Will the upcoming Google Pixel 6 phone have its own Whitechapel processor?
There are many benefits to using your own chip in a company’s product. The company has full control over the hardware and software. Such as -the tech giant Apple; From the iPhone to the iMac or Mac range of laptops/computers, Apple is getting the benefit of using its own chipset in every product. Following in Apple’s footsteps, another US tech giant plans to use its own chipset on Google, Pixel, and Chromebook models. 9to5Google reports that the upcoming Pixel 6 (not an official name) smartphone will feature the Whitechapel chip developed by Google.
Google CEO Sundar Pichai said in a review of third-quarter earnings estimates in October last year that the company was investing heavily in hardware and had an ambitious roadmap for 2021. At the time, many assumed that Google had begun work on a chipset codenamed “Whitechapel.” The report claims that Google is working with Samsung to make the chipset again. Meanwhile, 9to5Google has seen some documents that indicate that the next-generation smartphone or Pixel 7 will be launched in October with Google’s Whitechapel chipset.
But in addition to Whitechapel, 9to5Google’s report mentions a few code names for Google’s chips. Such names include “GS 101” and “Slider”. Note that Google Silicon may be the full form of GS. On the other hand, a reference to the code “slider” found in Google’s camera app suggests that the “slider” could be Whitechapel SOC’s first shared platform. The connection that the Samsung Exynos chipset has with it reveals other products associated with the “slider”. It looks like Google’s GS101 code chip is being developed with Samsung Semiconductor’s System Large-Scale Integration (SLSI) division. So it can also be said that Google Chip will have some common features with Samsung Exynos.
9to5Google claims that Google’s two phones, codenamed ‘Raven’ and ‘Oriole’, could be the first phones on the slider platform. There is speculation that these phones will debut as Pixel 6 series smartphones.
Using its own chipset on the Pixel phone means Google has better control over driver updates. As a result, Google will no longer have to rely on Qualcomm, the current chipset provider. Currently, Google provides 3-year Android updates with the Pixel smartphone. Upcoming Pixel phones with Google’s own chipset are expected to get updates there in 5 years.