I bet it’s going to release during the holiday shopping season.

For those awaiting Google’s next phone, pondering over the results of rumour mills and shady forums are a thing of the past. According to a source who spoke on the condition of anonymity to The Telegraph, Google will release a a smartphone with a tight control over its “design, manufacturing and software” before the end of this year.

Although details of the upcoming smartphones aren’t very forthcoming, one thing is for sure – it will not be a Nexus device, since they are materially influenced by third parties who shape their phone to their liking.

For those who are desperate to know what it might resemble, checkout the Pixel C.

Google has declined to comment on the Telegraph report. With that said, in the past however, its leadership has been shy of taking the reins. In fact, Google’s CEO, Sundar Pichai has himself said the company will be more “opinionated” about designs.

The big question is – how far is Google willing to go on this phone? Will it risk alienating its hardware partners with a smartphone that has been mostly designed in-house? Or will it surprise us with a program that is even bigger than the Nexus one?

The smart bet would be to bet on its newer hardware strategy – Google is taking conscious steps to move ahead of its earlier approach.