News If history repeats itself, the Google Pixel may end up in the graveyard

[AC News]

It's hard not to be excited and infatuated with the Pixel 8 and 8 Pro. But, we've been here before and didn't know we were being let down until years later.

If history repeats itself, the Google Pixel may end up in the graveyard : Read more

 

[samcrowjax]

If the past is a crystal ball, we might be attending the farewell party of the Google Pixel soon.

 

[hmmm]

I wish Google would go back to snapdragon. Their custom processor are not very good. Monster Hunter is a stuttering low performing mess on the pixel 7. I watched an iPhone run it and it was like watching a PC or optimized console run a game. Their "ai" focused processor or whatever it is doesn't perform any task better than any other processor.

 

[davidnc]

I have not had a Pixel with the new processor yet.
But have read mixed reviews on.

 

[Stanley Kubrick]

While Google has had somewhat better success than Microsoft when it comes to cell phones...the fact is that BOTH companies are SOFTWARE companies and they should remain focused on what they do best, and leave the hardware to those companies that are more focused on the hardware.

 

[deltatux]

Not sure why Android Central seems to be dead set on claiming that the Pixel 6 is a dud. Yes, there were people who had issues with it but there are plenty of people who don't. There are still Pixel 6 being actively used, still see them on the streets. Personally, my Pixel 6 was a pre-order unit and it has been great. Aside from the botched December 2021 update, every single other update made the device better.

The Android 14 OS upgrade basically made the device feel new again as the battery drain has been significantly improved.

The fact that this device gets 3 years of OS updates and 5 years of security updates and Google so far keeping said promise, has been a great thing. On top of that they've so far kept their update promises on Chromebooks as well so I don't doubt that they would do the full 7 years for the Pixel 8 series.

As for going back to Snapdragon, chances are low. Google has been trying to use their own NPUs for a long time. They were able to implement their own image processors on Snapdragons but couldn't put their own NPUs without at least a semi-custom design. Qualcomm isn't really in the business of allowing customization with their chips so it doesn't really match what Google wants. If anything, here's hoping Google's rumoured fully custom chip would be better than the Exynos-based semi-custom chip.

 

[mustang7757]

I don't think pixels will end up in the grave yard , Google showcases their software, AI through pixel line and they were never meant to sell in the numbers of Samsung/Apple devices they sell well enough for extra money for Google though.

 

[ampedup]

Are people that threatened by a phone they view as inferior, that they constantly have the need to dump on its succes big or small? Google sees their Pixel phone as an strategic importance: Pixel phones serve as a showcase for Google's software and hardware innovations, particularly in AI and camera technology. This can have valuable branding and ecosystem benefits beyond direct sales.

 

[ampedup]

Not sure why Android Central seems to be dead set on claiming that the Pixel 6 is a dud. Yes, there were people who had issues with it but there are plenty of people who don't. There are still Pixel 6 being actively used, still see them on the streets. Personally, my Pixel 6 was a pre-order unit and it has been great. Aside from the botched December 2021 update, every single other update made the device better.

The Android 14 OS upgrade basically made the device feel new again as the battery drain has been significantly improved.

The fact that this device gets 3 years of OS updates and 5 years of security updates and Google so far keeping said promise, has been a great thing. On top of that they've so far kept their update promises on Chromebooks as well so I don't doubt that they would do the full 7 years for the Pixel 8 series.

As for going back to Snapdragon, chances are low. Google has been trying to use their own NPUs for a long time. They were able to implement their own image processors on Snapdragons but couldn't put their own NPUs without at least a semi-custom design. Qualcomm isn't really in the business of allowing customization with their chips so it doesn't really match what Google wants. If anything, here's hoping Google's rumoured fully custom chip would be better than the Exynos-based semi-custom chip.

Exactly, my mom's Pixel 6 works flawlessly with no issues. It's crazy the amount of hate the Pixel gets. I guess they feel threatened by it.

 

[fuzzylumpkin]

Are people that threatened by a phone they view as inferior, that they constantly have the need to dump on its succes big or small? Google sees their Pixel phone as an strategic importance: Pixel phones serve as a showcase for Google's software and hardware innovations, particularly in AI and camera technology. This can have valuable branding and ecosystem benefits beyond direct sales.

