Google pixel 3 battery life hours: Google Pixel 3 review – Battery life and final verdict

26 сентября, 2023

Google Pixel 3 review – Battery life and final verdict

Google Pixel 3 Battery life – Not the strongest part of the phone

One of the biggest reasons to go for a ‘big’ phone is the improved battery life. Having a larger device naturally means there’s more space to stick in a sizeable cell.

In comparison, the 2900 mAh battery tucked inside the Google Pixel 3 seems, well, paltry.

As with specs, just looking at battery size doesn’t tell the whole story, With its 1080p display at 5.5 inches, the Pixel 3 doesn’t use as much juice in regular tasks as some of its bigger rivals and comparing it to something with a similar sized screen, like the Samsung Galaxy S9, you’ll notice the battery sizes are more comparable.

What I will say though is that if you want a phone that’ll comfortably last the day then go with the larger Pixel 3 XL. I still have battery anxiety with the Pixel 3, and while it gets me through the day, it’s not quite as reliable.

Streaming an hour of video on Netflix ate through between 11-13%, with about 30 minutes of Asphalt 8 taking the battery down approximately 10%. These are similar results to an iPhone XS and slightly better than the Pixel 2 I was using for comparison.

Wireless charging makes its Pixel debut here and I think should now be a requirement on high-end phones. It’s so handy just being able to plonk the phone on a pad and top up the charge. Alongside the Pixel 3, Google is selling Pixel Stand, a slick, vertical charging pad that not only charges the Pixel 3 wirelessly at 10w (the iPhone XS, for example, can only wirelessly charge at 7.5w) but enables some clever features too.

You could say docking the Pixel 3 into the Pixel Stand makes it like a Google Home Hub: it can give a briefing in the morning, makes the time more visible and there’s a nifty alarm feature that’ll try and wake you up slowly through bright colours on the screen. At £69/$79 it’s not cheap, but it’s a nice addition that does what it’s meant to do very well.

Why buy the Google Pixel 3?

A year on and the Pixel 3 is still a great phone. However, that’s mostly down to the photos. The poor amount of RAM has reared its head and with the Pixel 3a offering just about the same camera skills in a much cheaper phone it’s a hard sell.

We’re also eagerly awaiting the Pixel 4, which looks set to pack an extra camera on the back, smoother display and plenty of new shooting modes.

Still, if you can find it for a good price we’re happy to continue recommending the Pixel 3 for its camera and low-light shooting alone.

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Verdict

As much as we like the Google Pixel 3, you’re probably better off going for the Pixel 3a right now. Or waiting for a price-drop that’ll likely come when the Pixel 4 is announced.

Score in detail

  • Performance 9

  • Camera 10

  • Design 8

  • Battery Life 7

  • Value 7

  • Software 9

  • Calls & Sound 9

  • Screen Quality 9

Max is the Editor of Trusted Reviews, and has been a mobile phone and technology specialist for over nine years. Max started his career at T3 straight after graduating from Kingston University.
Max ha…

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Google Pixel 3 review: Lab tests

A tall, 5.

5-inch P-OLED

Last year’s Small-sized Phone by Google was out of touch with industry trends with its 16:9 display that was also a tiny 5-incher. For the Pixel 3, on the other hand, Google’s gone with an 18:9 screen, and it’s one without a notch — yay! Then again, the Pixel 3 XL has enough of a notch for both of them.

Anyway, the Pixel 3 has a 5.5-inch FullHD OLED panel with a pixel density of 443ppi. In our testing it reached a peak brightness of 426nits — a fairly typical maximum value for modern OLED displays. However, a lot of other makers allow for a boost in auto mode, which the Pixel 3 doesn’t. The Galaxy S9 can go as high as 660nits when the ambient light sensor says so, and the iPhone XS can go as high at your own request with the slider. So, a good showing by the Pixel, but not class leading.

We measured a minimum brightness of 2.4nits, so it won’t be a burden on the eyes in very dark environments.





























Display test 100% brightness
Black, cd/m2 White, cd/m2 Contrast ratio
Google Pixel 2 0 432 ∞
Google Pixel 3 0 426 ∞
Samsung Galaxy S9 0 370 ∞
Samsung Galaxy S9 (Max Auto) 0 658 ∞
HTC U12+ 0. 2 366 1830
HTC U12+ (Max Auto) 0.214 389 1818
LG G7 ThinQ 0.225 460 2044
LG G7 ThinQ (outdoor) 0.499 920 1844
Xiaomi Mi 8 0 458 ∞
Xiaomi Mi 8 (Max Auto) 0.002 624 312000
Oppo Find X 0 426 ∞
Motorola Moto Z3 0 464 ∞
Motorola Moto Z3 (Max Auto) 0 652 ∞
Sony Xperia XZ3 0 442 ∞
Sony Xperia XZ3 (Max Auto) 0 620 ∞
Apple iPhone XS 0 660 ∞
Razer Phone 2 0. 401 380 948
Razer Phone 2 (Max Auto) 0.403 426 1057
OnePlus 6T 0 453 ∞
OnePlus 6T (Max Auto) 0 455 ∞
Huawei Mate 20 Pro 0.002 508 254000
Huawei Mate 20 Pro (Max Auto) 0.003 657 219000
Huawei Mate 20 0.347 491 1415
Huawei Mate 20 (Max Auto) 0.554 778 1404
Huawei P20 Pro 0 412 ∞
Huawei P20 Pro (Max Auto) 0 582 ∞

