Skip to main content

Google’s Pixel 6 XL might come with the company’s best zoom lens

The Google Pixel 6 could be Google’s first Pixel to ship with a 5x “ultra tele” camera, a new app teardown from XDA Developers implies.

This report comes from code found in Google’s camera app in the Android 12 beta, references were found to a toggle for a new zoom lens, likely set for one of Google’s next Pixel phones. In said code, references were found to the “ultratele”, as well as 5x zoom more than a few times. More references noted the camera would have an actual optical zoom level — a measure of the number of times the camera can zoom in before it resorts to digitally cropping images — of 4.3x, a major upgrade over the Pixel 4’s real optical zoom level of 1.4x.

As for which Pixel would be equipped with the aforementioned camera capability, it is likely to be the larger Pixel, previously said to be the Pixel 6 Pro but more likely to ship as the Pixel 6 XL. As reported by reliable leaker Jon Prosser, the Pixel is said to have a 50MP wide camera with a 48 MP telephoto and a 12MP ultra-wide-angle lens. Prosser also pegs Google to be dropping telephoto for the smaller Pixel and going with the much-lauded wide and ultra-wide combination that shipped in the Pixel 5 and 4a 5G.

Google’s Pixels have typically been great for taking still shorts and portrait images, but it has fallen far behind on optical zoom. Even with the software-powered super-resolution zoom and the telephoto hardware chops of the Pixel 4 and 4 XL.Google fell far below the standards set by Samsung and even OnePlus as far as zooming goes. With the Pixel 6 and 6 XL, the company has a chance to steal its crown back.

Google’s Pixel 6 comeback goes beyond the camera. To recap the specs of the Pixel 6 and 6 XL (or 6 Pro), the smaller Pixel will have a 6.4-inch AMOLED display, 8GB of RAM, up to 256GB of storage, and a battery with 4,601mAh. The Pixel 6XL will have a larger 6.71-inch P-OLED display, 12GB of RAM, up to 512GB of storage, and a 5000mAh battery. Google is expected to launch both these phones in October.

Editors' Recommendations

Michael Allison
A UK-based tech journalist for Digital Trends, helping keep track and make sense of the fast-paced world of tech with a…
I love the Google Pixel 8 Pro — except for one thing
A person holding the Google Pixel 8 Pro.

Google Pixel 8 Pro Andy Boxall / Digital Trends

I really like the Google Pixel 8 Pro, but it does not feel like a $1,000 smartphone. It makes me miss the Pixel 7 Pro and pine to return to the unbelievably high-quality Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra that I left behind little more than a week ago.

Read more
I really hope the Google Pixel Fold 2 doesn’t look like this
A leaked hands-on photo of the Google Pixel Fold 2, showing a close-up of its camera module on the back.

This has been a busy week in terms of Google Pixel Fold 2 news. After a report about the phone's potential new processor and RAM upgrades, we now have our supposed first look at Google's second folding phone. And ... well, it sure is something.

These photos of the Pixel Fold 2 come courtesy of Android Authority, who received them from an anonymous source — the same source that claims the Pixel Fold 2 will have a Tensor G4 chip. Right off the bat, you can see that something funky is happening with the phone's camera module.

Read more
The Google Pixel Fold 2 just got a lot more exciting
A person holding the Google Pixel Fold.

It's widely expected that Google is working on a Pixel Fold 2, and according to one new report, Google's second folding phone could get a much-needed performance upgrade. We're talking a vastly upgraded processor and significantly more RAM — and those are both really big deals.

According to a recent report from Android Authority, citing an unnamed source, "Google has been testing the Pixel Fold 2 internally for the last couple of months." That shouldn't come as a huge surprise. The more interesting tidbit is that the Pixel Fold 2 will reportedly have a Tensor G4 chipset instead of the Tensor G3 one found inside the Google Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro. Google hasn't announced its Tensor G4 chip yet, though it will likely debut in the Pixel 9 series later this fall.

Read more