Google is expected to announce its 2017 Pixel range in October later this year. The 2017 Pixel smartphone codenamed Walleye will be made by HTC and sport both top and bottom bezels.
Google's 2017 Pixel, the smaller of the two models, will not feature a bezel-less design seen on recent flagship smartphones. According to VentureBeat, which has obtained pictures of Google's Pixel successor, the handset will feature a prominent top and bottom bezel similar to its predecessor.
Google's successor to Pixel XL, codenamed Taimen, has already leaked in the form of renders revealing its switch to smaller bezels. The new report, however, confirms that 2017 Pixel will only bring iterative changes in terms of design and will be manufactured by HTC. It further notes that neither of the Pixel successors will be adopting dual camera setup, a growing trend among major smartphone manufacturers like Huawei, Apple, LG and even Samsung joining the fray with its Galaxy Note8.
Google is reportedly adopting dual OEM strategy for its 2017 Pixel lineup with HTC building the smaller Pixel codenamed Walleye and LG getting the contract for designing Pixel XL codenamed Taimen. While Pixel is missing out on thinner bezel design, it will get enhanced with HTC features like stereo sound and frame-embedded pressure sensors. Blass reports for VentureBeat that both 2017 Pixel smartphones will feature front-facing stereo speakers and pressure sensitive frame feature called Edge Sense first seen on HTC's U11 flagship.
Like Apple, Motorola and HTC, Google is also doing away with the 3.5mm headphone jack, which should come as a bummer. Google's move to not minimise bezels on smaller Pixel could be due to the fact that HTC is yet to announce a smartphone with smaller bezel design. LG and Samsung hold the lead here with both the companies adopting such a design with their flagship G6 and S8 series respectively. LG has even managed to bring that design language to lower price range with the launch of its Q6 series.
Google's premise for last year's Pixel series was to offer great software experience with better hardware integration. For 2017, it seems to stick to that same ethos but the design seems to be getting neglected once again.
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