Hands-On With Google's New Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL Smartphones

[nviz22]

It seems as if no one else (except Apple) has any idea what good design is. Like zero idea.

I mean look at that hideousness.

Don't even get me started on how all other companies are fighting over Apple Notch™ like baboons and macaques, and can't for the love of god decide what it should look like.

I mean, are they morons or something?

Pretty sure Samsung has some of the best design language around. Minimal bezels, good biometrics, and no notch. Add in a headphone jack and large batteries.

 

[TracesOfArsenic]

A whole bunch of cancer in the comments (to no one's surprise). Why can't we like and encourage both parties? Competition is good.

 

[mngdew]

Let me stop you right there. "They are very polished and a smooth OS" is a joke. I owned a samsung galaxy nexus, nexus 4, nexus 5 and nexus 6. Each one i've used for a year and had multiple issues. Nexus 5 was known for its crappy camera and unreliable battery life. Nexus 4 had a horrible camera and would heat up for no reason and the back would magically crack. Each version of android on these phones had numerous issues. I had my friends look at me when my PHONE APP crashed. I couldnt explain it. My nexus 5 was the worst phone I've ever owned.

Obviously things have changed but dont begin to say Android is polished. There's a lot they could be doing better but since they want the market, they are lax with developer rules, changing things, etc. Also play protect is a joke.

I still own android devices and they are way more unreliable than my iOS devices. My nvidia shield running Android 9 crashes more than my iOS 12 devices

He said he owned Pixel and Pixel 2. He didn't say anything about the Nexus, but I agree with you that Nexus sucked.
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Pretty sure Samsung has some of the best design language around. Minimal bezels, good biometrics, and no notch. Add in a headphone jack and large batteries.

Samsung is the only company still including the headphone jack and no notch.

 

[Davidgr]

Google today announced its latest flagship smartphones, the Pixel 3 and the Pixel 3 XL, which are designed to compete with Apple's new iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max.

MacRumors was in attendance at Google's fall unveiling event and was able to get some hands-on time with the new devices, and we did a quick comparison to the iPhone XS Max.

Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.​

The 5.5-inch Google Pixel 3, which has no notch, is similar in size to the 5.8-inch iPhone XS, while the 6.3-inch Pixel 3 XL is similar in size to the iPhone XS Max and takes some design cues from Apple's devices.

As we saw in leaked images and heard in rumors leading up to the Pixel 3 XL's debut, it has a deep notch on the front housing its front-facing camera system. The rest of the display isn't quite edge-to-edge due to a chin at the bottom that's missing from Apple's devices.

The Pixel 3 XL continues to use a single-lens 12-megapixel rear camera system, but Google has implemented an HDR+ mode that's similar to Apple's Smart HDR for combining multiple shots into one much better image. Dual 8-megapixel cameras are available on the front of the device, and Google touted a new group selfie feature with a wide-angle lens able to capture 184 percent more than the iPhone XS.

Inside, the new Pixel smartphones are equipped with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 chip, 4GB RAM, and up to 128GB of storage. The Pixel 3 offers a 2,915 mAh battery, while the XL model has a 3,430 mAh battery.

Google's Pixel 3 is priced at $799, while the Pixel 3 XL is priced at $899, making both devices more affordable than the iPhone XS and XS Max. The new devices are available for pre-order starting today ahead of an October 18 launch.

What do you think of the iPhone XS's latest competitor? Stay tuned to MacRumors because we'll have a more in-depth comparison video pitting the Google and Apple smartphones against one another next week.

Article Link: Hands-On With Google's New Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL Smartphones

[doublepost=1539136845][/doublepost]Not much of a “hands-on”. I could have written the same article after reading Google‘s and Apple’s press release.

Lazy journalism if you ask me.

 

[Karma*Police]

Dieter Bohn at The Verge: ‘Oh, and the notch on the Pixel 3 XL is not as egregious in person as it is in photos. Is it big? Yes, but it’s also totally not a problem for me.”

