Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

AppleRobert

macrumors 603
Nov 12, 2012
5,729
1,133
Got some hands on this morning.

First, let me say the blue Pixel looks amazing. The blue really pops but in a mature and slick way; I'm rather impressed by the color. The black one -- the one I'm most interested in -- wasn't available on display, but the silver-white was and that was fine. It's probably my least favorite color. Wish I could've seen the black.

Anyway, the device is quite lovely in the hand. The wedge-ness of it really lends to ergonomics. Screen looked great as far as I can tell. And the camera was indeed fast and looked to take good shots. The hardware is solidly built. Design-wise, perhaps I'm getting used to it with all this exposure, but it really didn't look that atrocious. In some ways, this is the 6P visor all over again -- awkward and shocking in photos, but rather pleasant and more subtle in person than you might think. I regret not being able to test the speaker. I forgot about it.

On the software side, frankly, 7.1 looks and feels boring. But it did fly as reviews have promised. The thing felt lean compared to my S7E and TouchWiz. Also, the pop up shortcuts are really nice and I can see getting a lot of use out of them. I've confirmed that the bars on the right side of the menus don't allow you to do anything; I thought perhaps they'd let you re-order the shortcuts that pop up, but I couldn't get that to happen. Pressing and dragging them did nothing and holding down on them created the shortcut icon. Perhaps someone can correct me on this. I didn't get to test Google Assistant. The swipe up to get to the app drawer is as smooth and intuitive as it looks -- I really like this change. And pulling down on the notification shade from the Pixel imprint reader on the back took some getting used to, but I could see that once learned, it'll be really helpful, especially on the Pixel XL.

About the XL, btw, I got to handle that too and didn't spend as much time with it but came away impressed. It's less comfortable to use than my S7E, but still felt doable. Given its size, I think it puts the iPhone Plus to shame.

One last note, the bezels didn't bother me as much as I thought they would.

Anyway, I'm sure you guys who are getting devices will go more in depth, but those are my initial impressions. Basically, it seems it's everything the reviews are promising.

Seriously, if only it had waterproofing...

I ready don't have anything to add, I came away impressed as well. Good experience btw with my play at Verizon, they had one each of the Pixel and XL set up in both white and black. The reps did not bother me at all while I tried them.

The XL really isn't that much bigger than the Pixel, a little more cumbersome to handle but nothing ridiculous like the Nexus 6. My 6P is not that much larger than the XL and I can handle it OK, better than the iphone Plus.

At least my first impression was good, I did not feel the need to jump on a Pixel having the 6p and the high cost of the Googles but I can see myself going for one down the road.

BB did not get any in, a guy walked into the Verizon store while I was there and he had just come from that store and told me as much. Verizon sent him there first off because they would rather not sell one to him outright.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: epicrayban and MRU

bmac4

Suspended
Feb 14, 2013
4,885
1,877
Atlanta Ga
Not really. They just stood to the side. The display and set up was front and center of the store I went to. You couldn't miss them.

That good! At least they have it in a prime location. I just wonder how much knowledge these reps have about the phone.

I enjoy going phone shopping and having a rep try and tell me about the phone. Just sit there listening to all the things I already know, and then they say something that they have no idea what they are talking about. I have asked before, and they tried to BS their way through it and I called them out on it. It's a lot of fun.
 
  • Like
Reactions: epicrayban

AppleRobert

macrumors 603
Nov 12, 2012
5,729
1,133
That good! At least they have it in a prime location. I just wonder how much knowledge these reps have about the phone.

I enjoy going phone shopping and having a rep try and tell me about the phone. Just sit there listening to all the things I already know, and then they say something that they have no idea what they are talking about. I have asked before, and they tried to BS their way through it and I called them out on it. It's a lot of fun.

That's why they didn't bother me IMHO, I doubt they knew very much about them at all. :)

To tell the truth though, the store I go to always has traffic with not enough reps to handle the load and always a wait to get to one of them as you are put into a queue.

You cannot miss the Pixels, they were on a sidewall with a Google sign displayed and there were also a few Google signs on the front window of the store.
 
Last edited:

epicrayban

macrumors 604
Nov 7, 2014
6,517
5,353
Went back to test the speakers. They sounded almost exactly the same volume as my s7 edge. Except the Pixel was clearer and more crisp. The bass is very weak. Acceptable coming from my s7 edge but again, it's hard to ignore what could've been. They should have at least done what the HTC 10 did with the earpiece acting as a secondary speaker.

It's a shame.

I tested the brightness again also, and have to reiterate that the s7e screen is absolutely vibrant and glowing at max compared to both pixels at max.

And got to see the black one in person. Drab and kind of boring, but nice.

