buy pixel 7 pro from att or google?

[Android Central Question]

buy pixel 7 pro from att or google?

the "free" to me pixel 7 pro w/pixel 4a trade in on att seems sweet.

iirc, the att versions have bloatware and not rapid upgrades/updates. i've bought new from google since "nexus s"...

i'm not sure i want to effectively pay $500 to google to avoid bloatware and get instant upgrades/updates. can we now kill bloatware ourselves.

thought?

ideas?

 

[VidJunky]

Welcome to Android Central.

I'm not sure if it is worth $500 to be free of bloat but the best deal is the best deal...

You know who you should talk to other Pixel owners. They can put in their two cents as well as their experiences. There's a Pixel forum here and we can ask to have your thread moved to that forum, @mustang7757.

In the meantime you'll want to keep up on your post and the replies so you'll need to create an account.

To receive notifications when others reply to your thread and to leave comments of your own please take a minute to create an account. It will help you communicate and get help. This link will guide you through how to do that... https://forums.androidcentral.com/ask-question/409154-join-android-central-community-new-post.html

 

[mustang7757]

[Moved this to pixel 7 Forums]

 

[bhatech]

Personal opinion - never buy anything from crappy carriers. Direct OEM from Google/Apple/Samsung, don't want any transaction with carriers other than network

That's just me and in the very tiny negligible minority

Sent from my Pixel 7 Pro using Tapatalk

 

[mookiekillsit]

Better resale value if it's from Google if this is something you want to consider.

 

[bkeaver]

Better resale value if it's from Google if this is something you want to consider.

Not when it comes with a pixel. There is literally no difference between Google store and carrier. Carrier units are networked locked, however once they are unlocked the difference is no longer there.

Sent from my Pixel 7 Pro using Tapatalk

 

[Jeremy8000]

buy pixel 7 pro from att or google?

the "free" to me pixel 7 pro w/pixel 4a trade in on att seems sweet.

iirc, the att versions have bloatware and not rapid upgrades/updates. i've bought new from google since "nexus s"...

i'm not sure i want to effectively pay $500 to google to avoid bloatware and get instant upgrades/updates. can we now kill bloatware ourselves.

thought?

ideas?

1. If that 'free' comes in the form of billing you each month for 24 or 36 months for the phone but with offsetting credits so you don't actually come out of pocket, just be aware that if you want to change phones (trading in for something else) or leave AT&T you'll almost certainly stop getting the credits and become responsible for any balance due. But if you are certain you will both stay with AT&T for whatever that term is, and that you will not want to upgrade again during that term, it's likely a better option.

2. If you would be trading in at an AT&T store, basically while you still might have a return window you would not be able to get back your traded phone as it would've already been sent off to wherever they're processing trade-ins. With Google (and I would presume with AT&T if done through telephone or online trade-in), you would receive your new phone and have a period of time within which to send in the trade, affording you the option to keep it if you chose to return the new phone.

 

[ezdoit]

1. If that 'free' comes in the form of billing you each month for 24 or 36 months for the phone but with offsetting credits so you don't actually come out of pocket, just be aware that if you want to change phones (trading in for something else) or leave AT&T you'll almost certainly stop getting the credits and become responsible for any balance due. But if you are certain you will both stay with AT&T for whatever that term is, and that you will not want to upgrade again during that term, it's likely a better option.

2. If you would be trading in at an AT&T store, basically while you still might have a return window you would not be able to get back your traded phone as it would've already been sent off to wherever they're processing trade-ins. With Google (and I would presume with AT&T if done through telephone or online trade-in), you would receive your new phone and have a period of time within which to send in the trade, affording you the option to keep it if you chose to return the new phone.

Very important

 

[mookiekillsit]

Not when it comes with a pixel. There is literally no difference between Google store and carrier. Carrier units are networked locked, however once they are unlocked the difference is no longer there.

Sent from my Pixel 7 Pro using Tapatalk

Not sure how many regular users will know to unlock their phones though. Essentially, you are correct if that is done

 

[Jeremy8000]

Not when it comes with a pixel. There is literally no difference between Google store and carrier. Carrier units are networked locked, however once they are unlocked the difference is no longer there.

