Google Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro

Google Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro(store.google.com)

577 points by mikeevans 4 years ago | 816 comments

DCKing 4 years ago |

Thanks Google. Think I’ll be buying this.

I want as little to do with Google’s services as possible in my life, but they really deserve credits for making a modern usable smartphone that is reasonably open. There is just one single feature I will be buying this for - the 5 years of software updates. While good image processing is definitely a pro, all of these software you’re presenting features I really don’t give a damn about. Just give me a phone that is meant to last a little while - and allow me to run what I damn please. This looks to be like a continuation of the Pixel 5, which allows you run your own software like /e/OS and CalyxOS aside to just being a lot less of a walled garden on the stock ROM.

The Android market is completely dire, and no vendor can be trusted to provide openness, reasonable taste or security updates. They sell you a phone, and once you’ve clicked buy they’ve already stopped caring. So last year I switched to an iPhone 12. I needed to vote with my wallet to get a phone that lasts. But although I get what’s appealing about iPhones and the walled garden, I started feeling claustrophobic. Feeling claustrophobic about what I can tailor about my browser, how easily I can run Game Boy games, what ads I can block, and Apple’s stated intents to actively incriminate you by scanning your photos on a personal device. I will continue to recommend those phones for most people (pending what they’re going to do with trying to incriminate you), but it’s not for me.

Finally here’s a seemingly good Android phone with 5 years of support - from the only phone vendor outside of Apple who appears to give a damn about that aspect. Don’t get me wrong: 5 years is still too short in my view, and not as long as Apple provides support for on their stuff [1]. But the market needs change, and I’ll put money towards that.

[1]: The iPhone 5S has just hit 8 years of _kernel_ security updates last month with iOS 12.5.5. One can dream on the Android side, but I’ll take 5 years in the current market.

Abishek_Muthian 4 years ago | |

> Finally here’s a seemingly good Android phone with 5 years of support - from the only phone vendor outside of Apple who appears to give a damn about that aspect.

FairPhone 4 not only promises 5 years of android software updates but also has 5 years of warranty, There are more reasons to trust their words than any of the other phone manufacturers.

• They are not profit focused but rather towards sustainability, They have been delivering their promises consistently for 8 years and so it's not an idealistic vaporware.

• They produce the most repairable smartphone using components sourced from conflict free areas. Parts for repair are available directly on their site, Parts for FairPhone 1 are still available.

• Their factory workers get living wage bonus, Of course do not employ child labor while preaching humanity.

• They have first class support for alternate operating systems i.e. We are the owners of what we buy; So support from alternate OS like Linux, Sailfish or even android ROMs like LineageOS could exceed even the official 5 years support.

FairPhone4 hardware is competent enough for average daily use, Only drawback I see is that the phone is available only in Europe. Then again Google Pixel phones have been notorious for being available in only couple of countries.

[1] https://shop.fairphone.com/en/

MildlySerious 4 years ago | | |

Tangential, but the first thing I noticed is that this site itself greets me in my preferred language, and allows setting my region separately, at the top of the page.

The Pixel site sets the language based on geography and does not allow changing it without changing the region, which comes with a warning about delivery and currency conversion.

One of these makes me feel understood and accounted for as a potential customer, the other makes me want to CTRL+W and move on.

I am aware that this doesn't affect the majority of people. That doesn't make it less frustrating that Google keeps doubling down on this with many of the things they do.

DCKing 4 years ago | | |

I love Fairphone’s promise, but execution is another thing. Fair warning here is that I’ve seen the experience with a Fairphone 3 up close, and it wasn’t up to my standards in terms of camera and software bugs (caller ID has not worked for months), let alone the barebones hardware they ship. I hope they get there, but the Fairphone 3 certainly wasn’t it for me.

What I don’t understand about Fairphone is how they will deliver these updates. Fairphone, like others, uses Qualcomm chips. Qualcomm supports their chips only for three years (four years for recent ones, but not the ones FP is using). This is what held Google back to ship reasonable security updates on Pixel devices so far. How can a small company like Fairphone convince Qualcomm to make more updates if Google couldn’t? Or will they just end up shipping incomplete security updates, like a community project?

L_226 4 years ago | | |

I bought a Fairphone 3+ 10 weeks ago, and just got a refund because they cannot build any units. I really wanted this, I guess I will continue to wait for the librem5

wffurr 4 years ago | | |

Yup, I love the concept of FairPhone but it lacks US availability and compatibility.

The camera is also a big draw of the Pixel phones. I think it might be a long while for open source and commodity hardware to match top smartphone cameras.

leephillips 4 years ago | | |

Looks nice, but it has a notch → dealbreaker.

a_imho 4 years ago | | |

Maybe I'm missing something but it looks like 4x more expensive than some equally specced Chinese phone?

whichquestion 4 years ago | |

5 years of security updates, 3 years of feature updates.

On the page it says on the 12th footnote, "Feature drops for at least 3 years from when the device first became available on the Google Store in the US. Your Pixel will receive feature drops during the applicable Android update and support periods for the phone. See g.co/pixel/updates for details."

On https://support.google.com/pixelphone/answer/4457705 it says, "Guaranteed Android version updates until at least: October 2024" and "Guaranteed security updates until at least: October 2026" for Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro

So they hypothetically could extend it to more than 3 years of feature updates and 5 years of security updates with the nebulous "at least" wording.

ehsankia 4 years ago | | |

Historically, they have. Older pixels all had 2 year feature 3 year security, but ended up getting 3 year feature+security.

Although, after 1-2 year, the features get a bit thinner because a lot of the newer features rely on new hardware that the older phones don't fully have. Sometimes they try to make it work, like how Astrophotography was available on older pixels but didn't work quite as well as on Pixel 4. But in general, they probably put the "at least" because it's hard to guarantee that a feature in 5 years will be backportable to Pixel 6.

nextos 4 years ago | | |

If you use a third-party ROM such as the excellent GrapheneOS, in practice you get fully featured updates for really really long.

With that said, open source ROMs don't take advantage of some features such as the Tensor SoC, and therefore the camera stops performing so good.

1vuio0pswjnm7 4 years ago | | |

It's funny that when discussing the topic of "updates" and obsolescence, users focus on the vendor as if they have exclusive control over the situation. Authors of applications may also play a role. For example, when they "update" their applications to only work with newer versions of Android. Depending on the user's application needs, that can shorten the life of a an Android device. Some applications will continue to work with both older and newer Android versions, some will not. For example, F-Droid has numerous programs that will work on older, "obsolete" Android versions. This allows older hardware to be re-purposed and to continue to be useful for some uses. Not sure that Apple has anything like this; consider how many programs in the Apple App Store work with older iOS versions.

Both Android vendor and Apple hardware continue to work long after the software has become "outdated". That hardware does not die when the software becomes "obsolete". The vendor may choose to ignore this fact in the interest of sales but it does not mean that authors of applications must ignore it as well.

The third factor besides the vendor and the authors of applications are the operating system authors. With older PC-like hardware, I can run the latest versions of NetBSD. Forever. I update when and if I decide it is time. x86 has its benefits. It is sad that these pocket-sized computers called "smartphones" are so inflexible.

A non-HN reader recently told me that the "tech" industry has turned us all into "beta testers". The entire "updates" concept needs a serious examination. Updates are not a substitute for quality control.

howinteresting 4 years ago | | |

Unlike iOS where basic features like the web browser require system updates, Android is modular and updates get pushed through other channels independently of the OS itself.

EastOfTruth 4 years ago | | |

> 5 years of security updates, 3 years of feature updates.

It would be nice to have 8 years of security updates and 0 years of feature updates, instead. I always dreamed of having the option to only have security updates on my OSes...

rumblerock 4 years ago | |

As a former Pixel user that switched because I broke the phone and had an extra iPhone in the family, there are a number of reasons I'm heavily considering switching back (had been an Android user since 2009).

