Earlier today Google, the search engine giant launches their next set of flagship smartphones, AKA Google Pixel 2 and Google Pixel XL 2. These devices will be available in India from the next week via online as well as the offline retail stores.
Pricing: The Google Pixel 2 comes in 64 GB and 128 GB storage options and priced at INR 61,000 and 70,000 respectively. The Google Pixel XL 2 also comes in 64 GB and 128 GB storage modules and priced at INR 73,000 and INR 82,000 respectively. The pre-order for these will start from 26th October and the actual shipping begins on 2nd November.
First impressions: The Pixel 2 and Pixel XL 2 are truly a flagship class smartphones, however, the way that these devices are priced doesn’t make any sense at all. Google Nexus/Pixel smartphones were meant to provide best Android user experience at a competitive price tag, but, looking at their pricing, it looks like Google is directly aiming at the customers who are planning to buy an iPhone 8 or iPhone 8 Plus.
In fact, our favourite Android phone of the year is the Galaxy Note 8, which is priced at INR 67,990 and offers way more features than the Pixel counterpart. So, let’s see why these Pixels phones don’t cut the corner when it comes to competition.
When they were launching the original Google Pixel and Pixel XL, they condemned the fact that the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus doesn’t have a 3.5 mm headphone jack, but this year, they have done the same mistake. And there is nothing new when it comes to innovation. In fact, the squeeze the frame feature is borrowed from HTC U11 Ultra.
Coming to the build quality, the device offers standard metal unibody design with a small glass on the top, which acts as an antenna for the wireless reception. There is nothing new in terms of design as, the device looks completely similar to the last generation Pixel, which slightly bigger camera bump.
Tech Specifications of Google Pixel 2 and Google Pixel XL 2:
Google Pixel 2 offers a standard 5-inch 1080p OLED display protected by 2.5D curved tempered Corning Gorilla Glass 5. Whereas, the Google Pixel XL 2 features a 6-inch OLED 1440p QHD+ OLED screen with 18:9 cinematic aspect ration with 3D curved Corning Gorilla Glass 5. On the front, both devices offer dual front-firing speakers, borrowed from the last generation HTC lineup. Under the hood, both models are powered by the top of the line Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 Octa-core SoC, paired with 4 GB LPDDR4 RAM and 64 GB or 128 GB onboard flash storage. Like its dynasty, these devices don’t offer micro SD card slot.
In terms of camera, both models offer identical hardware. The 12.2 MP camera with 4-axial image stabilisation and electronic image stabilisation offers live portrait mode with the help of the software algorithms rather than using a secondary sensor, the camera does support 4K video recording capability, capped at just 30 frames per second. However, the 720p HD video does offer slow-motion videos up to 240 frames per second. The front facing 8 MP camera offers F/2.4 aperture with 1.4 micro pixel and 1080p video recording capability. According to DXO listing, Pixel 2 and Pixel XL 2 has the best smartphone camera ever on a smartphone (outperforms iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus).
Coming to the battery, the Pixel 2 is packed with a 2700 mAh Li-ion battery with Qualcomm Quick charge 4.0 capability via USB type C slot, and its big brother Pixel XL 2 offers a 3520 mAh Li-ion battery with a similar charging capability. According to Google, 15 minutes of charge should last for up to 7 hours of usage. However, the device doesn’t offer wireless charging, as the material used (Aluminium) doesn’t support inductive wireless charging.
These devices also pack an NFC, Bluetooth 5.0, WiFi 2.4 GHz and 5.0 GHz. The device does support Google cardless payment. In terms of location finders, the device offers GPS, Baidu, Galileo, and GLONASS. As a special feature, the Pixel XL 2 offers a new feature called Active Edge, which can trigger the Google Assistance when you squeeze the device.
So, Pixel 2 and Pixel XL 2 is a great smartphone with stock Android experience, regular Android updates for 2 years and Android security updates for 3 years. Other than that, this is a standard device with standard set of features, that doesn’t go well with the price tag it’s asking, in fact, if you are looking for a state of the art Android smartphone go with Samsung Galaxy Note 8 or LG V30, which offers state of the art camera capability, wireless charging, and unique design language. Google Pixel 2 and Pixel XL 2 are for those, who don’t know about Nokia 8, OnePlus 5 or Samsung Galaxy S8.