Google Pixel 11 Debuts With Tensor G6 Chip as Memory Shortage Drives $100 Price Hike

What chip powers the Pixel 11 series, and how much faster is it?

Google unveiled its flagship Pixel 11 series on August 12, 2026, "搭載Google自研Tensor G6晶片" (equipped with Google's self-developed Tensor G6 chip), according to CNA (中央社). The standard Pixel 11 pairs the Tensor G6 with a Titan M3 security chip, a 6.3-inch display, and 12GB of RAM plus 256GB of storage as the entry configuration, Anue (鉅亨網) reported. On-device AI tasks see a speed increase of up to 3.5 times, per the same Anue report.

What is Google's AI-first strategy, and what is the long-term vision?

Google device chief Rick Osterloh told CNA that Pixel's product direction diverges sharply from Apple's: "我認為很明顯，Pixel和iPhone朝著非常不同的方向發展。Pixel產品策略一直都將率先採用新技術放在最前面，尤其是在Gemini和AI方面" (Pixel and iPhone are clearly developing in very different directions; Pixel's product strategy has always prioritized being first to adopt new technology, especially around Gemini and AI). Per Anue's report on the same Made by Google event, Osterloh went further, predicting that "AI有一天會成為人們使用手機的主要方式" (AI will one day become the primary way people use their phones).

How much has the memory shortage hit consumer electronics costs, and what precedents exist?

Osterloh directly attributed the industry-wide price pressure to component shortages, telling CNA: "我認為短期內正在發生的情況是，每家公司都不得不提高價格" (What's happening in the short term, I think, is that every company has had to raise prices). Anue's report quoted Osterloh stating that RAM and flash memory shortages are pushing up costs across the entire consumer electronics industry.

Anue cited TrendForce data showing smartphone DRAM contract prices rose 88%–93% quarter-over-quarter in Q1 2026, with NAND up 33%–38% in the same period; DRAM prices climbed a further 58%–63% in Q2. DDR5 16GB spot prices have risen more than sixfold (6x) within the year, and memory's share of a smartphone's bill of materials (BOM) has jumped from 10%–15% to 30%–40%, according to TrendForce figures reported by Anue.

Apple set a precedent for this dynamic: on June 25, 2026, citing an "AI資料中心擴張引發記憶體空前短缺" (AI data center expansion triggering an unprecedented memory shortage), Apple raised prices on the MacBook Air by $200, the MacBook Pro by $300, and the iPad Pro by $200, Anue reported.

How much have Pixel 11 prices risen in the U.S. and Taiwan?

According to CNA, the Pixel 11 series opens for pre-order immediately and launches officially on August 20. U.S. starting prices are $899 for the Pixel 11, $1,099 for the Pixel 11 Pro, and $1,299 for the Pixel 11 Pro XL — each $100 higher than the equivalent prior-generation model. Anue's coverage of the same Made by Google event confirmed all four models in the lineup, including the Pixel 11 Pro Fold at $1,899, rose $100 over their Pixel 10-series counterparts.

In Taiwan, CNA reported starting prices of NT$29,990, NT$36,990, and NT$42,990 for the three corresponding models, effective August 13.

How did Google adjust product configurations to offset the price hikes?

Google offered the Pixel 11 in four colors — 冰霜紫 (frost purple), 開心果綠 (pistachio green), 木槿桃 (hibiscus peach), and 曜石黑 (obsidian black) — starting at 256GB, while the Pixel 11 Pro and Pro XL come in 砂岩粉 (sandstone pink), 橄欖綠 (olive green), 霧面曜石黑 (matte obsidian black), and 迷霧灰 (fog gray), per CNA. The Made by Google event also introduced the Pixel 11 Pro Fold as a fourth model alongside the three standard phones, Anue reported.

Anue's analysis described Google using a "調結構" (restructuring) approach to soften the price impact: the Pixel 11 and Pixel 11 Pro dropped their 128GB storage tier and now start at 256GB. The 256GB versions of those two models did not see a price increase themselves, but the Pixel 11 Pro XL's equivalent 12GB/256GB configuration rose $100. At the same time, the base RAM on the Pro and Pro XL models dropped from 16GB to 12GB — meaning buyers who want to return to 16GB of RAM must upgrade to the 512GB or 1TB storage tier, according to Anue.

Google emphasizes AI-first — how important is AI in actual upgrade decisions?

While Osterloh told CNA that Pixel's strategy centers on being first to adopt Gemini and AI, and predicted to Anue that AI would eventually become the primary way people use phones, consumer research cited by Anue tells a different story in the present. Counterpoint survey data shows AI currently ranks only 6th or 7th among consumers' reasons for upgrading their phones, still trailing behind screen, battery, and camera as purchase drivers, per Anue's report.

What this means

The evidence lays out a gap between rhetoric and ranking: Osterloh frames AI as Pixel's defining differentiator and a future primary use case for phones, yet Counterpoint data places AI 6th or 7th among actual upgrade reasons, behind screen, battery, and camera. Meanwhile, the $100 U.S. price increase across all four Pixel 11 models — echoed by Apple's June 25 hikes of $200–$300 on MacBook and iPad Pro lines — lines up with TrendForce's DRAM contract-price jumps of 88%–93% in Q1 and 58%–63% in Q2, alongside a rise in memory's BOM share from 10%–15% to 30%–40%. Google's configuration changes — dropping the 128GB tier and cutting base RAM on Pro models from 16GB to 12GB — appear alongside, rather than instead of, the direct price increases on comparable configurations like the Pro XL's 12GB/256GB variant.