1. Spam call screening is nonexistent on the iPhone, and T-Mobile's blocker still lets a ton of them through. In my prior experience Google did a much better job in this department. It would be nice to pick up the phone without a 90% chance of an annoying spam call.

2. Speech to text on iPhone makes a lot of mistakes and Google's latest update looks like they've widened the gap even more. I don't want to handle my phone to text while driving, and when the interpretation is wrong it requires extra keystrokes to try again, correct it, or type the message if urgent. This is unsafe.

3. I find FaceID annoying, and after replacing the iPhone screen because I cracked it, FaceID got noticeably worse. With a fingerprint I can have the phone unlocked before I even pull it out of my pocket, especially these days when we have masks on.

Plenty of other sexy features like camera and the customer service line feature are very nice to have, but in my opinion these are major benefits in terms of everyday usability. The overall integration across services is just smoother too, in terms of flows like email -> calendar -> google maps live traffic, or email -> boarding pass QR code. I am and will always be a PC user so I don't benefit from those integrations with Apple products.

Making the switch will require ditching Airpods and the Apple Watch, but I think it might be worth it for me.

thedougd 4 years ago | | |

I think it's not appreciated enough how much they got right by putting the fingerprint sensor on the back in a natural position to touch and hold the phone. You are correct, it is unlocked usually before the screen is visible.

ncr100 4 years ago | | |

For 1, and 2 my individual (single data point!) experience through all versions of the Pixel have been great.

I've been saddened that Google keeps the Spam filtration feature locked to the Pixel devices. It is a KILLER FEATURE.

And for STT - that "just works" 95% of my time that I use it with common vocabulary.

The hardware has failed me a couple of times - sudden battery failure, and battery cable tearing with a reasonable, slight fall - though so consider one of the warranty options.

schwartzworld 4 years ago | | |

> I find FaceID annoying

I have the pixel 4 which has face id. I loved it for the 6 months that I had the phone before we all started wearing masks everywhere. Now it's a completely useless feature.

gundmc 4 years ago | | |

I recently switched from a Pixel 3a to a Samsung phone - I didn't realize at the time that the spam filtering was a uniquely Pixel feature but holy hell do I miss it. I didn't change my number or carrier, but I went from maybe 1 spam call a month to about 3 per day. This feature is slept on in a big way.

brainwipe 4 years ago | | |

FYI Airpods work with Android devices. No idea about your watch.

0x38B 4 years ago | |

For years, I used an iPad and a Pixel, and now - a Surface running Linux and an iPhone.

I always thought iOS had better, higher quality apps, and in some areas, that's true - Procreate for art, first-party games, etc. But I miss powerful, functional apps. I love the way Moon+ Reader tracks every single reading session, time spent and WPM. And nothing on iOS comes close to Smart Audiobook Player, although Bound is decent.

My iPhone is a great phone and a poor computer, whereas Android's MiXplorer and Termux empower me to, in a pinch, do whatever I need to do. iOS's best equivalent apps consistently fail to copy files over SMB or SCP (they get killed in the background or just fail), while Apple's Files app can't even write to my writable SMB share that works everywhere else.

In short, while my iPhone wins on battery life, speed, and support, the Pixel (and by extension Android) beat it in power and freedom. Perhaps this all proves that Android suits the needs of this power-user and tinkerer better.

marcellus23 4 years ago | |

> Apple’s stated intents to actively incriminate you by scanning your photos on a personal device

More accurately put, their intent is to scan cloud photos for exact matches with known child pornography material (like every other cloud provider, including Google), and then have the case reviewed by a human only after multiple positives, and only then forwarding the case to law enforcement (based on photos you chose to upload to the cloud)

flutas 4 years ago | | |

> their intent is to scan cloud photos

corrected: their intent is to scan all photos in your photo library, on your device, including images automatically pulled in from from various sources such as messages, if you have iCloud Photo enabled.

alexmcc81 4 years ago | | |

> exact matches

Not exact matches. Hashes. Hashes that were quickly show to have collisions that the company brushed off.

taylorlapeyre 4 years ago | | |

Additionally, the while the publicity of that announcement was terrible PR for apple, it was really a request for comment. They got comments from security professionals, and then they acknowledged the problems, retracted the announcement, and are working with those professionals on a system that will be better from a privacy perspective.

Try getting that behavior from Google, a company who's existence is dependent on surveillance advertising.

pcmoney 4 years ago | | |

Or more more accurately, their stated intent is to scan for anything any government deems illegal in any country where they operate.

Also who is reviewing this known child pornography list? Hopefully nobody because it is Child pornography but also hopefully somebody because what if somebody slips something in there… Say a offensive political cartoon or a ethnic group symbol or a picture of Tiananmen Square. This list of “offensive images” needs to be auditable.

Also it is crossing a line in the sand because it is on your personal device not in their servers. All you can hope for is that they don’t alter the deal further.

optimiz3 4 years ago | | |

Having my photos warantlessly rifled through by a machine and then a human really puts me at ease!

echelon 4 years ago | | |

> known child pornography material

For some definition. Russia's FSB might have a very different idea of what this is. Anti-Putin memes, for instance. Navalny support materials or brochures. You'll have to watch what you download, because your phone might upload it and incriminate you.

Or China's MSS. Winnie the Pooh, Tiananmen Square, Free HK, etc.

Or even the FBI. Financial or political leaks, Wikileaks, etc.

Once they know who you are and why they don't like you, they can incriminate you in other ways. This helps them find and flag you. They don't even need to monitor and decrypt traffic - they can just upload hashes of things they don't like and let Apple's dragnet do all the work.

Don't buy into "CSAM" scare. It's never the intent. The powers that be don't give a damn about children. It's about power.

boppo1 4 years ago | | |

You mean, setting a precedent for expansion of personal device scanning

artificialLimbs 4 years ago | | |

This is the stated initial iteration.

lern_too_spel 4 years ago | | |

The difference is that if you don't want your photos scanned by anybody but you still want your photos uploaded in the background, you can do that on Android, but you can't do that on Android. People who value privacy do not use iOS devices.

darth_avocado 4 years ago | | |

Correct, but there have been known False positives that have hash collisions in this system. That is something to care about considering the trust in law enforcement is eroding day by day

RF_Savage 4 years ago | | |

People have had tons of fun finding collisions and seeing how far they can take an image until the apple neuralhash algo thinks it different. It very much is not an exact match like what you would get with MD5 for example. But a "perceptual hash" that means that it gets the same has even if you crop it by a couple of pixels or change some pixels.

quitit 4 years ago | | |

The person arguing with you has misinterpreted how Photos works, the information you have provided is correct - they are merely surfaced in the Photos app and the software provides the user the option to save them to their library. Sometimes users on this site play dumb or falsely represent the facts for the sake of their argument.

gjsman-1000 4 years ago | | |

You know that Google Photos scans everything, server-side, since like 2012 right?

reincarnate0x14 4 years ago | |

> I want as little to do with Google’s services as possible in my life

As a Fi and Fiber user, those services have actually been really solid and reasonably priced.

Android wise, Calyx maintains a nice de-googled one (https://calyxos.org/install/ ) and they will sell you an unlocked phone at a reasonable price if you are a member. We use one on Google Fi with no issues in any of about 10 countries so far.

easton_s 4 years ago | | |

I like frictionless Fi is. Phone breaks? No prob. Grab a cheap Moto phone from the Fi store listing, get it in the mail the next day, and setup in 5 mins. Go over on data? No prob. Pay a prorated price at the exact same rate.

tdrdt 4 years ago | |

Germany tries to push for a 7 year minimum update policy in the EU.

If the EU agrees this will be very interesting for the smartphone market.

5 years of security updates is already great.

distances 4 years ago | | |

I agree. Three years is clearly too short. After five the battery would usually need replacing, but the devices being what they are, one probably opts for a new phone.

NotPractical 4 years ago | |

> I will continue to recommend those phones for most people (pending what they’re going to do with trying to incriminate you), but it’s not for me.

