Affiliate links on Android Authority may earn us a commission. Learn more.
The Pixel 11 in 2026 could finally catch up to Galaxy S20 Ultra's zoom
- Tensor G5 leak suggests Google could be working on a “next-gen” telephoto camera with 100x zoom capabilities for the Pixel 11 series.
- This would be aided with machine learning algorithms to achieve 100x zoom for photos and videos.
- Samsung introduced 100x zoom with the Galaxy S20 Ultra in 2020, while the Pixel 11 is expected to be launched in 2026.
Although the Pixel 9 series was just recently launched, we’re already getting some possible good news about future Google phones. Thanks to a massive leak from Google’s gChips division, we have some clues on features that the Tensor G5 is likely to support, and one of the highlight camera features for the Pixel 11 could be 100x zoom capabilities.
Our report highlights that Google could be working on a “next-gen” telephoto camera that would help bring 100x zoom capabilities to the Pixel 11 series in 2026, as we spotted references to such a camera upgrade in the leaked documents. The hardware would be supported with Tensor G5’s machine learning algorithms to help it achieve 100x zoom for photos and videos. However, we anticipate that the machine learning algorithms could differ for the two media formats.
Beyond 100x zoom, the Tensor G5 could finally bring support for 4K 60fps HDR videos and Cinematic Blur, on-device Night Sight Video, and introduce a new video relight feature.
Samsung introduced 100x zoom with the Galaxy S20 Ultra in 2020. While the end results left much to be desired, the S20 Ultra showed that 100x zoom can be done with the help of periscope zoom lenses. We’re hoping to see better results from Google since it will be six years late to the party, and Google has shown that it can work its magic with great hardware-software synergy.