Google has just made official the new Pixel smartphone flagships. Both the base model Pixel and the Pixel XL are expected to have a global release soon, most likely before the month ends. Meanwhile, speculations suggest that the new lineup's maker was supposed to be Huawei.
The HTC-built Pixel and Pixel XL flagships are now official and are now listed at Google's online store. However, the two new flagships are still on a pre-order basis, although the listing itself hints that iterations will be up for global release soon.
Pre-orders for the Pixel and Pixel XL are live in the U.S., UK, Canada, Germany, and Australia, starting at $649. Meanwhile, it is confirmed that the pre-orders for India will begin on Oct. 13. It is unclear if the India announcement will be closely followed with launches in other regions. As for the current pre-order status, fans can get the new iterations as Verizon exclusive and from Best Buy stores. However, those who are not using the networks can also pre-purchase an unlocked, global version of the flagships via the Google Store.
Though the official debut of the Pixel lineup has been concluded recently, fans already know specs and features of the iterations, as supposed leaks of the Pixel and Pixel XL have floated online for some time now.
It is confirmed that the devices will feature the new Snapdragon 821 chipset which will be paired with 4 GB of RAM. It is also revealed that the new Pixel lineup is the next-generation Google smartphone series, outside of the Nexus flagships.
Brian Rakowski, VP of Product Management, stated: "Through Nexus, the goal was to work with these various partners to push the boundaries of what's possible with a smartphone. We've now decided to take the next step and provide our take on the best Google experience, by bringing hardware and software design together under one roof."
Meanwhile, speculations suggest that HTC was not the first choice to make the new Pixel lineups. Google had, reportedly, first tapped Huawei to be its tech partner for the new flagships. However, the China-based tech maker left the negotiations table when Google stipulated that there will be no partner logos on the Pixel flagships.