Why? Despite what Apple would have you believe, Pixel phones aren't "more complicated" than iPhones. They're just a little different. For example, I recently had to use an iPhone and the interface was difficult to use, coming from Android. Not because it was inherently confusing, but because I simply wasn't used to it. But I'm sure it would have only taken a few days to adjust.

qwertox 4 years ago | |

Software support is 5 years in security upgrades and 3 in OS upgrades [1] (at minimum, so it depends on their mood).

In my case it's -1 year because I prefer to wait up to a year until I get a good deal, and then there's always the option to put LineageOS on the Pixel devices [2].

[1] https://support.google.com/pixelphone/answer/4457705?hl=en

[2] https://wiki.lineageos.org/devices/#google

progbits 4 years ago | |

Definitely agreed, longer software support would be nice. On the other hand the repairability is important too, if you can replace battery and fix a broken screen easily the phone is unlikely to be useful after that many years anyway.

I think the previous pixels were reasonably good in that regard (not compared to framework of course).

Improving that would be higher priority in my eyes. Software support can always come later: even once the official support is dropped the community can backport AOSP fixes etc.

meltedcapacitor 4 years ago | | |

AOSP does not help with the mountain of closed vendor blobs at the bottom of the stack.

turtlebits 4 years ago | |

Pixel phones have absolutely not been reliable for me. From the Pixel 1 microphone defect to it needing a reboot every few days, and my Pixel 4A boot looping, Google phones are absolutely not reliable IME. (Almost as bad a Razer laptops).

zik 4 years ago | | |

I have a pixel phone myself and know four other people with them and they've all been perfectly reliable. Not a single issue.

sliken 4 years ago | | |

I've had the HTC G1 (first android), G2, every generation of nexus and every generation of pixel. Never had a problem.

throwaway81523 4 years ago | |

> 5 years of support

I'll wait for the iFixit report on how difficult it is to replace the battery, before believing in a phone lasting that long. Also as usual for the pixels, there is no analog headphone jack. Still I can't believe I'm at least somewhat interested in a $600 phone since I'm not that much of a mobile user. I wonder if they will do a 6A version any time soon.

The main difference between the 6 and the 6 pro is the pro adds a telephoto camera, right?

Anandtech article is up: https://www.anandtech.com/show/16939/google-announces-pixel-...

I'm still somewhat leaning towards a 5a as my next phone, as it's already more than I want to spend.

2muchcoffeeman 4 years ago | | |

My parents used several handed down iPhones for 6+ years each. I see no reason Google didn’t buy similarly good batteries.

wvenable 4 years ago | |

Samsung announced 5 years of Android updates months ago. Before that, it was 4 years of updates.

DCKing 4 years ago | | |

Unless you have more recent info (please correct me in that case), that's not quite correct. Last I heard was that Samsung's promise has been 4 years of updates [1].

I recognize Samsung as being well clear of the rest of the pack of Android vendors. Other Android vendors are outright negligent, whereas Samsung seems to generally try to fight their bad incentives and come up with some decency.

Where I think Samsung falls short is execution. Samsung is fundamentally a hardware company and their software has always been mediocre in my view, even to this day. In terms of security updates they promise less than Google, they promise fewer and slower updates than Google (quarterly software updates for some devices / late in the lifecycle still makes older devices an afterthought!), and I trust their promise to execute on their promise less than Google.

Finally, Samsung devices don't have nearly the same support for third party privacy friendly OSes than Pixel devices do - you're stuck with Samsung's (warning: personal opinion) rather tasteless take on what Android should be, and have no real other options.

[1]: https://news.samsung.com/global/samsung-takes-galaxy-securit...

ChuckNorris89 4 years ago | | |

Is it 5 years of Android updates or 5 years of security updates?

theshrike79 4 years ago | | |

Unless it's 5 years of full on-time Android version updates it doesn't count.

"We patched a few zero days" should be the norm, not something you mightily announce as something grand and Brave.

tonoto 4 years ago | |

Your text could basically be mine.

I'm utterly tired of Google's attitude and how little they really care about their customers. They have really cool tech and solutions, but their total neglectance of the individual but somewhat high attention of activists have made my view of a #1 company down the slope, I guess I would at one point have to try applying for some position to hopefully change my mind on that point.

I have a love/hate relationship regarding their Android ecosystem and lack of possibilites to keep an updated phone up to date more than 1-2 years.. so after many years listening to the Apple ambassadors among (okay, mostly non-tech) friends and finally went all-in on the Apple way of doing stuff, bought their "Pro"-version of wireless headset, their smart watch series 7 and their "Pro"-version smartphone series 12 (supplied from my work).

I feel totally claustrophobic about the lack of options and what Apple enforces. Chrome, Firefox, Opera, Safari, switching doesn't matter.. everything is Safari/Webkit engine, no firefox extensions.

Control volume of an app/media - no way, everything should have the same volume.. so my phone remains muted 24/7 and I hope important stuff vibrates on the watch (which is of course also muted as I cannot clearly select what notifications should sound or not).

If it weren't for my old android phone no longer receiveing updates I would switch back to my now three year old phone, at least that one let me unlock my screen with my fingers.. The Apple way is more.. if I, in the middle of the night, want to change track on my Bose Sleepbuds - I cannot do it unless I widely open my eyes and stare on the Apple camera so I am wide awake.

But an Android with 5 year lifespan.. then it starts getting interesting again.

Sodman 4 years ago |

I hate the trend that the "pro" versions of all these flagship phones need to be an XL Phablet monstrosity. Human hands haven't gotten any bigger. I have owned most of the Nexus & Pixel phones throughout the years. After having the Nexus 6 as my daily driver for 2 years, I have always opted for the smaller option ever since.

I would totally pay flagship prices for a regular ~5.5-6" phone with flagship specs, and I'm sure I'm not the only one. Make it 50% thicker if there are space/heat concerns, but making it wider and taller just makes it super difficult to use consistently with one hand. I also say this as somebody with larger-than-average hands!

eis 4 years ago |

Google seems to have for some reason requested a very/overly broad embargo from reviewers which does not let them show any photos taken with the device or software features for now.

MKBHD mentions this (and shows nothing from the phone really) @ https://youtu.be/roWxo6jWoYw?t=140 And Mrwhosetheboss said he refused to cover these phones due to the embargo. The Tech Chap mentions he can't show anything apart from the home screen. Can't even swipe down to show notifications @ https://youtu.be/aLr7eCsY6Cg?t=191

Wonder what made them think that that's a good idea. Especially because Android 12 is not exactly a secret.

standardUser 4 years ago |

I couldn't wait any longer so I purchased a very expensive Samsung S21 Ultra ($1200) because no Google phone could lure me away from my fading Pixel 2 XL.

My mistake, because the Samsung phone had preloaded software that took considerable effort to remove (more than most people could/would deal with). It wasn't the software itself that bothered me, but rather that there were notifications for apps I don't use that I could not turn off. That's enough to make me hate a company for a long time.

Bloat my phone all you want, but notifications take my brain-space, not my drive space. At least with a Google phone I have a semblance of control over the core function of the device. Looking forward to the Pixel 7 or equivalent once this Samsung device has served its purpose.

nicbou 4 years ago |

I really like my Pixel 5, and I hope that Google maintains the course with future Pixels.

It's a proper appliance phone. It holds the same place in my life as my kettle or my washing machine. It does what I want it to do, and asks nothing of me. I don't know any stats about it, only that it's fast enough, has a long enough battery life, and takes good enough pictures.

I couldn't be happier.

a1371 4 years ago | |

Completely agree. I remember with my past phones, there were lots of flashy features to play with but then they'd become annoying and you'd start to notice glaring usability problems. Pixel has exactly what it's supposed to have and all of them are well designed.