I also revisited the XL again and I gotta say it's quite nice. I think XL owners are going to be particularly happy.



In conclusion: I walked away impressed, but also unimpressed. I know that sounds weird. They are nice devices in their own right, but they're also incredibly safe. And let's be fair, holding them up to an S7 Edge will inevitably make them look and feel boring, as it does holding it up to virtually any smartphone today including the iPhone.

Having said that, I think I will likely preorder...
 
Last edited:

KillaMac

Suspended
May 25, 2013
973
374
Speed Tests are in.Its doing an admirable job competing with the iPhone unlike Samsung


Turned it off. Guy isn't doing apples to apples. Different apps and testing the speed of opening it to compare google chrome to safari instead of downloading google chrome and testing it? He's a joke.
 

MRU

macrumors Penryn
Aug 23, 2005
25,370
8,952
a better place
Turned it off. Guy isn't doing apples to apples. Different apps and testing the speed of opening it to compare google chrome to safari instead of downloading google chrome and testing it? He's a joke.

Google Chrome on iOS though just uses Apple's rendering engine so is same as Safari and therefore still not like for like.
 

Lava Lamp Freak

macrumors 68000
Jun 1, 2006
1,572
624
I traded my S7 for Pixel at Verizon today. So far I like it. Side by side I noticed the Pixel was a little brighter than my S7 with both at max brightness. Regarding pixel density, I couldn't tell a difference when looking at the desktop version of CNN on both, zoomed out. Perhaps this is a RGB stripe AMOLED display?

Edit: After playing around with it at home in different lighting, I can tell that the Pixel is a lower PPI.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Sensamic

bmac4

Suspended
Feb 14, 2013
4,885
1,877
Atlanta Ga
Went back to test the speakers. They sounded almost exactly the same volume as my s7 edge. Except the Pixel was clearer and more crisp. The bass is very weak. Acceptable coming from my s7 edge but again, it's hard to ignore what could've been. They should have at least done what the HTC 10 did with the earpiece acting as a secondary speaker.

It's a shame.

I tested the brightness again also, and have to reiterate that the s7e screen is absolutely vibrant and glowing at max compared to both pixels at max.

And got to see the black one in person. Drab and kind of boring, but nice.

I also revisited the XL again and I gotta say it's quite nice. I think XL owners are going to be particularly happy.



In conclusion: I walked away impressed, but also unimpressed. I know that sounds weird. They are nice devices in their own right, but they're also incredibly safe. And let's be fair, holding them up to an S7 Edge will inevitably make them look and feel boring, as it does holding it up to virtually any smartphone today including the iPhone.

Having said that, I think I will likely preorder...

Thanks for your impressions. I agree the Pixel is rather boring or safe in it's design. I think they did play it safe, but it might just work better to start out that way. See what kind of backing you can get.

Now in terms of other smartphones, while I will say the iPhone did not bring anything new in terms of over all design. The Jet Black and Black are incredible looking in person. I think that was enough to get me excited. I love those two color. The Jet black is just amazing to me. I have always been a fan of the design of the 6 and beyond. Now with Samsung this year, while I think it's super sexy the S7 and the RIP Note 7 in black, I think the other colors like silver and gold are awful looking. The one thing I wish Samsung would do it darken their Samsung logo on the black versions. It looks terrible in silver.

That is just my opinion, but I think we have seen some great designs from Samsung and Apple this year.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: epicrayban

Blaze4G

macrumors 65816
Oct 31, 2015
1,300
1,177
Just left Verizon. The blue looks so good! I must say from the front it really does remind me of an iPhone. I love the design of the back in person though. The black is also really nice, the silver is meh to me. Prefer silver and black than a silver and white face phone.

Speakers were pretty good, not as loud as my 6p but quality is good.

The feel of the phone in the hand is one of the best experience I've had. Didn't think I would like the pixel launcher over nova but I am definitely going to get it on my 6p.

Buttons are slightly wobbly, not anywhere close to being bad but not as good as the iPhone buttons. Screen is much better than the 6p.

Edit: wrote this while at a stoplight. So don't mind the order.
 
Last edited:

Lava Lamp Freak

macrumors 68000
Jun 1, 2006
1,572
624
I can confirm that sRBG mode is available in developer settings.
[doublepost=1476993280][/doublepost]Anyone know how to get weather to show on home screen in Pixel launcher? I've tried everything I can think of. GPS is enabled and weather is showing in Google Now. If I click on weather in Google Now it takes me to the new weather app, which gives me the option to add an icon to the launcher to go directly to weather. But alas, the widget on home screen still shows date.
 