In our sunlight legibility test, the Pixel 3 doesn’t disappoint, scoring just short of the industry leaders. At the current state of affairs, you really can’t get a high-end device that performs poorly under direct light.

Sunlight contrast ratio


  • Apple iPhone XS

    5.171


  • Apple iPhone X

    5.013


  • Huawei Mate 20 Pro

    4.965


  • OnePlus 5T

    4.789


  • Samsung Galaxy S8

    4.768


  • Samsung Galaxy S8+

    4.658


  • Samsung Galaxy S9

    4.63


  • Samsung Galaxy S6 edge+

    4.615


  • Samsung Galaxy S9+

    4.537


  • Samsung Galaxy Note9

    4.531


  • Apple iPhone XS Max

    4.516


  • Sony Xperia XZ3

    4.502


  • Motorola Moto Z2 Play

    4.459


  • Oppo R11

    4. 454


  • Samsung Galaxy S7 edge

    4.439


  • OnePlus 3

    4.424


  • Samsung Galaxy S7

    4.376


  • Google Pixel 3

    4.35


  • OnePlus 6

    4.321


  • HTC One A9

    4.274


  • Oppo R15 Pro

    4.251


  • Samsung Galaxy Note7

    4.247


  • Samsung Galaxy A3

    4.241


  • Nokia 8

    4.239


  • Google Pixel 2 XL (pre-update)

    4.234


  • OnePlus 3T

    4.232


  • Google Pixel XL

    4.164


  • ZTE Axon 7

    4.154


  • Samsung Galaxy Note8

    4.148


  • Meizu Pro 7 Plus

    4.147


  • OnePlus 6T

    4. 138


  • Samsung Galaxy S6 edge

    4.124


  • Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)

    4.124


  • vivo V11

    4.113


  • Huawei Mate 10 Pro (normal)

    4.096


  • Samsung Galaxy Note5

    4.09


  • Huawei P20 Pro

    4.087


  • Xiaomi Mi 8

    4.086


  • Meizu 15

    4.082


  • Nokia 6 (2018)

    4.052


  • Google Pixel 2 (pre-update)

    4.023


  • LG V30

    4.022


  • Huawei Nexus 6P

    4.019


  • vivo NEX S

    4.012


  • Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro

    3.998


  • Vivo Xplay5 Elite

    3.983


  • OnePlus X

    3. 983


  • LG G7 ThinQ (outdoor)

    3.978


  • Oppo R7s

    3.964


  • Apple iPhone 7

    3.964


  • Apple iPhone 8 (True Tone)

    3.957


  • Huawei P9 Plus

    3.956


  • Oppo Find X

    3.954


  • Meizu Pro 6 Plus

    3.935


  • Lenovo Moto Z

    3.931


  • Samsung Galaxy A7 (2016)

    3.918


  • OnePlus 5

    3.914


  • Samsung Galaxy C5

    3.911


  • Xiaomi Mi 8 SE

    3.901


  • Samsung Galaxy C7

    3.896


  • Samsung Galaxy A5

    3.895


  • Samsung Galaxy J7 outdoor

    3.879


  • Samsung Galaxy J2 outdoor

    3. 873


  • Motorola Moto G6 Plus

    3.865


  • Samsung Galaxy A8

    3.859


  • Samsung Galaxy A8 (2018)

    3.842


  • Microsoft Lumia 950XL

    3.837


  • Samsung Galaxy A6+ (2018)

    3.834


  • Sony Xperia XZs

    3.818


  • Samsung Galaxy A9 (2016)

    3.817


  • Motorola Moto X (2014)

    3.816


  • Samsung Galaxy J7 (2017)

    3.812


  • Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017)

    3.804


  • Samsung Galaxy J7 (2016) outdoor mode

    3.802


  • LG V20 Max auto

    3.798


  • Xiaomi Redmi Pro

    3.798


  • Sony Xperia XZ

    3.795


  • Samsung Galaxy A5 (2016)

    3. 789


  • Apple iPhone 6s

    3.783


  • Meizu Pro 5

    3.781


  • Microsoft Lumia 650

    3.772


  • Xiaomi Mi 6

    3.767


  • Sony Xperia XZ1

    3.765


  • Samsung Galaxy J7 (2016)

