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I'm a geek and always have at least 2 phones to tinker with. Always have one Android phone and one iPhone. Currently I have the iPhone 7 Plus and the Google Pixel XL. Since the beginning I don't think any Android phone has matched or exceeded the performance of my iPhone. Sure Android has some features over iPhone but the iPhones were just so fluid, fast, and easy.
Each year Android has closed the gap. The Nexus phones and vanilla OS helped but the cameras usually were lacking. Then the Galaxy S phones. They now have an awesome build and camera but still are held back by Touchwiz and they bog down over time and just aren't near as fluid.
Enter Pixel XL. It's priced like an iPhone and Galaxy phone and it's worth every penny IMO. The camera is top of the line and is even Faster than my iphone camera at focusing, launching, and just snapping the pic. The quality of the pictures are also amazing. And finally, the OS is just as fast and fluid as iOS, if not faster. This has not happened until now for my use. Other Nexus devices have been close but this one nails it.
The ONLY negative for me on Android still is the browsing experience. My Pixel XL has zero lag but browsing in Chrome is still not as enjoyable as browsing in Safari on my iPhone. It's not necessarily lag, more like overall less fluidity. There's just something about safari that works so well. This isn't a knock on the pixel. It's a knock on the chrome browser. I can't find any other browsers that work better than Chrome though.
In Summary, if you want an amazing phone get the Pixel / Pixel XL. Yes, it's pricey but it's worth every penny. Yes there gap with other lower priced phones is closing but this is the best IMO.
I think the new Pixel phones are a good choice for someone who desires a premium android phone. They seem to offer solid hardware and build. I do believe the idea of the Nexus line of a good phone for a decent price has come to an end however. I will miss this going forward.
The Pixel/XL lineup is really on par with iPhone pricing. I got my Pixel a few days ago and have no complaints. I think that the chrome browser works a lot better on this phone when compared to the S6 I had.
I'm a geek and always have at least 2 phones to tinker with. Always have one Android phone and one iPhone. Currently I have the iPhone 7 Plus and the Google Pixel XL. Since the beginning I don't think any Android phone has matched or exceeded the performance of my iPhone. Sure Android has some features over iPhone but the iPhones were just so fluid, fast, and easy.
Each year Android has closed the gap. The Nexus phones and vanilla OS helped but the cameras usually were lacking. Then the Galaxy S phones. They now have an awesome build and camera but still are held back by Touchwiz and they bog down over time and just aren't near as fluid.
Enter Pixel XL. It's priced like an iPhone and Galaxy phone and it's worth every penny IMO. The camera is top of the line and is even Faster than my iphone camera at focusing, launching, and just snapping the pic. The quality of the pictures are also amazing. And finally, the OS is just as fast and fluid as iOS, if not faster. This has not happened until now for my use. Other Nexus devices have been close but this one nails it.
The ONLY negative for me on Android still is the browsing experience. My Pixel XL has zero lag but browsing in Chrome is still not as enjoyable as browsing in Safari on my iPhone. It's not necessarily lag, more like overall less fluidity. There's just something about safari that works so well. This isn't a knock on the pixel. It's a knock on the chrome browser. I can't find any other browsers that work better than Chrome though.
In Summary, if you want an amazing phone get the Pixel / Pixel XL. Yes, it's pricey but it's worth every penny. Yes there gap with other lower priced phones is closing but this is the best IMO.
If you're comparing it to the iPhone, all you need to know is that Android allows more tasks to run, and be cached (for quick launch), than iOS does, on similar hardware. So Android will never be as fluid as the iPhone on lower specs. This is why a 4 GB Android comes close to a 2 GB iPhone, but not quite. It is also why some enthusiasts are claiming that the iPhone 7 is the fastest smartphone out there. In the absence of a 8 GB RAM Android phone, why wouldn't it be.
You probably like the Pixel because it has a similar optimization than the iPhone, in that you don't have a lot of extra software on the phone, so there's nothing to take away resources from your experience; no apps to disable, no apps to uninstall, just those few apps that are absolutely necessary.
Knowing Apple, the iPhone 8 will surpass the Pixel. If there aren't more megapixels on the camera, they'll offer better image processing than the iPhone 7, or a processor that handles images better.
Chrome was fluid in the early days, but I would install a different browser. If you're not trying to compress images or videos Firefox is an interesting choice. If you need pages to load quickly on a slow connection, Opera might do the trick. There's also Dolphin, UC Browser, and a bunch of other relatively unknown options.
I'm glad you like the Pixel; but the reasons you've mentioned aren't sustainable for the long haul because it sounds like you desire Android to have the same efficiency as iOS, and that isn't the point of Android. People love Android because they have a chance to get away from the walled garden that is iOS, it is cheaper, total cost of ownership is lower and it is "good enough" for the average person. Unfortunately, Google is working behind the scenes to create a similar walled garden with Android, in order to give the illusion Android is something that it is not, but as long as they allow carriers to hold back updates, and until they micromanage the design and build of these phones that will never happen. Plus, you can't put the genie back in the bottle at this point.
I might do that myself. My wife is interested in the phone, and that makes it affordable. Everyone says that $649 is too high, but I can work with the number you're quoting.
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