[Update: Poll results out] Would you buy a Google Pixel 6 Mini?

New updates are being added at the bottom of this story…….

Original story (published on August 13, 2021) follows:

The Google Pixel 6 series is expected to be released this fall and will be comprised of two models – Google Pixel 6 and Google Pixel 6 Pro. We have already had a look at most of its design through official images.

Further information includes both of the phones being powered by the company’s in-house Tensor SoC and at least one of them using the Samsung ISOCELL 50-megapixel GN1 sensor for photography.

As for displays, the Google Pixel 6 will be coming with a 90Hz 6.4 inches AMOLED panel while its Pro variant will be making use of a 120Hz 6.71 inches AMOLED one.

Anyone can tell that neither of the two are compact by any means. Sure, ~6.4 inches has become an industry-standard in 2021 with almost every device having a display size of over 6 inches.

But fans of smaller devices will definitely be displeased with these sizes, especially since last year’s Pixel 5 was a fairly compact phone, sized at a decent 6 inches.

With two models this year, Google had a golden opportunity to make the base variant more appealing for compact phone lovers, an opportunity that has sadly been overlooked.

Now, it can be argued that Android 12 has gone big on one-handed usage this time with the inclusion of One UI-like elements and even a dedicated one-handed mode to improve reachability.

However, this still does nothing about the actual size of the phone that has been virtually growing larger with each iteration of the Google Pixel series. And the larger the device is, the more difficult it is to carry around.

All this is only one side of the story though. You see, compact phone lovers are an ever-shrinking clientele. Phones have become more of an entertainment hub than ever before and the larger the screen size, the better the viewing experience.

Moreover, existing compact phones haven’t exactly been selling like hotcakes. So it’s not that OEMs are unreasonably turning a blind eye to the demands of niches like compact device fans.

I was interested in the pixel 6. Then saw the “smaller” variant was 6.4′. I’m no longer interested in the pixel 6.
Source

Phones like iPhone 12 mini, with their less-than-satisfactory sales, have proven that the era of compact devices is slowly but surely coming to an end. This only further discourages smartphone companies from selling anything with a display smaller than 6 inches.

And a company as massive as Google is obviously no stranger to these shortcomings, which is probably why there is no compact Pixel this year.

It could be possible though that the Big G will be going for a smaller display on the Pixel 5a series to appeal to the tiny phone gang. However, the series has always been less premium with far less compelling internals.

This calls for the injection of a Google Pixel 6 Mini model that should be equally powerful as the Pixel 6/Pro, but with a smaller display.

A few essential corners can still be cut, of course, to accommodate the smaller panel. These corners are not to come at the expense of performance though, which is usually the case when a weaker chipset is used.

So what do you think? Should Google inject a third contender into its Pixel 6 lineup, namely the Pixel 6 Mini, just like the iPhone 12 mini? Or are you of the opinion that it’ll be a pointless addition due to reasons already given above?

Let us know your opinion through the poll given below. You can also drop a comment through the section at the bottom. As always, the poll results will be out next week, so stay tuned.

IST 12:26 pm: The poll results are out and it is clear that many of you guys are suckers for small phones as 50% of you voted for a Pixel 6 Mini. While 17% of you were happy with the size of the Pixel 6, 33% of you couldn’t care less.

PiunikaWeb started purely as an investigative tech journalism website with a main focus on ‘breaking’ or ‘exclusive’ news. In no time, our stories got picked up by the likes of Forbes, Fox News, Gizmodo, TechCrunch, Engadget, The Verge, MacRumors, and many others. Want to know more about us? Head here.