I’ve been a pretty die hard Pixel user until the 8 (vanilla). The hardware problems I had were unacceptable. Battery that doesn’t last a day, bad signal, overheating and numerous bugs is unacceptable at this price point. I don’t have much faith the 9 will be much better.
I bought a "renewed" Pixel 8 Pro despite the battery life and fingerprint sensor complaints also noted on this video. 1) But if you aren't a phone gamer the battery life is fine. I am up and about at 9AM and by 11PM I still have 35-40% remaining. Sure, compared to the Snapdragon "2 day" batteries, it's less. But I have no problem with the Pixel 8 Pro's battery life. 2) The fingerprint sensor: brother, maybe you need to trade in your fingers? I have not experienced a single read failure since I have had this phone for 3 weeks now. And a side note, I have owned a couple of Samsung Galaxy Ultras. Their ultrasonic reader is more launch hype than noticeable difference in practice and in my experience. Even the OnePlus optical fingerprint sensor is just as fast. I don't see the vast superiority on the Samsung's they have claimed.
The issue is with the principle my man Google is the one of the biggest companies in the world. This is supposed to the best phone they make. As a community we ask them to do better for the sake of innovation
@@whoooshme8898 if you think Google is making Pixel phones to sell hardware you have not been paying attention, Google doesn’t make money from Hardware, their goal was to eliminate as much fragmentation in their ecosystem as possible. The goal was not sell phones but instead to sell the promise of what Android could be, it set a new standard for what Android should look and feel like.
This is the stupidest take I've ever seen. Trade in your fingers? I registered my same finger twice and the performance still sucked. The battery life does suck, maybe if you hardly use your phone at all it's fine. The performance is bad, you just haven't used the phone long enough to notice it is my guess. Overall, this is all wrong.
Bro, the fingerprint speed gap is incredibly obvious in this video. That isn't even mentioning the difference between the ultrasonic and optical when you get a little dirt on your finger. You can like the phone, but I literally haven't found one reviewer who liked Google's sensor.
Very good points. Definitely they need to change to an ultrasonic FP and improve battery life. Hopefully with the Pix10 and change to TSMC it will make a big difference.
@@juned_sumra yeah, the home screen doesn't bother me at all because I use both of the unmovable widgets, and while I obviously wish the battery was better, I'm never in a situation where my phone almost dies, so I know it won't be a problem for me.
Video boost works absolutely great going to concerts. It sucks I gotta turn it on every time for sure but it really makes the concerts clearer with all the lights they use.
I got my google pixel 8 pro 2 days ago and I have some things to say. You can disable the at a glance widget and only the date will appear. You indeed cannot disable it completely or the search widget. However I could not care more. The camera is the best part of the phone and it is truly amazing. The overall experience is the most smooth feeling I have ever felt an a phone with the most fluid animations. If you care about the camera and a very nice software experience filled with ai I recommend this phone
I’m a Pixel fan but ever since the 6 lineup started with Tensor, it’s been mostly the same issues. It surely cannot be this hard for Google, a software company, to get their software and even the hardware right. To make matters worse, they raised their prices too and continue having the same problems. Unless you just want a new Pixel now and can’t wait, I’d say wait for the 10 lineup. That’ll be the earliest one to buy that might fix these issues since TSMC will be handling the fabrication of the Tensor chip. Even then, I still suspect they’ll have bugs and glitches to work out. Google has lost many customers because they can’t get their act together and sell reliable phones. These days even Motorola is a more reliable phone to get and despite lesser support, you can customize it way more. It’s like having a Pixel without issues or limitations.
Great review Sam, I don't think Google are really interested in competing at a flagship level. I'm leaning towards pixel for call screening and the software features, but the performance issues you've been having is a bit of a flag.
Personally, as an iPhone user who owns both a pixel 8 pro and a S24, I always find my way back to the pixel. It does lack customization but I enjoy that aspect of it. Although my S24 can do more and is more powerful, I almost feel overwhelmed with the amount of customization i CAN do. Most features I use on my S24 are available on my Pixel.
My pixel 6 pro became unable to receive calls unless I reset. So I saw there was a 350 off the 8 pro for Fi. I got it, so far it feels seriously like an iPhone as far as fit and finish is concerned. Big step up from the 6
Thanks mate for a great insight into the Pixel 8 series. Refreshing to see a fellow Aussie's thoughts about this phone. This will help steer me towards a decision, think I'll stick with Samsung & go a s24 Ultra. So many features (s pen, etc) for maybe $300 more AUD with the JB discounts / Trade In offers. Love the content elements, well thought out I'll be back for more viewing.
