Verdict
Bursting with clever AI - infuse computer software , the hope of software program updates for many years to come and a photographic camera and filmdom that thoroughly move , the Google Pixel 8 Pro does a fantastical occupation at pop the question prospective vendee something a minuscule dissimilar .
Pros
Cons
Key Features
Introduction
The Google Pixel 8 Pro is a high - end Android smartphone that , even with the introduction of competing GenAI - power phones like the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra , can still do mickle of thing you wo n’t find from the challenger .
The Pixel 8 Pro turns frown into smiling in exposure , removes unwanted background sound in your picture and can even altogether change the size of a subject in an image . Even bad photo taken with Google ’s newfangled flagship can be call on into something much better afterwards .
This is the first headphone to really concentre on AI throughout , from the camera to the software . Newer phones like the Samsung Galaxy S24 also focus on AI , but none are quite as feature film - mob as Google ’s choice . It has been doing this for years at this point , after all .
Design
In a like move to recent earpiece from Apple and Samsung , Google has tweaked an live excogitation for the Pixel Pro 8 rather than altogether reinventing it . Google has been using this look since thePixel 6 , and while it felt modernistic before it is starting to get a little stale . The Pixel 9 Pro require a refresh next year .
It ’s a well - build up phone though , with a glass and metal body and the welcomeIP68rating for auspices from dust and splash of water .
There ’s a circle to really like about the Pixel 8 Pro ; however , the phone ’s weakest points are its general design and ergonomics . Google has also failed to address some of the biggest issues with the overall Pixel design it has developed over the last few iteration .
For instance , the phone retain the tv camera eyeshade that has been present since the Pixel 6 . This is a bar that runs across the rear , housing all the camera sensors in a in general tidy orbit . Thanks to a flat top and bottom , this saloon remains a shelf for dust to stick to whenever it ’s in a pocket . As we mention in ourPixel 8 recap , the tv camera stripe also protrudes enough to snag on jeans constantly when displume out of a pocket .
This might seem like a small issue , but it ’s one that shows there ’s a lack of focus when it arrive to the plan of the Pixel 8 professional . These issues have been noted for years , without any changes being made to ameliorate serviceability .
I ’ve also found the phone uncomfortable to bear for extended periods . At 213 g it ’s not particularly heavy , yet it feels very top - fleshy with a batch of weight centered around the thick photographic camera . Even though theiPhone 15 Pro Maxweighs not far off 10 g more , I ’d say it feels like a light phone . The boundary of the Pixel are sharp too , even if the side are rounded off around the back . It all adds up to a phone that take a while to get used to using .
On a more positive note , Google has tack the previously lustrous back to a satin cultivation that does a fantastic job of reducing the appearance of fingerprints and smudge . strangely , this design trait is missing on the smaller Pixel 8 , which retains the very glossy finish .
Screen
The Google Pixel 8 Pro ’s 6.7 - inch 2992 x 1344 OLED is stunning . It ’s one of the ripe displays I have used on an Android headphone , and it ’s a celebrated upgrade over thePixel 7 Proin a few crucial ways .
Google has predict the screen aSuper Actuadisplay – because everything needs a name these days . It refer to the high smartness level the telephone set can reach , upwards of 2000 nits in certain instances , although that ’s not quite on the same level as theHonor Magic 6 Pro’s5000nits max luminousness .
Still , the added brightness helps most with outside visibleness , making the screen comfortable to read in all weather condition that I have been able to test it in . The Super Actua display benefit from HDR playback too , putting it on equality with the iPhone 15 Pro Max in my tests and well onward of anything else .
TheLTPOpanel can now reduce the refresh rate all the path down to 1Hz , rising to a maximum of 120Hz to make scrolling and sure games feel smoother . You do n’t get this adaptative LTPO tech on the smaller , cheaper Pixel 8 which instead uses software package to judge whether to refresh at 60Hz or 120Hz .
I ’ve mention the switch to a monotone screen previously , however , I have to recommend Google again for making the change . ditch the bend makes the screen comfortable to use when play and it lose weight annoying reflections on the edge . It ’s also just far more immersive when watching Netflix or YouTube , as none of the image is classify to the edges .
Camera
Google has sic its Pixel phone out from the crowd with their cameras since the very origin and nothing has commute with the Pixel 8 . Thanks to some welcome sensing element upgrades , a bevy of software pinch and a much smarter app , the camera experience here is fantastic . It ’s up there with thebest camera phoneson the market in 2024 .
The trio of television camera on the back contain a independent 50MP octa - PD camera with a wide f/1.68 aperture and a large 1/1.31 - inch sensor , alongside a 48MP telephotograph with 5x optical zoom and a 48MP ultrawide , complete with autofocus . Google has n’t skimp on any of these cameras and they all take impressive shots .
Shots from the Pixel 8 Pro have that characteristic Pixel look , which I perfectly love . Highlights are pushed to create dramatic range of a function , with colours that are bound yet still accurate and vivacious . Shots are n’t quite as cool as those from the 7 Pro , with warmer hints throughout .
