Credit: Robert Triggs / Android Authority
- The Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro lack hardware-enabled ray tracing.
- This feature allows for more realistic lighting and reflections, but few games support it.
- Qualcomm, MediaTek, Samsung, and Apple chips all support ray tracing, though.
Google launched the Pixel 8 series last week, and the phones are powered by a Tensor G3 chipset that’s a big upgrade on paper over last year’s silicon. Unfortunately, the Pixel 8 phones don’t support one emerging graphical technology.
Google confirmed to Android Authority that the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro don’t support hardware-based ray tracing. This is a technology used to produce more realistic lighting, reflections, and shadows in games and other applications.