For those of you that came from a Note 7....

[SteelGator]

Those are what you call features for the pixel.. Smh

Just the things I like about it. YMMV.

Samsung phones are feature rich, but a lot of them I don't use. Even those I miss, will fade into the background quickly because they were not perfect.

Samsung Pay for instance. I loved it, and it is the best mobile pay system out. That said, until I can leave my wallet at home, it is a toy to me.

S-pen was crippled without actions. I took some notes with it, but I was not heavily reliant on it.

The biggest thing missing on the Pixel for me is wireless charging. I really don't get it. That said, it is not impacting my experience. The launcher is one of the key drivers the phones experience, and Pixel nailed it. Camera is another function that is huge for me. I love this camera. I think it is faster and better than Samsung;s.

 

[Amb312]

If I had the choice, I'd go right back to the Note 7 for all the reasons already noted. I miss the s-pen a lot and it is beyond me why the on screen buttons don't disappear. I've never been a fan of them as they eat up screen.

I keep trying to tap all that block dead space at the bottom to get the screen buttons to work lol. I am having difficulty not having the spen. I probably should have went to the Note 5.

 

[jamezr]

If I had the choice, I'd go right back to the Note 7 for all the reasons already noted. I miss the s-pen a lot and it is beyond me why the on screen buttons don't disappear. I've never been a fan of them as they eat up screen.

I miss my Note 7 (RIp buddy) too...lots of features even if i tuned most off.
Can you switch the software buttons around? Like switching the back button and recents button like I can on my OnePlus 3?

 

[mightyfacundo]

I would consider the pixel a Honda Civic. It works and is fluid but doesn't bring anything special that some other model will have or eventually get.

Have you used the Pixel?

 

[I Can Be Your Hero]

I came from a Note 7 (R.I.P) and moved to a Pixel XL. Here are my impressions:

1. It's faster in everything. From opening apps to switching between apps, multitasking etc. It's just an extremely smooth experience where everything flows. It doesn't feel like a typical Android phone where there's a disjointed feeling between actions. Hard to explain, bit once you use it, you'll see what I mean. It's substantially faster than the Note 7.

2. I'm in Australia on our best network and all I can say is that signal and reception is really good. But then I never had any issues with the Note 7 either.

3. Pixel XL has better battery life for me. Just for my regular usage, I'm getting an additional hour of screen time. Seems like Google have really optimised the software on the phone.

4. This one is not even close. The new Assistant runs circles around Samsung's one.

While I liked the Note 7 a lot, the Pixel to me is quite a bit better. Sure on a spec sheet, the Note 7 'wins', bit when you're using it, in the hand, the Pixel provides a much, much better experience imo.

I seriously doubt I'll bother with other Android OEM phones now.

 

[T Waite]

I bought my Pixel XL from verizon but still holding on to my note 7 as I was not sure if I would be happy with the XL. As I have not flown since the start of the TSA and see no need to do so any time soon I don't see why not being allowed to take it on a plane is a problem for myself. To be honest I was so happy with my note that I honestly don't know if not getting future updates would be a big enough reason to drop it either. An if I intended to keep it then a refund really is not an issue either. Surprisingly Im really digging the XL. I do have a few issues with the speakers as some have already noted. Ohhhhh and OMG I love the fact of no bloatwear

 

[billykac]

Good thread. We former N7 owners have a unique perspective.

My Pixel should be delivered this week, and I am still using my N7. I fully appreciate that the Pixel doesn't have all the bells/whistles of the N7, and I've been vocal about the superior physical design of the N7 over Pixel.

Still, I can't wait to get rid of this N7, and Samsung. I know that there are some forum members that think that Samsung did a great job with the recalls, or at least a respectable job. I just don't. I am frustrated with the wasted time/energy in navigating Samsung's issues, and my personal opinion is that Samsung mis-handled (botched) this entire process.

So, might my new Pixel lack some N7 features? I bet it will.
Will I be happy to just not have a Samsung phone in my life. You bet.

Really looking forward to a Pixel.

 

[Amb312]

I honestly don't care for this Pixel. It doesn't do what I need a phone to do, but now that the note is gone, nothing does anyway (except the 5). I do not want to order another phone, and send back a phone, set up another flippin phone!! So I will keep it until next year.

