Brilliance behind the AI [Video]

Setting out early can be a risky move, but Google’s out-of-sync launch thrusts the Pixel 9 Pro XL into the spotlight ahead of Apple. Here’s what it’s like to live with.

Having switched directly from the Pixel 9 Pro to the 9 Pro XL, this transition has been interesting. For all intents and purposes, if you have already seen the smaller Pro, then the XL offers a bigger, bolder experience with some added benefits of its own.

On that note, go check out Abner’s full deep dive into the Pixel 9 Pro with a dedicated section on the full AI suite. We’re going further into the hardware here, as the functions are identical across the Pro tier. It echoes many of my own sentiments while providing further information on what the smaller phone offers.

Design and finish

Google barely touched on the hardware changes during the launch event, and to me that feels a little shortsighted because the shiny new suit is unexpected breath of fresh air. Maybe deep down I wanted to hate the boxy shape as a lover to the Pixel 8 Pro’s soft curves. Instead, I’m – hyperbole aside – blown away at how much I like the updated size, shape, and in the hand feel.

It’s is toned, firm, and beautifully flat on all sides. I’ll pour one out for the camera bar, but at least it’s lives on in the floating backplate nodule. Fat trimmed and corners tucked. It’s still instantly “Pixel” but with consideration to the future overall aesthetic.

The display is almost as good as the Galaxy S24 Ultra, but it falls short because of the Samsung phone’s anti-glare coating. This beautiful, color-accurate screen elevates the content you interact with and consume upon it.

I’ve made no secret of my love for uniform bezels. They’re just the icing on the cake. The only downside is that you have to deal with a larger and lower display notch. Like any notches, this blends into the background and doesn’t diminish the quality of the panel.

Teardowns have shown that the haptic motors have moved to a new position under the display, and I’ll think that I’m going to be bold and say that I actually think that the haptics have finally surpassed the iPhone for the first time. I am in love with every vibration-based interaction.

Unlocks are faster than ever, thanks to the ultrasonic scanner. Through force of habit or just for peace of mind, I have registered my thumb a couple of times on each hand. It has helped a ton when using a screen protector, and I suggest doing this if you want added screen protection.

The Pixel 9 Pro XL speakers offer some nice oomph, so if you want to watch a video or listen to a podcast without a speaker or earbuds, you’re good to go.

Tensor G4

People who are truly invested in the tech space most often complain about the Tensor chipsets’ lack of inherent power. I agree – to a point. At over $1,000, we shouldn’t hide the fact that Google has lagged behind and isn’t putting out smartphones that are comparably powered to the competition.

Here’s the crutch, though: I don’t mind, and most people will simply never notice or be aware that the latest Galaxy phone has far more powerful processor.

Right now, there is practically no discernable difference between the Pixel 8 series and the Pixel 9 because of how the Tensor SoC has been tuned and enhanced. That’s a great thing in some ways, as it’s consistent from year-to-year.

All of the stuff I tend to do on a modern smartphone is snappy and precise, but to play devil’s advocate, I don’t think you should have to compromise as someone parting with a substantial amount of money for a brand-new phone. The lack of UFS 4.0 storage is an especially sore spot, in my opinion. Adopting the newer flash storage would be a super simple solution to resolve any instant performance drop-offs.

These complaints aside, when you’re using the Pixel 9 Pro XL the irksome or stubborn decisions by Google are not especially pronounced problems. The company shouldn’t hide behind software refinement though. You shouldn’t be compromising at this price point – which, lest we forget, has increased year-over-year and now stands at $1,100.

I hate to bring up gaming, but it’s just not as smooth here for a sustained period. Then again, if you’re likely not looking at this phone anyway if you’re a hardcore mobile gamer. I prefer my Steam Deck for gaming on the go and maybe some Gameboy emulators on my Pixel – which run flawlessly.

If you do try and push the Pixel 9 Pro XL, it shouldn’t overheat unless pushed to its very limits this year. The vapor chamber clearly works as the back of your phone gets warm to the touch rather than containing all the heat in one area – which reduces performance. This has only happened when I filmed a lot of 4K 60fps video on a sunny day. Unlike the 7 Pro and 8 Pro, I didn’t see thermal throttling when doing so.

Cellular connectivity was not an issue for me the previous couple of generations. The downside is that I recently changed network providers and have marginally worse service where I live, so I don’t feel confident in declaring whether the new Exynos modem has resolved any problems you may have. For what it’s worth, I have not had connection drop-offs or inconsistent service.

No Android 15, no party

Not getting the latest OS with the latest Pixel is something I have come to terms with, but maybe this sets a precedent. Over the past few years, Google has been trying to untie or untangle OS updates and provide meaningful changes with the app and Google Play Service upgrades instead. A A great example of this is Quick Share.

If Gemini is the future, then maybe we’ll get updates for our assistant and improved cloud-based functions rather than wholesale Android rebuilds, and I can somewhat deal with that.

Android 14 is practically identical to the build we’ve been using on our phones for almost a year now. Thanks to QPR updates and enhancements, it’s now even more refined.

