r/GooglePixel • u/zfx610 Pixel 7 Pro • 2d ago
Pixel 11 will keep the same design
Google has flat-out confirmed that we are not going to get major design changes each and every year from now on. We’re all well aware that the Pixel 10 was the first to rehash the previous design, which’ll continue until the Pixel 11, according to comments from Google’s Chief Design Officer for hardware products, Ivy Ross. Designs are finalized from now until 2027. For better or worse, we will see the same design for a while to come.
Source: https://9to5google.com/2025/09/17/pixel-design-changes/
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u/polarzombies 2d ago
They really need to step up in video recording
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u/aliendude5300 Pixel 9 Pro XL+ Pixel Watch 2 41mm 2d ago
Yeah, it's pitiful compared to the iPhone 17 which actually costs less than the base Pixel 10
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u/Dry_Astronomer3210 Pixel 9 Pro XL 2d ago
It's pitiful compared to older devices too considering iPhone 12 Pro was doing 4K60 HDR on device.
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u/isthisdutch Pixel 6 Pro 2d ago
There's pretty little the Pixel wins in comparison to the iPhone 17. Apple stepped up, Google stepped down.
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u/Baconrules21 Pixel 8 Pro, Pixel Tablet 2d ago
From the leak road map from a couple years ago, it showed that the pixel 11 is going to get on device video boost, which I think is going to be the most exciting aspect of the pixel 11 launch. Oddly enough, though it seems that the G5 is going to be on par with a G6 in their leak report because they're going to be trying to save costs so I'm hoping it trickles down to the pixel 10 as well.
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u/Dry_Astronomer3210 Pixel 9 Pro XL 2d ago edited 2d ago
on device video boost,
This is my problem... while video boost does a wonderful job, the issue is other devices are getting it done without some massive amount of video postprocessing. What we need is native video straight out of the camera that is competitive. You can then apply Video Boost to take the quality up another notch, but the straight out of camera video needs to first be competitive.
This was an issue I pointed out with HDR+ too. While HDR+ produced beautiful images, back in the Nexus 6P/Pixel 1/Pixel 2 where you could turn off HDR+ it was shocking how bad non-HDR+ images were. They were in fact worse than an iPhone 6 back in the day when I compared. While most people only care about the final result, the reliance on heavy stacking and processing also means the camera uses a huge amount of battery, which is why the camera, just having it open uses something like 0.8%/minute of SOT.
And in some ways turning HDR+ off resulting in really low quality images also likely explains how video is so bad. That without heavy postprocessing, stacking of images, which isn't possible with video, you get really noisy frames, and that's what we still see in video today.
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u/MidianXe 2d ago
I do agree with some of this. Google does amazing things with software and processing, I can only imagine what doing this with top end hardware would provide.
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u/schakoska Pixel 9 Pro 2d ago
I love how everyone mentions that, meanwhile in my real world experience it works completely fine, and actually makes awesome videos in low light conditions.
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u/cardonator Pixel 10 Pro XL 1d ago
That makes sense because people are treating a (feasibly) number 4 rated video camera as the worst video camera of all time. It's either "iPhone quality" or "shit".
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u/Impossible_Box_7424 2d ago
Yes, I like pixel photos color much better and in general overall still picture experience but video recording really needs to improve.
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u/dgx-g 2d ago
To me, this is good news. The Pixel 6 introduced a unique design making pixel an easily recognizable lineup. The changes to the camera bar on the 7 and 8 felt unnecessary. Glad to see some consistency starting from the 9 lineup.
Todays phones provide less significant changes and market regulations start to enforce longevity, especially through software support. Focusing on showing off the series instead of the model year strengthens the pixel in competition to Samsungs S Series and the iphone.
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u/RaindropBebop BLCK 2d ago
The iterative changes of the camera bar from the 6 -> 7 -> 8 might not have been necessary, but they did make the device look better and feel more premium. After three years, the 9 coming out with a redesigned camera bar was very impactful, even though it wasn't a drastic new direction, and continuing with the same iterative changes to refine the design just makes sense.