The way of life the camera produces skin tincture is unrivalled in the smartphone space and even though it is still capturing 12MP images there ’s a immense amount of details retained , especially in fur .
A lot of people love the way Samsung flagships and recent iPhones pump up the colours , and there ’s nothing untimely with this – however the more insidious nature of images from the Pixel 8 professional give them a more professional look . A lot of this is down to personal druthers though .
The Google Pixel 8 Pro works impressively when the twinkle diminishes , though images are better when there is some light . There ’s no wild night mode here that makes taking pictures in pitch fateful doable , but most shot I have taken at dark are usable , with courteous people of colour and plenty of item .
When switching to the rapid climb and the ultrawide camera , there ’s often a noticeable shift in colours that the computer software then tries to turn back . This can be jarring , especially when you ’re jump in 5x , as the image you ’re seeing jump around before it settles .
Images from both secondary cameras are with child and it ’s welcome to see the ultrawide treated with a high - answer sensor , rather than being an afterthought . The zoom skills might not cope with theGalaxy S24 Ultrafor range , but the 5x zoom nonplus you close enough to a subject and stack of detail is keep on . I ’ve been using this tv camera a peck over the past few week .
Video capture on the Pixel 8 Pro is an melioration over thePixel 7 Pro . Colours are better matched across the picture and videos now , stand for you get those wondrous colours and cutis tones . Things take a turn at night , when the stabilisation add unexpended panning effects and noise becomes very common .
The actual camera hardware is arguably the least interesting part of this camera with Google focusing a lot on updates and extra features added to Google Photos and the Camera app itself .
The Camera app , for instance , is laid out in a much smarter way now . you could now easily flip between Photo and Video , with each have consecrated configurations and pick in a disjoined area . A small change , but it make so much sense to have these two options separated out .
There are also a bunch of extra camera control on the Pixel 8 Pro . none of which make their way down to the Pixel 8 . Once open up , these manual options let in control over the shutter speeding , ISO and clean balance . Delve deeper and there ’s an selection to force the speech sound into Night Sight modality and to only apply the telephotograph tv camera when zooming at Nox . All this is very welcome and allows those who want to take more manual control condition the opportunity to do so .
What really sets the Pixel 8 Pro ’s camera asunder from the other phone on the market place are the AI accomplishment in both the Camera app and inside Google Photos . Some of these are n’t quite ready yet – the Video Boost lineament which will brighten up nighttime TV footage – but there ’s plenty to bet around with .
I did just as many double takes using the Best Take characteristic . This work when you take a clump of pic of either a individual person or a group and their facial expression are n’t quite what you want . skilful Take seem at all the photos you ’ve shot and offers up an substitute facial expression that it ’ll bring down over the original trope . In well - lit situations , it works very well – almost too well , although it can often scramble to get the post of the neck quite right .
I can imagine this feature will be used a lot by parents , who struggle to get multiple kids all grin at once . Still , it does palpate odd to me , especially when you ’re swapping out whole expressions – grow someone who was sad during a conversation , for representative , into one who is happy and smile . It makes me uneasy , and this is just the commencement .
Performance
While Apple has made the modification in recent years to distinguish the chipset used between its Pro and standard machine , Google has continued to use the same in both . That have in mind whether you go for the Pixel 8 or Pixel 8 Pro you ’re stick the same Tensor G3 chip .
The Pro manikin does profit from more RAM : 12 GB of LPDDR5X RAM rather than 8 GB , and a maximal internal depot capacity of 1 TB . This 1 TB model seems very region - specific though , with the UK models maxing out at 512 GB .
In keeping with the previous Tensor micro chip , the G3 continues Google ’s focus on AI accomplishment rather than pushing performance and general upper as key feature . Most of the cunning generative AI camera feature article are made available by this chip , as are the improvements to the displacement and call showing attainment .
The Pixel 8 Pro ’s lack of thoroughgoing power is most obvious in our suite of benchmarking test , which put Google ’s £ 999/$999 machine on equality with gimmick running the Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 rather than those run Qualcomm ’s GenAI - tincture Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 poker chip .
After using the speech sound for a week , I was ab initio very worried about the performance . I do n’t usually put much sway into benchmarks , but I was getting frightening lag everywhere for the first few Day , with even canonical apps scramble to keep up . After the first week , there was a noticeable modification and everything became much fluent – a further calendar week on the Pixel 8 Pro and it feels tight in everyday use .
Gaming public presentation still falls behind exchangeable - priced phones . I noticed multiple drop frame in intensive titles ( Genshin Impact and COD Mobile ) and there ’s slowdown in top - down titles like Survivor.io . Everything remains playable , just not to the levels establish on high-pitched - terminal option extend the Qualcomm 8 Gen 3 like the Samsung Galaxy S24 serial , OnePlus 12and Honor Magic 6 Pro .
My colleague Lewis had the same issue with the Pixel 8 , so I would recommend anyone picking up either of Google ’s new phones to keep this in mind for the first few days and cleave with it even if performance seems unsatisfying .
Google has added some welcome plus , likeWi - Fi 7support , Bluetooth 5.3 and there ’s an ultra - broadband fleck for spacial orientation . There ’s also an excellent speaker onboard , easily the best I have learn on any Pixel phone .