Symmetry 4 years ago | |

In the same boat but I suspect I'll be sad if I didn't have a finger print reader on the back of my phone. But maybe there's a good reason everybody is putting it on the front now?

derekp7 4 years ago | | |

If I'm sitting at my desk I have my phone on the desk instead of in my pocket. It gets annoying have to pick it up to hit the fingerprint reader on the back when I fire up the 2-factor auth app.

pkulak 4 years ago | | |

Having it up closer to the middle of the screen does at least look way more convenient than standard iPhone placement.

kisamoto 4 years ago |

I think normally I'd look for the Pixel or the iPhone but my next purchase will be supporting FairPhone.

When I think about how powerful I need my phone to be I don't need the best. I want something I can fix and update myself; something that's supported for more than a couple of years; something that is a little "better" for the planet.

Does anybody use all of the new power of these incredible devices?

tootie 4 years ago |

Hot take: I haven't seen a compelling new phone feature from any manufacturer in as long as I can remember. I spend 99% of my tapping time sending texts, using a browser and taking pictures with the rear camera. Same as I did on my Droid X which was my first smart phone circa 2011.

o_____________o 4 years ago |

Switched to iPhone last year and can't believe how bad iOS is generally. Feels years behind. Missing Android!

PennRobotics 4 years ago |

I was excited about these but realized it's probably because Google put so much effort into marketing. The phone is unspectacular and has a wacky design that doesn't hit the spot for me.

At the end of the day, there's a huge focus on photography, live transcribe, and extended support. From my perspective, that's their hook.

For photography, I have a Sony Alpha with OIS, etc. Live Transcribe has been a Google Research app for months, so it's not unique to the 6 or even to the Pixel lineup. Companies like Fairphone are fighting to bring long-term support to Android, and the major players are slowly coming around e.g. Samsung.

For me, the downsides include the appearance (smooth, shiny, uniform glass on both sides; dull two-tone colors), unnecessary curved screen on the Pro, lack of a headphone jack, virtually no mention of audio quality or tuning of the onboard speaker/microphones, giant size, and plenty of features I won't use (wireless charging, reverse wireless charging, security chip, 120Hz display). The fingerprint scanner seems better in review videos than the Fairphone 3's abysmal sensor but is in an awkward location if you pull the phone from a pocket with one hand---probably the second worst location, TBH, with the worst being next to the USB port on the bottom edge. Of all the silly nuances (protruding camera, curved glass) the fingerprint sensor location is most likely to drive me to put a case around this phone. A case isn't a bad idea either; it would hide the weak exterior design, keep your palms from accidentally touching the waterfall display, and make the thing so bulky and uncomfortable, you'd never put it in a pocket and risk bending the frame. It's good the software support doesn't last longer than 5 years, because if it survives this long, every non-camera hardware feature would be an annoyance. This is purely my opinion.

I don't want to financially support the assembly country, as I disagree with their style of government, stronghold on entire industries, and widely rumored aggression toward outsiders and the lower class. They're almost as bad as the U.S.

In short, the price is right. The features feel almost all wrong.

-----

Even the bonus deal misses the mark. In Europe, they're including Bose NC headphones. But ... I already have wireless NC headphones, so I'd need to resell either NC pair, then sell my Beyerdynamic wired headphones, then throw away my wired buds, and optionally buy a set of wireless earbuds. At the risk of irritating the North American Pixel 6 buyers who would love some Bose 700s, I'd rather have the phone for a lower price or have not-so-awesome Pixel earbuds as a bonus.

-----

On skin tone: Does every smartphone manufacturer develop their own system camera app from the ground up? If most phone makers have camera apps based on Google Camera (just as most browsers are based on Chrome), it's a bit of a dick move for Google to declare great progress in skin tone photography and inclusiveness unless your company is gonna share those algorithms with other Android partners. You know... since Android is also made by Google, and the skin tone correction is likely performed 100 percent by software. I mean, why not just press release, "Black people, dark-skinned Latinos: you all matter to us, ... UNLESS you buy an Xperia or Oneplus running our OS and system apps!"

-----

Here's to hoping the Pixel 7 focuses on audio, physical durability, and repairability without sacrificing a good IP66/67/68 rating.

paulpan 4 years ago |

Tensor SOC seems pretty impressive on paper, will be curious about how it benchmarks and performs in real-life. The Pixel 5 with its "mid-tier" SOC (Snapdragon 765G) was actually pretty good thanks to the software optimizations.

Bigger news is Qualcomm being left out. Will they go the way of Intel by incentivizing their customers build their own SOCs?

murukesh_s 4 years ago |

If you are outside US and trying to open the link, it may not show up if the device is not launched in your region. Below one worked for me: https://store.google.com/us/category/phones?hl=us

stefan_ 4 years ago |

Since this is Google making the SoC, surely we have Linux drivers within a month for it? Already upstreamed? Some register documentation?

I didn't check, but I suppose the answer is "no". Can't keep pointing at Qualcomm anymore, I guess.

bilalq 4 years ago |

When I first read about the Pixel Pass, I wished it made sense for people on existing family plans. But digging deeper, I see that's the least of the problems there.

Some red flags:

* If/when you cancel Pixel Pass in the future, it will also cancel your Google One membership. If you're over the 15GB free tier, your email will stop working (!!!)[0].

* You have to cancel your existing YouTube Premium subscription before you can sign up.

[0]: https://support.google.com/googleone/answer/9056360?hl=en&co...

ThatPlayer 4 years ago | |

Their claim of "Save up to $294 over two years" seems to be based on monthly rather than annual prices too. If you get to checkout, they list "Pixel Pass services (Google One 200GB)" as $17.97/mo. Annual prices for Google One and Play Pass are both $29.99. Add in YouTube Premium which doesn't have an annual plan for $11.99, and you're looking at $17/mo.

So the real savings are entirely from the phone + warranty where you'll save about $200 on the Pixel 6 Pro, but you're still forced to buy all those Google services you may or may not need.

I'm also on a family plan (with the grandfathered YouTube pricing), so it doesn't seem to be worth it.

kelnos 4 years ago |

It really makes me sad that every generation just gets larger and larger. I miss a phone that I could comfortably use with one hand without feeling like I'm going to drop it half the time.

Also, what is up with the gigantic camera bump on the back? It looks terrible.

I guess I'll be keeping my Pixel 4 a bit longer...

JediWing 4 years ago |

The launch of this phone was utterly botched.

There's a hilarious dissonance between the talk of SoC design, AI, computational photography and ambient computing and the inability to handle a website with a relatively simple purchase flow for a phone that, let's be real, probably has about 1/10 th of the interest and web traffic of the iPhone.

From the moment the store website went live with these phones there were all sorts of errors, and I ended up forgoing purchasing from the google store after trying to for an hour!

Once Best Buy went live with their stock, I instantly was able to pre-order with little issue. I'll be picking it up on release day there.

Fix the store, Google!

fomine3 4 years ago |

Pixel 6 207g weight is horrible. Pixel 5 is just 151g so this is huge jump. I wish smartphone manufacturers stop adding unnecessary weights for premium (like glass back). Pixel 6 Pro 210g is fine compared to non-Pro.

nerdwaller 4 years ago | |

I was curious how this compares to the iOS options. Looks like the iPhone 12 Pro Max is 228g and the 13 Pro Max is 240g. I’ve always disliked the weight of my 12PM that will be getting replaced with the Pixel 6 Pro, I’m excited to feel the difference in standard use.

gniv 4 years ago | |

Agree, but a lot of people seem to not care. The iPhone 13 pro is 204g. The max is 240g.

xxpor 4 years ago | | |

I've literally never contemplated the weight of my phone, if I'm honest.

The screen size sure, but never the weight.

nerdwaller 4 years ago | | |

I’m not sure if it’s people don’t care or don’t have much of an option, especially if they lock into an ecosystem. There’s just a lot more choice on Android devices and the various trade offs.

fomine3 4 years ago | | |

Seems to, especially for US people. Maybe other manufacturers just jump on the same bandwagon as Apple.

summm 4 years ago | | |

they care but the other way round: if the device is made out of lightweight and stable high-tech plastic, they complain it feels and locks cheap, and they hate that, regardless if the plastic would be superior to metal, glass or ceramic in almost any way. As always, the mainstream is much more guided by their emotions and sense of status than rationality.

