Google Pixel 9, 9 Pro, 9 Pro XL, and 9 Pro Fold launch with punchy pricing and upgraded AI cameras

Google has announced four new smartphones at its Made by Google 2024 event, with the Pixel 9, Pixel 9 Pro, Pixel 9 Pro XL, and Pixel 9 Pro Fold being its most expansive mobile line-up to date. All four phones pack Google's latest AI camera and editing tools the Pixel series has become known for, and the Pixel 9 Pro finally brings Google's finest camera hardware to a more compact form.

If you're wondering why the Pixel 9 Pro getting a top-tier camera is a big deal, historically, Google released the Pixel 7 or Pixel 8, and the Pixel 7 Pro or Pixel 8 Pro, with the Pro always being larger and packing a superior camera. This typically meant Pro users benefited from a periscope zoom, while vanilla Pixel users had to settle for in-sensor cropping.

For 2024, the smaller Pixel 9 Pro is added to the lineup and features an identical camera mix to the Pixel 9 Pro XL, with all four Pixels sporting shared styling that marries flat backs, flat sides, and curved corners.

Google Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 9 Pro XL

The best cameras on the new Pixel phones are on the 9 Pro and 9 Pro XL, so it's little wonder they're the priciest non-folding Pixels this year. You can pick each up with either 128GB, 256GB, 512GB or 1TB storage, with pricing below.

Both Pro Pixels feature the same triple camera mix around the back:

Wide: 50MP 1/1.31-inch sensor, f/1.68 aperture lens with OIS
Ultra-wide: 48MP 1/2.55-inch sensor, f/1.7 aperture lens with autofocus
Telephoto: 48MP 1/2.55-inch sensor, f/2.8 aperture lens with 5x optical equivalent reach and OIS

Eagle-eyed readers might spot that this is the same sensor mix introduced on the Pixel 8 Pro, with the only hardware upgrade appears to be the faster f/1.7 aperture on the ultra-wide.

Both the Pixel 9 Pro and 9 Pro XL's front cameras are 42MP sensor + f/2.2 lens combos with autofocus and a 103º ultra-wide field of view.

With both phones enjoying the same Tensor G4 chipset, ultra-bright OLED screen technology with 3000 nits peak brightness, 45W fast charging, and wireless charging, plus 16GB RAM, it really is the screen size and battery capacity that differentiates the Pixel 9 Pro and 9 Pro XL.

The Pixel 9 Pro's display is a Pixel 9-matching 6.3 inches, and its battery is 4700mAh, while the Pixel 9 Pro XL's display is 6.8 inches, and its battery is 5060mAh.

Google Pixel 9

The Google Pixel 9's camera mix is very similar to the 9 Pro and 9 Pro XL, missing out on the periscope camera and dropping the front camera resolution. The phone's storage options are also dialed down as is its price:

The Pixel 9 looks very similar to the Pixel 9 Pro, sporting virtually identical dimensions, which include a 6.3-inch display, a 152.8mm height, and an 8.5mm depth. It also weighs 1g less at 198g, and has the same battery capacity of 4700mAh. The screen is a little bit less brilliant, with a lower peak brightness of 2700 nits, and it's slightly less sharp too. It also has 12GB RAM versus the 16GB in the Pixel 9 Pro, and the selfie camera is a lower 10.5MP resolution.

The Pixel 9's many similarities with the 9 Pro make it a more premium counterpart to both the Pixel 9 Pro and 9 Pro XL than an iPhone 15 is to the 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max, a fact that should make it an attractive prospect for Pixel fans given the high prices of both Pro models.

Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold

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Arguably the most exciting Pixel to launch at Made by Google 2024 is the new Pixel 9 Pro Fold, an update to the original Pixel Fold which combined a respectable camera with middling hardware when we tested it. With a total design overhaul, the new 9 Pro Fold looks set to benefit from taller screens, styling that reminds us of the Oppo Find N3 and OnePlus Open, and similar camera hardware to its predecessor, not to mention a foldable-grade price tag.

The Pixel 9 Pro Fold's camera is more modestly specced than that of the Pixel 9 and 9 Pro given the limited space foldables offer for optics and sensors, though Google does fit a triple camera mix around the back:

Wide: 48MP 1/2-inch sensor, f/1.7 aperture lens with OIS
Ultra-wide: 10.5MP 1/3.4-inch sensor, f/2.2 aperture lens with autofocus
Telephoto: 10.8MP 1/3.2-inch sensor, f/3.1 aperture lens with 5x optical equivalent reach and OIS

The 9 Pro Fold also has two selfie cameras with 10MP resolutions and f/2.2 apertures, one in the cover display and one in the main display.

The foldable's screen sizes look super-competitive, with a Pixel 9-matching 6.3-inch cover screen and a huge 8-inch inner display. With a 10.5mm depth when closed and a 257g weight, while the 9 Pro Fold isn't the lightest foldable around, it's a huge improvement over the 12.1mm, 283g original Pixel Fold.

Google's also kitted the Pixel 9 Pro Fold out with the same Tensor G4 chipset found in the rest of the series, 16GB RAM, and fast 45W charging plus wireless charging.

Google is clearly justifying its premium prices with a hardware and software one-two punch for 2024. After all, each Pixel 9 is set to get seven years of major OS updates, Google VPN at no extra cost, spam protection, and Google caller ID, as well as a suite of image editing features including the new Add Me tool for composited group shots.

Check back for our full reviews of all four Pixels in the coming weeks, and to find out what the Pixel 9 series's competition looks like, here's our guide to the best camera phones of 2024.