Anandtech article rips Pixel

[mhw100]

Is this review likely to be accurate. Certainly doesn't sound like for the money the Pixel is worth it.
The Google Pixel XL Review: Life After Nexus

 

[akin_t]

Reviews are just opinions. If you like your phone that's all that matters.

It's your money at the end of the day. I honestly don't understand why people panic when others don't like their choice in smartphone.

 

[Impulses]

It had a somewhat negative tone overall, but it was about as analytical as any AT review so there's not much to debate... There's also a few missing sections/tests because of 7.0/etc.

The only thing that really stood out to me was the poor screen calibrations, not surprised most other reviews overlooked that tho.

 

[benjamminh]

Yeah, that was pretty rough for the Pixelistas, but real world use is what ultimately matters.

 

[hal1]

I hate discussions about what something is "worth".

I have a 1990 Mazda Miata with 36k miles that truly looks like a two-year-old car. Is it worth the $1,200 or so that the books say it is worth or the $6,000 that I have been offered for it? Is a rhetorical question that we know the answer to.

 

[wordfool]

Wish they'd reviewed the smaller Pixel, too. I'm curious how the 1080 display and smaller battery stack up.

Battery life is a hard one to judge because reviews and tests are all over the place. I've seen some iPhone7 reviews that just slam the battery life, yet AT rates it as one of the better ones. I've also seen a few reviews (Tweakers, for example) that found the smaller Pixel has significantly better battery life than the XL.

 

[mhw100]

I'm just surprised it faired so poorly. The device is so fast and smooth I find it hard to believe the benchmarks.

 

[mhw100]

...also the screen seems brighter to me than all those devices listed other than the iphone 7 based on my comparisons.

 

[akin_t]

I'm just surprised it faired so poorly. The device is so fast and smooth I find it hard to believe the benchmarks.

You realize literally every 2016 flagship phone has the same internals as the pixels right?

Yes I know 821 vs 820 ... However for all intents and purposes, the 820 seems to fare better in synthetic tests.

 

[mhw100]

You realize literally every 2016 flagship phone has the same internals as the pixels right?

Yes I know 821 vs 820 ... However for all intents and purposes, the 820 seems to fare better in synthetic tests.

Very odd.

 

[tdizzel]

The Pixel is the best phone I've ever owned by a longshot. I couldn't give a rat's rear end what some review says about it. I paid $650 for it and to me it's a bargain.

 

[I800C0LLECT]

I don't buy phones based on how accurate their displays measure. Matter of fact, those types have always been niche markets.

 

[thatguy97]

Anandtech doesn't know how to review phones and never has known. They just put up benchmarks and thermal tests and call it a day.

 

[Aquila]

Is this review likely to be accurate. Certainly doesn't sound like for the money the Pixel is worth it. The Google Pixel XL Review: Life After Nexus

You took that as them ripping it? They didn't like the aesthetic design because Brandon hates non Samsung/Apple phones, but has a good, but not best, display, is either the best or tied for best camera, it was second only to the new iPhones on performance, has fantastic battery life, the best software available on any device and is the only 2016 device available with any sort of intelligible update path. They didn't gush over it by any means, and they seemed disappointed that it is not the phone to end all phones, but it was a strong performer across the board.

 

[Aquila]

It had a somewhat negative tone overall, but it was about as analytical as any AT review so there's not much to debate... There's also a few missing sections/tests because of 7.0/etc.The only thing that really stood out to me was the poor screen calibrations, not surprised most other reviews overlooked that tho.

In sRGB mode it is actually calibrated very well, it's just calibrated as well as the other best devices. Everything on the list above it with the exception of the OnePlus 3 is known for having a fantasticly well calibrated screen - and the OnePlus 3 should be, it sucked horribly until OP released an update to add sRGB and when they did that they pushed an update that made it almost as good as the 6P for display accuracy.

"Thankfully, the sRGB mode is quite accurate, although heavy competition in the smartphone market means that it's still in the bottom half of the chart despite its accuracy. The only thing you could really complain about is that blues are a bit farther off than they should be, and 100% saturations for red, blue, and green fall a bit short as well. This is just nitpicking though, and I don't think anyone will have an issue with the accuracy of primary and secondary colors when using the sRGB mode."

 

[Impulses]

Wish they'd reviewed the smaller Pixel, too. I'm curious how the 1080 display and smaller battery stack up.

Battery life is a hard one to judge because reviews and tests are all over the place. I've seen some iPhone7 reviews that just slam the battery life, yet AT rates it as one of the better ones. I've also seen a few reviews (Tweakers, for example) that found the smaller Pixel has significantly better battery life than the XL.

AT's battery tests have historically been pretty accurate IMO, because they do far more than most to level the playing field as far as screen brightness, background processes, etc...

That being said, this is precisely why their test setup might now be slightly less reliable. Things like Size and other software optimizations may very well be having a larger impact on some phones than others (and with some users).

It's next to impossible to account for that in a repeatable test tho...

 

[mhw100]

I don't think the brightness is correct in the review. The xl is brighter than the s7e and an example

 

[Impulses]

In sRGB mode it is actually calibrated very well, it's just calibrated as well as the other best devices. Everything on the list above it with the exception of the OnePlus 3 is known for having a fantasticly well calibrated screen - and the OnePlus 3 should be, it sucked horribly until OP released an update to add sRGB and when they did that they pushed an update that made it almost as good as the 6P for display accuracy.

"Thankfully, the sRGB mode is quite accurate, although heavy competition in the smartphone market means that it's still in the bottom half of the chart despite its accuracy. The only thing you could really complain about is that blues are a bit farther off than they should be, and 100% saturations for red, blue, and green fall a bit short as well. This is just nitpicking though, and I don't think anyone will have an issue with the accuracy of primary and secondary colors when using the sRGB mode."

He commented elsewhere in the review about how the slight green tint while using aRGB mode bothered him a lot tho, specially on white background... Unless it's been edited since I read it. I do think it was a little incomplete overall, by AT's own standards.

Dunno why they couldn't just test charge time manually or talk about PD vs QC for instance, that would be right up their alley. I didn't interpret it as a rip or wholly negative review either tho, said as much already.

They didn't touch upon video quality or IS effectiveness either which is often something they do better than most, that plus a lack of coverage for the 5" left me pretty wanting tbh. Dunno why they didn't get sampled both models, if that's even what happened.

I did like reading Brandon's analysis of the chin/bezels and internal design, even if he rates is as a negative point (doesn't bother me in the least), at least he went into the how/why rather than just whining about it like most other writers.

I wouldn't mind if they eventually went to a bottom mounted headphone jack, always wanted a phone with the jack there... I kinda appreciate the lack of camera bump even if it's sorta moot with a case and it's part of what contributes to bezels.

 

[Impulses]

I wouldn't be surprised if they've filled in a few areas btw, the NAND testing was added after my first read and I think that bench might still be buggy on Nougat. I wish they'd clearly mark updated content, specially since their reviews aren't very timely to begin with (never have).

 

[dejanh]

It's a very fair review. PIxel honestly does not bring enough to the table considering its price.