This is a 100% incremental update yet I see very few tech media making a big deal out of it like they do with Apple. There’s no outrage over the Pixel Slate having huge bezels and no headphone jack. There absolutely is a double standard when it comes to Google first party hardware.

Dieter Bohn is also the guy who infamously said that his Pixel photo looked good when portrait mode only worked on half the picture... literally. The Verge is a joke. I stopped reading their opinions (they call it reviews) a loooong time ago.

 

[bigeyedbeansfromvenus]

Am I the only one who finds the chin even more distracting than the hideous notch? They are completely asymmetrical and it's KILLING me. There was one clip where they have a video playing on the display and there's like this gigantic black bar to the right and then a much slimmer black bar to the left. It looked absolutely ridiculous.

The Pixel 2 XL was my favorite Android phone by far last year. Guess if you want a decent Android phone it's Samsung or a cheap Chinese brand.

 

[symphony]

Huge and deeply cut notch.

Huge chin.

Top corners are MORE ROUNDED than the bottom corners... terrible design.

 

[lec0rsaire]

Not sure if you're being serious or joking here.

I’m half joking and half serious. It’s just the truth honestly. Wealthy people buy Apple products. Everyone else buys PCs and Android. It’s always been this way for the most part even when Apple went through a rough patch in the mid 90s.

Many grew up with Windows and the younger ones among us perhaps with Android and despite changes in their income stick with both due to being used to them.

 

[kaostheory777]

From a purely aesthetic point of view: Any phone that has a notch AND a chin is a design fail in my opinion. Either go the Samsung route and have a forehead and a chin or the Apple route with a notch and symmetrical bezels. Anything else looks clunky and ugly at worst and at best like it's one prototype away from a final design.

The notch on the new Pixel 3XL looks huge when compared to the iPhone - again one prototype away from it's final form. Whether you like or hate the notch on phones - Apples implementation is just more refined.

 

[Larryprice]

It's kind of annoying that my $1500 phone has a worse camera than a $800 phone.

If it's like last year, the difference between the 2 phones' cameras is vastly overrated while if it's anything like last year you'll have a vastly better screen.

There are a lot of other differences between a $1500 XS Max and the low end Pixel.
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I’m half joking and half serious. It’s just the truth honestly. Wealthy people buy Apple products. Everyone else buys PCs and Android. It’s always been this way for the most part even when Apple went through a rough patch in the mid 90s.

Many grew up with Windows and the younger ones among us perhaps with Android and despite changes in their income stick with both due to being used to them.

I'm not wealthy nor are most of my friends who have Apple products. This is just silly.

 

[Tapiture]

The big problem with pixel is that Google mines every little bit of data, everything you do on that phone.

 

[ELman]

The call screening feature is awesome. Will Siri ever catch up

 

[Guscat]

Yes, and when the majority of quality reviewers say the pixel is the best, that makes your opinion in the minority. But yes it's subjective based on who you want to win.

When I look at the photos I took with my iPhone 6 and the ones I've taken with my iPhone X on my 4K computer screen, I don't really see a big difference. Obviously, my X photos are better, but there's nowhere nearly the gap between my X and my 6 the reviewers act like there is between my X and the 7. So, yes, I really think the reviewers are massively overstating the differences between these cameras. The gap between the best flagship camera and the worst flagship camera isn't that great.

 

[macsba]

Sorry since I didn't read all the comments but why is this website doing a review on an android phone. Doesn't make sense.

 

[nviz22]

He said he owned Pixel and Pixel 2. He didn't say anything about the Nexus, but I agree with you that Nexus sucked.
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Samsung is the only company still including the headphone jack and no notch.

Too bad LG has a notch because we need competitors that have headphone jacks and no notches to bring out more competition.

If it wasn't for iOS' longevity, I would probably be getting the OP6T or deal with the Nokia 7.1.

 

[Guscat]

The big problem with pixel is that Google mines every little bit of data, everything you do on that phone.

Exactly. I got into an argument with some Android fanboys on another site who want to act like Google is still wearing a white hat while Apple is the one wearing a black hat. I don't trust Google at all. The number one reason I'm with Apple is because of security and then stability. That's why I am with Apple, and as long as the hardware is in the same ballpark with Android phones I see no reason to switch.

