Is the Pixel 3 the 2018 Phone of the year?

[booboolala2000]

If a phone can hold it's own, nit just does ok against the best then sure. But when it is cheap feeling or camera and screen are just better than average, then no.

 

[the_boon]

For everyday users and an uncomplicated, fully fleshed out experience, the Pixels are hands down the best phones out there. Camera and Security updates along with customer service are winners for sure.

To me, a mobile device CANNOT be the best if it can't reliably get a heavy user through a full day without him/her worrying about needing to top up before the end of the day. It's a mobile device first and foremost, and it needs to be powered up when you need it.

Back in the BB days, it was normal for smartphones to go at LEAST two days before needing to charge.
Now we praise a device if it can barely make it through the day.
They get rid of headphone jacks and still cram underwhelming batteries paired with extremely power-hungry displays, can't expect much from that.

But it seems people just care about three things these days:
-Display
-Camera
-Processor (Even though most users never even take advantage of the full power of a flagship processor, and if they did, then hello battery drain)

A solid battery doesn't even seem to be a deciding factor when buying a mobile device anymore. Even though it's one of the single most important "features" as what good is a feature packed paperweight by 7pm ?

Boy, how priorities have changed.

Sorry if it seems like a rant

 

[Itsa_Me_Mario]

To me, a mobile device CANNOT be the best if it can't reliably get a heavy user through a full day without him/her worrying about needing to top up before the end of the day. It's a mobile device first and foremost, and it needs to be powered up when you need it.

Back in the BB days, it was normal for smartphones to go at LEAST two days before needing to charge.
Now we praise a device if it can barely make it through the day.
They get rid of headphone jacks and still cram underwhelming batteries paired with extremely power-hungry displays, can't expect much from that.

But it seems people just care about three things these days:
-Display
-Camera
-Processor (Even though most users never even take advantage of the full power of a flagship processor, and if they did, then hello battery drain)

A solid battery doesn't even seem to be a deciding factor when buying a mobile device anymore. Even though it's one of the single most important "features" as what good is a feature packed paperweight by 7pm ?

Boy, how priorities have changed.

Sorry if it seems like a rant

People don't care about those things though, not the way the ultra nerdiest phone fanatics who visit tech blogs and forums do. Camera is the one thing that the average consumer outs above most other things, but they have no idea which phones actually have the best cameras.

 

[Mike Dee]

To me, a mobile device CANNOT be the best if it can't reliably get a heavy user through a full day without him/her worrying about needing to top up before the end of the day. It's a mobile device first and foremost, and it needs to be powered up when you need it.

Back in the BB days, it was normal for smartphones to go at LEAST two days before needing to charge.
Now we praise a device if it can barely make it through the day.
They get rid of headphone jacks and still cram underwhelming batteries paired with extremely power-hungry displays, can't expect much from that.

But it seems people just care about three things these days:
-Display
-Camera
-Processor (Even though most users never even take advantage of the full power of a flagship processor, and if they did, then hello battery drain)

A solid battery doesn't even seem to be a deciding factor when buying a mobile device anymore. Even though it's one of the single most important "features" as what good is a feature packed paperweight by 7pm ?

Boy, how priorities have changed.

Sorry if it seems like a rant

Back in the day Blackberries lasted longer because those devices used less current and had very few apps. I don't think priorities have changed. Devices have evolved along with our usage patterns. As far as a battery lasting most of the day I can usually do that with my Pixel and I'm a heavy user. It's also not as big deal because we have rapid chargers which can get you a decent boost. The only issue is for people who work in locations and industries where they can't plug in. There are remedies for that too.

 

[Morty2264]

...right now. But does that still apply when it was $800 at launch?? I mean, if the Pixel 3 was on sale for $250, would he then say it's best phone???... IMO, price should be a nil factor on all devices.

I do see your point. "Phone of the Year" is a very subjective term that in turn could have dozens of variables - maybe even variables of varying degrees of significance.

For example, specs should be of primary and heavy significance, no? And price - it should perhaps be considered as a variable as that very often ties into the purchase of a phone (ie, waiting until it's on sale/reduced for Black Friday; Christmas sales; or swallowing the pricetag at launch because you really want it - price has a varying degree of significance for buyers). But whether or not it takes centre stage is another matter. Price is not a "part" of the phone - it may be what it's worth; but it's not a feature, a specification, or a software feature. So I believe that, while price is significant to some when buying a phone, it shouldn't be the primary determining factor of whether or not a phone is named "Phone of the Year."

