Google set to challenge Apple's iPhone 8 & X with Oct. 4 announcement of 'Pixel 2'
Google is preparing an Oct. 4 announcement, when the company is widely expected to reveal a second-generation Pixel phone that will go toe-to-toe with Apple's iPhone 8, and later the iPhone X.

A glimpse at what Google's hardware may look like. Image Credit: TechCrunch
A new webpage offers only the date and an option to sign up for email notifications, but related marketing material suggests the event is for anyone "thinking about changing phones," according to TechCrunch. Earlier this week, Google in fact raised a billboard in Boston with the Oct. 4 date, urging people to ask "more of your phone."
The "Pixel 2" is rumored to have a Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor, 4 gigabytes of RAM, and IP68 waterproofing, the last a notch better than the IP67 supported on the iPhone 8 and X. It may also have an always-on display like Samsung's Galaxy Note 8, and pressure-sensitive sides, enabling squeeze controls like the HTC U11.
The product should ship in both standard and XL versions, as with the original Pixel. The new XL may be the closest competitor to the iPhone X, as it's expected to have a 6-inch display with extremely narrow bezels. The X sports an edge-to-edge, 5.8-inch OLED screen.
The Pixel has captured just a tiny share of the global smartphone market so far, but has proven popular with reviewers, and represents Google's first step into self-designed phones. Earlier Nexus-series phones were Google-branded and ran pure Android, but were designed by companies like LG and Samsung.

A glimpse at what Google's hardware may look like. Image Credit: TechCrunch
A new webpage offers only the date and an option to sign up for email notifications, but related marketing material suggests the event is for anyone "thinking about changing phones," according to TechCrunch. Earlier this week, Google in fact raised a billboard in Boston with the Oct. 4 date, urging people to ask "more of your phone."
The "Pixel 2" is rumored to have a Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor, 4 gigabytes of RAM, and IP68 waterproofing, the last a notch better than the IP67 supported on the iPhone 8 and X. It may also have an always-on display like Samsung's Galaxy Note 8, and pressure-sensitive sides, enabling squeeze controls like the HTC U11.
The product should ship in both standard and XL versions, as with the original Pixel. The new XL may be the closest competitor to the iPhone X, as it's expected to have a 6-inch display with extremely narrow bezels. The X sports an edge-to-edge, 5.8-inch OLED screen.
The Pixel has captured just a tiny share of the global smartphone market so far, but has proven popular with reviewers, and represents Google's first step into self-designed phones. Earlier Nexus-series phones were Google-branded and ran pure Android, but were designed by companies like LG and Samsung.
Comments
How did the Pixel 1 work out for them?
I'm not sure this qualifies.
Snapdragon 835: 2059/6461
A10 Fusion: 3924/9371
A11 Bionic: 4274/10438
Good luck with that one, Google.
Give me a break. Actually, thanks for the laugh.
Can I say "good luck with that" without sounding too much like a fanboy?
No? So be it.
The reviewers arent dou g Google any favors by going easy on them in reviews. They give a false impression that these Pixel phones are somehow on par with the contemporaneous iPhone, often based upon meaningless specs and screen dimensions (a couple extra millimeters). Rather than coddled, Google should be urged to step up their game. Ah, but consumers provide that motivation, don't we, as we purchase exponentially larger numbers of iPhones each quarter.
seriously let's stop with iKnockoff news. The more we ignore them the more idiots will come to grips with reality. Android phones are cheap knockoff alternatives to iPhone, NOT iPHONES!!!!
Headlines like "Google Pixel will challenge iPhone", "Galaxy X a great contender to iPhone" etc. give the impression that these knockoff devices are real.
JUST IGNORE THEM. We never gave those cheap iPod knockoffs press so why are we doing it now???
Will be interesting to see if Google increases shipments much YoY. Competition in that high end Android space is higher than last year.
It not like they are designing the chips like Apple, or custom deign parts and work with the actual manufacturers to improve the design so it works better than the standard product everyone can get.