Google’s Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL Phones Are Finally Official

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKSA_idPZkc

It’s happening — Google is finally putting an end to the endless stream of Pixel 3 leaks. The company today made its latest Pixel flagships official.

Meet the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL.

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Google’s new line of Pixel devices come with all the latest high-end specs you’d expect. The Pixel 3, for example, boasts a 5.5-inch P-OLED display with a resolution of 1080×2280 pixels. The larger Pixel 3 XL packs a 6.3-inch P-OLED display with a resolution of 1440×2960 pixels. Both the devices are powered by Qualcomm’s latest and greatest Snapdragon 845 processor, Adreno 630 GPU and 4GB RAM. You can get up to 128GB of storage on both the devices, too.

And that’s not anything surprising, of course.

The main improvements, however, are quite difficult to notice from the outside. Google has slightly tweaked the design of the Pixel 3 over the Pixel 2, introducing a new notch on the Pixel 3 XL. The device technically now has a larger display size despite being around the same size as the Pixel 2. The design improvements in the upgraded Pixel 3 line are quite minor, combined with the display enhancements Google is introducing this year.

Google is also obviously upgrading the cameras on the device, now with two 8.2MP sensors on the back — including a new wide angle sensor for super wide selfies, or groupies. The front camera is even capable of taking depth shots, likely because of the new sensor. As for the back, Google is sticking to the same single camera setup, so you’re getting a single 12.2MP camera on the back. One of the higlight features of the new Pixel 3 is the new Night Shot feature that takes amazing pictures in low-light. The feature will come to the Pixel 3 next month, as well as older Pixel devices:

The Pixel 3 also introduces other new camera features, like the AI-powered Top Shot feature that will take a bunch of photos at the same time and use on-device machine learning to determine the best shots that you can pick from. Google is even making use of the dual cameras on the front of the device with a new Photobooth experience that lets you simply dock the device somewhere and let it take shots during the best moments. Another crazy feature Google is introducing is the new Super Res Zoom that uses AI to help create additional details when you zoom in with the camera. And like the iPhone Xs and Samsung’s Galaxy S9, the Pixel 3 camera now lets you adjust the depth of field in portrait mode pictures.

All of this comes with the updated camera interface that makes it super easy to switch between all the different camera modes on the Pixel 3. And yes, Google’s Pixel 3 now has the best camera in the industry once again.

Google isn’t massively upgrading the battery on these devices, though — the Pixel 3, for example, ships with a 2915mAh battery while the Pixel 3 XL is coming with a 3,430mAh battery. That should last you up to a day, depending on your usage, of course. With the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL, though, Google is finally adding support for wireless charging. The company is even introducing a new Pixel Stand that you can wirelessly charge your Pixel 3 device on while constantly staying up to date with the latest updates thanks to the on-screen information.

Oh, by the way, for people in the US, Google is introducing two really smart features powered by the Assistant soon.

The devices will ship in a total of three colors: Just Black, Clearly White, and a new Sand (apparently “not pink”) variant. All featuring the popular two-tone design we have seen on the Pixel line before.

Pixel 3 starts at $799, while the larger Pixel 3 XL will sell for $899. Pre-orders start today, ships October 17.

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Conversation 17 comments

  • james_wilson

    09 October, 2018 - 11:24 am

    <p>I don't believe it. You've just pasted an android image over an iPhone X (notch and all). We're not that gullible.</p><p><br></p><p>and that tablet! You pay for the tablet, then $200 for the keyboard? Who do they think they are? Microsoft?</p>

    • MikeCerm

      09 October, 2018 - 11:35 am

      <blockquote><em><a href="#351536">In reply to James_Wilson:</a></em></blockquote><p>Not hard to tell these apart from an iPhone at all. The iPhone has a much wider notch, and yet still looks like a much more premium device.</p>

      • Rob_Wade

        09 October, 2018 - 4:45 pm

        <blockquote><a href="#351547"><em>In reply to MikeCerm:</em></a><em> It doesn't really matter. I maintain that all these phones look more or less alike. I find nothing unique or attractive about ANY of them. Nokia was the last company to do anything unique. I still love my 1020.</em></blockquote><p><br></p>

  • Necron

    09 October, 2018 - 11:42 am

    <p>I just wonder when sumsung will release their notchy device.</p>

  • leops1984

    Premium Member
    09 October, 2018 - 11:44 am

    <p>No announcements on price? </p>

    • webdev511

      Premium Member
      09 October, 2018 - 12:14 pm

      <blockquote><em><a href="#351559">In reply to leops1984:</a></em></blockquote><p>go to fi.google.com to see prices. Pixel 3 64 GB is $799…</p>

  • Daekar

    09 October, 2018 - 12:14 pm

    <p>And we were all hoping that the ridiculous notch size was a joke. Ah well, it will make Google fanboys easy to identify at a glance….</p>

  • ben55124

    Premium Member
    09 October, 2018 - 12:22 pm

    <p>$150 price bump from base Pixel 2 $649. Seems steep for an incremental update.</p>

  • colin79666

    Premium Member
    09 October, 2018 - 12:30 pm

    <p>Wireless charging. You mean like the Nexus 5 from 2013?</p>

  • dcdevito

    09 October, 2018 - 12:53 pm

    <p>Nothing exciting. Yawn. </p>

  • jprestig

    09 October, 2018 - 2:02 pm

    <p>That notch looks like an upside down Chrome tab.</p><p><br></p><p>Ugh, I sort of want one though. I must hate myself.</p>

  • lbastie

    09 October, 2018 - 2:38 pm

    <p>My god. It is so ugly! </p>

  • lilmoe

    09 October, 2018 - 3:43 pm

    <p>The heck you looking at!!</p><p><br></p><p>(talking to notch)</p>

  • Rob_Wade

    09 October, 2018 - 4:43 pm

    <p>Am I the only one who sees the problem with the AI "creating" additional details when you take a picture? I don't want a camera that "creates detail". I want a camera capable of CAPTURING THE DETAIL THAT'S ACTUALLY THERE. That's how you impress me. Not this garbage.</p>

  • FalseAgent

    09 October, 2018 - 11:12 pm

    <p>did Google fire all of their designers over the past 2 years? It sure feels like it.</p>

  • lbastie

    10 October, 2018 - 2:03 am

    <p>Shameful google. Ugly product spying on you.</p>

  • wright_is

    Premium Member
    10 October, 2018 - 5:16 am

    <p>Still too expensive, but not so astronomical as the previous generations, although the basic Pixel 3 starts at $975 over here ($940 before tax). I'll be sticking with my Hauweis for now.</p>

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