Despite Galaxy phones of all shapes and sizes using the Exynos modems around the world, the device has not been available in the U.S. for half a decade. With the upcoming Pixel 6 series, this may change.
According to reports, Tensor is based on the Exynos design. Google has yet to confirm the rumour. In the latest report, Reuters quotes two sources who say that Samsung will also provide the 5G modem.
One interesting aspect is that the modem will support mmWave 5G, which is trickier to get working – up until now Qualcomm was considered the market leader. Qualcomm, Samsung, and MediaTek are currently the only companies making 5G modems (Haiwei is on hold).
Despite not selling in large numbers, the Pixel 6 series will demonstrate to other smartphone vendors what Samsung modems are capable of. In the US, so far, every mmWave smartphone has come with a Qualcomm modem.