With the Pixel 7 Pro I had an extreme drop in brightness when the device was heating which made it unusable as GPS in the summer behind the windshield . I had never had this kind of problem with my Xiaomi. Is the Pixel 8 Pro the same?
Same. All these PERTAINING issues been there since 1st Pixel tbh, but sorted out later on. I was there for every 2 new model for daily drive, but a xiaomi for gaming phone. It is Pixel 7 and Poco x6 pro atm. Like they said, Pixel is an acquired (luxury) taste✨
Same over here, untill summer i've had zero issues but with sun and higher temps it get's a disaster and the screen is unreadable. (this was one of the reasons i went for the 7 Pro in the first place) i've read that the screen uses a lot of energy en it gets dim very fast to keep it from overheating. i changed it from QHD to FHD and it seems a little bit better but stil not good.
@@dennisvandepol5938 no issues here, my screen is bright as hell in direct sunlight for quite some time then goes down to what my 15 pro looks like once it gets worn. You're somewhat right, peak brightness can't be sustained for a long time as it'll crush your battery and wear the screen out alot faster. Glad most companies started going for much brighter displays (p8, s24, oppo etc)
Great points. Hopefully they make it optional for those 2 home screen widgets. With that said, I love "at a glance" and now that I've moved out of the Pixel, it's actually the feature I miss most.
My phone is one of the few things that i just NEED to work properly. A “flagship” like this is unacceptable. And that’s not even getting into the rest of the issues with the lineup, Android, and Google as a whole too
I've been using the pixel 8 since November and this review is absolutely spot on I've had issues with the g3 as it gets hot during normal use or just a video call, it can get choppy and unresponsive. The cameras are good but video is average. The modem imo is awful and the my biggest gripe is the brightness it suddenly goes very low. So after 5 minutes in the sun the phone is at 60% brightness and you can tell the screen got dim. The pixel 9 pro is a make or break for me if it doesn't improve performance, battery and signal I'll be switching to an iPhone 16 pro
I am a big pixel fan but unfortunately, with each update, the phone becomes unstable. I don't know what is this update. One additional feature in an update which will be removed in the next.
You're spot on with the Video Boost. Almost completely useless as it currently stands. In the few times I've tested it, the output is genuinely much better than normal video. But the limitations on it are too great and as you say you have to remember to enable it every flipping time. Stand by for built in video boost in the Pixel 9. Which is what it should have been in the first place. So half-assed by Google.
A trick that works wonderfull for me: - register both thumbs alternating as 1 finger. "Alternating" means Left-Right-L-R-L-R-L-R-L-R during registering. - both thumbs work and the sensor works perfectly for a day until your probing thumb is wet for example - register those both wet thumbs immidiatly as a 2nd finger - the sensor works perfectly for a week until your probing thumb is dry - register those both dry thumbs immidiatly as a 3rd finger - the sensor works perfectly for a month until your probing thumb is dirty - register those both dirty thumbs immidiatly as a 4th finger Done! The sensor works perfectly 99.9% of the time!
I bought a Pixel 8 Pro 3 weeks ago and up to now everything works fine. Finger print sensor better than Apple. Face unlock works every time except in very low light. Picture taking is great. Call quality fine. Battery not bad but could be better, Fast charging is better than Apple. Not a real gamer but the games I have played no problem. Never had a heating problem. Concerning the unremovable search bar is not a problem. The typing and haptics are the best I have experienced. Now if I look for problems I suppose I could find them but that is the same with everything in life
I like Pixel phones, having purchased several over the years; 2, 4a, 6a, 7P, 8P. Never pay full price one, though. They can’t really compete with the other flagships.
Wow thank you! Finally a real review of this thing. My pixel 8 was awful. The constant stuttering and lag was so noticable that it was unpleasant to use. I too wanted to customize and had the same issues with root. Battery life was dog crap, by only 7-8pm I had 10% left so I'd have to charge up before I went out. The camera wasn't even that good, low light performance was awful, the pictures just became a blob. I never used any of the AI features either except for the call screening but even that was crappy because it would always announce to callers "hey you are being recorded" and then the CS rep would hang up!! God completely poor execution on googles part, do not buy these phones.
I would definitely recommend decreasing the resolution for using this device instead of maxing it out. It increases gaming performance and significantly reduces the heating up issue or the occasional stuttering in games.
Honestly people give the pixel 8 pro a hard time but what really makes the phone stand out are those really cool AI features like built in Gemini nano, Now playing and call screen to name a few. It really earns its title as the smartest smart phone in the biss.
The Pixel 7 Pro has been my favorite phone to use since the Note 3 came out. I loved the Note 3, but I love the vanilla version of Android on the Pixels.
