What Is It? – For several years, Google has been given its branded phones the “Nexus” title. But those phones have been designed by others such as Asus and Huawei. Now, with the Pixel and Pixel XL, Google is designing its own hardware, giving it end to end control with both the hardware and the Android operating system.
The only difference between the two models is the size of the battery (larger for the XL) and the size of the display, 5″ for the Pixel, 5.5″ for the XL. Everything else is exactly the same. The hardware is a single machined piece of aluminum and it is striking. The AMOLED screen is beautiful. It uses a really fast Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, which allows you to run apps in a flash. Google claims the Pixel has the highest rated camera ever on a smart phone, and from what we’ve seen they are not exaggerating. It has a variety of functions generally only seen on standalone cameras, including a large f/2.0 lens. It’s rated at 12.3MP.
The Pixel has a fingerprint sensor, though unlike other phones this one is in the back, so when you grab the phone, you can validate your print in a single motion. The Pixel offers fast charging, so you can get seven hours more battery life simply by charging it for fifteen minutes. But the battery, especially on the Pixel XL, will probably let you get through an entire work day without having to add juice.
The Pixel is the first phone to come with Google Assistant built in, a pleasantly conversational bot that draws on Google’s immense search capabilities to come up with fast answers to a lot of questions.
The Pixel does have NFC, but also has the ability to use a cable to directly transfer data from another phone with USB-C connectors. The Pixel comes with two cables – one is USB-C to USB-C and the other is USB 3.0 to USB-C.
Phone call quality is good. Playing music over the built-in speaker was adequate. Streaming a Netflix movie was smooth. The device comes with a standard headphone jack, but it is not water resistant, which puts it at a disadvantage against some other premium phones.
Is it 50+ Friendly? – This is one of those times that size really does matter, especially to a 50+ audience. While there’s nothing wrong with the Pixel at 5″, we did struggle a bit to read icons and text. But the .5 inch difference on the Pixel XL did make a significant difference in ease of use, readability, and especially in comfort watching a Netflix movie. And one big plus, the phone comes with 24/7 support.
Frustration Factor? – Nothing really. Your apps appear in a reservoir that requires you to swipe up – a little different from most other Android phones, but easy to learn.
Is It Worth The Money? – This is the toughest question to answer. This is one very expensive phone. You can get the Pixel at Verizon with 32GB for $650. The Pixel XL will set you back $770. As of right now, Verizon is the only carrier offering the Pixel. The pricing is comparable to the Apple iPhone 7 and 7+. Now that the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 is dead, if you want the best phone on the Android platform, this is it.
Here’s Google’s promotional video:
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