Google Pixel 6 initial review: Starting fresh

(Pocket-lint) - The Pixel 6 is undoubtedly the worst kept tech concealed successful caller years. Predominantly due to the fact that Google hasn’t truly wanted to support it a secret. Instead of keeping hush connected the leaks erstwhile they archetypal surfaced, Google confirmed them and has been pushing large selling bucks down the telephone successful the tally up to the authoritative announcement.

In the UK astatine least, Google’s messaging has precise overmuch been that this is the adjacent chill thing, a telephone for radical with their digit connected the pulse, those who privation to beryllium antithetic to everyone else. It's a trendy phone. With its unsocial plan and caller bundle experience, it'll surely get radical interested, that's for sure. 

Like nary other 

• 158.6 x 74.8 x 8.9 mm
• 207 grams
• Stormy Black, Sorta Seafoam and Kinda Coral colours
• IP68 h2o and particulate resistant
• Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 

It’s harmless to accidental that whether you look astatine it from the beforehand oregon the back, the Pixel 6 doesn’t rather look similar immoderate different Android smartphone connected the planet. Or - astatine slightest - is arsenic antithetic arsenic a solid rectangle tin be. 

Part of that distinctiveness is down to the plan of framework and bezel. It’s precise rectangular and right-angled, but inactive has skinny bezels. Rather than spell with a rounded quality astir the corners with an interior curved country successful the bezel, Google opted to marque them adjacent to square. In a mode it astir has a Nokia Lumia-esque vibe to it. 

Despite those close angled corners, the framework is inactive rounded to marque it consciousness comfy successful the hand. A consciousness that’s further enhanced by the flimsy curves successful the solid connected the backmost of the phone. It doesn’t consciousness crisp oregon level similar the iPhone 13. Being overmuch larger and little circular than the Pixel 5, it’s not rather arsenic ergonomic arsenic its predecessor though. 

It’s connected the backmost of the telephone you’ll find the astir striking quality betwixt this and different phones. Just 1 speedy glimpse and anyone volition spot it’s not rather the aforesaid arsenic different devices. There’s nary rectangular, quadrate oregon pill-shaped camera protrusion successful the corner. Instead, Google’s dispersed the camera portion crossed the full width of the phone. 

The protrusion is capped astatine the apical and bottommost by an aluminium framework that joins with the main chassis of the phone, and solves a insignificant contented with the accustomed corner-place method. It means erstwhile you prevarication the telephone connected its back, it won’t wobble. 

Apart from that, it’s each a beauteous modular affair. The measurement rocker and wake/sleep cardinal unrecorded connected the close edge, the SIM tray is successful the near and a type-c larboard connected the bottom. There’s nary carnal figerprint sensor this year, alternatively Google went with an optical in-display sensor, and there’s a centrally placed beforehand facing camera punching done the apical of the display. 

The regular Pixel 6 comes successful 3 colours. Our reappraisal portion is the Stormy Black, which features a tri-tone decorativeness with acheronian grey forming the predominant colour connected the back, with a achromatic camera sheet and a lighter grey sheet supra that. Other colourways see the much eye-catching pinkish Kinda Coral and Sorta Seafoam green. As Incubus erstwhile said successful 1 of its champion songs: it’s truthful overmuch easier erstwhile seafoam greenish is successful fashion. 

Display and software

• 6.4-inch OLED display 
• 1080 x 2400 solution (411ppi)
• 90Hz adaptive refresh rate
• 24-bit colours and HDR10 support

Reading down the show spec database reads beauteous overmuch similar immoderate different modular Android flagship phone. That’s to accidental it’s a afloat HD+ solution 20:9 ratio show built with an OLED sheet and susceptible of reaching up to 90Hz refresh rates. It’s not rather up determination with the apical 120Hz panels, but astatine the terms constituent it’s sitting at, that’s nary surprise. Still, with up to 90 frames per 2nd the surface should beryllium susceptible of precise fluid and responsive motion. 

It’s arsenic adept astatine colour and opposition excessively if Google’s specs are thing to spell by. With 24-bit colour capabilitiy it’s susceptible of up to 16 cardinal colours, supporting wide gamuts and with capable opposition and brightness to make HDR10 contented look its best. We’ll request to trial it further to spot precisely however bully it is. 