As a OnePlus 12 user, I cannot fault this phone. The performance is world class, screen is beautiful, battery life is brilliant, charging speed is revolutionary, software is silky.
I switched to Oneplus 12 after Pixel 7 Pro, used it for 2 weeks, currently waiting for Pixel 8 Pro to arrive. I think that says it all. The scroll bug on Oneplus is annoying as hell. Even if the battery life is good, I charge the phone every day anyway, so what difference does it make if at the end of the day it's 40% or 20%? Camera compared to Pixel is nowhere, it's a waste to argue... I'll stick with the Pixel. What I use it for is much better than the Oneplus.
You only get better results from the pixel cameras with the daylight is quite bright, when the lights go down pictures get darker than necessary. That's why I always return their phone after the two weeks buying warranty
See I got mine at launch, and I love it, for the most part. But... I will be ditching it very soon and getting the 15PM. I love the camera, and UI, but the bugs I've been experiencing were the last straw for me
Fortunately for me I no longer car much about customization, and have no cell radio issues. A perfect phone, albeit too big. Fingers crossed for Pixel 9 normal size.
I still don't understand the allure of a pixel phone. I missed your initial review, but you nailed it. It is a midrange device. The pricing, processor, 128 mb storage, lack of customization, and "stock" android make it a pretender of a flagship device. That's too many compromises. It does have some great features, but as a package it falls short. There is a reason that it has a 2% market share. I don't know one single person that owns a pixel device.
I have to ask does this phone have heating issues? Pixel 7 does. I don't like pixel 7 too much because it overheats so much that water resistant glue has melted off.
21:9 monitors. Absolutely love to watch his videos on mine since there's no black bars at all. I believe there are some 21:9 phones too such as a few Sony phones but other than them those are pretty rare.
Looks like being rooted is the issue. I first removed all my customization modules like PixelXpert and Iconify, bam extra hour of use! Then i decided to remove root and battery life remained the same but the standby has improved like crazy. It used to drain around 5-6% in 6-7h hours, now its doing a whoppingly low 2-3%!!!! It's a Pixel 8 running Android 15 Beta 2.2
Regarding video boost. Is this simply just a feature that has been added to cover for the soc's lack of processing power? Maybe i am wrong but i feel like other phones safe able to produce similar results without having to restore to cloud based processing
Hey, do you currently have any way to use Google Wallet and NFC payments with a rooted phone? You mention it in the video. Would you mind sharing the method to get it working?
I find the pixels hard to see as a flagship. It was $399.99 out the gate at my carrier so I see it as a mid range phone and don’t recommend anyone buying it unless they snag it for minimum $599.99
Few things stopping me from getting pixel. 1. Lack of their own chip sure it’s designed by Google but it’s on top of already designed Samsung chip (hopefully next year they will finally distance themselves from Samsung) 2. They don’t have ultra equivalent watch and don’t have AirTag equivalent tags. (Samsung has it so I dunno why Google hasn’t done anything about it yet)
Yes, if Google does not release the Call Screening feature here in Singapore, which I've been waiting since the 3XL this upcoming feature drop, I will be letting my 8 Pro go and moving on to other Phones like Samsung, which have their version of Call Screening available here.. Ball is in your court Google.. Good phone but many of it's good features only available elsewhere but Singapore..
"a few instances where the phone has become unresponsive" Absolutely unacceptable design in 2024. No phone should ever be anything close to unreliable.
You don't need a pixel phone to experience pixel. If you just like the software then buy a phone which has great custom rom support and you will be good to go for years. If you live in a hot country like India do not buy pixels because they heat up like crazy and when a pixel heats up it doesn't let you open camera and that is the selling point of a pixel, it's cameras not the software because you can get it for free (custom rom).
Got mine last week here in ph for 40k php brand new thats about 680$ and its a 256gb storage, overall the phone is perfect for me not a heavy user one and not a fan of gaming in a phone since I have a console.
ye the pixel launcher truly needs some rework or they need to make gestures work well for third party apps in 1969 they went to the moon with 4KB of RAM yet in 2024 we can't have proper gesture support for third party apps
@@kemistrypopsNot really any more. Google added an API into android with android 11 called GestureNavContract that third party launcher devs can implement support for in their launcher for better animations. It's only really janky if you're on android 10 or older.
Had to ditch it because the battery life is atrocious. Off charge at 7am, dead by 5pm. Not acceptable in 2024. Phone itself lovely, cameras fantastic, but if it can't get to midnight from 6am using it for texts, bit of music and social then it's a fail. Switched to the S24 Ultra, at 5pm I have 85% left.