 

[the_boon]

Back in the day Blackberries lasted longer because those devices used less current and had very few apps. I don't think priorities have changed. Devices have evolved along with our usage patterns. As far as a battery lasting most of the day I can usually do that with my Pixel and I'm a heavy user. It's also not as big deal because we have rapid chargers which can get you a decent boost. The only issue is for people who work in locations and industries where they can't plug in. There are remedies for that too.

I guess, but I find that the following three things that were essential in a mobile device have really taken a backseat to meaningless "wow factor" designs.

-Written/typed communication

Of course, the superiority (except for multilingual purposes) of the physical keyboard over tapping on a piece of glass

-One-handed usability

Devices were mostly very manageable with one hand, except maybe landscape sliders
Nowadays, phablets are praised even though it's difficult/nearly impossible to operate them entirely with one hand. It usually ends in stretching the hand awkwardly and possibly dropping the phone as a consequence.

-Robustness

Hard plastic builds that did great with drops have been replaced by the absolute worst material for a routinely abused device that has a high chance of falling: Glass

Now I get that glass for the screen makes for much more scratch resistance and sensitivity than plastic, but glass on the rear is an idiotic choice.
I mean, you can't even dream of not putting a case and tempered glass protector as soon as you pull it out of its box.

Every smartphone now is a rectangle piece of glass with little to no distinction from one another (especially from the front with the screen off).
The fact that the notch is such a controversial topic proves how design has stagnated.
Every day on the pocketnow daily you hear the same rumors of:
"X source has just revealed patents showing the next [insert slab name] may have X amount of cameras on the back with X processor and X display size"

YAWN, I'm just kind of over it lol

 

[Mike Dee]

I guess, but I find that the following three things that were essential in a mobile device have really taken a backseat to meaningless "wow factor" designs.

-Written/typed communication

Of course, the superiority (except for multilingual purposes) of the physical keyboard over tapping on a piece of glass

-One-handed usability

Devices were mostly very manageable with one hand, except maybe landscape sliders
Nowadays, phablets are praised even though it's difficult/nearly impossible to operate them entirely with one hand. It usually ends in stretching the hand awkwardly and possibly dropping the phone as a consequence.

-Robustness

Hard plastic builds that did great with drops have been replaced by the absolute worst material for a routinely abused device that has a high chance of falling: Glass

Now I get that glass for the screen makes for much more scratch resistance and sensitivity than plastic, but glass on the rear is an idiotic choice.
I mean, you can't even dream of not putting a case and tempered glass protector as soon as you pull it out of its box.

Every smartphone now is a rectangle piece of glass with little to no distinction from one another (especially from the front with the screen off).
The fact that the notch is such a controversial topic proves how design has stagnated.
Every day on the pocketnow daily you hear the same rumors of:
"X source has just revealed patents showing the next [insert slab name] may have X amount of cameras on the back with X processor and X display size"

YAWN, I'm just kind of over it lol

I hear what you're saying but unfortunately some of the things that we prefer are just out of date for better or worse.

 

[the_boon]

I hear what you're saying but unfortunately some of the things that we prefer are just out of date for better or worse.

I just wish there was more variety in terms of form factor, something that would make one device instantly distinguishable from the sea of slabs.
It's too bad Moto (Lenovo) tried with the Z Play series and the mods, those really brought something interesting to the table but for some reason, after 3 generations, it just didn't take off and even that crowdfunded landscape keyboard mod ended up canceled.

Things like this probably don't help motivate OEM's to try something too different for fear of underwhelming sales and loss of money which is understandable, but then we as consumers are faced with many options that, to me, don't stand out enough from one to another

Edit: I'll stop highjacking this thread now lol

 

[mustang7757]

some people like bare software experience others like feature packed, I love them all . So buy what you feel your most happy with regardless if it's phone of the year or has better spec's at the end your spending the money.

 

[Almeuit]

Back in the BB days, it was normal for smartphones to go at LEAST two days before needing to charge.
Now we praise a device if it can barely make it through the day.

And back then it could text/email, browse the web as it was (crap/basically text and some images), and make calls. Now you can shoot 4K videos on phones / stream 4k videos / watch non-stop images on InstaGram / etc.

I get what you are saying but you have to put things into realistic perspectives since just because back in the day something happened doesn't mean that should stand today especially since the usage is drastically different.

 

[the_boon]

And back then it could text/email, browse the web as it was (crap/basically text and some images), and make calls. Now you can shoot 4K videos on phones / stream 4k videos / watch non-stop images on InstaGram / etc.