G3rn0ti 4 years ago |

Only problem with Google‘s Pixel phones is they are almost unrepairable. If you break their screens you total the device. For example: The Pixel 4‘s display is connected through the housing for the motherboard and battery. You need to remove quite a lot of screws and components from the phone to access the screen cable. Furthermore, this way you need to remove the seal/glue for both the motherboard housing and the screen itself: https://youtu.be/3HTeJAgBl3g

It’s unlikely but let’s hope Google has improved the repairability …

adamleo 4 years ago | |

I'm still using my google pixel 2 xl with no case for the whole time I've been using. I dropped many times (including some drops I definitely thought that I was gonna need a new phone instantly), but nope, it still works like a charm with only minor scratches on the corners.

While I do really love pixel, I do think they are not putting enough effort into building a functional eco system around the phone, sharing files is such a pain in the ass and the "sharing nearby" feature never works on this phone, and everytime I needed to transfer files I have to use a cable, that's why I'm switching to iPhone. But I do like what they've shown about the new pixel phone tho.

CobrastanJorji 4 years ago | |

My dog chewed on my Pixel 4 display and totally broke it. I mailed it off to get repaired. Cost me $299. Not sure how much it usually costs to replace a phone's display, but as the phone was pretty new at the time, I paid it.

izacus 4 years ago | | |

That's about the same price I had to pay for broken display on my S10. So it seems it's about standard (and ridiculous) amount of money for a screen replacement.

Audiophilip 4 years ago |

Personally, the lack of a headphone jack is a deal-breaker for me.

executive 4 years ago | |

Zenfone 8 has and is a great iPhone mini alternative: https://www.asus.com/Mobile/Phones/ZenFone/Zenfone-8/

Audiophilip 4 years ago | | |

Wow, thanks for sharing! It looks like a strong candidate to be the successor of my Pixel 4a. Small size and the presence of a headphone jack is a must for me, the 120Hz OLED screen is a very nice cherry on top.

wffurr 4 years ago | |

I hope they keep making the A series midrange phones with head phone jacks.

EOL for my Pixel 4a is August 2023. So maybe there will be a Pixel 7a with a tensor v2 chip and headphone jack by then.

mchusma 4 years ago | |

I have and like the 5A. Great phone of you want a headphone jack.

bjoli 4 years ago | |

I was reading the material and went "I might actually get this phone", bit came to the same conclusion you did.

Both me and my wife are looking for new phones. Both of us (despite looking for very different things in our tech stuff) went "oh. Damn".

bduerst 4 years ago | |

The inevitable A version (like the 5a) will likely have one.

robocat 4 years ago |

Link for anyone not in the US: https://store.google.com/us/category/phones?hl=en-US&regionR...

Otherwise you see your local country store...

Dang: perhaps replace link so international users get the same page?

Griffinsauce 4 years ago | |

Thank you!

I've never understood why they don't sell them in the Netherlands. The way they just pretend it doesn't exist in the store by redirecting you is extra annoying.

Teknoman117 4 years ago |

Anyone know if Google has any plans to mainline the kernel support for the SoC in the Pixel 6?

One of the largest troubles with running your own OS on phones is having little to no information on the SoCs, and thus having to run parts of Android with a shim to a standard Linux user space.

otar 4 years ago |

I don’t trust Google Pixel anymore.

I leave outside US and in my country Google has no official dealer. I bought an unlocked Pixel 3 via my friend in US, who shipped it to me.

At first, everything seemed good unless it started to lag in few months. First, battery percentage was stuck at 26% (but the phone was charging), then, received phone calls were having a very bad quality (calls via messengers were good).

So, in conclusion, I couldn’t: 1) understand if the phone was charged or not; 2) always had a bluetooth earpods with me in case I needed to call or receive a phone call.

It appeared that both of the issues were a hardware failures and needed my phone to be shipped back to US to the Google Service Center, which I didn’t do.

When you pay a decent money for a flagship phone, such issues are unacceptable.

Pixel 6 might be an excellent phone, but I’m not risking my $$$ anymore with it.

jasonvorhe 4 years ago | |

I was in a similar situation with my first Pixelbook that I imported from UK because it wasn't available in Germany. Shipping it to a Google certified repair store was quite expensive, but at least I didn't have to pay for a new Chromebook.

I don't know, importing something and then complaining about a lack of service doesn't feel right to me. I knew it'd be a gamble when I imported the Pixelbook and since it got replaced, I haven't had any issues since 2018.

marcodiego 4 years ago |

Thanks for you country redirection Google! I simply can't see this page because your country redirection prevents me.

hu3 4 years ago | |

This should work:

https://store.google.com/us

f6v 4 years ago |

> A pocket-sized personal security guard.

My slim fit jeans say “no”. Seriously, how big do people want their phones to be?

mgalgs 4 years ago | |

Yeah the lack of options for small devices is really frustrating. I really don't want to switch to iOS but the iPhone Mini is the only serious contender...

tromp 4 years ago | |

As big as fits my belly pouch. I realize I'm the odd one out though...

mithr 4 years ago |

Not knocking these phones at all -- I'm sure they're great -- but I found it genuinely hilarious that in 2021, one of the features Google chose to highlight, in the main, big "The reimagined Google phones" section, under "An all‑new Pixel experience" is "...and checks your spelling as you type."

101011 4 years ago | |

I wonder how much money on market research went into that.

dreamer7 4 years ago |

One interesting thing to note is how much more high-budget Hollywood style Apple's event feels in comparison to Google's event. Having watched the two events on successive days, some things stand out -

Apple throws numbers repeatedly at you through out the presentation and you end up remembering quite a few useless statistics (55.7 billion transitors in M1 Max)

Apple makes a much bigger deal about each device with lots of close ups and pseudo x-raying of the product. Google just throws in a Pro with an extra camera that you can barely make out on the dark glass.

Apple spends several minutes talking about their SoC. Google says it spent years on Tensor and just leaves it as a shiny golden box.

The weirdest thing in the Google presentation is that several sections had presenters talking to a different camera than facing the screen. That just felt very strange.

mellosouls 4 years ago |

Before rushing in to purchase, note that in some regions, you can claim back a pair of Bose 700 after purchase of the Pixel (at no extra cost)...

eg: https://pixel-offers.com/headphones/en-GB

rewq4321 4 years ago | |

Pixel hyphen offers? What a scammy looking domain. This isn't the first time I've seen a large company do this. Perfect way to help phishers confuse customers.

po1nter 4 years ago | | |

I was thinking the same thing but it's legit and is linked from the official Google Store (in France https://i.imgur.com/tgwGoQp.png )

abdusco 4 years ago | | |

They should have used their `.google` TLD. It would have expressed some level of authenticity.

- store.google

- pixel-offers.google

and so on.

0des 4 years ago | | |

This is from the same company trying to eliminate the outward appearance of URL's from their browser.

Ninjinka 4 years ago | | |

100% thought it was a scam until I saw major news outlets reporting on it.

ehsankia 4 years ago | |

In Canada, it's free Pixel Buds Lite worth 140$.

vdfs 4 years ago | |

In many regions you can't even see this page

robocat 4 years ago | | |

Try: https://pixel-offers.com/headphones/en-GB?regionRedirect=tru...

sim_card_map 4 years ago |

I've lost hope of getting a 4-4.5'' phone ever.