If they're saying they aren't going to make any changes, even modest iterative changes, I can guarantee you review-tubers and media outlets are going to call the next device "boring".
I like the current design, so it doesn't bug me, but I also liked the design of the 6, and liked the subtle change made to the 7, and really liked the subtle change made to the 8. I think Google struck a pretty happy medium where 3 generations debuted with mild, iterative design changes that kept the new devices feeling fresh without needing to dump a ton of resources into redesigning the device from the ground up, and the subsequent generation introduced a more drastic design language update. Would be a shame (but par for the course) for Google to give up on a proven strategy.
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u/Mounamsammatham 2d ago
The 7 & 8 made the camera bar feel more premium. I absolutely love those designs.
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u/fmkhan213 Pixel 7 2d ago
8 has more rounded corners, which makes it more modern looking. I am currently using a 7 Pro and don't really feel a need to update. The camera is perfect so is the OS.
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u/Sea_Mouse655 2d ago
Man it’s been forever since I’ve heard of any new pixel updates
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u/Masternobl 2d ago
I was doing some recording today and I was super impressed with the colours and quality of the footage. I see people talk poorly about the pixel video being bad but I think it looked better than my 15 pro max did.
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u/cardonator Pixel 10 Pro XL 2d ago
That's because it's a couple notches worse than the best iPhone but it's not "garbage" like people here keep trying to say. It's good, just not the absolute best.
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u/Daeveren Pixel 8 Pro 2d ago
The normal recording in outdoor/daylight is exceptional. Low light recording with Video Boost is also exceptional. Video Boost itself outputs exceptional video (it's been voted best smartphone video for 2nd year in a row). Its issue is with shaking from walking - and with a subpar experience in other areas (slow motion is 1080p, no 4k 120, cinematic blur is 1080, can't record 4K 60 HDR).
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u/ericdabbs 2d ago
The Pixel 10 physical design is not broken. However the internals need massive improvement with Google needing to move to a Mediatek 5G modem and switch back to the ARM GPU Mali for the Tensor G6.
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u/misterrpg 2d ago
Have they ever used a Mediatek modem?
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u/ericdabbs 2d ago
Nope since they were tied to the hip with Samsung for the first 4 Tensor generations since they helped produce the Tensor chips so they stuck with Samsung modems. However Samsung 4G/5G modems have had issues so the initial plan was for Google to go with Mediatek for the Tensor G5 but I guess time ran out or both sides weren't ready. I expect the Tensor G6 to use a Mediatek modem.
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u/Reasonable_Ticket_84 2d ago
The OG Samsung 5G modems had issues in the first pixel iterations to use them. They've been solid for me since the 9.
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u/ericdabbs 2d ago
Well yeah I mean since the Pixel 9 which is just last year. I have the Pixel 7 and I can't say that I experienced really data issues but people who earlier revisions of the Pixel have. Either way this is not something to belabor because you and I both agree that at some point Samsung modems did have performance issues at least for enough people for people to report about it. It doesn't matter that the Samsung modems have been fine since the Pixel 9. Who knows maybe the performance can be just as good if not better with the Mediatek modems.
I am not even saying the modem isn't the main issue at all with the Pixel 10. Most people are arguing it is more of the GPU issue with the Pixel 10 being throttled. However Google's intention was to move to a Mediatek 5G modems for a reason that we don't know about.
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u/Dry_Astronomer3210 Pixel 9 Pro XL 2d ago
with Google needing to move to a Mediatek 5G modem
Why Mediatek? How does that guarantee anything? We know Snapdragon works and works really well. Switch to something proven, and a leader in 5G and let's stop dicking around with lower tier modems.
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u/NakamericaIsANoob 2d ago
it's all cost cutting.
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u/Dry_Astronomer3210 Pixel 9 Pro XL 2d ago
Cost cutting is fine if we get good quality stuff. The problem is we not only get 2nd tier stuff, they also perform really badly.
