Google Pixel 5, Google Pixel 4a 5G OTA, Factory Images Go Live

Google Pixel 5 and Pixel 4a 5G factory and OTA images have been published on the Android developers site for the first time. The phones were introduced earlier this month. Both the Pixel 5 and Pixel 4a 5G are not coming to the Indian market and are limited to 5G markets like Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, Japan, Taiwan, the UK, and the US. The images, that have been published by Google, are meant for developers who constantly tinker with mods and skins.

Google’s Android developers site has been updated to reflect OTA and factory images of the two new phones – Google Pixel 5 and Google Pixel 4a 5G. Pixel 5 has been given the hardware name ‘redfin’ whereas the Pixel 4a 5G carries the name ‘bramble.’ The OTA images and factory images for both the phones have been published for the very first time. The Pixel 5 has two links – one for KDDI network subscribers in Japan, and the other is for everyone else. There is only one link published for the Pixel 4a 5G.

As mentioned, these links are usually meant for developers who often do a lot of software tinkering. These default images are always a fall-back option for those developers who hit a roadblock in modified ROM development, or flashing. It isn’t meant for regular smartphone users, who should stick to the regular over-the-air method of receiving updates.

Both Pixel 5 and Pixel 4a 5G are powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G SoC and include Titan M security chip. The phones sport dual cameras at the back and have an 8-megapixel selfie camera inside the hole-punch cutout on the display screen at the front. Both phones come with 128GB of onboard storage that isn’t expandable via a microSD card. Google Pixel 5 pricing starts at $699 (roughly Rs. 51,400), whereas Google Pixel 4a 5G starts at $499 (roughly Rs. 37,000).

Is Android One holding back Nokia smartphones in India? We discussed this on Orbital, our weekly technology podcast, which you can subscribe to via Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or RSS, download the episode, or just hit the play button below.