    3.756


  • Nokia 8 Sirocco

    3.745


  • Sony Xperia XZ1 Compact

    3.729


  • Apple iPhone 8 Plus (True Tone)

    3.725


  • Oppo F1 Plus

    3.709


  • Vivo X5Pro

    3.706


  • Samsung Galaxy A3 (2017)

    3.688


  • Huawei P20

    3.683


  • Apple iPhone SE

    3.681


  • Huawei Mate 9

    3.68


  • Samsung Galaxy A7

    3. 679


  • Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact

    3.675


  • Meizu PRO 6

    3.659


  • BlackBerry Priv

    3.645


  • Sony Xperia XA1 Ultra

    3.597


  • Apple iPhone 7 Plus

    3.588


  • Sony Xperia XZ2

    3.58


  • LG G6

    3.556


  • Apple iPhone 6s Plus

    3.53


  • Motorola Moto Z Play

    3.526


  • Samsung Galaxy J3 (2016)

    3.523


  • Samsung Galaxy J3 (2016) outdoor mode

    3.523


  • Acer Jade Primo

    3.521


  • Microsoft Lumia 950

    3.512


  • Oppo R7 Plus

    3.499


  • Nokia 7 plus

    3.479


  • nubia Z11

    3. 466


  • Huawei P10 Plus

    3.456


  • HTC U Ultra

    3.453


  • Motorola Moto G6

    3.448


  • Sony Xperia XA2 Plus

    3.445


  • Sony Xperia XA2 Ultra

    3.445


  • Samsung Galaxy J7

    3.422


  • Motorola Moto G6 Play

    3.419


  • Meizu MX5

    3.416


  • LG V20

    3.402


  • Samsung Galaxy A6 (2018)

    3.397


  • Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 AI Dual Camera

    3.393


  • LG G7 ThinQ

    3.39


  • Huawei P10

    3.379


  • Samsung Galaxy J5 (2016)

    3.378


  • Oppo R9s

    3.352


  • Honor Play

    3. 349


  • Honor 8 Pro

    3.341


  • Oppo F7

    3.333


  • Oppo R7

    3.32


  • Lenovo P2

    3.316


  • Archos Diamond Omega

    3.305


  • Honor 9

    3.289


  • Xiaomi Mi 5s

    3.276


  • Nokia 5

    3.261


  • Nokia 6 (Chinese version)

    3.244


  • Xiaomi Mi 5

    3.24


  • Nokia 6 (Global version)

    3.238


  • Samsung Galaxy J2

    3.235


  • Oppo Realme 2 Pro

    3.235


  • Sony Xperia X Performance

    3.234


  • Xiaomi Mi Note 2

    3.228


  • Motorola Moto X Play

    3.222


  • Oppo F3 Plus

    3. 218


  • BlackBerry KEY2

    3.212


  • Huawei Mate 9 Pro

    3.206


  • Huawei P9

    3.195


  • Xiaomi Mi Mix 2

    3.19


  • ZTE Nubia Z17

    3.159


  • Oppo R11s

    3.153


  • Lenovo Vibe Shot

    3.113


  • HTC U11 Life

    3.108


  • Motorola Moto X Force

    3.105


  • LG Nexus 5X

    3.092


  • HTC U11

    3.089


  • Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite

    3.087


  • HTC U12+

    3.085


  • Xiaomi Redmi S2 (Y2)

    3.077


  • Huawei Mate S

    3.073


  • Oppo F9

    3.069


  • Microsoft Lumia 640 XL

    3. 065


  • Xiaomi Mi Max 3

    3.061


  • Xiaomi Pocophone F1

    3.059


  • Huawei Mate 20

    3.052


  • Huawei Mate 20 Lite

    3.051


  • Apple iPhone 6 Plus

    3.023


  • Asus Zenfone 4 ZE554KL

    3.019


  • Motorola Moto X4

    3.012


  • Sony Xperia XA1

    3.012


  • Oppo Realme 2

    3.006


  • Sony Xperia L1

    2.994


  • Sony Xperia X

    2.989


  • LG Q6

    2.987


  • Huawei P10 Lite

    2.974


  • Samsung Galaxy Note

    2.97


  • Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro

    2.966


  • Huawei P20 Lite

    2. 952


  • Xiaomi Redmi 5

    2.951


  • Huawei Mate 8

    2.949


  • Sony Xperia XA2

    2.938


  • Oppo Realme 1

    2.932


  • Xiaomi Redmi 4

    2.92


  • Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus

    2.913


  • Xiaomi Redmi 3S

    2.913


  • Sony Xperia XA Ultra

    2.906


  • LG G5

    2.905


  • Huawei Honor View 10

    2.896


  • Xiaomi Redmi 3s Prime

    2.893


  • Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus

    2.884


  • Sony Xperia XZ Premium (sRGB)

