Made by Google Pixel Launch Event Revealed Pixel 9

Usually, the month of August is the sleepy period for all tech-related news and updates. This changed recently after Google scooted up its annual October Pixel event by two months. The tech world has awakened when almost everyone is going over everything that the executives announced from Mountain View, California at the Made By Google keynote last 13 August.

The Pixel 9 launch event came with enthusiastic introductions for all the hardware we expected, including the new Pixel 9 and its sizable camera bump. The Pixel 9 Pro and the larger Pixel 9 Pro XL made their official debut, too, and the new foldable, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold, does indeed measure just 0.4 inches thick.

The new Pixel Watch 3 and Pixel Buds Pro 2 have now been revealed, as were plenty of software features, mostly in the form of Gemini integrations. One surprise was the not-loudly-stated fact that Pixel 9 Phones won't launch with the Android 15 operating system — they'll have Android 14 to start.

For the play-by-play, you can check out our liveblog or check out Google's stream. If you just want the highlights, here's everything announced at the 2024's Made by Google Pixel event.

What you first notice about Google's latest Pixel 9 is the redesigned look. The camera band has been replaced with oblong oval that stands proud from a slab that's about a tenth of an inch thinner than the Pixel 8. The screen size has bumped back up to 6.3 inches, after dipping to 6.2 inches on the Pixel 8, and is covered in Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2. It's got a polished glass back with satin metal finishes on the frame and cameras.

Speaking of cameras, there's the same number as last year (two in the back, one in the front) but the previous generation's 12 MP ultrawide lens has been replaced with a 48 MP ultrawide lens. The other two cameras have the same specs, except the front cam now has autofocus for better selfies. To take advantage of those fancy sensors, new AI photography enhancements like Add Me and Reimagine join the existing Magic Editor, Night Sight and Best Take features.

The Pixel 9 houses the same Tensor G4 chip, designed to be better at everyday tasks, while using up less battery. That's the same chip as its more expensive siblings and now the base model Pixel comes with 12GB of memory, eliminating the option of an 8GB model. That extra RAM will help handle the many Gemini integrations coming standard in Android 15. Pressing and holding the power button will overlay the assistant on whatever you're doing on-screen and can answer questions, pull details from other apps, and produce contextualized recommendations based on images you take.