Google Pixel 4 XL: dramatic new Galaxy S10-like design revealed again in leak

Google unveiled two new smartphones during its annual developer conference, Google IO, earlier this month. Dubbed Pixel 3a and Pixel 3a XL, the handsets are a more affordable twist on the flagship Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL. However, these aren't the only smartphones purportedly planned by Google this year.

Provided that Google sticks with its typical release schedule, we're likely to get our first glimpse at the follow-up to the flagship Pixel 3 series in early October, with the smartphones hitting shelves worldwide the following month.

Thanks to a series of leaks around the feverishly-anticipated smartphone, we're starting to get a pretty good idea of the industrial design planned for the handset – no thanks to Google, which might've revealed the Pixel 4 in disguise this month.

• Google Pixel 3a review
• Google Pixel 3a XL review

Details are still a little thin on the ground, but there have been multiple leaks that suggest Google is looking to plump for a hole-punch display. Embedding the front-facing camera into a cut-out in the screen will allow Google to stretch the display to the very edge of the chassis, maximising the amount of screen real estate – while still maintaining a physical footprint that's small enough to use one-handed.

Samsung has opted for a similar approach with its flagship Galaxy S10e, Galaxy S10 and Galaxy S10 Plus series. Honor View 20 and Nokia X71 are other examples of the same hole-punch design.

According to the latest leak, shared on Slashleaks, Google has patented a design for a forthcoming smartphone that looks incredibly similar to the hole-punch camera we've seen from rival Android manufacturers. The image shows an elongated pill-shaped cut-out in the top left-hand corner of the display – the mirror image of the design we've already seen on the Galaxy S10 Plus. The latter includes a larger cut-out to house a dual-selfie system.

Google Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL introduced a second front-facing camera to enable ultra-wide angle selfies, so that large groups can take photographs that could normally only be achieved using a selfie stick. Based on the design revealed by the illustration filed with this official patent, the ultra-wide selfie system is here to stay.

Earlier whispers had suggested that Google would opt for this cut-out design with the Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL, leading some industrious designers to mock-up what the final product could look like. The patented illustration is further proof that earlier rumours were likely correct after all.

Other rumours point to the Google Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL using the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 system-on-a-chip, coupled with at least 6GB of RAM. Reports suggest Pixel 4 XL will have a dual rear-mounted camera as well – a first for the Pixel range. Google has always insisted it only needs a single lens to produce the same bokeh-style blur that rivals use dual-camera set-ups to achieve. If the company decides to add a second camera to Pixel 4 XL, it must have something else planned. 

Of course, the Made By Google hardware event, which has been held in October for the last three years, is still a long way away. As such, it's worth taking these images with a sizeable dose of salt – not to mention skepticism.

Lead Imaged Credit: Twitter / @PhoneDesigner