Pixel by Google

This is my early attempt to get back into writing mode so pardon me if I did mistakes here and there. 

Earlier this month of October, Google unveiled 2 new phone, dubbed Pixel and Pixel XL, made inside and out.
Specs include 5.0 and 5.5 AMOLED screens, Snapdragon 821, 4GB of RAM, 12MP/8MP cameras, 32/128 GB storage, aluminum build, Android 7.1 Nougat, and a bunch of other exciting features. It is sold at a starting price of $649 (roughly RM2700) and are available in 3 funny colours name - Very Silver, Quite Black, and Really Blue 

These phones are said to replace Nexus phones (LG Nexus 5X and Huawei Nexus 6P) from last year, although Google didn't said anything. Nexus line are now dead, with the proof of Google removing the 5X and 6P from the Google Store. This causes some uproar among Nexus fans that Google is totally abonding Nexus now. For information, Nexus phones are made with co-op of Google with mobile phone companies - Samsung, HTC, LG. Pixel also, are made together with HTC, but theres no branding of HTC on the phone and ads. It was aimed at developers and android enthusiasts that wants to have 'pure' version of Android. Pixel, however, is aimed to all types of users. With the Pixel, Google has become a part of mobile phone industry, among with Apple, Samsung, HTC rather than just a search engine. 

Now comes my opinions on this long-hyped phones. 

First, the price. It is quite expensive for a Nexus successor. 6P just costs $499 while 5X costs $379. That does not count the price in EU, where it can reach up to €1000 for the 128G. Nexus is long known for offering top notch hardware at an affordable price, but it seems Google has killed this practise with the Pixel. It went to "top notch hardware with premium price". Maybe because of cooperation with HTC , where HTC devices are usually priced higher than other phones, and it goes the same for Pixel. 

Second, the exclusivity of the Pixel. Pixel is the first phone to ship 7.1 out of the box. Thought that AOSP has updated to 7.1? Think again. Android 7.1 Developer Preview only came out later this year, with the official roll out will begin in Q1 next year. This is the next level of fragmentation in Android ecosystem that is already too fragmented. Fragmentation in Android is where if most people are using the same version of Android, Android will be less fragmented. Pixel's software is also exclusive to itself and may not be available to other Nexuses such as the navigation bar and 24/7 support. This may conclude that Pixel's software is not pure AOSP, but it has a bit of 'skin' from Google. It should not be this way as there is no new device that carry the true form of Android. When people want to look for the phone that resembles Apple, it surely be an iPhone. Same goes to the Android. Pixel should be that kind phone, but apparently it doesn't. 

Nevertheless, there are some parts that I like about the Pixel. Google Assistant make its debut in Google Allo, and it's baked in to the Pixel itself, and it's awesome. Google Now upgraded, I would say. Assistant is smarter and know the context of the searches based on recent activities and searches, far outperforming other voice assistants - Siri, Cortana, Alexa. The Pixel camera also looks promising with a DxOMark score of 89, the highest ever for a smartphone. 

So that's my opinions on the new Pixel phones. To be honest, I don't think it is worth spending most of my money on this phone. 

Cheers