There’s no denying the Pixel 2 is a fantastic device. It’s build solidly, has the best experience Android has to offer and has a beastly camera few can compete with. Six months in, it’s halfway through its lifespan and it is only natural to look forward to the Pixel 3, which will likely be released this fall.
In doing so, TechnoBuffalo enlisted the help of noted design artist Ben Geskin to create a concept of what the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL may look like. The end result is something sure to be quite polarizing among Pixel fans.
Geskin’s concept is based on alleged leaked images of the front of the Pixel 3 may, with some some Pixel 2 DNA thrown in.
With the first generation Pixel, Google kept the same design between both small and large versions. It diverted with the Pixel 2, vastly differentiating the smaller version. In the concept, Geskin takes a similar approach with the Pixel 3. The standard Pixel 3 will keep a similar design to the Pixel 2 XL with the reduced display bezels, while the Pixel 3 XL goes in a completely new direction.
Just like every one of its contemporaries, Google is joining the notch bandwagon. Based on leaked images that have surfaced, the front of the Pixel 3 XL sports the notch at the top. Of all the nothches we’ve seen so far, this is among the larger ones. There’s a good reason for it, a second camera is living in there (more on that later), but there’s no denying it is a big notch.
A bezel of normal size flanks the bottom and houses a speaker grille, which means the Pixel 3 XL is returning the front-facing stereo speakers with the second speaker living in the notch.
The notch will house dual cameras in addition to the speaker. Google has elected to stick with one camera up until now, but the Pixel 3 may be the first device to use two cameras to produce even better images. It will do the same with the dual main camera system on the back. We can only imagine what type of images the Pixel 3 will produce with two cameras.
In keeping with offering users as many options as possible, there will be a mode that will hide the notch in case it’s not to your liking. The cutoff areas will turn black, just showing off the normal information like battery, signal, time and more.
Not much will change with the back of the phone. It will retain the same aesthetic as the Pixel 2: the two-tone glass and metal design is back. At the center lives the fingerprint scanner and the camera is still at the top left hand corner. Unfortunately this means wireless charging may again be omitted.
Last year Google made the questionable decision to keep the Black and White, or Panda, color option exclusively for the Pixel 2 XL, but in the concept images Geskin created shows how the color option looks on both the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL models. Unsurprisingly, it looks fantastic with the returning orange power button that adds a colorful flair.
Powering everything will be Android P. In the concept images, you can see the new interface led by the new swiping gestures.
Overall, the Pixel 3 concept Ben Geskin came up with is quite intriguing. Google may end up going in a completely different direction once it officially announces its next flagship, but if it looks anything like the concept above, it should instantly garner some fans (and some haters).