Goggle is pissing me off as usual. Almost every phone on the market has surpassed the Pixel. Battery life, charging speed, performance, and camera is falling behind the competition. Every year the snapdragon is getting better, but Google wants to stick with generic Tensor.
I have similar experiences with the s22 ultra from Samsung. Great software, lots of features but the battery life and reception, with the Exynos processor, are just terrible.
My Pixel 8 is terrific. The delightfully uncomplicated software is refreshing. No complaints on the finger sensor. In fact the duopoly with face unlock is very convenient. Nighttime fingers are no biggy. Battery is fine. I won't change now till Pixel 12
Love the pixel except for them soft locking mediocre features to new models, the horrible battery life (i had to charge my pixel 6 pro 4-5 times a day 10-90%), the signal was always out of service or slow, and the phone was very prone to overheating. My S23 ultra only needs to be charged once in the evening and im set, but i hate the lack of smart features
Think the pixel 8pro is pretty poor in every department. It's just not optimised like apples OS... Battery drain is not acceptable and not as efficient as it should be. My 3rd pixel over the years and it's hard to recommend
Hey team! Hope you enjoyed the video 😀 Just a reminder to check out the Pengreen K60 Bluetooth Keyboard here - risu.io/AuqBz
Much love 🙏🏻
What wallpapers are you using on the phone? Some of them were really good!
I ordered yesterday the Pixel 8 pro with my money that I have been saving up for months
sorry for you man
@@thisiskret no sorry I do not care about removing 2 widgets I believe it's a great phone
Congratulations mate. You'll be annoyed at times but I'm sure you'll absolutely fall in love with pixel devices
How much did it cost you!?
@@seleman-MW 760€
I’ve been a pretty die hard Pixel user until the 8 (vanilla). The hardware problems I had were unacceptable. Battery that doesn’t last a day, bad signal, overheating and numerous bugs is unacceptable at this price point. I don’t have much faith the 9 will be much better.
I tried Pixel and didn't like it at all. So limited compare to a Galaxy.
It won’t be better with the 9
Because of that terrible Samsung chip
Unless the 9 has their tensor g4 made by tsmc dont even consider looking at google. Right now samsung is making their crappy tensor chips.
@estiennetaylory1260 yup so much garbage 3rd party apps needed to do anything same as bloat
@@thetechrealist not a Samsung chip
I bought a "renewed" Pixel 8 Pro despite the battery life and fingerprint sensor complaints also noted on this video. 1) But if you aren't a phone gamer the battery life is fine. I am up and about at 9AM and by 11PM I still have 35-40% remaining. Sure, compared to the Snapdragon "2 day" batteries, it's less. But I have no problem with the Pixel 8 Pro's battery life. 2) The fingerprint sensor: brother, maybe you need to trade in your fingers? I have not experienced a single read failure since I have had this phone for 3 weeks now. And a side note, I have owned a couple of Samsung Galaxy Ultras. Their ultrasonic reader is more launch hype than noticeable difference in practice and in my experience. Even the OnePlus optical fingerprint sensor is just as fast. I don't see the vast superiority on the Samsung's they have claimed.
The issue is with the principle my man
Google is the one of the biggest companies in the world. This is supposed to the best phone they make.
As a community we ask them to do better for the sake of innovation
Where did you buy the phone "renewed" ?
@@whoooshme8898 if you think Google is making Pixel phones to sell hardware you have not been paying attention, Google doesn’t make money from Hardware, their goal was to eliminate as much fragmentation in their ecosystem as possible. The goal was not sell phones but instead to sell the promise of what Android could be, it set a new standard for what Android should look and feel like.
This is the stupidest take I've ever seen. Trade in your fingers? I registered my same finger twice and the performance still sucked. The battery life does suck, maybe if you hardly use your phone at all it's fine. The performance is bad, you just haven't used the phone long enough to notice it is my guess. Overall, this is all wrong.
Bro, the fingerprint speed gap is incredibly obvious in this video. That isn't even mentioning the difference between the ultrasonic and optical when you get a little dirt on your finger. You can like the phone, but I literally haven't found one reviewer who liked Google's sensor.
Very good points. Definitely they need to change to an ultrasonic FP and improve battery life. Hopefully with the Pix10 and change to TSMC it will make a big difference.
The difference will be night & day…
Their tensor chipset is bad
@@Jon_zherka_77 Does it matter?
I actually just ordered a 256g one yesterday. Im excited for it.
Excited even after watching the full video?
@@juned_sumra yeah, the home screen doesn't bother me at all because I use both of the unmovable widgets, and while I obviously wish the battery was better, I'm never in a situation where my phone almost dies, so I know it won't be a problem for me.
