Report: Google Will Downgrade Base Pixel 10 Cameras To Match Pixel 9a, Adds Telephoto

A telephoto camera has been expected for Google’s base Pixel 10 following prior leaks, but a new report now suggests that the main camera sensor will also end up seeing a downgrade.

Google’s non-Pro Pixel releases have followed a similar pattern for the past few generations. Similar core specs and cameras, with the main downgrade usually being the lack of a telephoto camera. This year, things are changing, both in good and bad ways it seems.

Android Authority cites a “source inside Google” claiming that the Pixel 10 Pro and Pixel 10 Pro XL will share the same camera hardware as the Pixel 9 Pro generation. The base Pixel 10, though, will swap out some of its camera components entirely.

This leak proposes that the Pixel 10 will add a telephoto camera, as previously hinted, with an 11MP Samsung sensor being used for those zoom shots. There’s no word on the level of optical zoom provided. However, this is the same Samsung 3J1 sensor used for the Pixel 9 Pro Fold’s telephoto camera, so it stands to reason the same 5x periscope lens may apply. This fits in line with our theory of how a base Pixel 10 with a telephoto lens could make sense. The same sensor is used for the front-facing camera, just as it was for the Pixel 9 last year.

Beyond that, though, the main and ultrawide camera sensors are swapped out. The main 50MP sensor would now be a Samsung GN8, the same main sensor from the Pixel 9a, rather than the Samsung GNV that’s used in Pixel 9, as well as Pixel 10 Pro and Pixel 10 Pro XL. It’s an interesting downgrade. Similarly, the ultrawide sensor would drop from a 48MP Sony IMX858 to a 13MP Sony IMX712, again matching the Pixel 9a. This seems like a bizarre decision, especially as the base Pixel flagship and the latest Pixel a-series device already tend to share a lot in common. As such, we’d certainly recommend taking this one with a grain of salt.

The report also claims a major camera upgrade for Pixel 10 Pro Fold, with the same main camera sensor as Google’s other upcoming Pro devices.

Pixel 10 Pro Fold reportedly still won’t match the camera in Google’s other Pro devices

It was also revealed recently that Google is apparently working on a new, fully custom camera ISP for the Pixel 10 series with its Tensor G5 chipset. In theory, this could help bridge the camera on the hardware changes, but it’s hard to say anything this early.

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