Google Pixel 6 and 6 Pro smartphones revealed

Google's Pixel 6 smartphone arrives in Australia next week and it is bringing a friend - the Pixel 6 Pro.

Starting at $999, the Pixel 6 is powered solely by a Google-made chip for the very first time and is promising a major leap forward in photo and video quality.

The selfie cam on Pixel 6 shoots video in 4K.

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Its main 50MP wide lens is a massive upgrade from the 12MP option Google's older phones have stuck with since the Pixel 2.

Both the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro share the same 12MP ultra-wide camera, but those who shell out the extra $300 for the Pro will also get an all-new 48MP telephoto lens offering 4x optical zoom.

That's marginally better than the 3x offered on Apple's iPhone 13 but falls well short of Samsung's incredible 10x optical zoom capability.

Google's incredibly powerful AI has set its photos apart from the competition for years despite underpowered hardware. What it can do with a 50MP sensor that lets in 2.5x more light on Pixel 6 is a tantalising proposition.

The algorithm that has powered Pixel photos will now help enhance videos thanks to Pixel 6's new Tensor chip. How well this works in practice needs to be put to the test, as does the new 'magic eraser.'

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Google's promising this new editing trick will simply and easily remove unwanted objects and people from your photos who should also look better thanks to an improved facial recognition system that can more accurately recognise and capture darker skin tones.

The real difference between the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro comes down to speed, storage and screen quality.

The Pixel 6 Pro gets an extra 4GB of RAM (8GB v 12GB) and the storage options max out at 256GB on the Pixel 6 as opposed to 512GB on the larger Pro.

The smaller Pixel 6 display measures in at 6.4-inches and refreshes at up to 90Hz. On the Pixel 6 Pro, a larger 6.7-inch display uses a variable refresh rate between 10Hz for static images and 120Hz for smoother scrolling to conserve battery just like Apple's iPhone 13.

That's about where the differences end though. Both Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro will launch with Android 12 and promise five-years of security updates.

"Material You" is one new feature that'll change up the look of your apps and widgets based on the colour of your wallpaper.

"Live translate" allows text messages written in English to be sent and read by others in their native language.

"Hold For Me" is also finally coming to Australia, flipping the script on every company that's ever left you on hold for too long. Google Assistant will soon be able to wait for you instead, listen for when the operator clicks on to help, ask them to hold while the Assistant calls you back to the phone. Wild stuff.

Google has been accused in the past of using middle-of-the road hardware. Pixel 6 and the Pixel 6 Pro have blown that perception out of the water.

Three months is an eternity in tech terms yet despite revealing the design of the Pixel 6 way back in August, the excitement for what Google's new hardware can do is stronger than ever.