Video boost works absolutely great going to concerts. It sucks I gotta turn it on every time for sure but it really makes the concerts clearer with all the lights they use.
I got my google pixel 8 pro 2 days ago and I have some things to say. You can disable the at a glance widget and only the date will appear. You indeed cannot disable it completely or the search widget. However I could not care more. The camera is the best part of the phone and it is truly amazing. The overall experience is the most smooth feeling I have ever felt an a phone with the most fluid animations. If you care about the camera and a very nice software experience filled with ai I recommend this phone
I’m a Pixel fan but ever since the 6 lineup started with Tensor, it’s been mostly the same issues. It surely cannot be this hard for Google, a software company, to get their software and even the hardware right. To make matters worse, they raised their prices too and continue having the same problems. Unless you just want a new Pixel now and can’t wait, I’d say wait for the 10 lineup. That’ll be the earliest one to buy that might fix these issues since TSMC will be handling the fabrication of the Tensor chip. Even then, I still suspect they’ll have bugs and glitches to work out. Google has lost many customers because they can’t get their act together and sell reliable phones. These days even Motorola is a more reliable phone to get and despite lesser support, you can customize it way more. It’s like having a Pixel without issues or limitations.
Great review Sam, I don't think Google are really interested in competing at a flagship level. I'm leaning towards pixel for call screening and the software features, but the performance issues you've been having is a bit of a flag.
Personally, as an iPhone user who owns both a pixel 8 pro and a S24, I always find my way back to the pixel. It does lack customization but I enjoy that aspect of it. Although my S24 can do more and is more powerful, I almost feel overwhelmed with the amount of customization i CAN do. Most features I use on my S24 are available on my Pixel.
My pixel 6 pro became unable to receive calls unless I reset. So I saw there was a 350 off the 8 pro for Fi. I got it, so far it feels seriously like an iPhone as far as fit and finish is concerned. Big step up from the 6
Thanks mate for a great insight into the Pixel 8 series. Refreshing to see a fellow Aussie's thoughts about this phone. This will help steer me towards a decision, think I'll stick with Samsung & go a s24 Ultra. So many features (s pen, etc) for maybe $300 more AUD with the JB discounts / Trade In offers. Love the content elements, well thought out I'll be back for more viewing.
With the Pixel 7 Pro I had an extreme drop in brightness when the device was heating which made it unusable as GPS in the summer behind the windshield . I had never had this kind of problem with my Xiaomi. Is the Pixel 8 Pro the same?
Same. All these PERTAINING issues been there since 1st Pixel tbh, but sorted out later on. I was there for every 2 new model for daily drive, but a xiaomi for gaming phone.
It is Pixel 7 and Poco x6 pro atm. Like they said, Pixel is an acquired (luxury) taste✨
My base pixel 8 doesn't do that so I assume it's been fixed
Same over here, untill summer i've had zero issues but with sun and higher temps it get's a disaster and the screen is unreadable. (this was one of the reasons i went for the 7 Pro in the first place) i've read that the screen uses a lot of energy en it gets dim very fast to keep it from overheating. i changed it from QHD to FHD and it seems a little bit better but stil not good.
@@dennisvandepol5938 no issues here, my screen is bright as hell in direct sunlight for quite some time then goes down to what my 15 pro looks like once it gets worn. You're somewhat right, peak brightness can't be sustained for a long time as it'll crush your battery and wear the screen out alot faster. Glad most companies started going for much brighter displays (p8, s24, oppo etc)
Finally someone pointing out real weaknesses and frustrations instead of just reading the specs sheet
Great points. Hopefully they make it optional for those 2 home screen widgets. With that said, I love "at a glance" and now that I've moved out of the Pixel, it's actually the feature I miss most.
Even my 15 pro max gets really warm sometimes. For such large companies to allow this to happen is unacceptable.
weird tho. my 15 pro stays pretty cool during the day. it only likes to get hot when i charge it. but thats kind of normal
That is probably a manufactured issue. My moms 15 pro max doesnt heat up at all. She loves the battery life since she charges once every 2 days.
@@chieflingco it heats up only when I use it on charge. Still it shouldn't happen for an expensive flagship.
@@ConannnnnI don’t think it’s possible to not heat up while charged though
@@Trenhorne I think with the correct parts and internals like a vapor cooling chamber it's possible. No device should get hot even while charging.
My phone is one of the few things that i just NEED to work properly. A “flagship” like this is unacceptable. And that’s not even getting into the rest of the issues with the lineup, Android, and Google as a whole too
we get it you are an apple fan boy!!
we get it, you are an Apple fan boy
How do you feel about Chinese phones (Oneplus, Xiaomi, Poco, Vivo)?
