Google Pixel 4 XL review

Introduction

The Google Pixel 4 duo wasn't Google's best-kept secret. We saw pictures of the phone weeks before the event, and that we even learned about Face unlock while Google teased the Motion Sense features before its event. The Google Pixel 4 XL represents everything that Google has learned within the first four iterations of the Google Pixel, including a mid-cycle and mid-range Pixel 3a which was alright received.

The Pixel 4 XL improves the camera even further, adding a replacement Astrophotography shooting mode and a viewfinder that will preview the HDR+ effect before you shoot the image. There's also a replacement telephoto camera that, when combined with Super Res Zoom, can capture images from distant.

Google first introduced the fingerprint scanner on its final generation of Nexus devices, the 6P and 5X. With the Pixel 4 and 4 XL, Google is replacing its "Pixel Imprint" with Face unlock. It works similarly to Apple's Face unlock and maybe a whole new concept for Google-branded devices.

GOOGLE PIXEL 4XL SPECIFICATION

Body: Texture-coated aluminum frame with very soft-touch Gorilla Glass 5 backside
Screen: 6.3" P-OLED display, 90Hz variable refresh rate, 1440 x 3040 px (~537ppi), 19:9 ratio, Gorilla Glass 5
Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 855, octa-core CPU (1x2.84 GHz Kryo 485 + 3x2.42 GHz Kryo 485 + 4x1.78 GHz Kryo 485); Adreno 640 GPU
Memory: 6GB RAM; 64/128GB storage, non-expandable
OS: Android 10
Cameras: Main - 12.2 MP, f/1.7 aperture, 1.4 µm pixel size, dual pixel PDAF, OIS, EIS; Telephoto - 16MP, f/2.4 aperture, 1.0 µm pixel size, PDAF, OIS, 2X optical zoom; LED flash; Nigh Sight; Live HDR viewfinder; Super Res Zoom; Video recording - 720p @ 240 fps, 1080p @ 120 fps, 2160p @ 30 fps.
Selfie cam: 8MP f/2.0 aperture + ToF 3D sensor
Battery: 3,700 mAh lithium-polymer battery; 18W USB-Power Delivery charging; 11W Qi wireless charging
Connectivity: Nano SIM + eSIM; Wi-Fi a/b/g/n/ac; Bluetooth 5.0 + LE; NFC; Wi-Fi direct; GPS, Galilleo, GLONASS
Misc: Face unlock; radar-based Motion Sense; dual stereo loudspeakers;

Google also added a singular radar-based motion-sensing technology aptly called 'Motion Sense.' It detects when the user makes wave gestures over the phone, and it can wake the display because the user reaches for it. It also can be wont to switch songs with supported apps.

Then there's the planning, which Google has slowly molded over the years. We're glad to ascertain there is no longer a 'bathtub' notch (as it had been once dubbed) from the Pixel 3 XL. Instead, there is a sizable forehead that houses all the Face unlock and Motion Sense hardware without breaking the display's continuity.

The dual-tone textured window is not any longer a thing, because the softened glass texture now covers the entire backside of the phone. This soft-touch glass is on the 'Clearly White' and 'Oh So Orange' models and is both comfortable and tasteful. The Just Black is that the only model that comes in regular shiny glass.

With Android 10, Google adds more granular control over Notifications and App access to permissions - in today's climate where privacy is consistently thrown within the spotlight, these are welcome features. We also get gesture controls done better, and Google Assistant is more responsive than ever.

The Pixel 4 and 4XL both have an equivalent starting price and base storage because the Pixel 3 and three XL, has Google done enough to justify keeping equivalent retail pricing on the new Pixels? and therefore the more important question: is it worth upgrading if you've got an older Pixel? Let's unbox the phone and find ou

Unboxing

The new Pixel 4 XL comes in minimally labeled packaging. A colorfully designed "P4" adorns the front of the box. Although we received the Pixel 4 within the standard retail packaging, a number of the primary ones to pre-order the phone had them delivered in Google-fied cereal boxes.

After lifting the lid on the box, the phone is presented face down with its plastic wrapper. Under the phone may be a pack of documents, which contained around the SIM tool. At rock bottom of the box may be a USB-C Power Delivery adapter (up to 18W), USB-C cable, and USB-C to USB-A adapter - useful for transferring data from an old device

The Pixel 4 comes with neither earbuds nor a USB-C to three .5mm headphone adapter. We wonder why Google decided to introduce bundled earbuds with the Pixel 3, only to scrap them this year. We'd maybe understand if Google did it so customers would buy the new Pixel Buds, but they are not even coming until next year. Now we're led to believe Google stopped including these Pixel earbuds to save lots of money.