 

[Momof9Blessings]

Amb312 what do you NOT like about the Pixel....

BTW - anyone looking for a stylus - the Intuos Creative 2 should work via bluetooth. Also google has a handwriting app that works great. I am thinking of going to the Pixel xl from the S7edge which I don't like the bevel etc as compared to the N7s I had.... I hate the edge panel in it as well and loved how it worked on the N7.....

 

[Kayza]

I have a few questions if anyone has the time. I am very hesitant to give up my Note and its pen as I love the freaking thing.

You can love it all you want. You still need to give it up - it's a fire hazard. And, it's not just you that you are putting at risk. It's everyone else around you. Apparently you don't travel much so that won't be an issue. But, if your phone blows up or catches fire when you are not in your own home, it's not going to go over too well.

 

[droidiac13]

You can love it all you want. You still need to give it up - it's a fire hazard. And, it's not just you that you are putting at risk. It's everyone else around you. Apparently you don't travel much so that won't be an issue. But, if your phone blows up or catches fire when you are not in your own home, it's not going to go over too well.

I totally agree. We really don't have a choice. It needs to go back. The liability will be transferred to the owner eventually as every company involved has sent out notices. Samsung, Verizon, Costco. They have all sent me notices. I can't imagine after a while we wouldn't personally be liable at some point. Not worth the risk.

 

[Joe Hettinger]

I've got the Pixel XL and so far I like it, but I do have two grips.

I was able to turn on the system UI Tuner and set the Battery Icon to "Always Show Percentage" but it still has times when it does not show the percentage, and the task bar with the battery icon is so much smaller than the Note 7 that is difficult to read. I have not found a setting to increase the font size on the taskbar.

The other gripe is the Recent and Back button are inverse of what I have been used to for the past 3-5 years. The only way I have seen to change this is to root the phone, which I am not interested at this time. Both buttons and the home button are soft buttons, I think Google should have been innovative and made those customizable. If you want to sway somebody over, this could be something cool that might make the difference for someone like me who has been using Samsung for so long they were accustomed to the layout.

On the plus side, Google maps has a cool new feature where if you long press the Google maps icon you get a popup choice of home or work, and then Google maps will open up with that destination routed.

As others have said, no bloatware, I love that, sure seems a little faster than the Note 7.

Outside of that, I believe this is a solid device, but this is only day two, so I'll have to play around and see how it goes.

I will say that this phone has 3756 mb of RAM which is about 256 mb more RAM than my Note 7 and just shy of the advertized 4GB.

 

[Joe Hettinger]

Oh yeah, one more thing, when you hit the recent button all the running apps pop up in a frame and staggered like you expect. But the problem is that the X to close an app does not show up right away, it fades in after a few seconds. I want the X to be present at the same time the app frame opens.

 

[cwbcpa]

I honestly don't care for this Pixel. It doesn't do what I need a phone to do, but now that the note is gone, nothing does anyway (except the 5). I do not want to order another phone, and send back a phone, set up another flippin phone!! So I will keep it until next year.

I have had every Note since the Note 2 and am a big fan, but I can get what I need from an iPhone or the Pixel or probably a number of phones. I'm curious, what doesn't the Pixel do that you need it to do? Serious question. I'm not trying to be a jerk at all so please don't take it that way.

 

[Hurleygm]

Oh yeah, one more thing, when you hit the recent button all the running apps pop up in a frame and staggered like you expect. But the problem is that the X to close an app does not show up right away, it fades in after a few seconds. I want the X to be present at the same time the app frame opens.

Never noticed this, but now that you mention it, it is very odd.

FYI, you can swipe apps closed without waiting for the X.

 

[Hurleygm]

I have had every Note since the Note 2 and am a big fan, but I can get what I need from an iPhone or the Pixel or probably a number of phones. I'm curious, what doesn't the Pixel do that you need it to do? Serious question. I'm not trying to be a jerk at all so please don't take it that way.

There are a few things that I miss:

S Pen: I really liked being able to take a quick note while the screen was off and pin it to the screen as a quick reminder. However, Google Assistant is quickly becoming more helpful in making reminders and notes via voice. Just something to get used to.

