Google's Next Pixel Phone Tensor Chip Leaked

Google is slated to launch the Pixel 8 series phones in the fall, but leaks have already spoiled its look and some of the core specs. Now, some juicy details about the next-gen Tensor processor, tentatively called the Tensor G3 and destined for the next-gen Pixel phones and tablets, have been leaked. According to an Android Authority report that cites internals sources at Google, the Tensor G3 will mark a dramatic shift from its predecessor.

The third-generation Tensor SoC is reportedly adopting a nine core (1 + 4 + 4) design, while the second-gen Tensor chip powering the Pixel 7 series phones takes an eight core (2 + 2 + 4) core design. Where the Tensor G2 adopted a triple cluster design with two Cortex X1 prime cores, two performance cores, and four efficiency cores, the Tensor G3 will be shifting things around with Cortex-X and Cortex A-allotment.

At the helm will be a single Arm Cortex-X3 core clocked at 3.0 GHz and based on the new Arm v9 core architecture. The new prime core reaching a higher clock speed should offer some tangible performance boost. Unsurprisingly, the cores have been upgraded across the board. We are yet to see any leaked benchmark scores, but it looks like multi-core performance on the Tensor G3 will be noticeably better than the Tensor G2 silicon.

Android Authority notes that the Tensor G3 demanding tasks will be handled by a cluster of four Cortex A715 cores with clock speed of 2.45 GHz. This is a huge improvement over the two Cortex-A78 core deployed by the Tensor G2, both in terms of raw firepower — which is now double in magnitude — and the higher clock frequency.

The number of efficiency cores is the same at four, but the older Cortex-A55 cores have been swapped in favor of the new Cortex-A510 cores. Arm's new low-end cores also get a speed boost, going up from the Cortex-A55's peak frequency of 1.8GHz to 2.15GHz on the Cortex-A510 inside the Tensor G3 package. Google is also bumping things around in the graphics department.

The upcoming Tensor silicon employs the Mali-G715 graphics engine, which has 10 GPU cores ticking at a higher 890Mhz frequency. Support for broader video encoding and decoding capabilities (8K video at 30fps and 4K video at 60fps) will also arrive on the Pixel 8 series phones courtesy of the Tensor G3 SoC. 

Google's Tensor chips, despite delivering a smooth performance on its Pixel phones, have remained laggards when compared to Qualcomm's Snapdragon chips and Apple's own A-series silicon for iPhones. It would be interesting to see whether the Tensor G3 would finally allow the Pixel 8 series phones to catch up with the big hitters from Samsung and Apple this year.