Leaks for the Google Pixel 9 Pro XL just can’t be stopped it seems, as we’ve now got a full on-camera hands-on with the new Google phone.
YouTuber Andro-news is the source of the new video, which features a Pixel 9 Pro XL engineering sample supplied by Pixophone. This means it’s not functional as it lacks the necessary firmware, but it still gives us a very detailed look at the phone’s body.
The new Pixel features a flat-edged design, with the sides made of polished metal and the back made of matte-textured glass. It’s easy to see this as an evolution of the Pixel 8 series, which used curved sides but flat displays.
Another big visual change is the “camera bar” on the back, which now floats freely rather than connecting to the side rails, although it’s still basically the same width as the rest of the phone. It also contains three cameras like before, believed to be the same 50MP main/48MP ultrawide/48MP telephoto combination as last year’s Pixel 8 Pro.
As for the more practical parts of the design, Andro-news tells us that Google’s left the Pixel 9 Pro XL’s buttons where you’d expect from previous Pixels. However, Google has moved the SIM tray to the bottom edge of the phone instead of the side like before; something to keep in mind if you buy this phone and struggle to find where your SIM card is meant to go.
Few secrets left
Andro-news doesn’t turn the Pixel 9 Pro XL sample on, so at least Google still has something to show off for the first time when it launches the phone. But that’s where other leaks can come in.
According to various other sources we’ve seen over the past few months, the Pixel 9 series will be another generation of Pixel focused on AI-powered features, such as Pixel Screenshots for retrieving information from screengrabs you’ve taken, or free access to Gemini Advanced for a year. There will be some hardware upgrades too though, like a new chipset named the Tensor G4, more RAM and brighter displays.
August 13th’s Made by Google event could be a busy event, as we’re expecting four different Pixel flagship phones to launch: the regular Pixel 9, the smaller Pixel 9 Pro, the larger Pixel 9 Pro XL and the flexible Pixel 9 Pro Fold. You can read more about them in all our linked rumor hubs.