Google’s next-gen Pixels have a souped-up camera and squeezable sides… but only one camera lens.
Google’s two new Pixel phones are here. You’ve got the regular Pixel, with its 5-inch OLED screen, and the larger Pixel XL with a 6-inch display. These Android Oreo phones are Google’s high-end devices for the leadup into 2018, and they’ll square off against the iPhone X, Samsung Galaxy Note 8 and LG V30.
In some ways, the Google Pixel 2 phones buck today’s biggest trends; in other ways they fit right in to the latest crazes. For example, the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL don’t have superthin bezels and dual cameras like the competition. But they do add water resistance like so many top devices, and an uncommon extra — in this case, squeezable sides. They also shake off the headphone jack, a divisive move that’s going to upset plenty of people.
Google Pixel 2 and 2 XL photos: Feast your eyes
These Pixels are also the first phones to launch with Google Lens, a camera feature we loved when we first learned of it back in May. (They’re not, however, the first to launch with Oreo; that’s the Sony Xperia XZ1.)
To Google, the new Pixels’ most important feature is the camera, which is a huge buying factor for many. The same camera appears in both the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL, and Google hopes it can top the best-in-class low-light photography of last year’s Pixel and beat out the fine-detail quality and portrait modes of phones that have two camera lenses, doing the work with just one. That’s right, neither of the new phones has dual cameras.
The Pixel 2 and 2 XL are pivotal for Google. As the second generation of the Pixel family, their success will cement Google’s place in the playing field, and validate Google’s $1.1 billion deal to basically buy Pixel talent from struggling phone maker HTC. On the other hand, if Pixel 2 sales sag, it could mean more Android fans are switching to other phones in the extremely important holiday season — and away from Google’s “pure” vision of Android.
As always, it’s impossible to say how good the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL are after only seeing them for a brief time. We do like what we’ve seen of the camera improvements, like better portrait shots and OIS (optical image stabilization), and sides you can squeeze to launch Google Assistant. But the competition is crazy-fierce, from the iPhone 8 and iPhone X to the Galaxy Note 8, LG V30 and even the midprice champ, the OnePlus 5, all of which also have great cameras and impressive, high-end specs.
We’ll compare the Pixel 2 and 2 XL to those other heavy-hitters once we get them in for review. For now however, Google hopes that small software upgrades, a powerful camera and Google’s brand cachet are enough to sway buyers looking for strong alternatives to the Apple and Samsung mainstream.
You can preorder both phones starting Wednesday, Oct. 4, in the US and UK. Preorders in Australia begin Oct. 20. The Pixel 2 comes in three colors: Kinda Blue, Just Black and Clearly White, and the Pixel 2 XL has two color variants: Just Black and Black and White (which reminds us of a tuxedo, a penguin or a panda, depending on our mood).
In the US, they’ll be available in retail stores by Oct. 19 and you can buy them through Verizon, the Google Store, Project Fi and Best Buy. The Pixel 2 costs $649 (64GB) or $749 (128GB). The Pixel 2 XL costs $849 (64GB) or $949 (128GB).
If you preorder the Pixel, Google is offering a special bundle that gets you the new Google Home Mini device for free, in some countries like the US.