    2.877


  • Sony Xperia XZ Premium

    2.877


  • Sony Xperia Z5

    2.876


  • Nokia 3

    2. 871


  • Sony Xperia XZ2 Premium

    2.867


  • Microsoft Lumia 550

    2.851


  • Nokia 3.1

    2.837


  • Lenovo Moto M

    2.813


  • Nokia 7.1

    2.804


  • Xiaomi Redmi 3 Pro

    2.803


  • Sony Xperia Z5 compact

    2.784


  • Honor 10 (Vivid)

    2.757


  • Nokia 2

    2.752


  • Meizu MX6

    2.751


  • LG V10

    2.744


  • Huawei Mate 10 (normal)

    2.742


  • Motorola Moto G5S Plus

    2.737


  • Xiaomi Redmi 3

    2.735


  • Huawei Honor 7X

    2.734


  • Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625)

    2. 714


  • Meizu M5

    2.71


  • Xiaomi Mi A2

    2.696


  • Sony Xperia M5

    2.69


  • Xiaomi Mi A1

    2.689


  • Huawei P9 Lite

    2.679


  • Xiaomi Redmi 4 Prime

    2.679


  • vivo V7+

    2.671


  • Vivo V3Max

    2.659


  • Xiaomi Mi Mix

    2.658


  • Huawei Mate 10 Lite

    2.654


  • Oppo F5

    2.653


  • Doogee Mix

    2.642


  • Xiaomi Mi 4i

    2.641


  • Xiaomi Redmi 4a

    2.635


  • Sony Xperia Z3

    2.618


  • Xiaomi Mi 5X (Standard)

    2.616


  • Sony Xperia XA

    2. 609


  • Motorola Moto G4 Plus (max auto)

    2.582


  • Motorola Moto G4 Plus

    2.582


  • Meizu M5s

    2.58


  • Xiaomi Mi 4c

    2.574


  • LeEco Le Max 2

    2.567


  • Microsoft Lumia 640

    2.563


  • Asus Zenfone 3 ZE552KL

    2.563


  • Huawei P Smart

    2.563


  • Xiaomi Mi Max 2

    2.561


  • HTC U11+

    2.556


  • Xiaomi Redmi Note 5A (Y1)

    2.556


  • Motorola Moto G 4G

    2.546


  • Lenovo Moto G4

    2.544


  • Lenovo K6 Note

    2.544


  • Oppo F1

    2.528


  • Sony Xperia Z5 Premium

    2. 525


  • Huawei Honor 7 Lite / Honor 5c

    2.506


  • Sony Xperia M4 Aqua

    2.503


  • BlackBerry Motion

    2.494


  • Oppo F1s

    2.481


  • Motorola Moto G

    2.477


  • Lenovo Vibe K5 Plus

    2.473


  • Huawei G8

    2.471


  • Huawei nova

    2.467


  • Sony Xperia Z

    2.462


  • Lenovo Vibe K5

    2.459


  • Meizu m3 max

    2.447


  • Xiaomi Mi 5X (Auto)

    2.417


  • HTC 10 evo

    2.407


  • Huawei Honor 7

    2.406


  • Vivo V7

    2.404

Out of the box, the Pixel 3’s display color profile is set to Adaptive mode, which yields only marginally purplish whites, overall vivid colors and an average DeltaE of 6. 0, when compared against an sRGB target. If genuine reproduction of the sRGB target space is what you’re after, the Natural mode will deliver that (average DeltaE ot 1.6). Boosted mode was reasonably accurate to a DCI-P3 target posting an average DetlaE of 2.7.

Google Pixel 3 battery life

The Pixel 3 has a 2,915mAh power pack inside, for a 215mAh increase over the Pixel 2’s capacity. The screen has grown up in size marginally as well, so the bump in capacity is just about proportional. Meanwhile, the 5.8-inch Galaxy S9 has a full 3,000mAh battery at its disposal, while the iPhone XS’ L-shaped battery totals 2658mAh. The Xperia XZ3 6-incher has 3,300mAh in the battery capacity field in specs.

In our multi-discipline battery test, this year’s Pixel matched the Pixel 2’s result in looping videos almost to the minute, for a total of 11 hours of video playback. We measured a drop in the web browsing time from 12 full hours on the Pixel 2 to just over 10 hours on the 3. On the other hand, we observed an increase in call times by almost 50% to a little over 23 hours. We tested and re-tested, and then re-tested again, but standby times were consistently not great, which is what brought down the overall rating to 69 hours, 6 short of the Pixel 2’s score.

Our endurance rating denotes how long a single battery charge will last you if you use the Google Pixel 3 for an hour each of telephony, web browsing, and video playback daily. We’ve established this usage pattern so our battery results are comparable across devices in the most common day-to-day tasks. The battery testing procedure is described in detail in case you’re interested in the nitty-gritties. You can also check out our complete battery test table, where you can see how all of the smartphones we’ve tested will compare under your own typical use.

