Here’s why I keep buying them
Google’s Pixel phones may not boast top-of-the-line hardware or top the benchmark charts. But they uniquely combine software and hardware to offer an overall enjoyable Android experience. That’s why they appeal to users like me year after year.
1 I Get Stock Android Experience
With the Pixel, you get pure, unadulterated Android – the way Google envisions it. This clean and uncluttered experience is free of the bloatware and clunky skins that other phone manufacturers slap on top. Of course, these proprietary UI layers add quite a few extra features, but they take away the simplicity and elegance of stock Android.
I’m all for custom Android launchers because they help me customize the desktop experience to suit my preferences, but that’s about it. I prefer a clean operating system behind the home screen.
There’s something refreshing about a phone that just works—a smooth, responsive user experience without unnecessary bells and whistles. In addition, the other exclusive features that Google is baking into the Pixel devices are a welcome addition – including the photography one.
2 Google Recorder saves transcription costs
As a journalist, I often find myself needing to transcribe interviews and recordings. And it’s a pain! The Google Recorder app, exclusive to Pixel phones, is an absolute lifesaver in this regard. Not only does it record audio with impressive clarity, it also provides real-time transcriptions on the device with remarkable accuracy.
Before Recorder, I relied on third-party transcription services like Otter.ai, which served me well, but were an expensive subscription. Now I can record a conversation, have it transcribed instantly, and even search the transcript for specific keywords. Some models even offer AI-based summaries. This feature alone has saved me countless hours and dollars over the years.
On older models, the transcription is based on an earlier version of Gemini Nano, the mobile version of Google’s large Gemini language model – which is why the Recorder struggled to transcribe recordings longer than 15 minutes. However, the Pixel 9 series devices use an advanced model called Gemini Nano with multimodality, which allows it to generate transcripts and summaries of much longer recordings.
3 Live Translate is a lifesaver when traveling
Google’s Live Translate has become an indispensable tool for me on the go. Of course, there are several other translation apps out there, but none offer a seamless experience like Live Translate on the Pixel. While Live Translate technically works on many Android phones, it’s optimized with Pixel devices in mind.
Thanks to the Google Tensor chip on Pixel phones, Live Translate works without an internet connection, while most Android phones have to translate via the cloud. Speech recognition and on-device translation are also significantly faster.
The beauty of Live Translate is its seamless integration with the Pixel’s camera and microphone. It works over text, camera, videos, podcasts, phone calls, video calls and audio messages. For example, if you want to read a Spanish text, just point the camera at it. And when you want to have a conversation with someone who speaks a foreign language, just switch your Pixel to interpreter mode and voila!
4 A quick tap is quite handy for digital payments
In a world increasingly dominated by contactless payments, Quick Tap on my Google Pixel has become an essential part of my daily routine.
With Quick Tap, I can tap the back of my Pixel to quickly open the QR code scanner of my digital payment app to scan and pay (QR code-based payments are ubiquitous in India, instead of NFC-based payment systems). This seemingly simple feature allows me to quickly and conveniently complete transactions without having to launch a scanner in my payment application.
Even though I set it up for digital payments, you can use Quick Tap to trigger various actions such as taking a screenshot, turning the flashlight on or off, or playing or pausing media.
5 AI innovations are great party tricks
Recently, Pixel phones have showcased Google’s cutting-edge AI innovations. Over the years, one of the main strengths of Pixel devices has been their exceptional computational photography capabilities. Computational photography uses AI and machine learning to overcome the limitations of smartphone camera hardware and enhance photos.
Pixel phones are packed with smart AI features, from Magic Eraser, which can remove unwanted objects from photos, to Magic Editor, which automatically reframes your photo. Also available with the Pixel 9 series is Pixel Studio for image generation and Pixel Screenshots for summarizing and indexing all the screenshots on the phone.
While some of these AI-powered features may seem like gimmicks at first glance, they often turn out to be surprisingly useful and work quite well once you get the hang of them. They are also great conversation starters and party tricks!
6 Long-term software support
Recent Pixel phones like the Pixel 8 and Pixel 9 series come with seven years of Android and security updates. This kind of software support is matched only by Samsung. Even in the past, Google has maintained a consistent record when it comes to updates. Pixel phones get the latest version of Android on day one, and security patches arrive every month like clockwork.
This means I can keep my phone longer knowing it will continue to receive the latest features and security patches. In addition to software and security updates for long-term reliability, Pixel phones get better over time with Pixel Feature Drops. Google rolls them out every quarter, so I feel like I’m getting more value out of my phone.
Despite occasional flaws, Pixel phones offer a unique combination of software and hardware. Pixel phones tick all the right boxes to differentiate themselves from other Android devices, from a pure Android experience to great camera capabilities and innovative AI features. While other phones boast flashier specs or certain software innovations, Pixel phones offer a seamless and reliable Android experience.