  • Like
Reactions: MRU and epicrayban

AppleRobert

macrumors 603
Nov 12, 2012
5,729
1,133
I can confirm that sRBG mode is available in developer settings.
[doublepost=1476993280][/doublepost]Anyone know how to get weather to show on home screen in Pixel launcher? I've tried everything I can think of. GPS is enabled and weather is showing in Google Now. If I click on weather in Google Now it takes me to the new weather app, which gives me the option to add an icon to the launcher to go directly to weather. But alas, the widget on home screen still shows date.

It was on XDA, Android Central, or Android Authority, one of those as I have been sifting through sites all day and don't remember which honesty. Try XDA first perhaps.
 

skiburro

Suspended
Oct 19, 2016
11
13
I can confirm that sRBG mode is available in developer settings.
[doublepost=1476993280][/doublepost]Anyone know how to get weather to show on home screen in Pixel launcher? I've tried everything I can think of. GPS is enabled and weather is showing in Google Now. If I click on weather in Google Now it takes me to the new weather app, which gives me the option to add an icon to the launcher to go directly to weather. But alas, the widget on home screen still shows date.
Go into app permissions for Pixel launcher and give it location permissions. Then reboot.
[doublepost=1476997235][/doublepost]Man this live earth wallpaper in Pixel launcher blows my mind everytime I turn on my phone today. Just so cool.
 

Lava Lamp Freak

macrumors 68000
Jun 1, 2006
1,572
624
Go into app permissions for Pixel launcher and give it location permissions. Then reboot.
[doublepost=1476997235][/doublepost]Man this live earth wallpaper in Pixel launcher blows my mind everytime I turn on my phone today. Just so cool.

I've tried that and still no weather. :(

I'm also using the live earth wallpaper and love it!
[doublepost=1476998225][/doublepost]It's working now. I went to the Play Store and downloaded an update for Pixel Launcher. After pulling down for update in Google Now weather showed up. Strangely, there was no update listed for Pixel Launcher until I specifically went into the app in store to check for update.
[doublepost=1476998597][/doublepost]
This is my biggest complaint about my S7 when compared to my prior iPhone 6. I feel that there is a slight delay for every press on the screen. But even pressing the home button has a delay, and that wouldn't be connected to the touch latency difference. It feels like there is a 400ms delay for everything I do on my S7 (app launches, etc), and I never perceived any such delay on my iPhone. If Pixel improves on that front then that is awesome.

Just a note: There is no perceived lag/delay on the Pixel. Everything launches immediately upon press. For me that's a huge plus over the S7. I'm having to adjust to the slightly smaller screen. The on screen buttons make the screen feel smaller than 5".
 

Fernandez21

macrumors 601
Jun 16, 2010
4,840
3,183
the poor man's 3d touch looks very cool but I also think 3d touch looks cool

I haven't seen it mentioned, but I wonder how the Pixel differentiates between the long press pop up menu and moving your icons. Does the menu pop up but if you keep your finger down you can then drag the icon around? That would be my guess.
 
  • Like
Reactions: co.ag.2005

Lava Lamp Freak

macrumors 68000
Jun 1, 2006
1,572
624
I haven't seen it mentioned, but I wonder how the Pixel differentiates between the long press pop up menu and moving your icons. Does the menu pop up but if you keep your finger down you can then drag the icon around? That would be my guess.

Yes, the pop up happens every time for apps that support it, but it disappears once you move the icon.
 

AppleRobert

macrumors 603
Nov 12, 2012
5,729
1,133
Go into app permissions for Pixel launcher and give it location permissions. Then reboot.
[doublepost=1476997235][/doublepost]Man this live earth wallpaper in Pixel launcher blows my mind everytime I turn on my phone today. Just so cool.

Hmm, I do not see that wallpaper when I go into the Earth ones. I saw the home screen you posted earlier, I downloaded an apk for Pixel wallpapers but maybe not the same one as you.
 

bmac4

Suspended
Feb 14, 2013
4,885
1,877
Atlanta Ga
Go into app permissions for Pixel launcher and give it location permissions. Then reboot.
[doublepost=1476997235][/doublepost]Man this live earth wallpaper in Pixel launcher blows my mind everytime I turn on my phone today. Just so cool.

Do the live wallpapers work when ever the screen comes on? I never use live wallpapers on my iPhone because you have to 3D Touch them to get them to work. I assuming that's not the case with Pixel right?
 

Fernandez21

macrumors 601
Jun 16, 2010
4,840
3,183
Do the live wallpapers work when ever the screen comes on? I never use live wallpapers on my iPhone because you have to 3D Touch them to get them to work. I assuming that's not the case with Pixel right?

Right, on android the animation starts as soon as you go to the home screen. Live wallpapers suck on iOS, that's why I ever use them on my iPhone.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.