Google’s next Android phone could land a lot sooner than we’d expected
Ready for sale
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
The next phone we’re expecting fromGoogleis thePixel 6a, but while recent rumors suggested it had been delayed (possiblyuntil July 28), there’s now evidence that it could launch a whole lot sooner than that, as what appears to be a retail box for the phone has leaked.
An image of the box was shared byTechxine– a site with no real track record yet, so we’d take this with a pinch of salt. Still, it looks convincing, matching the design of thePixel 6’s box but with Pixel 6a written on it. Though as a result this would also be easy toPhotoshop.
In any case, the box shows an image of the rear of the phone, which also looks a lot like the Google Pixel 6, albeit seemingly in a slightly different color. The phone shown here is black, like the Stormy Black Pixel 6, except unlike that phone the strip above the camera doesn’t appear to be a different shade. It’s all just black.
While on the one hand that means we’re probably not just looking at the Pixel 6, it’s also at odds withan earlier leak, which suggested the Google Pixel 6a would retain the two-tone stylings of that phone.
The design is otherwise as we expected from leaks and rumors though, looking basically identical to the Pixel 6, and packing a dual-lens rear camera – thoughleaks suggestone of the lenses used might differ from Google’s flagship, and we wouldn’t be surprised if plastic is used on the back in place of glass.
Analysis: a retail box suggests an imminent launch
While this leak doesn’t include any release date information, the fact that we’re seeing a retail box at all suggests that the Google Pixel 6a could land very soon.
Current leaks suggest that it might be unveiled atGoogle IOon May 11, but that it might thennot hit stores until late July, due to the ongoing chipset shortage. But that timeline seems unlikely if retail boxes are already in the wild.
Get the best Black Friday deals direct to your inbox, plus news, reviews, and more.
Sign up to be the first to know about unmissable Black Friday deals on top tech, plus get all your favorite TechRadar content.
If this box is genuine then, we’d think the phone might actually go on sale shortly after an announcement in May – though perhaps initially only in certain regions.
Of course, given the source, the ease with which this could have been Photoshopped, and the questionable color scheme, this retail box may well be fake anyway.
ViaPhandroid
James is a freelance phones, tablets and wearables writer and sub-editor at TechRadar. He has a love for everything ‘smart’, from watches to lights, and can often be found arguing with AI assistants or drowning in the latest apps. James also contributes to 3G.co.uk, 4G.co.uk and 5G.co.uk and has written for T3, Digital Camera World, Clarity Media and others, with work on the web, in print and on TV.
How to lock apps on a Google Pixel phone
I’m a die-hard Apple fan, but even I’ll admit that the Google Pixel 9 Pro is the best-looking phone of the year
Red One isn’t perfect but it proves we need more action-packed Christmas movies