I've been using the pixel 8 since November and this review is absolutely spot on
I've had issues with the g3 as it gets hot during normal use or just a video call, it can get choppy and unresponsive.
The cameras are good but video is average. The modem imo is awful and the my biggest gripe is the brightness it suddenly goes very low. So after 5 minutes in the sun the phone is at 60% brightness and you can tell the screen got dim.
The pixel 9 pro is a make or break for me if it doesn't improve performance, battery and signal I'll be switching to an iPhone 16 pro
I've stopped recommending Pixel phones because I've noticed with my own phone, the deterioration after every update :/
I am a big pixel fan but unfortunately, with each update, the phone becomes unstable. I don't know what is this update. One additional feature in an update which will be removed in the next.
You're spot on with the Video Boost. Almost completely useless as it currently stands. In the few times I've tested it, the output is genuinely much better than normal video. But the limitations on it are too great and as you say you have to remember to enable it every flipping time.
Stand by for built in video boost in the Pixel 9. Which is what it should have been in the first place. So half-assed by Google.
I'm very happy with my fingerprint sensor. İt always works except when my hand is wet and in the morning when the phone is on battery save mode.
He barely put his thumb on the sensor.
A trick that works wonderfull for me:
- register both thumbs alternating as 1 finger. "Alternating" means Left-Right-L-R-L-R-L-R-L-R during registering.
- both thumbs work and the sensor works perfectly for a day until your probing thumb is wet for example
- register those both wet thumbs immidiatly as a 2nd finger
- the sensor works perfectly for a week until your probing thumb is dry
- register those both dry thumbs immidiatly as a 3rd finger
- the sensor works perfectly for a month until your probing thumb is dirty
- register those both dirty thumbs immidiatly as a 4th finger
Done! The sensor works perfectly 99.9% of the time!
I bought a Pixel 8 Pro 3 weeks ago and up to now everything works fine. Finger print sensor better than Apple. Face unlock works every time except in very low light. Picture taking is great. Call quality fine. Battery not bad but could be better, Fast charging is better than Apple. Not a real gamer but the games I have played no problem. Never had a heating problem. Concerning the unremovable search bar is not a problem. The typing and haptics are the best I have experienced. Now if I look for problems I suppose I could find them but that is the same with everything in life
I like Pixel phones, having purchased several over the years; 2, 4a, 6a, 7P, 8P. Never pay full price one, though. They can’t really compete with the other flagships.
Whats the real difference between 7p and 8p ??
Why does no one mention the old modem used. And the lack of connection to mobile networks in some cases recently 😮
Wow thank you! Finally a real review of this thing. My pixel 8 was awful. The constant stuttering and lag was so noticable that it was unpleasant to use. I too wanted to customize and had the same issues with root. Battery life was dog crap, by only 7-8pm I had 10% left so I'd have to charge up before I went out. The camera wasn't even that good, low light performance was awful, the pictures just became a blob. I never used any of the AI features either except for the call screening but even that was crappy because it would always announce to callers "hey you are being recorded" and then the CS rep would hang up!! God completely poor execution on googles part, do not buy these phones.
I would definitely recommend decreasing the resolution for using this device instead of maxing it out. It increases gaming performance and significantly reduces the heating up issue or the occasional stuttering in games.
I've never had an issue with the sensor on my Pixel 7 Pro or The Pixel 8 Pro I have now
Not liking my pixel 8 pro
So many wifi and other connectivity issues.
I don't like mine either. Switching back to my S23+.
Mine
too. Often gltiches and can't go back or home
Pain in the ass. Moved to s24
I had it for a month and got rid of it for a Samsung s23 ultra
Right choice💪
Why did you do that? I want to know because I am wondering if I should get a Pixel.
@@tomasgonzalezquintero3037the battery life was awful and the phone was super buggy 😢
Honestly people give the pixel 8 pro a hard time but what really makes the phone stand out are those really cool AI features like built in Gemini nano, Now playing and call screen to name a few. It really earns its title as the smartest smart phone in the biss.
Those are mostly US only features so that's cool if you live in the US but that's it
The Pixel 7 Pro has been my favorite phone to use since the Note 3 came out. I loved the Note 3, but I love the vanilla version of Android on the Pixels.
As a OnePlus 12 user, I cannot fault this phone. The performance is world class, screen is beautiful, battery life is brilliant, charging speed is revolutionary, software is silky.
I switched to Oneplus 12 after Pixel 7 Pro, used it for 2 weeks, currently waiting for Pixel 8 Pro to arrive. I think that says it all.