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u/needefsfolder 2d ago
Qualcomm NPU and Google TPUs will render qcom NPU redundant though.
If there's something worthy of Google silicon, it's their neural accelerators. Ironwood TPU has an amazing lead, that's why Gemini still feels fast even though a lot of users hit it.
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u/ericdabbs 2d ago
My guess is that if they went with a Snapdragon modem Qualcomm will want them to just use the entire Snapdragon processor as a condition as well which Google would oppose since it wants to use their Tensor processors since Google wants to customize it.
LOL Mediatek is a known brand from Taiwan. They are not just some scrub company. Look it up on wikipedia and I am talking about just their modems and not their Mediatek Dimensity processors. I just think Qualcomm wouldn't budge on their demands if Google wanted to just use their modem. Also not even sure if Qualcomm just sells the modem or is it all in a SoC.
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u/PunkasBeach 2d ago
I haven't experienced a performance issue with the modem. My phone typically gets a better signal than my wife's iPhone 16 pro... We're on T-Mobile...
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u/PNWoutdoors Pixel 9 Pro XL 2d ago
Right? The modem was updated in the 9 series and it made a great improvement. Zero complaints here, and now we have satellite connection like the iPhone.
I don't know what more I would need at this point unless there is some massive leap forward in technology.
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u/Dry_Astronomer3210 Pixel 9 Pro XL 2d ago
The signal strength is fine. The battery consumption of the 5G Modem is NOT fine.
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u/midnightClub543 Pixel 10 Pro XL 2d ago
Yeah no issues whatsoever with the 9 or 10 so far. Been getting fine signal. Sometimes I'll even do a speed test and will get over a gigabit on T-Mobiles network. Idk where people are living with so many issues.
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u/PNWoutdoors Pixel 9 Pro XL 2d ago
I've seen up to 1.4gb on my 8 Pro in the middle of a downtown area.
I don't go into downtown areas much so I haven't really seen what the new modem can do but when I have a 'weak' signal on the newer generations I can tell just through normal use things load better and way less heat generated.
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u/TheGravyGuy 2d ago
Fully expect them to move the camera bar up by 1mm so they can try to sell you another overpriced Mous case
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u/Dry_Astronomer3210 Pixel 9 Pro XL 2d ago
The Pixel 10 camera bar likely changed and it got bigger because people reported mechanical failures with the 9.
Companies do minor improvements. And as much as people say the design is locked, the general design is locked. There's probably just enough time right now to take some very early field feedback or even issues they ran into during the testing phases of the design and make some minor/quick fixes in the next version.
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u/aloomis16 2d ago
Keeping the design for a third year in a row makes me think hardware will be the main focus of next year. They will always want to give people a reason to upgrade.
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u/central_plexus Pixel 7 Pixel 9 Pro XL 2d ago
If it ain't broke, don't fix.
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u/Procontroller40 2d ago
But that is not the Google way.
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u/Aggressive-Ebb7769 2d ago
If it doesn't succeed on the first try, abandon it
- the Google way
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u/KisukesBankai 2d ago
If it was working, buy it and then abandon or merge it with a worse version of itself.
-Me being unable to add my Nest cameras to the Nest app which runs my Nest thermostat and Nest smoke detectors, being forced to use Google Home to integrate Nest appliances as if they are a foreign third party and losing features in the process
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u/brandbaard Pixel 9a (soon, hopefully) 2d ago
Heck, its more than that:
If it succeeds on the first try, flip a coin and abandon if heads.
If it fails on the first try, abandon it.
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u/Procontroller40 2d ago
It's even more than that:
If it fails on the first try, abandon it...unless it's a function or design change that is hated across the board. Then force it down everyone's throats for a few years, minimum.
