If you want a smartphone that’s as clean as they come and brilliantly-effective at tackling the everyday problems it sets out to solve, the Pixel 2 is a clear-cut winner.
Google’s first generation of Pixel devices made a big splash last year. However, despite the misfortune that befell Samsung’s Galaxy Note 7 and a massive advertising campaign, limited supply held the Pixel back from taking over the world. The Pixel’s moment of dazzling excitement quickly gave way to The Next Big Android Phone. A big splash is still just a splash after all. It’s act of unveiling brilliant in one moment, but gone the next.
Now, a year later, Google have refreshed their first-party Android sub-brand by releasing two devices that - somehow - manage to be just as remarkable as their predecessors. What’s more, the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL are arriving with not just a reputation to uphold but a clearer sense of purpose. They boldly go where the initial Pixel feared to tread.
From the iClones of the mid-tier to Andy Rubin’s Essential phone, plenty have tried to pitch themselves as ‘the Apple of Android’. However, with the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL, it’s clear that - funnily enough - nobody has a greater claim to that that title than Google themselves. Even if we’re treating last year’s Pixel and Pixel XL as a baseline, this year’s devices still manage to emerge exceptional even amidst the towering and rejuvenated competition.
The Google Pixel 2 boasts a 5-inch AMOLED touch screen display (1080 x 1920) that’s coated in Gorilla Glass 5. The Pixel 2 XL is a bit bigger by comparison at 6-inches. It also features a POLED display (1440 x 2880) that uses a 18:9 aspect ratio.
Both phones come IP67 certified and powered by a Snapdragon 835 processor, Android 8.0 Oreo and 4GB of RAM. Both are available in 64GB or 128GB storage variants. They also share the same camera setup: with a 12.2-megapixel (f/1.8 with OIS, phase detection, dual-LED flash and laser autofocus) shooter on the back with and an 8-megapixel (f/2.4) camera on the front.
The Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL both feature a fingerprint sensor on the back and charge via a USB-C port at the bottom of the device. The former features a 2700 mAh battery while the latter features a 3520 mAh battery. Both phones feature Always-On Displays and support both Bluetooth 5.0 and NFC connectivity.
There are countless trends competing for attention in the gaming notebook and laptop space but not all of them are either useful or benefit the core gaming experience.
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