As for charging, the Pixel 3 supports the Power Delivery standard, just like every Pixel before it. It comes with an 18W charger in the box that takes it from flat to full in 1:42h which isn’t half bad. At the 30-minute mark you’d be looking at a 45% charge.

The Pixel Stand is an optional wireless charger for the Pixel 3. It will itself only work with a Power Delivery adapter, and there’s one in the box, just like the Pixel 3’s own one. The Stand offers wireless charging at up to 10W (and as of now is the only wireless charger that can go this high with the Pixel 3), takes about 2:25h for a full charge from zero and the battery indicator shows 24% 30 minutes into it. That is, if you’re not using the Pixel’s Assistant in the meantime.

Loudspeaker

Google fitted stereo speakers on the second generation Pixels and there’s no backtracking from there. The Pixel 3 has a driver above and a driver below the display, and treats the top one as the left channel in the stereo pair if you’re holding the phone in portrait orientation, but changes accordingly in landscape. The bottom one is generally more powerful and boomier — that’s where most of the low register comes out of.

We ran the Pixel 3 though our usual trio of tests and the numbers put it in the Excellent bracket. The Galaxy S9 and the iPhone XS are a notch below in Very Good, but the Xperia XZ3 is Excellent as well.


Speakerphone test Voice, dB Pink noise/ Music, dB Ringing phone, dB Overall score
Huawei Honor View 10 68.6 69.9 77.8 Good
Honor Play 68.3 73.8 75.8 Good
BlackBerry KEY2 66.5 72.0 79.8 Good
Google Pixel 74.0 68.3 78.0 Very Good
Xiaomi Mi 8 68.1 72.3 82.2 Very Good
Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact 66.7 73.3 83.3 Very Good
Samsung Galaxy S9 68. 5 74.3 81.1 Very Good
OnePlus 6T 67.2 72.5 84.5 Very Good
Apple iPhone XS 71.5 75.7 78.9 Very Good
Huawei Mate 20 74.3 70.2 82.6 Very Good
Oppo Find X 70.7 75.2 81.2 Very Good
Huawei Mate 20 Pro 70.3 73.4 83.8 Very Good
Google Pixel 2 70.0 77.0 81.1 Excellent
Sony Xperia XZ3 71.0 75.4 82.9 Excellent
Google Pixel 3 77.5 71.7 81.1 Excellent
Xiaomi Pocophone F1 72. 8 74.7 86.6 Excellent
Motorola Moto Z3 80.1 73.2 85.0 Excellent

Audio quality

The Google Pixel 3 came out rather disappointing in our audio quality test. It’s not that the phone does badly — it’s merely okay, but we certainly expected better from a flagship.

Signal-to-noise ratio is mediocre both with an active external amplifier and with headphones and the stereo crosstalk is not great in the first scenario either. At least headphones don’t worsen the stereo quality much further so it’s doing much better comparatively in the second part.

Now add the only average loudness and you get a performance that would be considered decent for a mid-ranger, but comes significantly short of expectations when you consider the Pixel 3 price tag.











Test Frequency
response		 Noise
level		 Dynamic
range		 THD IMD
+ Noise		 Stereo
crosstalk
Google Pixel 3 +0. 02,
-0.12		 -71.7 83.2 0.0031 0.032 -70.1
Google Pixel 3
(headphones)		 +0.15,
-0.15		 -68.4 80.2 0.0066 0.193 -61.1
OnePlus
6T		 +0.03,
-0.05		 -93.4 93.3 0.0010 0.0070 -93.8
OnePlus 6T
(headphones)		 +0.17,
-0.15		 -93.2 93.1 0.0056 0.245 -61.1
Sony Xperia
XZ3		 +0.01,
-0.02		 -91.2 93.2 0.0024 0.0080 -88.7
Sony Xperia XZ3
(headphones)		 +0.38,
-0.21		 -93.1 92.5 0.0049 0.233 -61.7
Oppo Find
X		 +0. 03,
-0.07		 -93.4 93.9 0.0012 0.0063 -89.3
Oppo Find X
(headphones)		 +0.01,
-0.58		 -92.2 93.5 0.0088 0.330 -55.7
HTC
U12+		 +0.02,
-0.15		 -94.3 94.3 0.0021 0.0069 -94.3
HTC U12+
(headphones)		 +0.18,
-0.13		 -93.7 93.6 0.0024 0.104 -52.7

Google Pixel 3 frequency response

You can learn more about the tested parameters and the whole testing
process here.

running in place / Smartphones

⇡#

Hardware and performance

The Google Pixel series traditionally does without surprises in terms of hardware platform and memory — as always, it uses Qualcomm’s flagship system, which was current at the time the smartphone was released (in in this case, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 845). This is extremely logical, but given the debut of fresh solutions from Apple and Huawei around the same time, we can talk about a slight lag behind one of the main competitors. However, Google didn’t really have a choice in terms of increasing capacity, so it doesn’t turn out to be a disadvantage to call the language.

