Leak confirms the Google Pixel 9 Pro XL will get a big RAM and connectivity upgrade

Summary

• Pixel 9 Pro XL hands-on images have leaked, confirming it will ship with 16GB of RAM and a new Exynos modem.
• The 16GB RAM could help the phone to run Gemini and other AI tasks locally.
• The Pixel 9 lineup may feature an upgraded Exynos 5400 modem for better connectivity and power efficiency.

Since Google announced its surprise August 13 Made by Google event in late June, its upcoming Pixel phones have frequently popped up online. Instead of taking down the leaks and going after the leakers, Google did the next best thing: it officially teased the design of the Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 9 Pro Fold. But this is not stopping pre-production units of the new Pixels from leaking and spilling the beans on their internals. This time, a Pixel 9 Pro XL unit has popped up online, confirming its switch to a new Exynos modem and packing 16GB of RAM.

In an XDA thread, member pourelle shared some hands-on images of the Pixel 9 Pro XL shared by his friend. The photos appear to be a pre-production unit of “komodo” with 16GB of Samsung-manufactured RAM and 256GB storage. They also show off the phone’s rear panel and its rounded corners in all their glory.

While the pictures show the phone using LPDDR5 RAM, it might not be accurate. The Pixel 8 Pro uses faster and more efficient LPDDR5X RAM, which the Pixel 9 series should also use.

Almost all of our favorite flagship Android phones feature 12GB RAM, so it seems Google will surpass its competition with the Pixel 9 Pro and its XL sibling this year. The Pixel 8 Pro and the Google Pixel Fold also ship with 12GB of RAM.

The smaller Pixel 9 could ship with 12GB of RAM, but we must wait for more leaks to confirm this. While this would be lower than its other 2024 Pixel siblings, it will still be a nice bump from the 8GB of RAM on the Pixel 8.

A previous leak indicated that Google’s 2024 Pixel lineup will again start with 128GB of base storage. The entry-level Pixel 9 Pro XL may pack 256GB storage to live up to its ‘XL’ moniker.

Pixel 9 could use an upgraded Exynos modem

More importantly, the pre-production unit points to the Pixel 9 Pro XL using an Exynos 5400 modem. Samsung’s latest 5G modem is fabricated on its 4nm EUV node and based on 3GPP Release 17 with satellite connectivity support.

Google uses an Exynos 5300 modem on the Pixel 8 series. Despite all of its claimed improvements, it provides sub-par connectivity and uses a lot of power. Hopefully, the Exynos 5400 will bring some notable improvements in these aspects. Google should use the same modem across its entire Pixel 9 lineup.

The additional RAM could help the Pixel 9 Pro and 9 Pro XL efficiently run certain Gemini tasks locally for better performance. With three weeks to go until Google’s event, we won’t have to wait long to learn more about all the improvements the Pixel 9 series offers.