I’ll come out and say it proper now: The Google Pixel 8 Professional is an excellent smartphone. Really, I’ll do you one higher. It’s simply the perfect Pixel telephone Google has ever launched. Hell — the Pixel 8 Professional simply could also be my favourite Android telephone of 2023.
I gave the Pixel 8 Professional quite a lot of reward in my evaluation of the telephone this previous October. I went as far as to name it the “greatest Pixel I’ve ever used.” A daring declare, for positive. However is all of that also true after utilizing the Pixel 8 Professional for properly over a month? Is it nonetheless the Pixel telephone I’ve been ready for, or has my traditional dangerous luck with Pixel bugs tarnished my expertise?
Every part I nonetheless love concerning the Pixel 8 Professional
The Pixel 8 Professional’s design actually impressed me in my evaluation, and that hasn’t modified one bit after weeks of day by day use. A number of this boils all the way down to the extra rounded design this yr, which was 100% the best name on Google’s half. Even with all of the design enhancements Apple made to the iPhone 15 Professional Max this yr, I discover myself reaching for the Pixel 8 Professional over it, partly due to simply how good Google’s in-hand really feel is. And, sure, that Bay blue colour continues to be the most effective I’ve seen on a smartphone this yr.
The one adverse I’ve to say at this level is that the chrome steel body surrounding the digital camera sensors has already picked up quite a lot of small scratches — one thing I additionally observed on the Pixel 7 Professional final yr. They’re solely seen in sure lighting, and they seem like purely beauty, however I definitely wouldn’t complain if Google ditched chrome steel subsequent yr for one thing like titanium as a substitute.
I additionally want to provide main props to the Pixel 8 Professional’s digital camera setup. Google’s Pixel telephones are well-known for having glorious cameras, however that hasn’t stopped the Pixel 8 Professional from being any much less spectacular right here. The above gallery exhibits only a handful of a few of my favourite photographs I’ve gotten over the month.
Google Pixel 8 Professional video take a look at (4K 60fps)
And it’s not simply nonetheless photographs the place the Pixel 8 Professional impresses. Though I don’t normally take quite a lot of video on my smartphone, I’ve been making an effort to take action on the Pixel 8 Professional. And every time I do, I’m thrilled with the outcomes I get. From the buttery clean stabilization, attractive colours, and crisp particulars, the Pixel 8 Professional takes exceptional-looking video. Have a look for your self with the clip above.
I’ve taken the Pixel 8 Professional to dimly-lit live performance halls, pumpkin patches, nature trails — you title it. Regardless of the setting and it doesn’t matter what I wish to take an image of, the Pixel 8 Professional produces unbelievable outcomes. It’s been so good, actually, that I made a decision to maneuver my cloud picture library from Apple Photographs to Google Photographs so I can maintain utilizing the Pixel 8 Professional as my major digital camera of alternative. It truly is that good.
And it doesn’t cease with the design and cameras. The 6.7-inch OLED show on the Pixel 8 Professional has been completely pretty. Its colours are vibrant and punchy, the 120Hz refresh fee is as clean as will be, and the every-so-slightly curved edges really feel implausible while you’re swiping and scrolling on it. Moreover, Android 14 on the Pixel 8 Professional has been a lot enjoyable to make use of. The lock display screen customization instruments are nice, all the UI is fast and snappy, and even stranger additions just like the AI wallpaper generator are good touches.
I may go on and on. The in-screen fingerprint sensor is dependable, having Face Unlock work for logging into purposes has been superb, the buttons really feel glorious and clicky, and the audio system sound nice — you get the purpose.
Google obtained so a lot proper with the Pixel 8 Professional, and every part that I cherished after I first took the telephone out of the field has continued to impress a month later.
Bugs? What bugs?
I additionally had quite a lot of good issues to say concerning the Google Pixel 7 Professional final yr, however my expertise with that telephone was finally ruined by software program bugs and efficiency points. The Pixel 8 Professional was clean crusing after utilizing it for a few week earlier than I printed my evaluation — however how is it holding up after a really busy month?