Moreover, Google Pixel 3 XL users, of course, cannot have any problems with smartphone performance — even more than a year after the premiere, Snapdragon 845 is able to provide an absolutely smooth operation of the operating system, moreover, not overloaded with any shells. There are no problems with gaming performance either — any resource-intensive application runs with maximum graphics settings, and the situation is unlikely to change in the coming year. Least.

But Google frankly regretted the RAM — only 4 GB LPDDR4X. For a smartphone with a 2K screen, this can be said back to back. At the moment, I have not noticed any problems with freezes and lack of memory, but given the fact that applications are constantly increasing their requirements, and 6-8 GB of RAM are already, in fact, a mandatory program for any elite-level smartphone, the stock is here absolutely not.

The cooling of the Google Pixel 3 XL is not bad, but nothing more. The benchmark CPU Throttling Test recorded a decrease in frequency to 77% of the maximum, this is a normal indicator, but the average performance was 158 GIPS. For comparison: OnePlus 6T has 176 GIPS, while Vivo NEX Dual Display has 182 GIPS.

In the Ludashi AI Mark benchmark, which measures the ability of a smartphone to perform neural network computing, the Pixel 3 XL showed a typical level for a gadget equipped with a Snapdragon 845.

There are two versions of the Google Pixel 3 XL, differing in the amount of built-in storage — 64 and 128 GB. Alas, again I have to admit that Google is somewhat backward from modern realities. This is frankly not enough for a quiet work with a smartphone for several years — only the already mentioned unlimited storage in Google Drive saves. But what if you don’t want to trust your personal files to the cloud? Nothing — there is still no choice, there is no expansion slot with a memory card.

⇡#

Communications and wireless communications

Google is reacting to the actions of Apple — the company whose smartphones it obviously focuses on primarily — with a year’s delay. At a time when even the iPhone has two SIM slots, or at least a variant with one SIM card and one e-SIM, the Pixel 3 XL can only insert one nano-SIM — an approach that is blatantly unfashionable.

Google Pixel 3 XL nano-SIM slot

The Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 communication module now supports LTE Cat. 16 with download speeds up to 1024 Mbps. Not bad, but most competitors already have more to offer, albeit only in theory. The problem, however, is not this, but the stability of the connection in our area. Despite the declared list of supported bands, which included everything necessary for life in Russia, my connection regularly fell off, and completely — it’s not just about LTE, but about the mobile network as a whole. I regularly could not make or receive a call in places where the owners of other smartphones had a connection. I can’t guarantee that these are not problems of a particular instance of the Pixel 3 XL and its antennas, but it would also be wrong to remain silent about this story.

All key wireless modules are in place: dual-band Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 5.0 (with support for the necessary extensions for high-quality sound transmission), full-fledged NFC (of course, there is support for Google Pay). The navigation module works with GPS (A-GPS), GLONASS and Galileo. The smartphone performs its duties well in this regard.

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Camera

Another unexpectedly traditionalist move by the Google Pixel 3 XL is the single rear camera in the age of multi-camera victories. Samsung and Huawei have already started a competition to see who has more cameras built into their smartphones — we are not talking about double, but about triple and sometimes quadruple modules. And Nokia is preparing to blow up the market with a device with five (!) Cameras. Against this backdrop, the Pixel 3 Xl, with its lone lens, looks like a carriage on a busy highway from behind.

Moreover, the module has not changed in any way compared to what we saw in Pixel 2: a 12.2-megapixel 1 / 2.6 «sensor with a lens with an aperture of ƒ / 1.8. The optical stabilizer is in place, and here is the autofocus system updated — here again the phase module, working on the Dual Pixel system (each pixel consists of a photocell and a phase sensor), only now it works without the help of a contrast method and is able to follow the object in the frame.The camera also shoots continuously when it is turned on (for the first time we saw this in the “mirrorless” systems of the Nikon 1 system that died last year), which allows you to take the so-called live photos, where the movement is recorded both half a second after you took the picture by “pressing the shutter release”, and for half second to .

Left – snapshot in standard mode, right – in night mode; pay attention to the disastrous white balance in the first plot

By releasing a smartphone with a lone rear camera, Google seems to be declaring the primacy of software processing (an improved Pixel Visual Core chip in place) compared to photographic hardware in smartphones. The proprietary HDR+ system works flawlessly again, “stretching” pictures in almost any situation – both in bright contrasting light, helping to get rid of too dark areas in shadows and overexposure, and in the dark, keeping the black and white balance in the same way. The Pixel 3 adds a new «Night Scene» mode, in which the smartphone takes several shots at different exposures at once, then combines them into one picture with excellent detail and good dynamic range. In my opinion, the pictures in this mode are still quite noisy, but there is no strong lag behind the Huawei P20 Pro or, for example, the iPhone Xs Max. With Apple, the new Pixel, subject to the activation of this function, works about the same level. I note that in the standard mode, the smartphone is very unstable with the white balance under artificial lighting — when the night shooting mode is activated, this problem, if not disappears, is greatly reduced.

