Google is almost ready with the release of the new Android 7.0 Nougat, but there is still no word on when the Nexus 2016 phones will be released, at least from the search engine giant.
However, there is a new report coming in from India suggesting that the company will be shipping Google-branded smartphones to the Asian country, with a number of other countries receiving a similar treat. However, the source, Gadgets 360, understands that the supposed Google Nexus 2016 phones will be available towards the end of September.
There have been numerous reports regarding the Nexus 2016 phones, with suggestions that HTC is in charge of producing them. Well, just recently, documentations filed by HTC to the FCC appear to confirm that indeed the Taiwanese tech giant is making two Nexus phones.
The new report surfacing from India claims that the Google-branded smartphones will be of two different sizes – one with a 5-inch display size and the other with a 5.5-inch display unit. These are the same sizes that the devices codenamed Sailfish and Marlin, which are believed to be the upcoming Google Nexus 2016 phones, have been rumored to have, respectively. There have also been leaks suggesting that Google will drop the “Nexus” logo that appears on its phones and instead use a “G” logo.
It gets even interesting as reports claim that the smaller Nexus 2016 model will pack 32GB of storage while the larger variant will come with 128GB of storage. However, the latter storage could possibly be the high-end variant, just like with the case of Nexus 6P that had three storage options of 32GB, 64GB, and 128GB.
Apparently, Google is positioning the two Nexus 2016 handsets both as premium phones, unlike last year where the plastic-made Nexus 5X came in as a mid-range model. This is seen as a move to compete with Apple’s iPhone range, which still boasts a smaller iPhone SE that is as powerful as the larger iPhone 6 or even iPhone 6S, but has some features trimmed down. It is believed that the two Google Nexus 2016 phones will pack the same hardware specs under the hood as well as camera features, just to name but a few.
As noted earlier, Android 7.0 Nougat release date is around the corner. However, it is unlikely that the two Nexus 2016 phones will be unveiled together with the new OS. Still, it doesn’t change the fact that the two handsets will come powered by Android Nougat out of the box, with Google Assistant topping the list of the major headlines of the new software.