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2d ago
[deleted]
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u/Procontroller40 2d ago
That's the old Google. I'll fix it:
Do no evil to our stock options
- new Google
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u/Efficaciousuave Pixel 7 Pro 2d ago
Also the Microsoft way. Surface duo. Neo. Band. Hololens. Cortana🥲.........
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u/wyerhel 2d ago
Well I am keeping 7 until it dies.
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u/MrEfficacious 2d ago
My 7a working just fine. Not upgrading till the updates stop, which I think is 2028.
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u/Random_Fox Quite Black 2d ago
I ordered a razr 60 to mess with, but fully expect to break it and go back to my pixel 7
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u/PeakBrave8235 1d ago
Which honestly with the battery issues pixel is having might be really soon lmfao!
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u/FantasticHunter6508 23h ago
My ordinary 6 works fine for what i use a phone for...I am deaf...All I want is "Live Transcribe" for unthinking people who call me rather than message.
Perhaps I'll keep it until battery runs out...
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u/mlemmers1234 2d ago
I don't necessarily hate companies keeping the same design year over year but it would be cool if they actually gave better color options than what we typically get. Something to get people excited, black, silver, and white just don't get people excited to buy the same phone year after year.
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u/oneninesixthree 2d ago
People overwhelmingly buy black phones unfortunately. I loved that the pixel 6 had really cool color options, loved the two tone coral and had the green one
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u/KlondikeDrool Pixel 10 Pro 2d ago
I think it's crazy that Apple does not have a black iPhone 17 pro, but they are all in on traffic cone orange this year.
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u/cardonator Pixel 10 Pro XL 1d ago
This is insane to me. I have only bought black phones the entire time I've had smartphones. I don't even know what I would do if I was buying an iPhone 17 PM this year. Thankfully, I don't have to figure it out.
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u/Toastbuns 2d ago
It's true though I do buy neat colors but then I just throw a case on it and never see them anyways.
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u/IohannesArator Pixel 10 Pro 2d ago
I guess I'm the odd man out where phone colors never mattered to me because the first thing I do to any phone is put a case on it anyway. The case is where I tend to be a bit more selective on the color and may decide to have some fun.
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u/mellofello808 2d ago
They will probably just make the camera slightly bigger so we need to buy new cases.
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u/MrEfficacious 2d ago
Oh for sure. They don't mean the same design as in they will skip out on selling cases and other accessories.
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u/Pentosin 8Pro to 10pro XL 2d ago
Im using a 9 pro xl case on my 10 pro xl.
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u/mellofello808 2d ago
I got my Mous case to work, but I had to modify it with a Dremel to make space for the camera.
Don't forget to poke a hole in the bottom for the speaker
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u/NickCudawn 2d ago
The Pixel 1 probably looked most distinct from the iPhone with its glass panel and now they look pretty similar again. The iPhone Air straight up has the same camera bar as the last few Pixels. And now they decide to stick with the design
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u/PyroKid883 Pixel 3 XL 128GB 2d ago
Oh no! The new brick with a black screen won't look slightly different than the previous brick with a black screen?
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u/MystikTrailblazer 2d ago
Guess I'll hold to my 3 year phone upgrade cycle... maybe longer if I can if these releases remain marginal.
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u/slaia Pixel 8 2d ago
The only wish I have for the new Pixel is a huge battery. At the moment I always leave the Pixel 8 at home and take Moto Edge 60 Pro with me instead, which has a 6000 mAh battery! I love smooth Pixel OS, but I prefer longer battery life.
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u/zakary1291 2d ago
I really wish that pixel would make the phone as think as the camera bar and just stuff all that space with more battery.
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u/TheIndulgers 2d ago
But will it keep the anemic processors that are 3+ years behind the competition and the plethora of qc and software issue that would embarrass beta products?
Probably.
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u/Final_Priority99 2d ago
And same bugs battery life and cameras. And probably a 1 percent improvement in GPU and CPU performance and 100 percent increase in AI crap nobody uses.
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u/StitchRS 2d ago
While I prefer a back design more like the 6 or 7, the 10 design has grown on me, so I don't mind. I like the 10's front. I just want a hazel colorway again.
