Google Nexus 2016 rumors: Upgraded Nexus 6P in the works?

Google Nexus 6PScreengrab/ Google Nexus 6P

Previously, it has been hinted that Huawei will be doing another Nexus run, after it reportedly trademarks the "7P" tag. The speculations seem to be true, as supposed leaks start to come out about an upgraded Nexus 6P flagship.

According to GSM Arena, a new "Google Nexus 6P" flagship has been spotted in a benchmark website. Reportedly, the new iteration carries a Snapdragon 820 processor, paired with 4 GB of RAM. In addition, the supposed model is already running on Android N.

The industry follower said that could this be the refreshed, 2016 edition of the current Nexus 6P iteration. The upgrade is already evident on the internals, as the current Nexus 6P is working on last year's Snapdragon 810 processor, with 3 GB of RAM for performance. Meanwhile, having run on Android N, Google may be positioning this device as one of the launching vehicles for the upcoming new Android platform. If there will not be any major changes other than the chipset and RAM, fans may expect a refreshed Nexus 6P at this year's Google I/O Conference, slated for next month.

Refreshing the Nexus 6P iteration is certainly plausible, since the top-tier Nexus flagship still enjoys quite a following among Android users. In fact, the Nexus 6P is still being considered as one of the top-tier competitors, even with the onslaught of newer flagship iterations in the market. According to Android Authority, although the Nexus 6P is considered to be a 2016 flagship, it can still hold its own against newer flagships like the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge.

Meanwhile, it remains to be seen if a "refreshed" Nexus 6P is just an addition to the Nexus lineup, or if Google will be including it as one of its major 2016 releases. Recently, it has already been rumored that Google partnered with HTC for a new batch of Nexus phones, and that HTC is already working on two flagships codenamed "Marlin" and "Sailfish."