Going hands-on with the Google Pixel 3 XL
As big as it is beautiful
INCREMENTAL IMPROVEMENTS
There’s nothing earth-shattering about the Pixel 3 XL. But when the Pixel 2 XL was so very top of the league, it’s made some incremental improvements and is set to be another smartphone smash hit. What are we looking at here? One tall display, a premium feel matte glass on the back, two front-facing cameras, a tonne of new camera features and Google Assistant tricks, oh and that hulking great big notch. We’ve had a bit of time with the phone at Google’s event to see if it’s up to par with some of the other screen queens we’ve seen this year. Let’s take a look…
ELEGANT DESPITE NOTCH
On first glace, the Google Pixel 3 XL doesn’t look hugely different to the 2 XL. But then there’s that notch. There’s no option to hide it, if you find a notch particularly offensive. Okay, it’s not totally impossile, as there is an option to hide it in the developer options, but no one should have to delve that deep. There are still rather a lot of bezels, particularly toward the bottom end of the phone. That’s because of the dual front-firing speakers, which are 40 per cent more powerful than its predecessor.
A BIRD IN THE HAND
In the hand (well, my particularly small hands), it doesn’t feel too big, like so many plus-sized phones do. Unlike the monstrous iPhone XS Max, the Pixel 3 XL feels comfortable and manageable, even one-handed, which is no small feat for a phone with a glorious 6.3-inch OLED display. With an 18:9 aspect ratio and a QHD (1440 x 2960) resolution, it looks super crisp and clear, unlike some of the displays that blighted its predecessor. The back of the phone is the business. There’s a fingerprint scanner and the power key is positioned to the right side of the phone, where you’d expect it be. Sadly there’s still no face unlock option.
SIGNATURE DESIGN
It’s got that signature dual-contrast glass design with the shiny top and that matte textured feel, which looks and feels ace. The textured back also doubles as a nice grip too, so it feels secure in the hand. With a less-is-more approach, there’s still only one snapper at the back, sitting alongside a flash. There are three colours available: Just Black, Clearly White and possibly our favourite of the lot – Not Pink. It’s an off-white salmon-tinged shade and there’s a lovely bright coral button. The phone feels overall more premium owing to the luscious glass. And for something quite large, it feels slim, elegant and totally manageable.
CH-CH-CHANGES!
The camera software has had a big overhaul, and it’s kind of overwhelming and exciting in equal measure. Let’s start with the quick bit, the hardware. Nothing major here: with the same single 12.2MP lens at the back, but there are now two front facing 8MP cameras which is very handy for group selfies using the wide-angle lens. You can only hope this new feature might make the selfie stick redundant. There are more camera features than you can shake a selfie stick at, but there are only a handful of ones which piqued our interest.
AI AI CAPTAIN!
Top Shot will capture a burst of shots and then select the best of the lot. You can also scroll through all the options/duds too. I tested it out at the Google launch and the AI seemed scarily accurate and selected objectively the best shot. The one where my model’s eyes were actually open and that wasn’t over exposed. It’s worth mentioning here that you do need to make sure that live mode is enabled to be able to capture a burst. Quelle surprise, there’s also the awesome Portrait mode that we loved from the Pixel 2 XL, but now you can now also tweak the bokeh (that’s background blur to non-photography nerds), much like Apple’s latest phone can.
TEMPEST OF TREATS
The Google Lens is another AI treat that the Pixel houses. It can identify a load of words, objects and things. I pointed it at a few tropical-looking plants, and lo and behold, it was able to identify what I now know is an Anthurium. Smart. Lens will also identify an email or a phone number in a business card and will give you options to save them, saving you boring tasks, and that’s the kind of assistance we’re into. The motion autofocus is a welcome feature, which allows you to follow and track your subject. This gives it the edge on the rivals when it comes to video recording.
SMOOTH AND SPEEDY
As you may have guessed, the Google Pixel 3 and XL run Android 9 Pie. I had a quick scroll around some of the menus and did a few Google searches and it felt really smooth and speedy with no noticeable glitches. Inside there’s the Snapdragon 845 with 4GM of RAM which should mean it’s up there with most other smartphone stars and has got enough grunt to see you through a fair bit of heavy lifting.
BIGGER BATTERY, BETTER BATTERY
Battery-wise, the XL holds a 3,430 mAH unit, so in theory that should last all day. The Pixel 3 has a smaller battery – 2,915 mAH. There’s also new notifications that come with Android 9 Pie, so you’ll get warnings to notify you how much time you’ve got until your phone will conk out, and it will even make suggestions for you to charge it when you’re in a certain location. There’s wireless charging on board too. Enter the Pixel Stand, yours for an additional £69.
GOOGLE PIXEL 3 XL INITIAL VERDICT
If you can get over that rather large notch, and lack of facial recognition, the Pixel XL is a bit of a stunner. It’s big, sure, but slim and elegant and really comfortable in the hand. Props to Pixel designer, Ivy Ross. The camera has received a load of software updates and from our short time with it, it’s not going to disappoint. There’s an upgraded screen and much better sound, while that larger battery should make it an absolute power house, too. For more info on the Pixel 3 XL, stay tuned for our full review.
