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Google unveils Pixel 9 smartphones: prices, specs and features

The Pixel 9 Pro is available in two sizes, while the Pixel 9 Pro Fold boasts the largest screen among all foldable smartphones.

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Image by Cybernews.

Paulius Grinkevičius
Paulius Grinkevičius Journalist
Aug 13, 2024 Updated: 17 February 2025 4 min read

For the first time, Pixel Pro comes in two sizes.

After a month of extensive leaks and rumors, Google unveiled the ninth generation of Pixel smartphones on Tuesday at its “Made by Google” event, along with the Pixel Watch 3 and Pixel Buds Pro 2.

The new Pixel 9 series smartphones feature refreshed hardware and many AI features for enhanced productivity and photography.

Pixel 9 Pro Fold

The most refreshed of all the new Pixel smartphones appears to be the second generation of Goolge's foldable, Pixel 9 Pro Fold.

It is the company's slimmest foldable smartphone, measuring 5,1 mm thick when unfolded and 10,5 mm when folded. In comparison, Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 6 measures 5,6 mm and 12 mm, respectively.

When unfolded, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold features an 8-inch screen, making it the largest display on a foldable smartphone, compared to the 7.6-inch screen of its predecessor.

The smartphone also has some design changes. The main camera bar, a distinguishable feature of the Pixel Fold, is now replaced with a rectangular camera setup featuring two elliptical lenses.

The camera's megapixel count remains the same: 48 MP for the main shooter, 10,5 MP for ultrawide, and 10,8 MP telephoto with 5x optical zoom, though ultrawide now has a new sensor.

The battery capacity is smaller and now measures 4650 mAh instead of 4821 mAh in the previous model, while the RAM is amped to 16 GB.

The starting price of the smartphone will be $1,799 in the US and €1899 in Europe.

Two sizes of Pixel Pro

For the first time, the Pixel Pro 9, an enhanced version of the Pixel series, comes in two sizes, meaning there will be a new Pixel Pro XL model.

The Pixel 9 Pro XL, which has a 6.8-inch Super Actua display, is similar in size to last year’s Pixel Pro 8, while the regular Pixel Pro model now has a smaller 6.3-inch screen. Aside from the screen and battery, the rest of the specs are identical.

In terms of design, the Pixel 9 Pro and the regular Pixel 9 maintain a familiar look, though now they have flatter edges and slight changes to the camera bar. Google claims that due to reengineering, the phones will be twice as durable as last year’s.

The device's triple camera setup consists of the same 50MP main shooter, 48 MP telephoto, and new ultra-wide sensor, which still has 48 MP.

Meanwhile, the selfie camera is getting a new 42MP sensor, which the company claims will feature a 30% light sensitivity and a wider field of view.

The Pro's battery remains nearly the same at 4,700 mAh, while the Pro XL has 5,060 mAh. This according to Google, will be enough to last a day.

In addition, both smartphones are getting 45 W fast charging and also come with amped RAM of 16 GB for enhanced performance.

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Pixel 9 with new front camera

The regular Pixel 9 still has a dual camera system with a 50MP main shooter but is now equipped with a new 48MP ultrawide camera sensor. According to Google, this will capture more than double the light.

The Pixel 9's front camera remains the same at 11MP. T least now it now includes autofocus for sharper selfies.

Google claims that Pixel 9 smartphones have 20% better overall battery life than their predecessors, despite the battery capacity remaining similar to the Pixel 8 at 4,700 mAh.

To support all these enhancements, the Pixel 9's RAM has been upgraded to 12GB.

The new Tensor Chip

All the Pixel smartphones will be powered by Google’s custom-made Tensor G4 system on a chip (SoC), which will expand the device’s AI capabilities. The company claims it will result in 20% faster web browsing, 17% faster app launches, and better battery life.

These aren’t the most significant improvements the company made. We will likely see more substantial SoC advancements on next year’s devices, as Taiwan’s TSMC may reportedly manufacture the Tesnor G5.

According to Google, the G4 will be the first chip to run Google’s Gemini Nano large language model with multimodality, meaning that it will be able to understand image, audio, and written inputs.

“Gemini can offer unparalleled, personalized help accessing relevant information across your inbox, your calendar, and more. It'll get through your to-do list in record time by helping you do things like book a haircut, get directions, look up car service options, or even draft a witty text message,” explained one of Google’s representatives during the briefing for media.

All these AI workloads will be processed with the users' agreement. When data needs to be sent to the cloud, Google says it will use only its own company’s infrastructure, thus ensuring its security.

AI for camera

Along with Pixel smartphones, Google unveiled AI-powered software updates. For example, the latest Pixel devices can record, summarize, and transcribe calls, search relevant information through user screenshots and plan meetings.

Several new features aim to improve smartphone photography. On the Pixel 9 smartphones, the new Panorama mode will guide users to take better pictures at each spot over the horizon.

The Magic Editor tool will be updated to allow users to decompose pictures and add a frame with the help of AI. Another editing tool, similar to Add Me, will help users to be a part of a picture, even for the person taking a photo.

Meanwhile, the Video Boost, available only on the Pro models, is getting a few enhancements thanks to AI. Users can zoom in videos to 20X zoom, upscale them to 8K, and apply HDR+ to the entire zoom range.

Pricing

The Pixel 9 base model will start at €899 in Europe, the Pixel 9 Pro at €1099, and the Pixel 9 Pro XL at €1199. For those who buy Pro devices, Google has included a year of Google’s One AI Premium plan.

The devices will come in obsidian, porcelain, hazel, and peony colors.

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