Google Pixel 9 probably still starts at 128GB of storage

Running out of storage on a smartphone is never fun, but even the cheapest devices nowadays (unless they’re an Apple iPad) ship with pretty plentiful amounts of storage. Slowly, Android devices have been moving to 256GB of storage as the default amount, but Google’s Pixel 9 is likely coming with 128GB. Is that still enough for you?

It wasn’t all that long ago that our smartphones and tablets were shipping with merely 8GB of storage, but nowadays, 128GB is the standard. That’s up from 64GB which was found in many base smartphones as recently as 2019.

Over the past two years, though, this has started to change. Thanks to the arrival of faster UFS 4.0 storage which is generally not made in 128GB options, 256GB has largely taken over in flagship smartphones. Last year, only Samsung’s base Galaxy S23 (but not the Plus or Ultra), Google’s Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro, and Apple’s entire lineup of iPhones started with 128GB. The Galaxy S23 Ultra, OnePlus 12, and countless other releases all opted for a 256GB base model, often without a big upcharge either. Samsung moved up a bit this year as well, bringing 256GB as the base storage tier on both Galaxy S24 and the Galaxy Z Flip 6.

As such, many have expected – hoped – that the Pixel 9 series would do away with 128GB and instead start at 256GB of storage.

Unfortunately, that’s probably not the case.

While we have seen a leaked Pixel 9 Pro XL with 256GB of storage, we’ve also seen one with 128GB of storage. Both devices had 16GB of RAM, as that’s one spec Google is upgrading across the board this year, but unless Google has since decided to start the Pixel 9 series with 256GB of storage, the base model likely isn’t changing this year. Leaked specs haven’t offered any further clarification just yet, but a leaked pricing guide did mention 128GB for everything except the Fold, which starts at 256GB.

The big question there is whether or not that’s a problem.

For me, 128GB of storage is still adequate, but just barely. My Pixel 8 Pro has been on hand since its launch last October and, in all that time, I’ve used 109GB of 128GB. The vast majority of that is in apps and media, but there’s a lot I could easily get rid of – Fortnite is installed from a test I ran, but I haven’t opened it in months. That total also includes every picture and video I’ve ever shot on the device, as I rarely purge my local storage (even though it’s all on Google Photos anyway).

I’d describe my storage use as pretty heavy, and I think it’d be unusual for most people to be hitting the same totals as I do. That said, I’m sure there are also plenty of people who need way more storage for games and videos.

128GB feels like, in 2024, the bare minimum for a flagship device. 256GB is the next logical upgrade, and I think it’s only a matter of time for Google to make that move, but I’m not surprised, nor am I disappointed that it’s (probably) not happening this year.

What do you think?