- Google has just received a design patent stating that a Pixel phone of the future could have an unseen design on iPhone or Galaxy S phones.
- Google could work on under-display camera technology, just like many other players in the industry. This should be an interesting prospect for iPhone users who expect a similar design from Apple.
- What sets Google’s efforts apart from others is the computational photography algorithms that have turned Pixel into one of the best camera phones on the market.
I have often explained why I am unlikely to switch from iPhone to Android. I’m too ingrained in the Apple ecosystem and everything “just * works”. Yes, there will be hiccups here and there, but the iPhone-Mac combination is unbeatable. It’s not just Apple hardware. It is the Apple hardware and software of these products and how they are related. Not to mention all the premium iPhone and / or Mac apps that I should leave behind. Add other items to the mix if you have them, such as Apple Watch, AirPods, iPad and Apple TV, and moving to Android is even more difficult.
Given all this, iPhone, iOS, Mac and macOS cannot evolve and remain competitive without any pressure from Google and Microsoft. The better Android and Windows and the more polished and reliable Android and Windows 10 become, the better the Apple experience will be. That’s why I totally like this Pixel innovation, and I hope Google finds a way to do that with Pixel 6 or 7.
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Google Pixel has never been the iPhone version of the Android ecosystem. Google has been a fast follower in most cases, looking for inspiration from Cupertino. The design and features of the iPhone have been adapted year after year, even if Google had criticized them first. Removing the headphone jack and rear cameras with multiple lenses are a few examples. Unfortunately, the result was not a phone as good as the iPhone. Google has encountered hardware or software issues with each or every generation of pixels. Some were fixable. Some have led to collective action solutions.
Pixel 5 is a highlight of the disappointments. Many praise the affordable price and high-end features, but the Pixel 5 is not the kind of phone it could have made. It’s not a flagship that can put real pressure on Apple.
This brings us to the following images of a future Pixel of Christmas. They come from a design patent that Google filed in mid-March 2019 at the USPTO. The agency just granted the pixel manufacturer’s patent in early December.
What the images show is a device that looks a lot like the current Pixel 5. It has a full screen display, a much better screen design choice than the awful Pixel 4. On the back, we have a camera system with two lenses, but I’m not interested in the back panel.
Absence from the screen is a perforated camera. This is the design used by Google for Pixel 5 and Pixel 4a this year. The implication seems to be that Google is already working on in-screen selfie technology. The design shows the location of the top speaker and buttons, so it should definitely feature the perforated camera.
“It’s not a surprise,” smartphone fans will say, given that all the major players in the business are developing one. In fact, ZTE is the first phone provider to launch a device with a camera under the screen. It is not widely available and is not a flagship, but it is the first in the world.
The problem with the cameras on the screen is the quality of the photos and selfie videos. Smartphone manufacturers need to find a way to get enough light to reach the sensor through the display that covers the camera. They need algorithms to compensate for the problems that arise and to ensure that the selfie experience is not sub-par. After all, selfies are another thing.
You must have realized by now why this Pixel patent is interesting. If Google wants to launch a Pixel phone with a camera under the screen, then Google is also developing its own algorithms for this technology. And Google knows how to make photo photography work. Pixel phones may have had various problems, but Google has turned them into amazing cameras, rivaling and surpassing other Android and iPhone. Night Sight mode was extremely low and forced everyone else to find an answer.
Google could do the same with the under-display camera algorithms and force everyone to adapt quickly. It’s not that companies, including Apple and Samsung, aren’t looking at the same technology. But it’s one thing to have only a ZTE phone and Xiaomi and Oppo concepts with technology. It’s completely different for Google to launch a Pixel 6 or 7 with a camera under the screen.
That being said, there is no guarantee that Google will actually be more successful than its rivals or that it will launch a Pixel phone with a perfect full screen design this year. However, the fact that he filed the patent last year shows that he is studying technology.
Apple is expected to maintain the notch for the iPhone for at least a year. Placing the camera under the screen is one thing. Doing the same thing with Face ID is something else entirely. But Apple is definitely trying to give buyers the same perfect iPhone on all screens. I’ve seen a lot of Apple patents and rumors over the years to support this.
Chris Smith began writing about gadgets as a hobby, and before he knew it, he was sharing his views on technical stuff with readers around the world. Whenever he doesn’t write about gadgets, he can’t stay away from them, even though he tries desperately. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing.