Google Pixel XL preview: A new, costly, Google overlord

Google has announced a pair of Pixel handsets, sweeping aside its Nexus brand as it eagerly eyes a more serious smartphone position.

Running under the Made By Google banner, the new Pixel devices offer not only a pure Android experience, but a pure Google experience. Google maintains that its Pixel devices are designed end-to-end in-house, a markedly different approach to the Nexus partnerships which have characterised Google’s phones of the past.

With the Pixel XL taking a superior position to the Pixel it launches alongside, this is the new Android champion, a pure Google overlord, and it’s a costly one at that, priced at £719 in the UK for the 32GB version.

Google Pixel XL preview: Design

With various images of the Pixel XL leaking prior to launch, this design might look a little familiar. That’s not just down to the leaks, but there’s a familiar angle to the face design that reflects some of HTC’s recent handsets like the HTC One A9 or perhaps the HTC 10. Although Google didn’t mention who physically machined the handsets, there’s a whiff of HTC about them. 

The Pixel XL measures 154.7 x 75.7 x 8.6mm and weighs 168g. That makes for a fairly hefty device, but with a 5.5-inch display, that’s what you might expect. Still, it’s lighter and has a smaller footprint than the iPhone 7 Plus, even if it is a little fatter.

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The bigger differentiation, accordingly, comes around the back, with the metal body punctuated with a glass top section. It’s unconventional, yes, but it’s different, marking this phone aside from the rear, even if the front looks much the same as devices already on the market. It’s perhaps a little weird that you’ve got a glossy glass section where you’ll be tapping the phone to unlock using the fingerprint scanner, but there you go.

The important thing is that the Pixel XL feels solid and it feels like a quality handset. It’s cool and smooth to the touch and reassuringly solid. The fusion of two different materials on the rear is a little odd and we wonder if that signature look matters when you’re likely to slip it into a cover. Still, if you’re asking whether this feel like a £700 phone? Yes, it does, if you’re talking iPhone. 

But with metal bodies coming from the likes of Huawei at perhaps half the price (if not the spec), some might think the Pixel XL is overreaching slightly in the Android world.

• Google Pixel XL vs Pixel: What’s the difference?

Google Pixel XL preview: Daydream display

While the display isn’t so unconventional – there’s nothing too outlandish about a 5.5-inch Quad HD display in modern Android phones – Google’s message is that this is a great phone for Daydream, its VR platform, using the new Daydream View headset.

From the hardware side, this is a 5.5-inch 2560 x 1440 pixel resolution display, resulting in 534ppi. Like the smaller Pixel, it’s an AMOLED display, meaning it’s vibrant and punchy. Not only is it packed with detail, it looks good delivering your content too. 

We haven’t had the chance to see it in a full range of conditions, we don’t know how this huge display will perform in bright conditions and if it will have the brightness to compete with the likes of the SGS7 edge, the big screen phone to beat. But first impressions are really good. The new Pixel Launcher is full of vibrancy and punch, the dancing dots of Google Assistant looks sharp and defined dancing on a white background that’s lovely and bright.

• What is Daydream and when is it coming? Google’s Android VR platform explained

Google Pixel XL preview: Hardware step-up

When Google’s previous Nexus devices didn’t really push the hardware forward, the new Pixel phones make a minor change over the rest of the 2016 flagship devices in offering a Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 chipset, with 4GB of RAM.

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This latest chipset from Qualcomm is a revision of the high-regarded SD820, squeezing out a little more power, ideal for delivering on slightly more demanding VR content. Exactly how this chipset will perform on a wider range of tasks, we’re yet to see.

The 3450mAh battery sounds promising too. Yes, it isn’t the highest capacity out there, but it should see you through the day. With speedy charging via the USB Type-C, a top-up will only take you a brief stop at a wall plug too.

One of the things we really like about the fingerprint scanner is the inclusion of a swipe down shortcuts. We’ve seen this before from Huawei, but it means you can swipe down on the back to access the notifications shade, rather than having to touch the display.

Google Pixel XL preview: Camera conventionality

While a number of devices are shaking up cameras – Apple, LG, Huawei – the Pixel XL seems rather more conventional by comparison. There’s a 12-megapixel camera on the rear, offering 1.55µm pixels and an f/2.0 aperture, meaning it should be good at capturing shots in low light conditions. Add in optical image stabilisation and we’re hoping for a repeat performance of the Nexus 6P.

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Google’s phones have never been the forefront of camera performance. Traditionally, that’s been left to companies like Samsung (also rather conventional in comparison to some others). The message behind imaging on the Pixel is strong however. Google is claiming great things about this camera, offering very quick launching and capture from what we’ve seen.

One of the headline features is HDR+, an HDR system that aims to fuse multiple images for great results in all conditions: of course, we’ve not had the chance to try them in the real world, yet.

The camera is boosted with unlimited storage for the full resolution photos as well as your 4K video. 

The front camera offers 8-megapixels.

Google Pixel XL preview: A special Nougat treat

While Google released Android 7.0 Nougat earlier in the year than it has done before, the new Pixel devices arrive with a few special treats.

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The most noticeable element is the new Pixel Launcher. This moves us on from the Google Now launcher, but still offers a side swipe straight into that service. Google Now feels like a piece in a larger puzzle, where Google Assistant is on the rise and Android as a whole is becoming a smart piece in a Google universe that wants to be involved in everything, such as your home.

The new home button is the access point to Google Assistant. A long press will launch Assistant and you can start asking whatever you want. That might be a random question to start, with contextual results following on as you talk to the Google bot. It’s smart stuff, but we’ve only scratched the surface of what this fully-integrated assistant will offer.

• Android 7.0 Nougat review: Subtle but super-sweet OS update

Having seen Android 7.0 Nougat already and spent some time with it, this is a refinement of the smartphone experience. Nougat layers on features to the sweetness of Marshmallow, with a few more exciting elements added for the Pixel handsets. We’re sure that these things will arrive soon on other Nexus phones too, so the Pixel may not keep its advantage for long.

First Impressions

The Pixel XL is a new expression from Google. It’s a statement of intent, wanting to be the best Google phone there it. This isn’t trying to replace the Nexus, it’s a whole other thing.

That might make the £719 price a little hard to swallow. The Pixel XL undoubtedly brings quality, it brings hardware, but unlike buying a phone from Samsung or LG, it doesn’t bring huge quantities of extra potency. You don’t get the feeling that you get more from the Pixel than you’ll be getting from an updated other-brand Android phone in the future.

At the same time, in this new world where Google is taking ownership, it’s a challenger to the iPhone 7 Plus that’s packed full of smartphone goodness a rival in many senses. But with Android so often taking the price advantage, we’re not sure the Pixel XL has what it takes to justify the price it’s asking.

Outside of price, however, this is an Android price, a new Google overlord, and there’s something about that we can’t help liking.