Does slower CPU on Pixel 9 matter if most of the top-selling features are cloud or AI-based anyway?

The latest news is that Google's upcoming Tensor G4 chip in the Pixel 9 might deliver 2023-level speeds. A knee-jerk reaction would say that this is unacceptable and the Pixel 9 series would need the speed...

But here's the real question: how bad could this actually be? Given how much of Google's stuff is cloud-reliant and how that trend is likely to increase with advancements in AI, I’m not sure 2023 speeds are that big of a problem.

Everything is in the cloud nowadays

Many of Google's services and features already rely heavily on cloud computing. We have Google Photos, Google Assistant, and others, and for all these apps a significant portion of the heavy lifting is done on remote servers rather than on your device.

This cloud dependency means that, in many cases, the speed and performance of your internet connection are more critical than the raw power of your phone's processor.

For example, Google Photos uses cloud-based tech to categorize and enhance your images. The magic happens on Google's servers, and your phone just shows the results.

The same applies to Google Assistant, which processes your voice commands on the cloud before delivering the response to your device. Only a small portion of Google Assistant's work is done on the device directly. These services work well regardless of whether your phone has the latest and greatest chip, because it all boils down to your internet connection.

Pixel 9 Pro: all its teased features are... well, AI features

Remember that video teaser with 22 reasons to switch to the Pixel 9 Pro? I talked about them and compared them to the competition, and there are some promising things there and some less promising ones. But that's beside the point. That video basically tells you that you'd want to get the Pixel for its generative AI tricks. Or mainly because of them.

As we move forward in this AI era, we all know that AI is set to play an even bigger role in our tech interactions. And here's what Google's commitment to AI means: more features and services will be offloaded to the cloud.

This shift makes on-device processing power less critical. So even if the Tensor G4 manages 2023 G3 speeds, that won't hurt as much as you think it would. That thing's fast enough to handle basic tasks and provide a smooth user experience. And then, you have the heavy computational work happen on powerful, extra-fancy servers somewhere over the rainbow. I mean, in the clouds.


And that's not necessarily a bad thing. As I mentioned, Google can make some serious servers to handle demanding tasks, and fancy features are demanding. Some of them may even be impossible to run on a mobile chip anyway, without the computational power of a good ol' server room.

But I'd imagine that as AI becomes even more evolved and capable, more processing power will be needed, and more of the features will become cloud-reliant. That pretty much means that your phone won't suck even if it comes with 2023 speeds. It will suck if your connection to Verizon's 5G towers sucks.

Back to the real world: surprise, 2023's chip speeds are still fast

When it comes to everyday use, the difference in processing speeds between a Tensor G4 and its predecessor might not be that noticeable. As I like to say, things like Geekbench and other benchmarking tools do not necessarily reflect real-life usage.

It doesn't matter if you're streaming videos, browsing the web, or using social media: current processors are already more than capable of handling these tasks smoothly.

And even for more demanding applications like gaming, where GPU performance plays a crucial role, cloud gaming services like Google Stadia (while it lasted) and NVIDIA GeForce NOW are designed to offload the intense processing work to the cloud. This trend indicates a future where the local hardware’s power is secondary to a reliable internet connection.

Energy efficiency: here I go again

Nobody said that the Tensor G4 isn't going to bring some improvements. Its speeds won't probably have that big of a bump, but newer chips are designed to be more power-efficient. And this means better battery life and a cooler phone.

The Pixel 8 had some problems with overheating, and luckily, the leak indicates Google has addressed that with the G4. And that's what really matters. In the real world, I want a cool phone that can perform well.

Overall, even though the Tensor G4 won't probably improve that much on the G3, as you can see, this may not have such a big impact as one would expect. We'll have more and more cloud processing instead of on-device processing, many of the Pixel features are processed on the cloud anyway, and the G4 may be more power efficient so less overheating will occur.

So, all in all, I'm not mad at Google for its work on the G4. I'd only get a little bit mad (more like, annoyed) if Google attempts, as is rumored, to market the chip as "game-changing". I'd rather have Google focus on AI in its marketing as the Pixel 9 series' main selling point, just like that teaser.