All gradations of Google Pixel 3 XL software zoom — left to right, top to bottom

Another new feature is the «smart» zoom (Super Res Zoom). Instead of adding a second camera with a lens of a different focal length, the Pixel creators decided to zoom using software methods, combined with the work of an optical stabilizer. When the zoom is activated, the camera takes a frame with a minimum matrix shift, thereby increasing the original resolution of the image, and only then does the crop. In theory, this leads to a minimal loss of sharpness, but in fact it can be seen with the naked eye.

More examples of standard angle shots with 5x Intelligent Zoom

If 2x zoom can still be used and then posted on social networks, then anything higher (up to 5x) is a classic example of digital zoom with serious loss of detail. No miracles.

There is no manual control mode, as usual, but if you wish, you can turn off HDR + or record uncompressed (RAW) images along with JPEG for further processing. The application is quite convenient, but poor in settings — again, there is an increased attention to Apple’s approach.

On the left is a portrait shot without software blur, on the right is an example of blur

The portrait mode has not changed compared to what it was in Pixel 2 — the smartphone blurs the background very well. True, protruding hair becomes victims of the work of artificial intelligence, sometimes it can hurt the earlobe. But in general, the effect is very good. By the way, when the portrait mode is activated, the focal length slightly changes — the gadget activates its smart software zoom — but at a minimum, so this affects the quality of shooting slightly.

Google Pixel again demonstrates a very high-quality and honest work with both color and sharpness — the picture is both detailed and bright, but at the same time there are no questions about its naturalness. I already spoke about some problems with white balance above, but this can be corrected manually, and they do not always appear. In general, it is quite possible to agree with the verdict of DxO Mark, who highly appreciated the quality of the Pixel 3’s shooting — this is not the best smartphone in this parameter, but one of the best.

Snapshot Gallery

The Google Pixel 3 XL can shoot 4K video at 30 fps and Full HD video at a maximum of 60 fps. It is possible to record footage in 4x slow motion at 1080p and 8x slow motion at 720p.

Examples of self-portraits with three available focal lengths and using artificial background blur ), and this allows you to take selfies with different focal lengths. This is primarily useful for group self-portraits. Software background blur is available — both with one person in the frame, and with several. I did not notice a difference in the quality of blur with the main camera. I will add that autofocus works with the main (less wide-angle) camera, and, like on the iPhone, there is an unswitchable “beautifier” that very noticeably smoothes the skin.

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Autonomous work

Google is not actively working on the autonomy of «pixels» — the company is clearly satisfied with the current situation, and it is not going to set longevity records on fresh smartphones. The Pixel 3 XL uses a 13.03 Wh (3430 mAh, 3.8 V) battery, which is even smaller than the six-inch Pixel 2 XL, by the way. As a result, with my usual rhythm of using a smartphone, the charge with a creak was enough for a working day, taking into account the road. At maximum load, the battery will go away in 6-7 hours — use external batteries.

In our traditional HD video playback test, at maximum brightness, with wireless modules turned on, the Google Pixel 3 XL lasted even less than the iPhone Xs Max — 11 hours. For a smartphone with an OLED display, this is very small.

The smartphone supports fast charging when using the supplied 18-watt adapter — it takes about two hours to fully recharge the charge.

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Conclusion

Users and journalists liked the Pixel 2 so much at the time that Google seems to be afraid of “breaking what already works” and approached the development of its next smartphone too carefully. At the same time neat and awkward. For example, Google grabbed some fashion trends, for example, by inserting a cutout into the XL version — but did it already when many companies moved away from this vicious fashion. Pixel 3 XL with its huge eyebrow looks now almost an anachronism. But other important trends, like a smart face recognition system or an on-screen fingerprint sensor, the company ignored.

Also, only one slot for a SIM card has been preserved, a small amount of memory (both operational and non-volatile) when it cannot be expanded using a memory card. And a single camera, even with smart software zoom and the magical HDR + system, can no longer keep up with the competitors’ double-triple modules — even if it is not so far behind.

Yes, the Google Pixel 3 XL is still a very fast smartphone, the first to receive all Android updates and has a few proprietary tricks under its bosom (the most interesting of which is not available in Russia), but this is definitely not the standard Android smartphone. After the success with the Pixel 2, Google has stalled a bit.

Pros:

  • «clean» Android 9.0 Pie with the fastest updates + a few special features;
  • fine tuned OLED display;
  • excellent shooting quality both on the main and on the front camera;
  • superior performance;
  • non-slip housing;
  • moisture and dust protection IP68.