Mail App: I really miss the Samsung email app that synced my work Office 365 email. I am trying to get used to using Gmail and figuring out how to get my stuff moved to the Google ecosystem. With Samsung, it just worked.

I really miss notification badges. I don't understand why Google left this off. It seems like a very simple software tweak to make this an option.

I have had wireless charging since my Note 4. I purchased a Spigen wireless desktop charger to put on my night stand and desk so I didn't have to plug my phone in everytime. With this high end (high price) of a phone, it really should have been included.

Just my two cents. My Note 7 is gone and there is no bringing it back. It will just take some time to adjust.

Edited to add: Camera is very similar to the Note 7 and battery life is amazing. I have around 40% when I get home, when I used to only have 20% with my Note.

 

[Amele]

IMO the camera isn't quite as good, and I miss those little few seconds of video before a photo that the Note did. I miss the spen but I actually miss the larger screen more. And I am never going to love that the fingerprint scanner is on the back and isn't the home button. Otherwise, it's a relief to have a phone that isn't likely to explode and the Pixel is definitely faster than the Note.

 

[Amb312]

I have had every Note since the Note 2 and am a big fan, but I can get what I need from an iPhone or the Pixel or probably a number of phones. I'm curious, what doesn't the Pixel do that you need it to do? Serious question. I'm not trying to be a jerk at all so please don't take it that way.

No problem. I used the pen a lot. Apparently, more than I realized. I actually used the edge screens quite a bit. AOD was awesome. I am learning to type text instead of swype because it doesn't work well on this phone. And no, I don't want to install 3rd party apps to get those things and have them be glitchy, I just want them on my phone. I just have to adjust for awhile until something else comes out that will work better for me.

 

[Kayza]

I am learning to type text instead of swype because it doesn't work well on this phone.

Interesting. I have a galaxy s6, and I moved to the Google keyboard, because I found it worked so much better than the Samsung keyboard.

 

[ihbsbA]

I don't have my Pixel yet, but after a lot of thought and reading this forum here's what I came up with to convince me to drop the money on an XL after giving up my n7.

I used the Pen all the time.
➡ the trade off will be having a phone with no lag, I will have to figure something out about the pen. I used it mostly for precise navigation, and drawing on photos to help explain something.

The Samsung is a nice looking phone and the n7 was symmetrical (this matters to an OCD individual)
➡the trade off is having any new software features, first. And the Pixel is a nice looking and feeling device. (I have, at least, played with one)

I'm heavily engrained in Samsung's ecosystem, but the honest truth is that all of those features slow the phone down. Samsung Pay got in the way often, I didn't use Touch Whiz but I didn't like having to add another piece of software to correct something that just should have worked.

I don't care about wireless charging, it is not as fast as wired charging and it's a gimmick. I have several docks but the truth is that I would end up plugging in because my time between appointments or errands was so short that I'd never get much from the wireless charger. I do believe this was not added because it's another "feature" that can potentially cause issues. The time it took me to find the sweet spot was time I could have just plugged in. I'm all for innovation, but it was just something I didn't implement.

AOD, loved it.. But I came from relying on the LED for my quick glance to see which notifications I have, and I'll go back to that with Light Manager or Light Flow. Basically, if it blinks green, I know I have texts. Blue and orange were Facebook and email which I don't check that often, red was a missed call and white was Whatsapp.

Scroll capture - used this ALL the time. Looking for apps to replace, I've found one that I need to try.
https://forums.androidcentral.com/e...s?id=com.glitch.stitchandshare&token=sbwHaD1m

Editing the screen capture right after it's captured will be the next thing I need to find.

Cameras will be comparable.

Frustration will be down, I was irritated that I upgraded from the n5 to the n7 with the few features that it had, I would have been happy keeping my n5. Since I gave that to my son, I needed to make a decision.

The v20 is huge. Bigger than I want, as we know, the n7 was the perfect size.
The Nexus 6p is clunky, and a year old.
The s7 edge is too edgy.
Not even considering any iCrap.

The Pixel XL it is. I actually think it's a very nice minimal look. I almost went with the smaller one just because I am feeling more minimalist..

I just read that someone says there are no notification badges? Can someone elaborate...