The Pixel 4’s chin is barely noticeable

Observed by UK-based blog This Teen Tech, the upcoming smartphone was being used on an airplane by what is presumed to be one of Google’s employees. The person in question appears to have been viewing some sort of video when the pictures were taken, something that has helped highlight the Pixel 4’s bezel situation.

The upper implementation, which is also known as the forehead, is just as thick as Google confirmed. That’s because it houses an all-new 3D facial recognition system, the Project Soli radar chip, a small speaker grill, and a single front-facing camera. The side bezels, on the other hand, are as thin as you’d expect from a 2019 flagship. But the real surprise comes with the chin.

Previous CAD-based renders of both the Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL suggested Google’s next flagship would sport a slightly thicker bottom bezel. However, today’s photos imply that this isn’t the case and Google may have instead taken a page out of Apple’s book by opting for symmetrical side and bottom bezels, although it’s worth pointing out that, due to the angle of the images, this could be exaggerated by the lighting. Either way, there’s no denying it’ll represent a rather drastic improvement over the thick bottom bezel present on the Pixel 3.

Could Google’s ‘Panda’ finish be making a return?

According to the person who saw it, the Pixel 4 unit in question boasted a volume rocker on the right side which sat below an orange-colored power key. The back housed Google’s all-new square-shaped camera setup which was covered in black glass, despite the back panel itself being white. It’s unclear at this stage if the phone was wearing some sort of skin designed to conceal its identity but it’s possible Google is preparing an updated version of the Pixel 2 XL’s ‘Panda’ finish wherein the back of the phone is now white and the front and sides are black.

Pricing information is yet to be confirmed but Google is unlikely to increase its retail price points this year because of poor Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL sales. The latter retailed at $799 and $899 respectively at launch but are now discounted to $499 and $599 until the end of September, thus suggesting the Pixel 4 series will either cost the same as the Pixel 3 series or slightly less.