I get what you are saying but you have to put things into realistic perspectives since just because back in the day something happened doesn't mean that should stand today especially since the usage is drastically different.

Yes that is true, but with all the services running in the background on Android, I'm not even sure one could get 2 full days on say a Pixel 3 if all they did was text/e-mail/web browsing.

I feel like the "Android System" and "Android OS" drains would sit higher than "Screen".

This could also depend on cellular coverage and/or Wi-Fi connection, or if a poorly coded app is constantly pinging for location etc...

 

[Almeuit]

Yes that is true, but with all the services running in the background on Android, I'm not even sure one could get 2 full days on say a Pixel 3 if all they did was text/e-mail/web browsing.

I feel like the "Android System" and "Android OS" drains would of course be higher than "Screen".

This could also depend on cellular coverage and/or Wi-Fi connection, or if a poorly coded app is constantly pinging for location etc...

TBH I have never cared if a phone lasted 2, 3, 5 days. If I can go all day doing what I want and it last I am good. I never understood the desire to have it last overnight when you can just charge overnight but that is just me.

 

[anon(661246)]

TBH I have never cared if a phone lasted 2, 3, 5 days. If I can go all day doing what I want and it last I am good. I never understood the desire to have it last overnight when you can just charge overnight but that is just me.

Everyone's situation is different though. Think of the ones that travel a lot. I can tell you from this past year having a battery that had great endurance came in very useful.

 

[Almeuit]

Everyone's situation is different though. Think of the ones that travel a lot. I can tell you from this past year having a battery that had great endurance came in very useful.

And I agree it is different. Notice I said "I never" and "but that is just me" -- . I just never saw an issue with traveling or anything since if I am traveling I have a car charger and if no car is around I have a big battery pack so either way I am good.

 

[the_boon]

And I agree it is different. Notice I said "I never" and "but that is just me" -- . I just never saw an issue with traveling or anything since if I am traveling I have a car charger and if no car is around I have a big battery pack so either way I am good.

More cycles of charge on the battery also equals more wear.
A phone that can "just get by" a full day at launch will obviously not do so well a year later, so it's nice to have a device with 1.5 - 2 days at first so that by the time it's EOL and outdated, it can still easily go a full day.

I don't even like to charge overnight for battery degradation reasons, so I plug mine in a bit before going to bed and when it reaches 100%, I just unplug and put on airplane + power saving mode and wake up to it at 98% - 99%.

 

[Almeuit]

More cycles of charge on the battery also equals more wear.
A phone that can "just get by" a full day at launch will obviously not do so well a year later, so it's nice to have a device with 1.5 - 2 days at first so that by the time it's EOL and outdated, it can still easily go a full day.

I don't even like to charge overnight for battery degradation reasons, so I plug mine in a bit before going to bed and when it reaches 100%, I just unplug and put on airplane + power saving mode and wake up to it at 98% - 99%.

Ah yeah I guess for those who keep their phones so that explains why I don't care. I don't really keep phones over a year usually.

Also I agree I don't charge overnight but the vast majority do. I always charge before bed then I am good overnight / the next day. That way I don't have a cord holding it down whenever I wanna grab it off the nightstand .

 

[Mike Dee]

More cycles of charge on the battery also equals more wear.
A phone that can "just get by" a full day at launch will obviously not do so well a year later, so it's nice to have a device with 1.5 - 2 days at first so that by the time it's EOL and outdated, it can still easily go a full day.

I don't even like to charge overnight for battery degradation reasons, so I plug mine in a bit before going to bed and when it reaches 100%, I just unplug and put on airplane + power saving mode and wake up to it at 98% - 99%.

My Pixel 2XL still got a full day after a year. Without putting it into airplane mode I would have 96 to 97% by morning.
My Pixel 3XL is pretty much the same.

 

[the_boon]

My Pixel 2XL still got a full day after a year. Without putting it into airplane mode I would have 96 to 97% by morning.
My Pixel 3XL is pretty much the same.

I would expect the 3XL to be better than a 2XL with one year of battery wear

 

[Itsa_Me_Mario]

I would expect the 3XL to be better than a 2XL with one year of battery wear

I could be mistaken but I think that he's implying that it has not worn down very much over the past year.

 

[Mike Dee]

I would expect the 3XL to be better than a 2XL with one year of battery wear

Sorry....I meant my 3XL gets pretty much the same results as when I started with the 2XL. It also did not lose much battery life over time.