Google has unveiled the new Pixel 5 and 4a (5G) smartphones. Among other things, the new phones feature a new ultrawide lens as well as the ability to shoot Night Sight photos in Portrait mode.
New Ultrawide Camera
While the Pixel 4 featured a 16MP telephoto camera alongside the 12.2-megapixel standard camera, the Pixel 5 and 4a (5G) go the opposite direction, packing a 16MP ultrawide camera with a 107˚ field of view.
Instead of 2x optical zoom, the phone will continue to offer zoom capabilities through high-tech digital zoom.
“With a new ultrawide lens alongside the standard rear camera, you’ll be able to capture the whole scene,” Google says. “And thanks to Google’s software magic, the latest Pixels still get our Super Res Zoom. So whether you’re zooming in or zooming out, you get sharp details and breathtaking images.”
Night Sight in Portrait Mode
Google Night Sight, which uses computational photography to let users shoot photos in near darkness, is teaming up with Portrait Mode, which uses computational photography to create a shallow depth-of-field in portraits.
“[T]hese phones bring the power of Night Sight into Portrait Mode to capture beautifully blurred backgrounds in Portraits even in extremely low light,” Google says.
Portrait Light
When shooting Portrait Mode portraits, you can use the new Portrait Light feature to drop in extra light to illuminate your subjects with the help of AI. The feature is also found baked into the updated Google Photos app.
Cinematic Pan
The new Cinematic Pan feature “gives your videos a professional look with ultrasmooth panning that’s inspired by the equipment Hollywood directors use.”
Other Features and Specs
The Google Pixel 5 features a 6-inch 432ppi Smooth Display of up to 90Hz, a >1,000,000:1 contrast ratio, Gorilla Glass 6 cover glass, 100% recycled aluminum back enclosure, water resistance, wireless charging, a 4080 mAh “all-day” battery, fast wireless charging, 8GB RAM, and 128GB storage.
The Google Pixel 4a (5G) features a 6.2-inch 413ppi display, a >100,000:1 contrast ratio, 3885 mAh battery (up from 3140 mAh in the Pixel 4), 6GB RAM, and 128GB storage.
The Pixel 5 and Pixel 4a (5G) both also boast 8MP front cameras, Android 11, HDR support, Snapdragon 765G with Octa-Core and Adreno 620 processors, full 24-bit depth for 16 million colors, 5G speeds for downloading and streaming, and Google’s Titan security chip for keeping data safe (with 3 years of updates).
The Google Pixel 5 will be available in the US on October 29th with a price tag of $699 and the Pixel 4a (5G) will be available in November with a price tag of $499.
Image credits: All images and videos by Google