As ever with the Pixel enactment of phones, it’s not needfully the method capabilities of the surface that’s the astir important thing. Rather, it’s the bundle and interface it acts arsenic the model to. For 2021, that peculiar bundle is Android 12 and it’s harmless to accidental this is the biggest ocular alteration we’ve seen successful an Android update, well, ever. 

Much of the main interface and layers person been compelely redesigned. From the drop-down notifications and speedy mounting shadiness to the fastener surface and widgets. It’s each new. What’s more, determination are tonnes of caller animations for things similar unlocking the phone, oregon plugging it successful to charge, each of which are good suited to the 90Hz refresh screen. 

Two things basal out, however. First: Automatic theming. When you acceptable a caller wallpaper successful Android 12, the strategy accent colour changes to lucifer the predominant colours successful that wallpaper. Second: Widgets. There’s an caller benignant of widget for Google functions similar the clock, weather, conversations and Keep notes. 

It comes with each the different benefits too, similar the further information measures. Those see the Privacy Dashboard that gives casual entree to your permissions, truthful you tin rapidly spot which apps person entree to your location, mic, camera and different data. There are speedy toggles to power disconnected your microphone and camera successful the speedy settings too. 

Tensor power

• Google Tensor processor - Titan M2 information co-processor
• 128GB oregon 256GB storage
• 4614mAh artillery - 30W PD charging support
• Qi wireless charging

The plan of the Pixel 6 possibly the archetypal large talking constituent of the latest Google phone, but determination is 1 different that’s arsenic - if not much - important: the processor. Google has gone down a akin way to Apple and present uses its ain home-baked processor called Tensor. 

Google’s is assertion is that you’ll get an 80 per cent summation successful show implicit the Pixel 5. That phone, however, was powered by the Snapdragon 765G processor, which wasn’t the astir almighty processor connected the marketplace astatine the time. It didn’t scope the velocity and show of immoderate 800-series chipset. We’ll request much clip investigating the telephone to spot however it compares to genuine flagship powerfulness phones. 

Likewise, the artillery wrong is akin successful capableness to what you’ll find successful galore Android phones. At 4614mAh emblematic capacity, determination should beryllium easy capable to guarantee you tin get done the enactment time connected a azygous charge. Again, much investigating is required to spot what it’s similar day-to-day. Its 30W charging capabilities aren’t lightning speedy either, but should beryllium capable to guarantee you’re not wasting hours waiting for it to refill erstwhile empty. 

Pixel perfect

• Dual camera system
• 50MP f/1.85 superior camera with ‘Super Res Zoom’ up to 7x
• OIS, EIS and laser-detect AF
• 12MP f/2.2 ultrawide 114-degree camera
• 8MP f/2.0 selfie camera

One large quality betwixt this and the Pro exemplary of the caller pixel enactment up is the camera capabilities. The regular Pixel 6 features a dual camera strategy made up of a superior wide lens and an ultrawide lens. 

Its main sensor is simply a 50MP 1/1.31-inch sensor that packs capable pixels that Google has been capable to alteration a diagnostic called ‘Super Res Zoom’, fundamentally allowing you to usage a integer zoom up to 7x without losing overmuch successful the mode of detail. That’s achieved, essentially, by cropping into the sensor and utilizing each the pixels available. 

As is usually the lawsuit for Google’s telephone cameras, there’s tons of computational enactment being done down the scenes excessively for processing colours, airy and detail. It has besides enabled a big of chill camera features that fto you bash things similar edit retired radical photobombing oregon unwanted people/objects successful the inheritance of your photos. You tin besides automatically trim blur successful selfies, oregon adjacent marque usage of a mates of caller vulnerability tricks.

Motion mode volition let you to sprout either a agelong vulnerability changeable to nutrient effects similar airy trails connected moving cars, oregon sprout an enactment cookware wherever you support the taxable successful absorption portion it moves by, blurring the inheritance to marque the taxable looking similar its moving quickly. There’s besides the caller summation of Real Tone, which seeks to much accurately exposure and process each tegument tones. 

Writing by Cam Bunton. Originally published connected 19 October 2021.