All companies are obsessed with these phablets.

luigi23 4 years ago | |

What about iPhone mini?

easton 4 years ago | | |

It's larger than 4->4.5". It feels a tiny bit smaller than the 8, but with the notch and no Touch ID I wish they would've made SE sized with a 8 size screen. I don't need a phone this big, and with my usage (~3 hrs SOT) the battery is more than good on the Mini, there's room to shrink it.

martythemaniak 4 years ago | |

And every year I'm disappointed at how small the "big" phones are. What I really want is the Nexus 7 without bezels, which is wider than the phones of today and had 142cm^2 screen. The 6 Pro only has a 110cm^2 screen despite being 6.7"

turbinerneiter 4 years ago |

Come on Google, continue what you did with Coral, give us an SBC with this processor and mainline Linux support.

Just be cool. Let me build my own thing with this.

sekou 4 years ago |

One of the more compelling new features looks to be Live Translate built into the keyboard for 48 languages using Private Compute Core. I'd be curious about accuracy but I'm glad things moving forward in that space.

josteink 4 years ago |

Link doesn’t seem to work. Could be geo-fenced?

(Location: Norway/Europe)

GOATS- 4 years ago | |

The phone is only available in a handful countries at launch it seems.

https://9to5google.com/2021/10/19/the-pixel-6-series-is-now-...

krzyk 4 years ago | | |

Not only at launch. Google limits Pixel sales/support to a small set of countries. Doesn't even include all EU.

Strange tactic for someone wanting to sell more phones.

AnssiH 4 years ago | |

Add /us to make it work (i.e. see the Pixel 6 models):

https://store.google.com/us/category/phones

Hokusai 4 years ago | |

Here in Sweden it shows a list of products, none is a phone.

wodenokoto 4 years ago |

How do you get to the product page, if visiting from a country that does not have the pixel for sale yet?

Google has this shitty policy that if they aren't selling it to you, you are not allowed to see it, so they redirect you away.

dcchambers 4 years ago |

Ordered a Pixel 6 Pro for both my wife and I to replace a Pixel 4 and Pixel 3. Looks like a nice upgrade, very interested to see how the Tensor CPU performs compared to other flagship SOCs. The price was a pleasant surprise. Trying to order the phone was an act of frustration - that's for sure. I refuse to believe that Google, who handles more traffic than anyone else on the internet, can't create a store that can handle a bunch of people trying to pre-order this device. I ended up having to order from Best Buy after continually erroring-out during checkout on the Google Store and then finally having my items removed from my cart because they were out of stock. I also can't understand why Google limits the storage options of certain colors.

It's hard not to compare Google's event with the iPhone 13 launch event a month ago, and the wildly different strategies the companies are using to try and market their devices. Apple (rightfully so) is very proud of the performance of their SoCs and definitely emphasized that aspect - using tons of numbers and data throughout the presentation. This was also seen in the new Macbook event last week. Meanwhile, google hardly mentioned a single hardware detail and focused more on the software and user experience. I have to admit the google event felt more "hand wave-y." They may have avoided talking about hardware details in the event though since they basically revealed the phones months ago.

neilv 4 years ago |

I really like that bootloaders on Google-branded devices have usually been unlockable, and they win points for that.

Currently I'm using that for GrapheneOS. https://grapheneos.org/

But I'm not fond of the recent front-facing camera cutouts in the display, which are tackier to cover with tape. I foresee being sad if/when end of upstream device security fixes forces me to upgrade hardware from my Pixel 3.

schleck8 4 years ago |

Looking forward to the SoC benchmarks and to Pixel 4a getting cheaper

nick0garvey 4 years ago |

Site crashed almost instantly, couldn't get through checkout

ocdtrekkie 4 years ago | |

It's truly incredible that the operator of like half a dozen of the most heavily used web properties on the planet still can't operate a basic e-commerce store that caters to the few fans who buy their phones. Maybe they should just start selling them on Amazon instead.

hyperpallium2 4 years ago |

Pro has almost 2 TFLOPS gpu: mali-g78 mp20

  97.15  * 20 = 1943 GFLOPS

https://gsmarena.com/google_pixel_6_pro-10918.php https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mali_(GPU)#Variants

moneywoes 4 years ago | |

Do we know how their chip compares to Apple’s offering?

rjzzleep 4 years ago |

Does anyone know if these finally have global nfc and if allows for custom secure boot keys? I don’t want to but a premium priced Japanese version for global nfc and I don’t think that just because older versions has support for custom keys this one will as well.

Same goes for SoC and driver support. This is mostly a rehashed Exynos, so are we really certain that the drivers will me more open than on the exynos side?

harpratap 4 years ago | |

NFC-F + Felica is truly one of those technologies that could have really made a huge difference in the world (imagine a no-internet, no bank/middleman payment system in 3rd world countries) but got ruined because of Japan's Galapagos Syndrome. Had NTT & JREast looked from a global POV and worked with OEMs to reduce hardware & licensing cost we could have seen Suica working all over the world today.

rjzzleep 4 years ago | | |

I think it's more NTT and Sony. Every single Felica card in Japan is manufactured by Sony. Either way it doesn't matter.

It actually is a shame, because most countries that did buy felica are dropping it because of licensing even though it's technically better than any of the competitors.

Regardless of that Apple managed to get global felica into their phones since the iPhone 8. Googles japanese google pay is just a shim for Osaifu Keitai. At the end of the day they seem to be too busy reinventing android pay every couple of years instead of taking some lessons from Apple.

This is as much Googles fault as it is Sonys and NTT.

unethical_ban 4 years ago |

So is there any info on Google's processor, any benchmarks, any specific synergies to show off that put it ahead of the competition?

adventured 4 years ago |

That camera band - sand bar, whatever the hell it is - is one of the most atrocious smartphone designs I've ever seen. Extraordinarly stupid on the part of the designers. Phone designs should be pursuing a flush camera segment design, not an approach of how obnoxiously can we make that part of the phone stick out from the rest.

pphysch 4 years ago | |

You don't use phone cases, I take it?

PennRobotics 4 years ago | | |

If the phone is supposed to have a case and a flush back, the manufacturer should build the phone with a non-detachable case and a flush back.

Don Norman would be disappointed.

jjice 4 years ago |

I don't really pay attention to smart phone specs (I stick to cheapo android phones), but holy cow - 12GB of ram in a phone? Better than my work computer and my personal laptop. Kinda neat to see. Aside from it being neat, I sure hope to god I'd never need that much ram for what I use a phone for.

yonaguska 4 years ago |

Biggest complaint is fast wireless charging limited to their own wireless charger.

I had a really hard time finding an in-stock fast wireless charger for my pixel 3, and ended up just not purchasing it. Kind of a pain since the usb-c charger is always getting gunked up from putting the phone in my pocket.

dang 4 years ago |

Recent and related:

Google Pixel 6 Launch [video] - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28920140 - Oct 2021 (155 comments)

farnsworth 4 years ago |

The store is working but it won't connect with my Verizon account to let me check out. If anything was going to go wrong, of course it's integrating with Verizon. Have had so many issues with their website.

short12 4 years ago | |

They deliver a terrible shopping experience whenever they launch anything. At this point I just assume it is intentional because there is no way Google can't handle the demand and connections to order

dzader 4 years ago | | |

they just have really bad engineers :/

causi 4 years ago |

Are they still arbitrarily disabling HDMI-out to force us to buy a Chromecast?

kllrnohj 4 years ago | |

You're confusing "not implementing" with "disabling". There is no default-enabled HDMI out on any SoC. Rather you have to wire it up and enable it, which includes paying the HDMI licensing fees (and also test that it actually works)

causi 4 years ago | | |

My bad.

"Are they still denying us basic functionality that's been part of smartphone USB ports since MHL in 2011 for the express purpose of making us buy crap we don't want?"