The scroll bug on Oneplus is annoying as hell. Even if the battery life is good, I charge the phone every day anyway, so what difference does it make if at the end of the day it's 40% or 20%? Camera compared to Pixel is nowhere, it's a waste to argue... I'll stick with the Pixel. What I use it for is much better than the Oneplus.
I always had battery life issues and fingerprint sensor issues with Pixel 6 and Pixel 7. It's why I avoided the Pixel 8 series
If you wanted full home screen customization why didn't you just install a third party launcher, instead of full on rooting?
The biggest let down is the tensor and modem. It barely lasts 3 and half hours.
U mean screen on time. Or in just general the phone only last for 3½ hours ?
You only get better results from the pixel cameras with the daylight is quite bright, when the lights go down pictures get darker than necessary. That's why I always return their phone after the two weeks buying warranty
4:30 Couldn't you just remove the widgets by changing launcher? No need to root?
See I got mine at launch, and I love it, for the most part. But... I will be ditching it very soon and getting the 15PM. I love the camera, and UI, but the bugs I've been experiencing were the last straw for me
Fortunately for me I no longer car much about customization, and have no cell radio issues. A perfect phone, albeit too big. Fingers crossed for Pixel 9 normal size.
I still don't understand the allure of a pixel phone. I missed your initial review, but you nailed it. It is a midrange device. The pricing, processor, 128 mb storage, lack of customization, and "stock" android make it a pretender of a flagship device. That's too many compromises. It does have some great features, but as a package it falls short. There is a reason that it has a 2% market share. I don't know one single person that owns a pixel device.
Hey love your videos, will you do a review for Sony Xperia VI ?
I have to ask does this phone have heating issues? Pixel 7 does. I don't like pixel 7 too much because it overheats so much that water resistant glue has melted off.
Which app did you use to meek your home screen like that, I use nova launcher.
Love Pixel phones but app stability and performance seems better on Galaxies and iPhones
Just switching over from my lg v50 and decided to get a Pixel 8 pro rather than s24 ultra for a cleaner experience.
Aspect ratio is WIDE even on my s22+ im getting black stripes, what device is this aimed for ?
21:9 monitors. Absolutely love to watch his videos on mine since there's no black bars at all. I believe there are some 21:9 phones too such as a few Sony phones but other than them those are pretty rare.
Video boost is a trickery in which the own cpu can handle on its own. Therefore its send in the cloud and process the video accordingly.
Why not just install an alternative gone launcher rather than root the phone?
Looks like being rooted is the issue.
I first removed all my customization modules like PixelXpert and Iconify, bam extra hour of use!
Then i decided to remove root and battery life remained the same but the standby has improved like crazy. It used to drain around 5-6% in 6-7h hours, now its doing a whoppingly low 2-3%!!!!
It's a Pixel 8 running Android 15 Beta 2.2
I always love your videos ratio
Regarding video boost. Is this simply just a feature that has been added to cover for the soc's lack of processing power?
Maybe i am wrong but i feel like other phones safe able to produce similar results without having to restore to cloud based processing
Hey, do you currently have any way to use Google Wallet and NFC payments with a rooted phone? You mention it in the video. Would you mind sharing the method to get it working?
Dude, seriously. The finger print sensor has never been a problem for me. You really just need to learn to use it. It's a user error.
Hey 👋 Do you plan to take a look on OnePlus 12? I'm thinking about it but I would love to know what do you think about it :)
Switched from pixel 7 pro. Absolute monster. Love it to death. Mike's ahead of pixels.
I never have lag with my Google pixel 8a......I love it! It runs so smooth 😊
The fact that you can't game on flagship phones thats a deal breaker
9:23 Where can I download the simplistic banana wallpaper?!
I find the pixels hard to see as a flagship. It was $399.99 out the gate at my carrier so I see it as a mid range phone and don’t recommend anyone buying it unless they snag it for minimum $599.99
Coming from pixel 6 the only problem I can relate is fingerprint sensor.
Batteries still kicks.
Few things stopping me from getting pixel.
1. Lack of their own chip sure it’s designed by Google but it’s on top of already designed Samsung chip (hopefully next year they will finally distance themselves from Samsung)
2. They don’t have ultra equivalent watch and don’t have AirTag equivalent tags. (Samsung has it so I dunno why Google hasn’t done anything about it yet)
Is it worth to change s23 ultra for pixel 8 pro?
If any help to say, I migrated from an S24 Ultra to a P8Pro. I know I'll be in the minority here, but I mucht prefer the latter...no regrets.
Handy review.
I’m definitely not buying it now. Battery life, fps on top of the audio quality shortfalls count it out for me.
Ive been able to use nova launcher prime on my pixel without root
Using the Pixel 8 and it's been snappy, I wonder if the lower resolution plays a part? I have had it go unresponsive a few times tho that's annoying.
