This move from Google could either mean that it is embracing the leak culture and walking closely alongside to cope up, or, it is trying to mock people until the launch day, and surprise them by coming up with a completely different design for the smartphone.
Similar to its previous generations, Pixel 4 is also expected to come out in October. So, irrespective of what the motive behind putting out an image so early is, there are a few details that emerge on to the surface (based on the image), which could turn out to be true, if Google isn’t mocking and sticks to this design.
— Made by Google (@madebygoogle) June 12, 2019
Different Rear Design
To begin with, the teaser image shows two pictures of a smartphone lying on their back – with the image on the left showing the upper half of the device and the one on the right showing the lower half. And unlike previous generation Pixel smartphones that come with a smaller glossy glass section on the top and a larger matte section at the bottom, the teaser image shows a complete design re-haul. Based upon which, the phone appears to have an all-black single-tone finish on the back with the Google logo at the bottom and an accented (lightly) power button on the side. Additionally, it also appears to have a completely different design for the camera setup, with a square-shaped bump that protrudes out of the body.
No Rear-Mounted Fingerprint Scanner
Except for an all-new single textured designed back and a square-shaped camera arrangement on the back, the teaser image does offer any more insights. And hint towards a missing rear fingerprint scanner that can, otherwise, be seen on the previous generation Pixel devices. Based on the alternatives that some of the other smartphones have opted-for, to achieve an all-display design with no china t the bottom, the two possible options that Google can introduce on the Pixel 4 to authenticate users could either be an in-display fingerprint scanner or a facial recognition mechanism.
All-New Camera Arrangement
As already mentioned, the teaser image shows off a square arrangement for the camera that appears to protrude out of the body with a significant camera bump. Which, when compared to the previous generation Pixel devices, is a completely different approach of camera arrangement. Over the past few years, Google has been constantly making efforts to prove its point that having multiple camera sensors on a smartphone should not be a differentiating factor when it comes to capturing great shots. And at large, it has managed to hold true to that point by constantly improving the photography and providing essential features with the help of the software alone.
Triple camera setup
But now, it seems like it is trying to pull off something different with its cameras this time around. Which is why it is introducing a completely different camera arrangement on the back, with what appears to be a triple camera setup with a dual LED flash and a microphone, arranged in the form of a square enclosing. Out of the three sensors, the two sensors look pretty apparent to most of the dual camera smartphones in the market. However, unlike those smartphones, the one thing that could differentiate Pixel 4, appears to be the re-purposing of the second camera. Mainly because the previous generation Pixel devices have managed to pull off the portrait mode in a mastered-way with the help of just a single sensor and software prowess, taking away the need for a telephoto lens. Moreover, zooming-in to the image shows the third sensor (not sure if a sensor) or a cutout, which could be a ‘spectral sensor’ a.k.a ‘spectrometer module’, or as Google likes to call it, a ‘flicker sensor’. In a nutshell, this sensor allows the camera to retain its image quality (without undergoing changes in the exposure) when shooting under/in a pulsating light source by detecting the flicker rate and adjusting the exposure level automatically to compensate for any changes. However, there’s nothing sure at the moment, and it could be possible that Google re-purposes the secondary sensor for something else, and the third cutout could be something very different altogether.
Summing up
Although Google has teased what could be an all-new design language for its upcoming Pixel 4 smartphone, it has not revealed any details about the front of the smartphone or its internal specifications. So we might have to wait until the launch of the smartphone (expected to be in October) or wait for Google to come up with some more teasers of the smartphone, which seems unlikely.