 

[alien3dx]

Am I the only one who finds the chin even more distracting than the hideous notch? They are completely asymmetrical and it's KILLING me. There was one clip where they have a video playing on the display and there's like this gigantic black bar to the right and then a much slimmer black bar to the left. It looked absolutely ridiculous.

The Pixel 2 XL was my favorite Android phone by far last year. Guess if you want a decent Android phone it's Samsung or a cheap Chinese brand.

as i remember before video, there are setting to hide those notch and become all black. The race of space upper ,side left side right ? Next ? back also want to create paper display like some rusian have made also.

The issue of space making the ios is not great to develop. If they stick to one standard size
5 " and 6 " . It best suite to all people.. 7 " allready consider as tab, 8 " is ipad mini

 

[andygchicago]

The notch is an unnecessary fashion statement on the Pixel. Based on the huge lower bezel, they could have slid the screen lower and avoided creating a notch. That's what makes me hate this phone.

 

[dumastudetto]

So in summary:
A huge notch
A large chin
An ugly design
Average specs
Apple prices with none of the support or build quality but 100% more spying

 

[DNichter]

Eh, ugly ripoff that steals your personal data. The pixel line is the only android I’d ever consider though.

 

[BootsWalking]

I'm talking about a visible UI copy which you can see in Android P, from gestures to elements on the screen, to the way the UI interacts, if you deny this fact then you're clearly being defensive. Just look at their ads and name schemes "really black" that's a blatant copy from the iPhone 7 naming schemes that Apple chose to showcase their new blacks. The portrait mode being on a single camera is true, there's no need for a secondary camera to get the depth effect. Better results is highly subjective, you should know about the latest prank to Pixel users in which portrait shots taken with the iPhone XS fooled the Pixel users.

I'm not denying Android copies from iPhone. My point was they both copy from each other, so to single one out over the other isn't being objective IMO.

 

[thasan]

Nope, it's subjective based on your eye and how you prefer photos to look.

But you know, there are some people in this site who I think get married based on comments on the other half from reviewers (read random people) instead of their own personal preferences

 

[rocknblogger]

To characterize what Apple does vs what Google does is disingenuous at best. Apple itself only displays ads in the app store and news apps, and they do not provide your info to third parties in any way, shape or form.

Google basically has carte blanche to harvest whatever they want from your phone, including info about your contacts that they never opted in for, and to sell it to anyone that wants it.

To be pedantic, sure, iOS tracks for ads. To be specific, Google harvests your identity and spreads it like a virus to anyone that wants it.

Google does not in any way sell your information to anyone. When companies pay Google to advertise, all they can do is tell Google what demographic, age group, sex, geographic area etc...that they want the ads to target. But the advertiser never ever knows who you are. That would actually put Google out of business. It is in their best interest to keep your information as secret as possible.

 

[arbi4ever]

I'm reading mix reviews here,but here's the fact, I own iPhone Xs Max and Pixel 2XL, and just pre-ordered my Pixel 3XL.
I'm not a fnboy of anything, simply enjoying both Android and iOS ecosystem please don't compare other Android phones to Pixel, as it is pure Android installed on the phone and it is super smooth and beautiful. For sure the build quality of iPhone is superior but Pixel is proven by the developers as an excellent phone to work with.

 

[Feenician]

Google does not in any way sell your information to anyone. When companies pay Google to advertise, all they can do is tell Google what demographic, age group, sex, geographic area etc...that they want the ads to target. But the advertiser never ever knows who you are. That would actually put Google out of business. It is in their best interest to keep your information as secret as possible.

https://appleinsider.com/articles/1...let-third-parties-read-user-email-report-says

For example, Return Path, a firm that skims emails for data of interest to marketers, scanned the inboxes of over 2 million people, leaving 8,000 unredacted emails to be read by its employees. Other marketing companies, as well as app makers, also gained access to Gmail emails.