The flagship smartphone category is about to become more competitive. Early impressions of the Galaxy Note 8, which was unveiled yesterday, are very positive, and we still have LG's V30 and the new iPhones on the horizon. Now, we might know when to expect Google's next Pixel handsets, and what hardware they'll feature.

According to reliable leaker Evan Blass, aka @evleaks, both the Pixel 2 and Pixel XL 2 will be unveiled on October 5. This almost matches the original Pixels' announcement date - October 4, 2016.

Blass also claims that Google's new devices will feature Qualcomm's Snapdragon 836. Rumors that they will use the unannounced SoC have been around for months. If true, they'll likely be the first handsets to feature the chip (the original Pixels were the first phones in the West to sport the Snapdragon 821).

Many flagships, including the Galaxy S8 and Note 8, use the Snapdragon 835. It was thought Samsung might go with the 836 in the latter device, but the Note 8 ended up with the same SoC as the S8.

While the Snapdragon 836 is an upgrade, the improvements over its predecessor are minor - much in the same way that the 821 is a slight revision of the 820. There are small increases in the maximum and base clock speeds, and battery life is better.

The Pixel XL 2 will be manufactured by LG, while the Pixel 2 will once again be made by HTC. Both handsets are rumored to be water-resistant and feature the same squeezable sides found in the HTC U11. Sadly, it seems that Google's phones will be the latest to abandon the headphone jack.