Let's just say the new camera island's design is 'challenging'
(Image credit: Rozetked)
Despite likely still being around 6 months from launch, we've just had a leak of a possible Google Pixel 9 Pro. The leaked images show a device with a redesigned camera bump/island that was first displayed in renders back in January. This refreshed design is more prominent than the 'Robocop' wraparound camera island introduced with the Pixel 6, and appears to stick out further from the phone's rear panel. The new pill-shaped island's sharply defined edges are certainly distinctive, though we can't help but think its 'stuck-on' appearance makes it look like more of an afterthought than a neatly integrated design. Those chiselled edges also seem prone to catching on things and being chipped in daily use.
(Image credit: @onleaks / @mysmartprice)
Within the camera island, the individual camera modules appear similar to those in the Pixel 8 Pro: the smaller round module on the left is likely the ultrawide camera, while the primary (wide-angle) module appears in the middle. We presume the rectangular module on the right is a periscope telephoto camera, again following the arrangement of the Pixel 8 Pro.
The leaked photos are rumored to show a regular 6.1-inch Pixel 9 Pro as opposed to a larger 'XL' handset. Consequently the phone appears relatively compact when placed alongside an iPhone 14 Pro Max. The leak also shows the edges of the phone, which share the same polished metal finish as the Pixel 8 Pro and has the usual array of power & volume buttons, a USB-C port and speaker outlet alongside that. Another leaked image shows the bootloader screen, displaying amongst other things that this handset is equipped with 16GB RAM, which if correct means the Pixel 9 Pro would have 4GB more memory than the Pixel 8 Pro.
But as with any rumor/leak so far from a phone's likely launch, take all this with a generous helping of salt!
Ben is the Imaging Labs manager, responsible for all the testing on Digital Camera World and across the entire photography portfolio at Future. Whether he's in the lab testing the sharpness of new lenses, the resolution of the latest image sensors, the zoom range of monster bridge cameras or even the latest camera phones, Ben is our go-to guy for technical insight. He's also the team's man-at-arms when it comes to camera bags, filters, memory cards, and all manner of camera accessories – his lab is a bit like the Batcave of photography! With years of experience trialling and testing kit, he's a human encyclopedia of benchmarks when it comes to recommending the best buys.