I have a bone to pick with Google regarding some of the features that have been added, though. We need to get away from the geo-restrictions on specific functions. Amazing features like Satellite SOS are only available in the US, which is a swing and a miss for those of us in the rest of the world. I would love to at least have this as part of the safety functions.

Gemini and AI stack

All the bluster around Gemini and AI functions makes the updated assistant’s experience a little weird. Contextually, Gemini is great. In practice, lots of basic functionality is missing. For example, it’s annoying when you ask Gemini to do things that the Assistant is capable of and get a mealy-mouthed response or nothing of use. I don’t doubt that this will improve over time, but Gemini is supposed to be ready for primetime.

Without delving in too much and retreading old ground, check Abner’s full review of the AI stack in his Pixel 9 Pro review. Despite the controversy surrounding Reimagine, more guide rails are being added daily. This probably should have been done prior to launch, but the genie is out of the bottle now.

This is the most AI of AI phones – rightly or wrongly.

Camera

Ah the Pixel camera. A favorite aspect of any Made by Google phone but also the one I feel sometimes could get some tweaks. There are lots and lots of things I love here and a few things I’m still getting annoyed by year-over-year.

The new image signal processor means that the Pixel 9 Pro XL has better and faster processing than ever before. When you take your phone out of your pocket and hit the shutter button 99 times out of 100 you’ll get an incredible image – especially with the improved ultrawide angle lens. I prefer to punch in to take photos, but I have been known to partake in an ultrawide selfie, so improvements mean more fun there.

The telephoto lens is as good as ever at up to 20x. Beyond this, things do break down quite a bit, but there is more detail than the 8 Pro. When things have broken down I’ve tried using Zoom Enhance to clean things up, but it just isn’t the feature that I hoped it would be. In fact, it’s not that great, and you can get better third-party sharpening options from the Play Store. At first glance, your images look drastically improved, but just take a second to look closer, and things look synthetic and oddly alien – especially human subjects.

The Pixel 9 Pro XL camera system’s biggest strength remains its excellent point-and-shoot capability. Many social apps have also been optimized so that your uploads look superb. However, as you delve into the extra settings, things start to get murky.

_{You can see the full resolution gallery here.}

I have no idea what happened, but the once-excellent portrait mode is broken. The edge detection is atrocious at times. You get blurry sections overlapping an image’s key components, and you’re better off standing back and punching in with the telephoto to get background blur effects. When you do this, the results speak for themself – so do that instead is my advice.

The biggest sore point for me is the video modes. Video zoom is still broken unless you use Video Boost. So when you’re recording videos, switching between the lenses and zooming in or out is choppy as the system switches between the lenses. If you enable Video Boost, the zoomed clips get smoothed out, but that adds an extra layer of upload-process-download.

The same goes for 8K video. I’m not entirely sure if it even is native 8K and could just be 4K oversampled and then processed in the cloud. The standard 4K video looks crisp, clean and the camera doesn’t overheat when you record longer clips. I would love to see Google add a LOG profile at some point in the future, but we need more care and attention placed on video on Pixel phones moving forward, given how most people record on their phones almost as often as taking photos.

Lifespan and charging

Like many of the other people fawning over the lifespan of the Pixel 9 Pro XL, I think I could make this a two-day phone without stressing about finding the charger. The standby time is where I have seen the most benefits. If you’re not glued to your phone or infrequent user, it’ll take at least a couple of days to die off.

While I hate how flawed “Screen on time” is as a metric, for those wondering: 7 hours has been my average on the low end. In reality, I barely hit 3.5 hours most days and have over 55% left around that time.

Using mobile data exclusively doesn’t do too much damage, either. The battery is very impressive, but the updated charging comes with caveats. It’s not 45W or even 37W when using the new official USB-C charger. In our testing, it’s appears closer to 32W. That said, going from 0 to 65% in about 30 minutes is a big improvement and enough to get me going again in the morning.

Final thoughts

Despite how this might sound: the Pixel 9 Pro XL has been a significant surprise. Google was loud and proud about its AI functionality at Made by Google, but the core device is the zenith of what the series has been able to offer to date – something I feel like we’re saying ad nauseam with each release.

At its best, I have not enjoyed a new Android phone like this for a long time. At its worst – and according to lots of vocal Pixel detractors – it’s another overpriced Pixel that doesn’t offer the best of everything. Coming directly from the Pixel 8 Pro, I figured the differences wouldn’t be quite as pronounced, but the design changes alone feel like major improvements in ways I hadn’t anticipated.

Over the past few Pixel releases, a line has been drawn in the sand. Google will continue doing things their own way whether we like it or not. I can’t help but think of the Pixel 6 when I’m using the 9 Pro XL. What I mean by that is that this phone feels like a lay-up, a safe play with enough poise and solid positioning right before a pin-seeking Pixel 10 later down the line.

I have tempered my own feelings toward the Pixel 9 Pro XL. I am enjoying it far more than I ever anticipated but this is not a perfect Pixel. I do hope that Google will re-evaluate some decisions over the next year and make them a high priority for the next generation.

Even so, despite some of its perceived hindrances, I can’t help but enjoy all the little tweaks and changes for what is a genuinely excellent smartphone. Wipe away the AI, and Google has made just one of the best phones, period.

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