Farbklex 4 years ago | |

A Pixel phone with this feature would be reason enough for me to upgrade from a Pixel 3a. Just let me play games via HDMI out and a bluetooth gamepad.

causi 4 years ago | | |

Hell, I'd buy whatever Chromecast Super Mega Ultra they wanted to sell me as long as it gave me lag-free mirroring. You can't game on a half second delay.

salusinarduis 4 years ago | |

Yes

lmm 4 years ago |

Anyone got a page with these phones' specs in English? The linked story keeps forcibly redirecting me to a page in some other language, even if I manually edit the URL back to the one in the story.

ehsankia 4 years ago | |

https://www.gsmarena.com/google_pixel_6-11037.php

https://www.gsmarena.com/google_pixel_6_pro-10918.php

thoughty 4 years ago |

I can't even open the store page in India. Very very frustrating

MikeBVaughn 4 years ago |

What is the warranty experience like on earlier Pixels?

I've heard some bad things about Google's consumer-electronics-side customer service, but I don't know how representative those stories are.

I dislike iOS, but AppleCare+ is the one thing that tempts me to go back to iPhones. If, after spending my entire work day writing code and fixing bugs, I have a problem with my phone, being able to say "you know, screw it, this is is a problem for the Genius Bar" has a very strong appeal.

modeless 4 years ago | |

I've done 3 or 4 Pixel RMAs and device protection plan replacements in the past few years. The good news is that it's relatively easy to convince them to replace the phone. I've never had a problem getting a replacement, even multiple times for the same issue. The bad news is that communicating with them is infuriating. In one case they were so incompetent that two different reps separately sent me replacement phones. And when I called them trying to return the extra phone they were totally unable to process the situation. I eventually gave up wasting my time trying to convince them that I should return the extra phone and just kept it (gave it to a friend). Luckily they were too incompetent to charge me for it.

The other bad news is that the Pixel 2 XL and Pixel 4 XL both had issues warranting RMA and the RMAs did not totally fix the issues because these were design defects, and the replacements also exhibited them to varying degrees. Speaker buzzing for Pixel 2 XL, and back glass detaching over time on Pixel 4 XL.

I'm still buying Pixel 6, but if it doesn't have an RMA-worthy design defect it'll be the first one since Pixel 1.

MikeBVaughn 4 years ago | | |

Yuck! I'm sorry! I hope it works out for you!

webmaven 4 years ago |

Looking at the Google Fi plans available right now, the Subscribe and Save option ($15/mo, upgrade after 2 years) for the Pixel 5a and the Pixel Pass option for the Pixel 6/6 Pro ($45-55/mo) that bundles a bunch of extra services like Google One and YouTube Premium are both interesting, but what I really want is a Subscribe and Save option for the Pixel 6.

Maybe I should just wait until a Subscribe and Save plan for a (hypothetical) Pixel 6a is available.

intricatedetail 4 years ago |

Google seems to be hiding the fact where the phone is made. I think it's very important to know for a consumer to make an ethical choice. Where they make it?

PennRobotics 4 years ago | |

This is true. It was supposed to move to Vietnam, and this was delayed because of the pandemic.

https://www.gsmarena.com/nikkei_google_will_produce_more_tha...

krzyk 4 years ago |

No Face Unlock, bummer.

Rumors where that it will be in the 6 Pro, but technical specification doesn't mention it.

So I'm staying with Pixel 4, yet another year.

bduerst 4 years ago | |

I thought face unlock has been a security vector for the iPhone, and that even Apple is thinking of dropping it?

krzyk 4 years ago | | |

It doesn't look like it, they still release phones exclusively with face unlock.

What security issues can it have? Fingerprint sensors could be fooled with less work.

And fingerprint sensors don't work always (e.g. for me they don't).

fooblitzky 4 years ago |

I'm never buying another Google device after the customer support horror I went through for my Pixel C tablet.

I guess the customer support horror I went through when they canceled my phone number out of the blue in Google Fi is also factored into that decision (took two months to get my phone number back), but to be fair, that wasn't an issue with their hardware.

abeyer 4 years ago |

The phones are too damn big

executive 4 years ago | |

https://www.asus.com/Mobile/Phones/ZenFone/Zenfone-8/

ece 4 years ago |

It's a bit disappointing that ARM v8.3-v8.5 has some security features that aren't available in even this custom SoC (PAC/BTI/MT), and they would still help with a JIT. The size increase on the 6 from the 5 is also :(.

I still like what I saw, and I hope Google's able to get to shipping kernel updates through the play store.

ece 4 years ago | |

* Yes I know these ARM security features were pushed by Apple, and existed before that in software through grsec in similar form mostly.

guru4consulting 4 years ago |

One of the big issues that I have with Pixel phones is the large file size for the videos. Even a 5 minute video runs into 300MB-400MB file. I disabled HDR, reduced resolution but nothing helps. Has anyone else seen this issue and found a way to reduce the video file size?

lucidone 4 years ago |

How do folks evaluate upgrading their phone? I'm using an iPhone 6s still that was a hand-me-down and wanting to upgrade the camera - not sure what I ought to be looking for. Dropping 1k CAD seems exorbitant for this purpose.

zamadatix 4 years ago | |

6s is next on the chopping block, that's usually when I call it necessary if nothing fun has come along to snatch up in-between. As far as the price 1000 every 6 years doesn't seem exorbitant, it's about the price of something like Netflix over the same period but you likely spend a lot more time with it.

If you want lifespan you can't go wrong with another iPhone plus that comes with the added bonus of not having to worry about every technical detail of the phone to make sure it's actually a good deal. If you want to hyper optimize on the Android side of things look at signal bands (even for some higher end devices) and make sure your carrier of choice is well covered with them. Also look for either reputable brands or bootloader unlocked phones (or both) so you can load your own OS updates more than a year after buying the device.

Slippery_John 4 years ago | |

I switched from Android to iPhone a few years ago and certainly don't miss having to sort through a sea of models when looking for something new. I keep all my old devices to use for hobby projects, so I appreciate the longevity of updates that Apple gives.

If you're looking for a great camera, a new iPhone will certainly give that to you. And of course you'll almost certainly get a long tail of os upgrades like you've had with your 6s, so if you keep it for 5+ years the price is more tolerable. A 64gb 12 mini can be had for 800 CAD new. And you can certainly get cheaper if you buy second-hand.

atraac 4 years ago | |

I'm in a similar spot, I have Galaxy S9 and want to upgrade mainly for the camera. I would also prefer something that is not huge. I'm waiting for S21 FE announcement and if that doesn't come, I'll buy either Zenfone 8 or I'll throw my money for S21 I think. I really like Pixel 6 looks and camera performance but if Google doesn't give a f** to sell it in my(European) country through normal channels I'm simply not gonna work around to give them my money.

Synaesthesia 4 years ago | |

I also used a 6s for years and years. Has a great form factor. I bought a 2nd hand Mate 20 Pro from a friend as replacement. It has a much larger, AMOLED screen, bigger battery, faster charging and better cameras. So many features!

A refurbished iPhone x or similar may surprise you and they're not too expensive

nkotov 4 years ago |

This is the first time I'm buying an Android phone in over a decade. My last Android phone was a Motorola Droid X from Verizon. I'm excited to spice up my life a little bit after being so locked into the Apple ecosystem.

voidfunc 4 years ago |

I had a Pixel 1 and loved it but switched to an iPhone circa EOL Pixel 4 because I couldn’t wait for 5/5a.

Is the 5a worth picking up? Im not a fan of iOS and Android has a killer feature in Work Profiles. Id like to switch back.

colordrops 4 years ago |

I'm interested in pixel devices since they are supported by GrapheneOS. Is there any concern of hardware spying by google even if using an alternative secure OS without google services and applications?

joemazerino 4 years ago | |

The Titan M and Pixel firmware images are closed source. If you can stomach those caveats your data should be safe with a Pixel.

fabianhjr 4 years ago | |

Not really, the compute enclaves are for privacy rather than remote management. (So nothing as nefarious as Intel vPro)

ricardobeat 4 years ago |

The link doesn’t work in other countries, is there a press release somewhere?

markdown 4 years ago |

Probably should delete this, mods. Most of the worlds people are blocked from viewing this page.

On the other hand, I can view everything there is to view about iPhones on the Apple website even though I can't buy one.