Flaws:

  • huge monobrow;
  • one SIM card;
  • no memory card slot;
  • no mini-jack;
  • problems with mobile networks;
  • mediocre autonomy;
  • is not officially sold in Russia.

how Google’s new smartphones meet competitors

3DNews Technologies and IT market. News mobile phones, smartphones, cell phones… Pixel 3 and 3 XL: how they meet the competition…

The most interesting in reviews


09.10.2018 [20:10],

Dmitry Myakin

As part of the official event called Made by Google 2018, held on October 9 in New York, Google announced a new family of flagship smartphones Pixel 3. Like the previous one, the third generation includes two models — base and XL.

Display

Both modifications received OLED matrices. As expected, the Pixel 3 XL has become the owner of the largest display diagonal. It is equipped with a 6.3-inch panel with an aspect ratio of 18.5:9, notch at the top, and a resolution of 2960 × 1440 pixels.

Pixel 3 XL display has a notch and a larger diagonal and resolution (photo by Android Central)

Pixel 3 has a 5. 5-inch screen with 18:9 aspect ratio and a resolution of 2160 × 1080 pixels. In addition to the size, the display of the basic version differs from the screen of the XL modification by the absence of a cutout.

The rest of the specifications of the Pixel 3 and 3 XL sensors are the same. They include support for HDR and Always On technologies, as well as various color modes. The manufacturer especially highlights the function of enhancing color saturation with an expansion of the sRGB color gamut by 10%. It is also noted that the Always On screen shows not only the time, date and missed events, but also the name of the song being played. The displays are protected by Gorilla Glass 5, the same glass panel is used on the back of the case.

The 5.5-inch screen of the Pixel 3, despite its more modest specifications, is also made on an OLED matrix (photo by Android Central) The large Pixel 3 XL has a slightly smaller battery (3430 mAh) than its predecessor, while the power supply in the younger version of the Pixel 3, on the contrary, turned out to be slightly larger (2915 mAh).

Important innovations are observed in the auxiliary functions of the smartphone power system. Firstly, the power of the «fast» wired charger has increased — from 10.5 to 18 watts. Google promises that with it, a 15-minute charge will give the phones approximately 7 hours of battery life.

Second, there is Qi wireless charging. The proprietary Pixel Stand delivers 10W of power, which is comparable to the USB Type-C power adapter that came with the Pixel 2. with the Pixel 2 series. We are talking about a single 12.2-megapixel 1 / 2.55 ” module with an f / 1.8 wide-angle lens. The camera contains 1.4-micron pixels and is equipped with an optical stabilization system, as well as Dual Pixel PDAF autofocus.

The main changes are to be found in the PV module software, which has not been without adding artificial intelligence capabilities to the image processing algorithms.

The camera has an advanced HDR+ dynamic range mode and a Top Shot option. The latter uses machine learning technologies to track the quality of images: so that all foreground objects are clear, faces with smiles and open eyes. To achieve maximum compliance with the listed requirements, the camera takes a series of shots, from which it chooses the best one.

Due to the lack of a second module that could provide optical zoom, the zoom in the Pixel 3 and 3 XL cameras is implemented through software processing of the frame. Super Res Zoom also uses artificial intelligence to minimize the effects of digital zoom.

Smartphones record video in 4K at only 30 frames per second. 60 and 120 fps are only available at 1080p, while 240 fps is available at 720p.

Much more significant changes have taken place with the front camera. Although it remained 8-megapixel, it now consists of two modules. The first is equipped with a lens with f/1.8 aperture and a focal length of 28 mm, the second belongs to the ultra-wide-angle class (19 mm) and has a smaller aperture (f/2.2). Due to the above features, the “front camera” Pixel 3 and 3 XL can change the viewing angle from 75 ° to 97 °.

Sound

Both representatives of the Google Pixel 3 series are equipped with stereo speakers located on the front panel. One is in the upper frame (in the XL model in the “bangs”), the other is located in the lower indent, sometimes popularly called the “chin”.

There is no 3.5 mm jack for wired headphones, instead the standard headset uses a USB Type-C port. The package includes a USB-C to mini-jack adapter.

Google Pixel 3 XL

Hardware and software platforms

In terms of hardware, the third generation of Pixel smartphones does not make a sensation. The processor here is typical for all Android flagships in 2018 — Qualcomm Snapdragon 845. Its only feature is the clock frequency reduced to 2.5 GHz. Other characteristics of the chipset, including the integrated graphics accelerator Adreno 630, are standard.

The amount of RAM in all versions of Google Pixel 3 is 4 GB, only the capacity of the built-in flash drive differs. It is 64 or 128 GB, depending on the price. The preinstalled operating system is “clean” Android 9.0 Pie.

Google Pixel 3

Other features

The fingerprint scanner went to Pixel 3 smartphones classic, in the form of a contact pad on the rear panel, and in this regard, the new items are no different from their predecessors.

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