We’ve been tracking three codenames related to the Made lineup of Google’s 2020 Pixel phones for months now. Now all three codenames with associated product names like “Pixel 5” and “Pixel 4a 5G” have appeared in the Google app.
We’ve been warning since we started hearing about these codenames that the Pixel 5 that will be released — presumably this fall — may not have the “flagship” specs that Pixel fans are used to. We had then discovered two codenames of Google’s device — “redfin” and “bramble” — based on the upper mid-tier, 5G – enabled Snapdragon 765G SoC. At the time, we had no reason to assume that the Pixel 5 and Pixel 5 XL would be anything but this.
Today, our own Dylan Roussel has dug into the code for the latest beta version of the Google Search app searching for redfin and bramble — or perhaps “fishing.” Instead of coming up empty, as usual, he appears to have found names for the entire Google Pixel lineup in 2020.
Instead of announcing the upcoming Pixel 4a and the two planned Pixel 5 models, however, the Google app doesn’t list a “Pixel 5 XL” and instead lists bramble as the “Pixel 4a (5G).”
How does that mean, then? Evidence has so far pointed to bramble using the Snapdragon 765G chip, which is equipped for 5G networking of course. This will mean that it would run on the same main hardware this “Pixel 4a (5G)” and the Pixel 5 — which may very well launch side by side this fall —.
But how is Google going to differentiate among these two seemingly very similar devices? The most obvious ways they can do that are through cost and differences in quality building. By using “cheaper” materials such as plastic on the Pixel 4a (5G) and more “premium” materials such as glass and aluminum on the Pixel 5 the two could obviously look and feel different.
Other than that, Google can differentiate between the two devices based on their other specs and features. Speculating is still too early, because this is uncharted territory for Google, which has always released two variants of each Pixel phone — a standard version and an upsized version of “XL.” Google is clearly launching three separate phones with three distinct goals for 2020. Needless to say, the Made by Google event this year will be an exciting experience.
