Google will reportedly let 15 superfans test unreleased Pixel phones

There are but 3 certainties successful life: death, taxes, and Google’s adjacent Pixel telephone getting thoroughly leaked earlier the institution tin adjacent denote it. (Multiple generations of Pixel have been publically unboxed, disassembled, and adjacent reviewed earlier Google tin amusement them off.)

But it seems Google doesn’t privation leakers to person each the amusive — it plans to fto 15 fortunate fans effort caller Pixel phones portion they’re inactive successful development, reports Bloomberg.

While Google hasn’t officially confirmed this yet, Bloomberg says it’s reviewed authoritative rules for a contention called “The Trusted Tester program,” wherever 15 winners tin “help signifier a Pixel telephone presently successful development.” They’ll person to motion an NDA and hold to usage the phones successful peculiar protective cases designed to disguise them portion they’re retired successful the wild, Bloomberg notes.

It’s not antithetic for companies to fto their ain employees trial unreleased hardware out successful the chaotic utilizing protective disguises, oregon for companies to bring fans into their offices for absorption tests, but to fto fans instrumentality a Pixel-class telephone retired successful the wild? Unheard of.

Could fans truly spoil a Pixel astonishment immoderate much than leakers bash anyway? The hazard seems low. In caller years, Google has begun preemptively revealing its ain phones successful a “if you can’t bushed ‘em, articulation ‘em” strategy. It wouldn’t adjacent astonishment maine if 1 of the winners winds up getting support from Google to stock their aboriginal thoughts with the world.

It’s not yet wide erstwhile fans mightiness participate for a accidental to effort the phone, which telephone it mightiness be, oregon erstwhile that telephone mightiness scope their hands, but Bloomberg writes it’s for “Pixel Superfans” — truthful it’s a harmless stake you’d request to beryllium part of that existing authoritative instrumentality group to adjacent person a chance.

Google didn’t instantly respond to a petition for comment.