Which would you rather keep: the camera or the chip?
With the Pixel 6 out and about, speculation turns to the next new thing that isn’t out yet. For many, that means the Pixel 6a. Already we have established that it will likely look like its older sibling, but how good will it be and how much will it cost Google (and the all-important consumer)? Today, more light is shining on a couple of important spec lines.
According to a 9to5Google teardown of the Google Camera app, the company has already laid a footprint of what the Pixel 6a’s cameras will be:
- A rear-facing 12.2MP Sony IMX363
- A rear-facing 12MP IMX386 ultrawide
- A front-facing 8MP IMX355
The IMX386 and 355 have been carried over from the Pixel 6, but its 50MP Samsung GN1 sensor has not — it’s been traded for the IMX363 which has been in Google’s phones since at least the Pixel 3 series.
Google, which typically uses fish-based nicknames for Pixel devices in development, has reportedly elected to call the 6a “bluejay” in the app. 9to5 also indicates from “elsewhere” that the Pixel 6’s Tensor GS101 SoC will be included on the 6a.
Of course, it would’ve been nice to combine the immense horsepower of the Tensor chip with quality data coming in from the larger GN1 sensor, but the Pixel A-series has always been about navigating compromise for value. Rationalizing research, development, and exclusivity of that chipset may have priority over a super-resolution camera.
Part of that compromise will be time — even with a couple shots of intelligence, there’s little reason right now to believe that the 6a will be coming any sooner than the previous ones did. The 5a and 4a were announced in August of this year and last year, respectively (the odd-one-out 4a 5G followed the 4a on September 30) and the 3a came into the picture in May of 2019.
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