Sent from my Pixel 7 Pro using Tapatalk

FWIW, in the USA, carriers are required by the FCC to unlock the phone on request if it is fully paid off.

 

[bkeaver]

FWIW, in the USA, carriers are required by the FCC to unlock the phone on request if it is fully paid off.

Did you mean to quote me on this??? I know this, and was basically stating this.

Sent from my Pixel 7 Pro using Tapatalk

 

[Davidoo]

Personal opinion - never buy anything from crappy carriers. Direct OEM from Google/Apple/Samsung, don't want any transaction with carriers other than network

That's just me and in the very tiny negligible minority

Sent from my Pixel 7 Pro using Tapatalk

I mostly agree with you.....but if you buy the regular 7, not the Pro, you won't get mmWave 5G on Verizon unless you buy it from Verizon and I believe T-mobile is the same. All 7 Pros are capable of mmWave, so this only goes for the 7, and with Verizon you have to pay an extra $100 for the regular 7 to get it.

 

[Morty2264]

Welcome to Android Central! I dislike buying phones from carriers, but I do feel more inclined to now, with the amount of theft occurring surrounding tech deliveries. Can't go wrong with either -- though I too agree that bloat is annoying. Good luck, and keep us posted on what you decide!

 

[J Dubbs]

I don't buy carrier branded phones anymore because they use their control to disable features on the phone, just to make you pay for their version, and they install games and other ad supported apps without your permission, and come with invasive, resource hogging and data collecting apps you can't uninstall.

That being said AT&T has updated my unlocked pixels like clockwork, I got the updates as soon as Google released them. I imagine the carrier version would be the same. And I think I've heard carrier pixels don't come with the same level of junk as other brands.... don't quote me on that though

$500 is a substantial savings... and you can always unlock the phone down the road if you want to try another carrier.

 

[bkeaver]

I don't buy carrier branded phones anymore because they use their control to disable features on the phone, just to make you pay for their version, and they install games and other ad supported apps without your permission, and come with invasive, resource hogging and data collecting apps you can't uninstall.

That being said AT&T has updated my unlocked pixels like clockwork, I got the updates as soon as Google released them. I imagine the carrier version would be the same. And I think I've heard carrier pixels don't come with the same level of junk as other brands.... don't quote me on that though

$500 is a substantial savings... and you can always unlock the phone down the road if you want to try another carrier.

To be fair, pixel phones don't follow the typical as they are not branded by the carrier.

Sent from my Pixel 7 Pro using Tapatalk

 

[Stanley Kubrick]

Bloat can be removed (hidden from user 0 which is you) with ADB. There are apps that utilize ADB with a GUI making it easier. I bought mine directly from Google so the few apps I do not use can either be deleted outright or disabled. But on my Samsung Galaxy Tab S7+ I used ADB to debloat. Works great!

 

[bkeaver]

Bloat can be removed (hidden from user 0 which is you) with ADB. There are apps that utilize ADB with a GUI making it easier. I bought mine directly from Google so the few apps I do not use can either be deleted outright or disabled. But on my Samsung Galaxy Tab S7+ I used ADB to debloat. Works great!

Again carrier apps do not come on pixel phones. My P6P was from T-Mobile and had zero carrier installed apps.

Sent from my Pixel 7 Pro using Tapatalk

 

[dc52ltr]

We're lucky here in the UK, all Google phones as far as I recall , even if they are supplied by a carrier, are unlocked...

Sent from my Pixel 7 Pro using AC Forums mobile app

 

[wpbfjr]

hi,

i'm the OP.

i did the $800 deal with att: xyz monthly $$ credit.

i was stunned, and very happy, that NO bloatware was force placed on phone.

no carrier issues for me. i've been with att, cellular one before that, +25 years. keeping up with plan promotions and the latest phone, it's dizzying to me. i'm much older now than when our south florida market was one of the first to get cellular service in the nation.

best to all, dana

 

[wpbfjr]

hi,

i'm the OP.

i did the $800 deal with att: xyz monthly $$ credit.

i was stunned, and very happy, that NO bloatware was force placed on phone.

no carrier issues for me. i've been with att, cellular one before that, +25 years. keeping up with plan promotions and the latest phone, it's dizzying to me. i'm much older now than when our south florida market was one of the first to get cellular service in the nation.

best to all, dana