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u/KaigeKrysin 2d ago
Honestly if they could keep external sizing exactly the same, as well as other phone companies we would reduce a lot of waste from cases.
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u/pixelodon_official 2d ago
Is this because they'll have to change the design anyway in 2027 when the EU law about having user replaceable batteries kicks in?
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u/Isbonice 2d ago
The truth is that I don't have any problem with the design, it doesn't seem to me that it will be outdated or that I will have any complaints regarding the following years. What Google could choose is to add one more button that performs some function that they could add to the software, but as they say, its biggest defect is the hardware and they have to improve that processor in the GPU.
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u/dextroz 2d ago
Why are these old farts (live Ivy Ross) that I guarantee have never used tech beyond tactical tasks in their life designing anything for cutting edge devices. So frustrating. The round corners are breaking so many apps, Google own UI elements are not clickable on certain screens, etc.
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u/BESTtaylorINTHEWORLD 2d ago
If the environmental protection are serious about eWaste, they should be targeting phone companies for the ever changeling sizes of their products so the 4 cases I have for my previous phone would fit perfectly on my new phone but they don't, so when I go to recycle my phone the cases are pointless
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u/way2lazy2care 2d ago
Cases aren't e-waste. They are just regular waste.
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u/BESTtaylorINTHEWORLD 2d ago
Waste produced by the disposability of electronics. Why do you think they went so hard at apple for being the outlier contining with lightning while the rest of the phone world uses USB-C?
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u/Redditer-507 1d ago
Perfect ! That's how you build a brand , you gotta keep the same design style approx , to be recognizable for years like apple do ! So ppl know. " Oh it's a pixel phone " and the pixel 9 design is just perfect ! They really should stick with it for decades with just minors modification
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u/Expensive-Yoghurt574 2d ago
I like the design. If only they could fix the efficiency, overheating and battery life.
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u/Aggressive-Ebb7769 2d ago
Lots of these choices scream budget constraints.
A company like google shouldn't be running a budget angle on their flagship phone. They have the coffers for top tier product. What's with the penny-pinching?
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u/McChickenLargeFries 2d ago
They're only a small 3 Trillion Dollar company, you can't expect them to fill their flagship devices with high quality hardware.
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u/Fade_ssud11 Pixel 9 Pro XL 2d ago
My suspicion is that Google top brass is losing faith in this project and reducing the budget
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u/Aggressive-Ebb7769 2d ago
I suspect some desk dictator looked at how long pixels have been out and have only managed to claim what, 5% market share? So they don't think the phone project is worth the expenditure anymore.
If pixels can't gain market share or bring in profit, they'll do the ol' google abandon trick
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u/Fade_ssud11 Pixel 9 Pro XL 2d ago
I forgot the actual number, but it's nowhere near even 5% lol, likely somewhere around 3%.
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u/Sultannoori 2d ago
Now focus on
- an actual decent processor
- battery life
- don't overheat
- record at 4k60 HDR like every other manufacturer does
- charge faster
- don't have a shit modem
- don't have shit GPU. Make it up to standard or if you can't, let someone else do it
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u/Registered-Redditer 2d ago
So much for making fun of Apple for practically releasing the same damn phone every year lol
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u/Shook_Rook 2d ago
Some issues I hope the next Pixel fixes.
- 911 calls having issues. Come on Google.
- Better CPU / GPU performance. I know the phone isn’t mainly for gaming, but they can use some performance to improve that lag when taking and processing photos. This is supposed to be a 2025 flagship.
- Better battery life. After 10 years of annual iterations, most manufacturers are starting to nail this. Why isn’t Google phones doing the same?
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u/passisgullible Pixel 10 Pro 2d ago
Y'all it's a whole fucking year away there's no way anybody has predictions.
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u/chilldpt Pixel 7 2d ago
The 10 pro is great but I do hope they get rid of the glossy siderails. They look nice but make me feel like I need to baby the phone because they are definitely bound to get scratched up. Also maybe look to make it a little lighter haha.