Hey man, you're the one that's Ampedup.

I'm not sure how I would feel threatened by a phone... maybe if the battery was very swollen and likely to catch fire? Regardless, I would argue that whether you love or hate the Pixel it is at least partially bad for the Android ecosystem as a whole. Although it has potentially had some positive effects as well.

 

[ampedup]

How is it Pixel bad for the Android ecosystem?

 

[fuzzylumpkin]

How is it Pixel bad for the Android ecosystem?

Pixel exclusive features.

I'm not talking about stuff like their camera tricks that were developed specifically to set the Pixel apart, that's fair enough. But making things like Gboard work better on the Pixel (or crippling it on other devices, dependding on how you look at it) is kinda messed up and just makes android fragmented again.

Hell, even within just the Pixel 8 series they're giving the Pro features that the standard should also have... I guess fragmentation is good if you can make a couple of extra bucks off it.

 

[ampedup]

Yeah, I can see that.

 

[Charles Bosse]

On the one hand, Google has gotten to 8 so I feel like the Pixel probably isn't on the chopping block. From the big G side of things, there are some advantages to the Pixel over Android in general, beyond just earning money on the hardware (though I am sure they do earn money on the hardware and I am sure that helps). It seems likely to be around for several more years unless Google truly gets a shakeup. On the other side, as a consumer I have gone from a Google supporter and even evangelist to being a solid skeptic. Google killed both Reader and Play Music while they were still popular, pushed VR hard for three years then utterly dropped it (I understand why they moved away, but it went from darling to "never heard of it" in less than a month) and went back on their multiple promises to keep Stadia going. They also never really lived up to the original promise of the Pixel, which was supposed to be a more mainstream phone with better, more solid features and excellent support. Instead, the hardware feature set has failed to be either groundbreaking or stable, and the support has been hit-or-miss at best since the start. Google has also broadly been mediocre at ecosystem integration as well, buying Fitbit and then not bringing wear and Fitbit to the same standards, or making them work together, putting out nest devices but then making them obsolete in a handful of years, making a tablet that's also a smart speaker but isn't good at either and costs as much as both combined from another company, transitioning to Matter but not explaining that transition to consumers, brow beating Apple over RCS but then not making Voice compatible, pumping new assistant features that only make it to the Pixel line (if that) and frankly lying outright about their coming cross platform AI capabilities earlier this year. Oh, and do we all remember what a mess Google made of chat a few years ago, killing their strong chat program, trying to launch several other chat platforms with a mishmash of "features" all at the same time and failing to provide even the basics of their old chat platform while doing so? While I have always believed that Android OS has advantages over iOS, after 8 generations the Pixel has failed to even match, much less exceed, the iPhone in any strong point except the camera, and it's not because Apple has an unbeatable model.

That doesn't mean Pixel phones are technically bad phones, it's just really hard for me to get excited about a premium brand from a company that so frequently demonstrates their need for a rectal craniotomy.

 

[fuzzylumpkin]

On the one hand, Google has gotten to 8 so I feel like the Pixel probably isn't on the chopping block. From the big G side of things, there are some advantages to the Pixel over Android in general, beyond just earning money on the hardware (though I am sure they do earn money on the hardware and I am sure that helps). It seems likely to be around for several more years unless Google truly gets a shakeup. On the other side, as a consumer I have gone from a Google supporter and even evangelist to being a solid skeptic. Google killed both Reader and Play Music while they were still popular, pushed VR hard for three years then utterly dropped it (I understand why they moved away, but it went from darling to "never heard of it" in less than a month) and went back on their multiple promises to keep Stadia going. They also never really lived up to the original promise of the Pixel, which was supposed to be a more mainstream phone with better, more solid features and excellent support. Instead, the hardware feature set has failed to be either groundbreaking or stable, and the support has been hit-or-miss at best since the start. Google has also broadly been mediocre at ecosystem integration as well, buying Fitbit and then not bringing wear and Fitbit to the same standards, or making them work together, putting out nest devices but then making them obsolete in a handful of years, making a tablet that's also a smart speaker but isn't good at either and costs as much as both combined from another company, transitioning to Matter but not explaining that transition to consumers, brow beating Apple over RCS but then not making Voice compatible, pumping new assistant features that only make it to the Pixel line (if that) and frankly lying outright about their coming cross platform AI capabilities earlier this year. Oh, and do we all remember what a mess Google made of chat a few years ago, killing their strong chat program, trying to launch several other chat platforms with a mishmash of "features" all at the same time and failing to provide even the basics of their old chat platform while doing so? While I have always believed that Android OS has advantages over iOS, after 8 generations the Pixel has failed to even match, much less exceed, the iPhone in any strong point except the camera, and it's not because Apple has an unbeatable model.

