New Pixel 4 XL renders show large forehead, bottom-facing speakers

We’ve already had some official sneak peaks at the Pixel 4 thanks to none other than Google, but official images just don’t feel as fun as leaked images sourced from places unknown.

The first render, which prompted Google to respond in kind, wasn’t all that glamorous, but @Onleaks is known for coming up with the goods most of the time.

The proviso with these latest renders if that they are based on CAD schematics given to case and accessory makers, and they confirm a couple of things for us – first, the Pixel 4 XL has a reasonable top-bezel (or Neanderthal style forehead) but fortunately not a notch, and secondly, there’s some bottom firing speakers.

There’s two cameras within the forehead, meaning we’ll likely have the standard and wide-angle selfie cameras which came on the Pixel 3 XL. @Onleaks also refers to a space on the right of the camera sensors which could house an IR emitter for better facial recognition – which fits nicely with a rumour we saw just the other day about this.

The Pixel 4 XL will be a somewhat sizeable phone, with a rumoured 6.25-inch display. Being based on CAD schematics, there’s some pretty precise measurements for the phone itself, and the size given here is 160.4 x 75.2 x 8.2mm, but there’s a bit of a camera bump for the rear module which takes that thickness to 9.3mm.

There’s no hint in these renders of a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor, suggesting that – as Google often does – it might be taking the lead in getting rid of the somewhat fallible biometric sensor and replacing it with another, more fallible biometric sensor (in the form of a front-facing IR emitter / sensor combo).

With three months or so until the Pixel 4 is released, there’s likely to be a lot more info in the coming weeks and months. From this far out, it’s hard to predict too much with certainty, except to say that the Pixel 4 range will likely launch with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 855 processor, more than the measly 4GB of RAM in the Pixel 3 range, and perhaps even a Project Soli radar chip for advanced gesture control.