Pixel 7, Pixel 7 Pro Features to Come to Older Models via Upcoming Feature Drop: Report

The biometric face unlock feature will remain exclusive to the Google Pixel 7 and the Pixel 7 Pro.

Written by Sheldon Pinto, Edited by David Delima | Updated: 7 October 2022 15:26 IST

Pixel 7, Pixel 7 Pro Features to Come to Older Models via Upcoming Feature Drop: Report

Pixel feature drops add new features to older Pixel smartphones

Highlights

Some Pixel 7 features will only be available on Tensor-powered devices
Clear Calling reduces background noise
Guided Frame helps those with poor eyesight snap a selfie

With the Google Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro now announced there are some new features that will remain exclusive to the new smartphones that are powered by the company's new Tensor G2 processor. Shortly after the launch of the successors to the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro, a new report has claimed that Google's next feature-drop will bring some of these features to older Pixel smartphones. The company regularly releases new feature drops for its Pixel-branded smartphones that add or enable new features, or improve existing functionality.

Google's next feature-drop, according to PhoneArena is slated for December this year, and will reportedly bring some of the features we saw launched with the Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro models. One detail to take note of is that bigger features will only be arriving to Tensor-powered smartphones, which includes the Pixel 6a (officially launched in India), Pixel 6 and the Pixel 6 Pro models. However, there are a few others that will arrive on non-Tensor Pixel devices as well.

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Clear Calling which is powered by the Tensor processor will be coming to older Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro models. The feature reduces background noise when on voice calls. Also included alongside clear calling is the new quick phrase letting users drop an incoming call by simply saying the word “silence”. Guided Frame which was also announced with the Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro smartphones will be coming to older Tensor-powered devices. It is an accessibility-related feature that lets those with poor eyesight snap a selfie by giving out voice commands helping them position the phone in real-time.

Real Tone, which according to Google accurately shows diverse skin tones is already available on the Pixel 6a, but improvements that have arrived for the Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro will soon be available on older Tensor-powered Pixels as well. Spatial Audio that is arriving via an update on the Pixel Buds Pro, will also be available on the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro models, as per the report.

Coming to the features that don't rely on the Tensor processors, there's the ‘At a Glance' widget available on the home screen that will now show additional information along with already available information that is normally relayed via the widget. Audio Message Transcription, will also be coming to older non-Tensor smartphones including the Pixel 4a.

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To recall, the Google Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro will go on sale in India next week. The phones have been launched at Rs 59,999 and 84,999 respectively and will only be available in single RAM and storage variants in India. Both smartphones run Google's new Tensor G2 processor and come with subtle improvements over the previous Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro models which were not launched by Google in India. The new smartphones will go on sale on Flipkart on 13 October with pre-bookings already open.

What do we know about the upcoming Pixel 7 and 7 Pro? We discuss this on Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.

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Google Pixel 6a

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
IP67-rated design
Impressive cameras for photos
Vibrant OLED display
Stock Android 13 software

Bad
Plastic back is prone to scratches
60Hz display does not feel fluid
Cannot handle heavy gaming
Recorded video needs work
Relatively slow charging, no wireless charging
Battery life could be better

Read detailed Google Pixel 6a review

Display 6.10-inch

Processor Google Tensor

Front Camera 8-megapixel

Rear Camera 12.2-megapixel + 12-megapixel

RAM 6GB

Storage 128GB

Battery Capacity 4410mAh

OS Android 13

Resolution 1080x2400 pixels

More Google mobiles Google mobiles price in India

Google Pixel 6

KEY SPECS
NEWS

Display 6.40-inch

Processor Google Tensor

Front Camera 8-megapixel

Rear Camera 50-megapixel + 12-megapixel

RAM 8GB

Storage 128GB, 256GB

Battery Capacity 4614mAh

OS Android 12

Resolution 1080x2400 pixels

More Google mobiles Google mobiles price in India

Google Pixel 6 Pro

KEY SPECS
NEWS

Display 6.70-inch

Processor Google Tensor

Front Camera 11.1-megapixel

Rear Camera 50-megapixel + 12-megapixel + 48-megapixel

RAM 8GB, 12GB

Storage 128GB, 256GB

Battery Capacity 5003mAh

OS Android 12

Resolution 1440x3120 pixels

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Google Pixel 4a

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Reliable camera performance
Lean software with guaranteed updates
Stereo speakers
Vivid OLED display
Light, built well

Bad
Relatively low battery capacity
No ultra-wide camera

Read detailed Google Pixel 4a review

Display 5.81-inch

Processor Qualcomm Snapdragon 730G

Front Camera 8-megapixel

Rear Camera 12.2-megapixel

RAM 6GB

Storage 128GB

Battery Capacity 3140mAh

OS Android 10

Resolution 1080x2340 pixels

More Google mobiles Google mobiles price in India

Google Pixel 7

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Sharp, 90Hz display
Good quality cameras
Good gaming performance
Bloatware-free software, timely updates
Good battery life
IP68 rating

Bad
Video recording could be better
Gets warm under load
No bundled charger
Relatively slow charging

Read detailed Google Pixel 7 review

Display 6.30-inch

Processor Google Tensor G2

Front Camera 10.8-megapixel

Rear Camera 50-megapixel + 12-megapixel

RAM 8GB

Storage 128GB

OS Android 13

Resolution 1080x2400 pixels

More Google mobiles Google mobiles price in India

Google Pixel 7 Pro

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Sharp, 120Hz display
Good quality cameras
Good gaming performance
Bloatware-free software, timely updates
Premium design, IP68 rating

Bad
Gets warm under load
No bundled charger
Underwhelming battery life
Relatively slow charging

Read detailed Google Pixel 7 Pro review

Display 6.70-inch

Processor Google Tensor G2

Front Camera 10.8-megapixel

Rear Camera 50-megapixel + 48-megapixel + 12-megapixel

RAM 12GB

Storage 128GB

OS Android 13

Resolution 1440x3120 pixels

More Google mobiles Google mobiles price in India

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Further reading: Google Pixel 7, Google Pixel 7 Pro, Pixel feature drop, Google, Google Pixel 6a

Sheldon Pinto

Email Sheldon Pinto

Sheldon Pinto is based in Mumbai, and has several years of experience in reviewing smartphones and gadgets. As a Senior Reviewer at Gadgets 360, you will always find him deeply immersed in his reviews, switching from one phone to another. When the battery dies out, Sheldon is always browsing the web for a good sci-fi movie or reading up on cars and bikes. He also loves creating lists of interesting places to eat and travel. Sheldon is available on Twitter at @shellshocd, and you can mail him at ...More