To my absolute shock, it’s been implausible. I haven’t encountered any crashing apps, no bizarre UI results with YouTube, and no weird formatting that breaks my Fast Settings — all issues that plagued my Pixel 7 Professional final yr. I had one occasion the place the always-on show randomly stopped working, however disabling and re-enabling it within the Settings app instantly fastened it, and it’s been working flawlessly since.
I’ve additionally been repeatedly impressed by Google’s Tensor G3 chip. The earlier two generations of Tensor chips within the Pixel 7 and Pixel 6 handsets have been … not good. They have been infamous for overheating, had very poor energy effectivity, and have been usually simply not dependable for day by day use.
Though the Tensor G3 chip isn’t probably the most highly effective cellular chipset out there in the present day, it’s been an incredible improve over Google’s earlier makes an attempt. My Pixel 8 Professional has been very quick and responsive, whether or not I’m enjoying back-to-back matches of Marvel Snap or multitasking throughout a handful of various apps. And even with heavier use, the telephone stays a lot cooler than earlier Pixels. I’ve been in a position to get it to heat up just a few instances throughout significantly lengthy gaming periods, however I’d anticipate that from any fashionable smartphone.
Is that this to say the Pixel 8 Professional received’t all of the sudden develop new, sudden points over the approaching weeks and months forward? Completely not. Pixels are infamous for getting worse over time, and I’ll be protecting a detailed eye on the Pixel 8 Professional to see if that occurs. Nevertheless it’s been just about flawless to this point, and that’s not one thing I can say concerning the earlier two generations of Google’s telephones.
The Pixel 8 Professional’s two ongoing points
For probably the most half, the Google Pixel 8 Professional’s first month has been off to an exceptional begin. However there are two points with the telephone that proceed to be a nuisance.
The primary is battery life. I complained about this in my Pixel 8 Professional evaluation, and it continues to be an issue in the present day. I wouldn’t say the Pixel 8 Professional’s battery life is outright “dangerous” or “horrible,” nevertheless it’s additionally a noticeable step down in comparison with different Android telephones out there.
As I discovered in my evaluation, I’m nonetheless getting a full day with the Google Pixel 8 Professional with out having to fret about charging it earlier than mattress. I’ve had some days the place I may stretch it to a bit beneath a day and a half, nevertheless it by no means goes past that. Plus, doing so solely occurred after I used the Pixel 8 Professional sparingly all through the day. Different telephones from earlier this yr — just like the Motorola Edge Plus and OnePlus 11 — simply ship two days of use per cost with out having to carefully monitor how a lot you utilize them. The Pixel 8 Professional has a advantageous battery, nevertheless it very clearly isn’t on the identical stage as a few of its opponents.
The opposite concern is charging. The Pixel 8 Professional is sluggish on the subject of charging. Going from zero to 100% all the time takes round an hour and a half, and whereas that’s advantageous for those who simply cost the telephone in a single day whilst you sleep, it’s not preferrred if you might want to cost as shortly as doable in a brief period of time. That is one other space the place firms like Motorola and OnePlus have taken a big lead over Google, and it stays disappointing that the Pixel 8 Professional is lagging right here.
That is the Google telephone I’ve been ready for
My month with the Pixel 8 Professional to this point has been an evening and day distinction in comparison with my time with the Pixel 7 Professional. Final yr’s Google flagship was buggy, inconsistent, and simply not a telephone I wished to maintain utilizing as soon as my evaluation was printed. With the Pixel 8 Professional, I’m dreading the day when I’ve to take my SIM out of it and pop it into a brand new telephone I have to evaluation.
Am I nonetheless anxious concerning the telephone all of the sudden deteriorating into an unusable mess? A little bit bit. Google’s Pixel telephones haven’t been sort to me over the past couple of years, and I’m weary to overlook about that any time quickly. However the Pixel 8 Professional is so exceptionally good that that anxiousness is rising much less and fewer with every day.
The Google Pixel 8 Professional nonetheless has lots to show over the approaching yr, but when issues maintain going the way in which they’ve over the previous month, I’ve a sense this would be the Android telephone that is still in my pocket all through a lot of 2024.
Editors’ Suggestions
