Pixel 10 camera specs leak, hinting at a significant downgrade for one model

What you need to know

• A new leak reveals the camera specs of the upcoming Pixel 10 series, and the standard model will see some significant changes.
• An inside source from Google mentioned that the Pixel 10 will allegedly get a telephoto lens, but its primary camera sensor will be downgraded.
• The leak purports that the Pixel 10's sensors for the main camera and the ultrawide lens seemed to be similar to the Pixel 9a.
• The Pixel 10 Pro and Pro XL will have the same cameras as their predecessors, while the 10 Pro Fold's primary sensor could see a minor shift.

Google Pixel 10 leaks have been popping up quite often since the past week. What started as full-blown CAD renders of the device has turned into significant spec leaks. We heard some chatter that the standard model finally getting a tri-camera setup with an added telephoto lens, joining the other two devices in the lineup.

Now the most recent leak comes from Android Authority, as the publication claims that it was able to view internal documents that reveal major camera changes chalked out for the Google Pixel 10 series.

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According to an inside source, Google will finally shake things up with its standard flagship model this year, at least with its camera.

Usually, the base models come with a wide and ultrawide lens. However, this time, it might get a third telephoto lens, and the tech giant is allegedly going to downgrade the whole camera setup to accommodate the new lens, so much so that these leaked specs reveal it being closer to the budget Pixel 9a.

The primary sensor on the Pixel 10 will allegedly be replaced by a Samsung GN8, a smaller one than the GNV sensor used in the Pixel 9.

"Similarly, the ultrawide lens has been downgraded to a Sony IMX712 from the previous IMX858," the publication states, noting that it will have a lower 13MP lens. It's seemingly a downgrade from last year's 48MP ultrawide camera. The publication adds that the new telephoto lens will get an 11MP resolution and Samsung 3J1 sensor, similar to the one on the Pixel 9 Pro Fold.

At the same time, the specs for the front-facing camera remain unchanged (11 MP).

Good news and bad news for the Pixel 10

While megapixels really don't dictate the quality of the image, the camera sensors do. And if this leak holds true, then the tech giant seems to be compromising on image quality to get an additional lens into the standard model.

While post-shoot edits and Google's computational photography will help improve image quality, a smaller sensor only makes shooting in low-light conditions even tougher. And seeing the specs of a budget model show up in a flagship device is certainly disappointing.

Rumors suggest that the Google Pixel 10 Pro and the Pro XL will keep last year's camera specs. However, the Pixel 10 Pro Fold could see a minor change with its primary lens. "The primary Sony IMX787 (used in the Pixel 8a) will be replaced with the Samsung GN8 (used in the Pixel 9a)," the publication added.

That said, we know that all three phones will supposedly be retaining their designs as their predecessors, and will be powered by Google's new Tensor G5 SoC chip. However, another leak indicated that the Pixel 10 Pro Fold could be offered at a "lower price point" compared to last year, and will be powered by the Tensor G5 as well.

Lastly, these leaks should be taken with a grain of salt as there's no confirmation that these specs will show up in the actual device. While we wait for the ball to drop, here's. what we expect to see from the Pixel 10 series.