That doesn't mean Pixel phones are technically bad phones, it's just really hard for me to get excited about a premium brand from a company that so frequently demonstrates their need for a rectal craniotomy.

Well said. I think my criticism of Google often gets misinterpreted as unfounded hate, whereas it's actually bitter dissapointment built on poor experiences and broken promises.

Google were the chosen ones... they were supposed to bring balance to the smartphone market, not lead it into darkness.

 

[Charles Bosse]

Well said. I think my criticism of Google often gets misinterpreted as unfounded hate, whereas it's actually bitter dissapointment built on poor experiences and broken promises.

Google were the chosen ones... they were supposed to bring balance to the smartphone market, not lead it into darkness.

Well said yourself. I will be bitter about GPM for years. I was just thinking about how I didn't just stick with GMaps during the architectural reboot a decade ago, I wrote a a huge dump of reviews on Hotpot (now just Google Maps Reviews) and was a "Local Guide" for years after that. If Maps or Gmail did that now, I feel like I would just switch to the Microsoft alternative (or something else; I don't love MS but I don't have the energy to make my own email server). Even if I stayed with the Google service, I wouldn't be out writing a bunch of reviews or something to help get some new part of the service off the ground. I mean, if I felt like I did then, I would probably be using Bard all the time, despite some obvious flaws. Instead, I'm considering how best to archive my files stored with Google offline.

 

[fpink3]

Not sure why Android Central seems to be dead set on claiming that the Pixel 6 is a dud. Yes, there were people who had issues with it but there are plenty of people who don't. There are still Pixel 6 being actively used, still see them on the streets. Personally, my Pixel 6 was a pre-order unit and it has been great. Aside from the botched December 2021 update, every single other update made the device better.

The Android 14 OS upgrade basically made the device feel new again as the battery drain has been significantly improved.

The fact that this device gets 3 years of OS updates and 5 years of security updates and Google so far keeping said promise, has been a great thing. On top of that they've so far kept their update promises on Chromebooks as well so I don't doubt that they would do the full 7 years for the Pixel 8 series.

As for going back to Snapdragon, chances are low. Google has been trying to use their own NPUs for a long time. They were able to implement their own image processors on Snapdragons but couldn't put their own NPUs without at least a semi-custom design. Qualcomm isn't really in the business of allowing customization with their chips so it doesn't really match what Google wants. If anything, here's hoping Google's rumoured fully custom chip would be better than the Exynos-based semi-custom chip.

My Pixel 6 Pro has worked flawlessly for year. I have probably dropped it a dozen times from over four feet. No cracks or other issues. iPhone users I know are ALWAYS cracking the screen. The 6 Pro's battery life is great. I use it to stream video all the time. The fingerprint reader works. I'm a photography-obsessive individual. The camera functions are very useful. Of course, this is what you EXPECT the phone to do, so I'm not going to say it's "the only phone". But I'm certainly not suffering from iPhone or Samsung phone envy.

 

[igloohed73]

I'm not even sure I know what your saying with this piece. Sorry but it's a bit wishy-washy. I got more from the reference links than I did the article.

 

[Deke218]

As with most things Google. Google is like a 6 year old. Plays with their toys for a little while but soon becomes bored and moves on. Seems there is no connecting the dots at google. They set out a path, and sooner or later, they are lost and have no clue how to proceed.

 

[notforhire]

a whole bunch of "new members" on this thread........