Google Adopts Notch Design but Only for the Pixel XL 3, Report Claims

Reports are saying that Google will get on board the notch train that current Android devices are on but will use the design only on the bigger Pixel variant, the Pixel XL 3.

Since the release of the iPhone X, there have a been a lot of manufacturers that did not hesitate to copy the notch design seen on the premium Apple smartphone with an edge-to-edge screen. The release of Android phones with notches came so close to iPhone X’s release that some thought it could be the next design trend other smartphone makers will follow.

Google released the Pixel 2 series but has obviously skipped the notch craze. But that is going to change this year if a recent insider report will turn out to be accurate.

According to mobile technology observer Roland Quandt, WinFuture obtained documents that provide some specific details about the Pixel 3 lineup. The standard model Pixel 3 is internally called the Google GC1 and was described with phrases like “more traditional” in terms of its hardware. As seen in leaked images that circulated in China recently, the base model Pixel 3 is likely going to have the typical screen design, leaving the possibility of a notch to the Pixel XL 3.

Google is rumored to be going all out for the Pixel XL 3. Quandt’s source material indicates that the bigger device is codenamed Google GB1 and will sport a “new display hardware” along with new cameras and sensors.

The report did not elaborate on the type of sensors the Pixel XL 3 will have. But if people will take a look at the trend among new sensors on premium smartphones, most of them are aiming to capture 3D images that typical selfie cameras cannot do.

Meanwhile, Quandt’s report also mentioned that the launch of the Pixel 3 series could happen sometime between August and September this year. Google Pixel fans will notice that this is a little bit earlier than the Oct. 4 schedule that Google had for both the first Pixel and Pixel 2 lineups.