Good Review, I'll wait for Samsung July 10
I absolutely regret swapping from iPhone to the Pixel.
Why?
Why
Automatic call screening and waiting makes it the default choice
#teampixel
Yes, if Google does not release the Call Screening feature here in Singapore, which I've been waiting since the 3XL this upcoming feature drop, I will be letting my 8 Pro go and moving on to other Phones like Samsung, which have their version of Call Screening available here.. Ball is in your court Google.. Good phone but many of it's good features only available elsewhere but Singapore..
can you make the same kind of video for the regular pixel 8 please?
"a few instances where the phone has become unresponsive" Absolutely unacceptable design in 2024. No phone should ever be anything close to unreliable.
You don't need a pixel phone to experience pixel. If you just like the software then buy a phone which has great custom rom support and you will be good to go for years. If you live in a hot country like India do not buy pixels because they heat up like crazy and when a pixel heats up it doesn't let you open camera and that is the selling point of a pixel, it's cameras not the software because you can get it for free (custom rom).
I'm from India, this comment is bullshit
Nope get Samsung
@@teteakhiangte6015seems like you have no idea what he is talking about.
💪 This 💪 is 💪 the 💪 way 💪
@@juned_sumra he is talking about custom rom. Is there anything I'm missing about?
Its a great overall experience, just the performance whats holding the phone back
How can the experience be great if the performance sucks?
Got mine last week here in ph for 40k php brand new thats about 680$ and its a 256gb storage, overall the phone is perfect for me not a heavy user one and not a fan of gaming in a phone since I have a console.
2:02 - This is why i no longer buy Pixel phones. The performance issues. I'm not spending that much money to have to deal with that.
Not being able to configure the main screen is enough for me to pass on this,,,shame as I was thinking about it however not now
I'm happy I switched over to the s24u
Nova Launcher solved my issue with the unremovable widgets.
The heat is a major disadvantage, which is why the 9 is better.
Fingerprint sensor isn't the same as samsung it needs to shine light on finger to work
Best finger print sensor I've used dude. Galaxy's is abysmal. Disabled it. Weird review.
ye the pixel launcher truly needs some rework or they need to make gestures work well for third party apps
in 1969 they went to the moon with 4KB of RAM
yet in 2024 we can't have proper gesture support for third party apps
Can u not change the launcher without rooting your device?
Yes you can. But the experience will be janky
@@kemistrypopsNot really any more.
Google added an API into android with android 11 called GestureNavContract that third party launcher devs can implement support for in their launcher for better animations.
It's only really janky if you're on android 10 or older.
Why stop being cheap get an ultra
@@DENVEROUTDOORMANnot everyone has big hands.
Had to ditch it because the battery life is atrocious. Off charge at 7am, dead by 5pm. Not acceptable in 2024. Phone itself lovely, cameras fantastic, but if it can't get to midnight from 6am using it for texts, bit of music and social then it's a fail. Switched to the S24 Ultra, at 5pm I have 85% left.
Wow. The video freezing up should not be happening.
Goggle is pissing me off as usual. Almost every phone on the market has surpassed the Pixel. Battery life, charging speed, performance, and camera is falling behind the competition. Every year the snapdragon is getting better, but Google wants to stick with generic Tensor.
Pixel is the only iPhone competitor 👍
7:56 1600 hours. Well shit
Just use nova launcher?
Right. The same thing one should do on every android phone, period. And with Nova the Pixel obliterages the competition imo
What is the grid size of homescreen on this setup in nova launcher?
I have similar experiences with the s22 ultra from Samsung. Great software, lots of features but the battery life and reception, with the Exynos processor, are just terrible.
For the stuck widgets : Just install nova launcher
S24 ultra or google pixel 8pro ?
P8Pro I would choose.
I would also point this phone does a good job running wuthering waves at 30fps. Now we can argue if that is a phone game at all (it's not)
My Pixel 8 is terrific. The delightfully uncomplicated software is refreshing. No complaints on the finger sensor. In fact the duopoly with face unlock is very convenient. Nighttime fingers are no biggy. Battery is fine. I won't change now till Pixel 12
Love the pixel except for them soft locking mediocre features to new models, the horrible battery life (i had to charge my pixel 6 pro 4-5 times a day 10-90%), the signal was always out of service or slow, and the phone was very prone to overheating.
My S23 ultra only needs to be charged once in the evening and im set, but i hate the lack of smart features
Nope Ultra way better features
Think the pixel 8pro is pretty poor in every department. It's just not optimised like apples OS... Battery drain is not acceptable and not as efficient as it should be.
My 3rd pixel over the years and it's hard to recommend