EVa5I7bHFq9mnYK 4 years ago |

Is it possible to disable all the google apps on that phone, like search, chrome, gmail, assistant, text to speech, youtube etc? I can do that on my samsung phone using adb. If yes, I might buy one.

nerdwaller 4 years ago |

Several hours later, I finally got the order through and even got an email confirmation and a fairly rapid delivery (end of month). If you were having issues earlier, you might be able to get in now.

brianmcc 4 years ago |

0% APR finance over 2 years in the UK, interesting. Never seen that before. Will definitely wait and see though, my Pixel 4 was terribly disappointing (woeful battery and tiny screen).

Ninjinka 4 years ago |

Why is the subscription purchase option for the Pixel 6 Pro saying "From $689.72 or $28.74/mo for 24 months"? Is it really $209.28 cheaper than just buying the phone?

ac29 4 years ago | |

28.74*24=689.76

danhoule 4 years ago |

Is it just me, or does the phone's aesthetics make it feel so premium? The only downside is that if you try to play games, you will probably be annoyed at the camera.

tiagobraw 4 years ago |

used to love pixel phones, my first smartphone was a google nexus and had one until pixe 2.

Then one day I needed Google support for hardware… It was terrible. Just to contact them was multiile multi hour wait calls until I could get it RMAd and had to stay a week without a phone… then I switched to iphone and guess what, it has the same apps… except I know if something happens with my phone I can just take it to a apple store and have it checked right away

cf100clunk 4 years ago |

DUPE of https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28920140

emodendroket 4 years ago |

I gave up and bought an iPhone the last time I wanted a new phone because the last Pixels were so uninspiring. Glad to see them trying to turn it around.

stolsvik 4 years ago |

I guess this page is supposed to show some phones? I'm in Norway, there's two pages of Nest, WiFi, Chromecast and Stadia.

ankurdhama 4 years ago |

It is amazing that so much of money and effort is spent by phone manufacturers just to take "good" pictures/videos :)

yCloser 4 years ago |

from my country the page redirects to "buy pixel 4a, 389€"

google doesn't even want to to know that later model exist

sagarpatil 4 years ago |

I’ve been using Google Phones since they first launched Nexus. My last Google phone was Pixel 4a but boy is the battery life on these phones bad. Moved to iPhone 13 and I’m really happy that I did. The battery lasts one full day. I’m exploring new features everyday that show Apple has put in a lot of thought into designing the hardware and software. I don’t think I’m going to use a Google phone anytime in future.

loxias 4 years ago |

Can't wait for the Pixel 6a! Also, hoping this means 5a prices will drop, I'm ready for an upgrade.

oblio 4 years ago |

Was wishing for a smaller phone :-(

wiso 4 years ago |

We aren’t in your region yet You can still browse our products in any of the other regions.

inasio 4 years ago |

Looks like they learned from the Pixel 5, the 6 has almost double the battery capacity.

LtdJorge 4 years ago |

Can't see because it detects I'm from Spain, it only shows Pixel 4a.

l4bytt 4 years ago |

Without a 3.5mm and proper dual sim, this thing is useless to me :/

jerrygoyal 4 years ago |

3.5mm audio jack is gone.

ur-whale 4 years ago |

As usual, a US only launch: need a VPN just to look at the product.

figassis 4 years ago |

I understand if something works, people copy it, but this is ridiculous. The pixel showcase page might as well be apple's. It's literally an ad for apple's brand and design and marketing, etc. So tired of this laziness.

e2e4 4 years ago |

Why does pixel 6 cost ~10% more in Japan!?! ¥68,501 vs ¥74,800

xxpor 4 years ago | |

consumption tax?

a-dub 4 years ago |

if i buy one through verizon (for the simplified billing and insurance) do they still lock the bootloader?

also, does it speak lte? is verizon still the champ in 5g?

polyterative 4 years ago |

would buy as an upgrade after my oneplus 5t. sadly not available in italy (yet?)

mesozoic 4 years ago |

Looks pretty bad

sabujp 4 years ago |

cheaper pixel 6a coming i hope?

kevmo 4 years ago |

Miss me with a Google monitoring device.

fabianhjr 4 years ago | |

Google Pixel devices are some of the few with a relockable bootloader and availability (though not open source) of drivers. That makes them the _only_ option for someone that focuses on privacy. (By installing calyxOS)

kevmo 4 years ago | | |

Nice info! Thanks!

numlock86 4 years ago | |

Whose monitoring devises do you recommend then?

kubb 4 years ago |

Not available in my country. That's fine, I'll just buy an iPhone.

notyourday 4 years ago |

Google fails at even building an ecommerce website for the special launch event. In 2021. For a launch of a major "premium product".

Why on earth would one ever believe the rest of the product which is orders of magnitude more complicated would actually function and not suck in 4 months?

danellis 4 years ago | |

Oh, I don't know, maybe because those two things have nothing to do with each other.

_xy8h 4 years ago | |

You're right! They suck, this is the first time they've ever built a phone and they have no history of working devices to prove themselves!

notyourday 4 years ago | | |

> they have no history of working devices to prove themselves!

* Boot loops.

* Android updates that they push to their own phones that brick those phones or break the cameras. It is as if their engineers write code against the devices those engineers can't use to test on.

* Non-existent customer service in case the phone does go into a boot loop or update breaks the camera.

kkjjkgjjgg 4 years ago |

Their main selling point seems to be that they can take "authentic pictures of people with different skin tones" (translated to English from German by me, as I can't get Google to show me the English page). Google truly is all in on diversity. Wonder how it will work out for them. Nothing against people with different skin tones, but how different will the skin tones of the average people an individual is surrounded with be? I personally don't know people of so many different skin colors that I ever worried about that issue, but perhaps it is different for many people in the US?

darth_avocado 4 years ago |

Another garbage phone to show off. Google Pixel has been highly unreliable. My OG pixel XL bricked twice within 2 years. My Pixel 3 had defects that forced me to take calls on speaker phone otherwise the mic wouldn't work after the warranty expired.

Meanwhile, my wife is still rocking the iPhone 7 with some degradation in battery life, but pretty much everything else working as it should. I don't regret jumping into the Apple coolaid one bit.

I wish instead of "cool features", they'd spend some time improving their supply chain. You expect some quality from a $1000 phone. And in case it seems subjective, look up lawsuits for faulty hardware for pixel phones. I’m not making this up.

williamscs 4 years ago | |

Maybe it's an odd-number issue with the Pixels? My wife is using my old Pixel 2 with reduced battery life, but otherwise no issues. My Pixel 4 XL is still working great.

ehsankia 4 years ago | | |

I've had Pixel XL, 2XL, 3, 4XL and 5. They've all worked 3-4 years (I pass them on to various members of my family). The only one I had any issues with was the 4XL, with the back plate peeling off, and Support just swapped it for me after 5m online chat.

wffurr 4 years ago | |

My Pixel 2 was solid and reliable up until it stopped getting security updates last year. One year in on a Pixel 4a and zero complaints with it so far.

jasonvorhe 4 years ago | |

Your experience isn't always representative - and mine isn't either, of course. I've been buying Nexus devices since the Galaxy Nexus and I owned every Pixel device so far and the only genuinely bad experiences where the following:

- Nexus 7 from 2012 became slow as hell due to storage issues after a year. It worked fine after I RMAd it.

- Pixel 2 XL had a terrible display on the first charge. I got it replaced and the new one was way better.

- Pixel 4 XL got replaced once because the phone got quite hot while charging. The replacement has been working well.

I know a lot of people who definitely had more issues with their Samsung and Apple devices.

danellis 4 years ago | |

What about it is garbage?

Iphone 5 (New but not most recent) | Screen broke from the inside after 3 years \ -> Samsung Galaxy S7 (New but not most recent) | Friend made me great offer for 2XL -> Google Pixel 2XL (Used, 200 CAD) | gave the Galaxy S7 to my mother. She never had a Cellphone before.