The most unequalled of all the sensors on the Pixel 8 Pro is thetemperature sensor , posit underneath the flash and next to the camera . afford up the Thermometer app on the phone , manoeuver the earpiece at either a solid object or a liquid and it ’ll register the temperature . I ’m not really certain who this is for , as anyone who needs to valuate the exact temperature of something likely already has a instrument they know is accurate . This just feels like a gimmicky addition we ’ve seen before on Pixel telephone set that ’ll evaporate next class , never to be seen again .
Software
While the performance of the Pixel 8 Pro is n’t anything standout , Google has tuned the Tensor G3 to focus more on AI performance and that is very noticeable throughout the software .
Google has been tally legion AI - fuelled feature of speech to its Pixel phones for years now and many of them have become some of my favourite Android increase . The handy Now Playing skill , for example , keeps cut of any song playing in the screen background , highlighting them on your lockscreen and add together them to an ever - update list .
The Recorder app is the best it has ever been too , accurately transcribing voices on the equipment while separating out different voices and letting you search through the recordings . Then there ’s the call screening feature film that separate out out and , in some regions , answers spam calls without you having to . It ’s these feature that really make the Pixel such a fun phone to use and own .
Of of course , it was also the first phone to be released with theAndroid 14update , though it ’s useable on many alternative in other 2024 . There ’s a smattering of new features here , including some bring whorl screen customisations , and a generative AI wallpaper puppet that builds unequaled choices reckon on what prompting you feed it .
Easily the standout software feature film for the Pixel 8 Pro is the seven years of support Google is promise . This is n’t just surety updates , but right system update and Pixel Feature Drops too . This means if you pick the phone up today , you ’ll get updates until Android 21 – a promise only jibe by Samsung with its S24 series .
While I am sure not every feature of all these approaching software system updates will be compatible with the Pixel 8 , it ’s impressive to see Google hope to patronise it for so long .
Battery Life
Pixel phones have been hit or miss with electric battery life a good deal of the clip . Some models have impressed , however usually it ’s the poor performers – notably thePixel 4 – that stick in the memory .
I ’ve had no such trouble with the Pixel 8 Pro – word that will likely do as a relievo to many . The 5050mAh bombardment is the criterion I have occur to expect from high-pitched - end , large Android phones and the Pixel 8 Pro contend well .
I have been averaging five to six hours of screen fourth dimension on officious , heavy - use days – taking me comfortably from an 8:00 warning equipment to bedtime at midnight . Typically I have found myself with 20 - 25 % left at the end of the day , enough to get me to the agency the next day if I forgot to charge .
Lighter exploiter should get past lunchtime on Clarence Day two , and there are a brace of battery - saver modes to crusade thing forward .
There ’s no charger included in the box , just a USB - C to USB - C cable , and I would recommend picking up a spark plug capable of outputting at 30w . Using a battery charger with these stipulation , it took me 87 minutes to get a full 0 - 100 % charge and 39 minutes to go from 0 - 50 % .
These upshot are almost exactly on equation with the iPhone 15 Pro andSamsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 , however it is noticeably ho-hum than some of the late releases from brands like Xiaomi , Oppo and OnePlus . TheXiaomi 13 T Pro , for instance , gets a full 100 % electric charge before the 8 professional reaches 50 % .
Wireless charging remains at 18w and there ’s reverse radio bear down too , which is ready to hand for top up the succus on a pair of Qi - enabled earbuds .
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Should you buy it?
The Pixel 8 Pro has three very capable television camera and the ability to tweak and , at times , completely spay your exposure after they ’ve been bring .
The Pixel 8 Pro is n’t slow , but it does lag behind some of thebest Android phonesat this gamy price . If gambling prowess and a speedy C.P.U. is primal , look elsewhere .
Final Thoughts
The highest congratulations I can give the Pixel 8 Pro is that it does an telling job of standing out from the swathes of Android sound on the marketplace .
Moving the focus from speed and performance to establish a cow dung designed to improve AI execution gives the Pixel 8 professional a unique selling point , even in 2024 where the the likes of of Samsung are offering their own GenAI - power characteristic . The Pixel ’s AI offering is just much more rounded than the contend Galaxy AI .
The biggest reason to pick up a Pixel remains the photography skills and the three tv camera on the back all take great snapshot in vary conditions . There ’s no dramatic improvement this time , and in certain situations , theXiaomi 13 Pro , iPhone 15 ProandSamsung Galaxy S24 Ultratake unspoiled pictures . Yet , I still love shooting with a Pixel , thanks to the sensational color and striking images each sensor make .
There are a few misses here that stop this from being the very best telephone set you ’ll recover . The blueprint is thudding and needs a refresh next twelvemonth , with more of a focal point on consolation and system of weights distribution .
Gimmick boast like the temperature sensor do n’t total much either , and the sinewy price increase , especially in the UK , is hard to swallow .
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We test every mobile phone we survey thoroughly . We use diligence standard tests to equate features decent and we use the telephone as our master twist over the followup period . We ’ll always order you what we recover and we never , ever , take money to look back a product .
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