Google’s Pixel 10 cameras are a mixed bag of upgrades, downgrades, and stagnation

Google’s follow-up to the August 2024-released Pixel 9 — the Pixel 10 series — is poised to arrive in just a little over four months from now. Model numbers for the upcoming series leaked all the way back in February, followed by early renders that paint a very familiar picture.

Surprisingly, though, the renders highlight the base Pixel 10 donning not two, but three rear cameras, with subsequent leaks confirming a major shift in Google’s camera strategy — the arrival of a telephoto/periscope lens on the base model.

The device has since made an appearance in AOSP, highlighting potential startup speed improvements.

Now, as anticipation for the upcoming series intensifies, new leaks are starting to paint a better picture of the complete Pixel 10 series’ camera hardware, detailing not only the Pixel 10, Pixel 10 Pro, and the Pixel 10 Pro XL, but also the Pixel 10 Pro Fold. Psst, it’s a mixed bag of upgrades, downgrades, and some unchanged hardware.

The camera leak comes courtesy of credible leaker Kamila Wojciechowska, quoting a source inside Google in a report for Android Authority.

Pixel 10

Confirming the earlier leaks, Wojciechowska suggests that the Pixel 10 will indeed be the first base Pixel to offer a rear telephoto lens, albeit with sacrifices in tow. The addition comes at the expense of the primary and ultrawide cameras, with the base device’s camera system reportedly being inferior to last year’s base Pixel 9, and more in line with the mid-range Pixel 9a.

The Pixel 10 will use the same 50 MP Samsung GN8 main and 13 MP Sony IMX712 ultrawide sensors as the Pixel 9a, which are both smaller than the sensors deployed on the base Pixel 9. The selfie camera, on the flip side, remains unchanged, while the telephoto lens will be the Samsung 3J1 — the same as the Pixel 9 Pro Fold, albeit with a slightly smaller megapixel count.

Offering slightly inferior cameras could be Google’s way of offsetting costs related to the new telephoto camera. Alternatively, the smaller sensors could also be necessary change needed to fit in the additional telephoto.

Pixel 10 Pro and Pixel 10 Pro XL

Contrary to the changes expected with the base Pixel 10, camera specs for the higher-end Pixel 10 Pro and Pixel 10 Pro XL remain unchanged, with software-side photography tweaks likely to drive image quality improvements, if any.

Pixel 10 Pro Fold

Google’s camera strategy for the Pixel 10 Pro Fold also likely relies on computational improvements, with only the main sensor being changed from the Sony IMX787 (seen on the Pixel 8a) to the Samsung GN8 (seen on the Pixel 9a and potentially the base Pixel 10).

At this rate, the upcoming Pixel 10 series is shaping up to be lukewarm in the camera department. Considering that leaked renders highlight more of the same, the Pixel 10 series might just be an iterative spec-based refresh, with the new Tensor G5 chipset being the only notable improvement.