primary point of interaction with the phone. Fortunately, the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro pack great OLED displays with vibrant colors, inky blacks, perfect contrast ratios, and high refresh rates.
The base model Pixel 6 has a 6.4-inch AMOLED display with a 1,080 x 2,400 resolution and a 90 Hz high refresh rate. The Pixel 6 Pro takes things up a notch with a 6.7-inch LTPO OLED display with a 1,440 x 3,120 resolution and a variable refresh rate of up to 120 Hz for even smoother motion. Both displays are HDR10+ certified and feature circular cutouts for their front-facing cameras.
Google Pixel 6 Camera
Pixel phones have long been recognized for their superlative camera performance. For the most part, this has come from Google’s expansive computational photography toolbox, encompassing features such as Live HDR Plus, Dual Exposure Controls, AI-powered automatic white balance, Portrait Mode, and Night Sight with Astrophotography. But this year, Google’s also upping the ante with all-new image sensors and lenses for even better performance.
Camera Hardware
On the rear, the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro have a large camera bar. Both phones feature a 50MP primary camera with a 26mm, f/1.9 wide-angle lens and a 12MP f/2.2 ultrawide with a 114-degree field-of-view. The Pixel 6 Pro builds on this with a 48MP telephoto with a 104mm, f/3.5 lens and 4x optical zoom. In order to achieve such a high magnification level, Google opted for a folded (periscope-style) lens on the Pro.
Things are a bit different on the front. The Pixel 6 has an 8MP wide-angle selfie camera with a 24mm, f/2.0 lens. But if you’re looking to capture selfies with large groups of people, you’ll want the Pixel 6 Pro, with its 11MP ultrawide with a 20mm, f/2.2 lens.
Camera Software
Having good camera hardware is important. But as we all know, the Pixel photo magic is in the software. This year, the Pixel camera software gets even more powerful with plenty of AI-powered features enabled by the Google Tensor chip.
- Magic Eraser: Effortlessly remove unwanted people or objects from photos
- Face Unblur: Combine multiple frames from two cameras to make faces clear
- Motion Mode: Better motion shots through AI processing
- Real Tone: Improved AI-powered white balance for better skin tones
Pixel 6 Design and Colors
The Google Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro look like nothing else on the market. Starting with the elephant in the room, both phones feature a large camera bar that spans the entire width of the device. The camera hump is flanked by two different tones of metal, depending on which color and model you choose. Both phones have a nearly all-screen front face with a camera cutout — standard smartphone fare in 2021. And they have fairly typical sides as well — the Pixel 6 has matte aluminum sides, whereas the 6 Pro features a polished stainless-steel frame instead.
Pixel 6 Colors
The Google Pixel 6 is available in 3 different colors. The Google Pixel 6 colors are Stormy Black, Kinda Coral, and Sorta Seafoam.
Pixel 6 Pro Colors
Like its little brother, the Google Pixel 6 Pro is also available in 3 colors. The Google Pixel 6 Pro colors are Stormy Black, Sorta Sunny, and Cloudy White.
Does the Pixel 6 support 5G?
Yes, the Google Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro support 5G networks in the US. However, there are different types of 5G networks out there, and different cellular networks use different bands. Making matters worse, the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro are each available in two versions: one that only supports 5G Sub-6GHz, and another that supports 5G mmWave and Sub-6 GHz. As a result, it can get a bit confusing to figure out whether the Pixel 6 supports 5G on your carrier. Here’s the low-down on the different models numbers and their supported bands:
| Google Pixel 6 | Google Pixel 6 Pro | |
|---|---|---|
| 5G Sub-6GHz | GB7N6 | GLUOG |
| 5G Sub-6 GHz and mmWave | G9S9B | G8VOU |
Visit Google’s Pixel network support page to learn more.
Is Google Pixel 6 worth it?
The Google Pixel 6 is the most exciting Pixel phone in years. Although everyone appreciated the Pixel 5’s low price, many found its lackluster specs and mid-tier Snapdragon 765G to be a bit lacking. This all changes with the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro.
The Pixel 6 is a return to form for the Pixel lineup. Both Pixel 6 phones are unequivocally flagship-level devices. They have flagship features and a flagship processor, but they also come with a flagship price.
Learn more: Is the Google Pixel 6 worth it?
Get a Google Pixel 6 for less
The Google Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro are great phones. But starting at $599 for the Pixel 6 and $899 for the Pixel 6 Pro, neither phone is truly “cheap.” Fortunately, there are a few things you can do to get a Pixel 6 for less.
Sell your existing phone
Selling your old phone is the single best way to fund your upgrade. And as we’ve shown, Swappa gets you more money for your used Pixel.
Consider the Pixel 4 instead
Although many Pixel fans were left unimpressed with the lackluster Pixel 5 specs, the Pixel 4 was a true flagship phone that still holds up well today. The Pixel 4 packs a fast Snapdragon 855 chip with powerful AI features, and an excellent camera. If you want a phone that does it all and costs a fraction of the price, look no further than the Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL
Wait a few weeks and get a Pixel 6 on Swappa
If you’re dead set on the Pixel 6, we can’t blame you. The Pixel 6 offers great features and the potential to deliver a fundamentally different user experience compared to other phones. But hold on a second before you hit that pre-order button. Pixel 6 deals will start popping up on Swappa as soon as people start getting their hands on them, and you can save lots of money by shopping on Swappa instead.
Swappa’s smart and safe marketplace is the best way to save on a new or gently used Pixel 6 or Pixel 6 Pro. Swappa doesn’t allow junks and we don’t tolerate jerks — and listings are hand-screened by our expert moderation team, so you always know what you’re getting. So what are you waiting for? Click below to find the best Google Pixel deals!
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