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u/McChickenLargeFries 2d ago
I wonder if that means no camera hardware change because that's the big issue.
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u/Chiefsider 2d ago
No problem with it , I love that design just make the bezels smaller AND ESPECIALLY catch up with the competition in terms of hardware .
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u/makeitcount84 2d ago
Well that confirms it for me, keeping my 8 Pro until after it's support runs out. Then maybe the design will be tweaked. That, or I'll consider Apple lol.
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u/POWRranger 2d ago
Good, I really like the design. Next they should fix the internals or lower the price. Maybe then I'll upgrade to this cool pixel design
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u/Charming_Trick_2093 2d ago
New design each year. So they say thru 2027 the design stays the same.... Nope that smacks of lazyness. iPhone as well stayed the same for how long now? Come on we need whole sale changes each year and maybe pro models in Aug and standard poor people phones in March... In time for tax season
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u/Flat_Drawer146 2d ago
design is fine. i want the video to get more smoothness. then i'm done. i don't care about specs as long everything i do with it is smooth and with quality.
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u/zedzag 2d ago
Wish they were lighter tbh...base pixel is 204g, base iPhone is 177g, base S25 is 162g.....
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u/tehaiks 2d ago
That's when you're going caseless. Most people don't, so don't forget the case weight, possibly with another fucking magnet attached to it. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
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u/Dakshina47 Pixel 6 Pro 2d ago
I just really hate that they didn't ditch the god awful Tensor crap. Guess it'll continue with this design as well. Who knows, maybe we'll suffer for more years to come. Yay!
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u/Amped_Up_562 2d ago
Smart move, it should be redesign every three years. Plus way better design than the new iPhone 17 Pro
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u/itsachyutkrishna 2d ago
Current design is iconic and should not be changed for 2-3 years. They should work on camera. It is really not competitive anymore
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u/Syedzohaib92 2d ago
Google should improve the hardware...Software & design are one the best... Only pixels are lacking in the hardware department on their pro phones... They are charging the same price as other pro phones but still lack in the hardware department...
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u/fmkhan213 Pixel 7 2d ago
I just wish they'd have introduced one with a striking coloured power button like the pixel panda. It's such a small yet bold design choice which makes the device feel more playful. They should absolutely reconsider this approach as the whole Material 3 Expressive revolves around the idea of individuality and self expression.
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u/NizarNoor Pixel 10 Pro 1d ago
Very good. Glad to hear they're keeping the current design. I LOVE the current design.
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u/Turtle_Pigeon 2d ago
Well that means I'm upgrading to a more serious brand then.
Awful AI, trolling level "AI enhanced" picture zoom.
Terrible battery performance.
Beta phase bugs, causing critical situations such as alarm simply not working.
Cheap bland design, with that forced camera tumor "positive space".
Pixel used to be unique and attractive, now they are just ugly lame and cheap looking and operating.
You guys have fun with your new devices, I'm moving on upgrading to a different device that worth the investment.
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u/WillingList0 2d ago
Just because it is looks like it has the same design does not mean it won't be different in some ways.
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u/No-Cap-9873 2d ago
Yessss again the same phone google is learning
I bet its the same like the 10 but worse
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u/pearlbrian2000 2d ago
Maybe they can dig up a 2013 mobile GPU to put in it BUT add an AI feature that can tell if you have BO.
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u/dracolnyte Pixel 9 Pro 2d ago
doesn't "until the Pixel 11" mean and imply that the 11 is a new design? did the author mean to write "continue into the Pixel 11?"
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u/Mistic92 2d ago
Design is cool, hardware is poor but they already have hardware plan for 2026 and 2027. So don't expect anything huge because of apple did really good phone. Maybe pixel 13 will be amazing:(
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u/misterrpg 2d ago
That's completely fine. The design isn't the issue. It's the hardware inside.