Google Pixel 6 Review: So close to greatness
Verdict
Google'due south direction for the Pixel 6 has to be commended. From the chip, to the software and the photographic camera this is ane of the few phones I accept used this twelvemonth that feels interesting and actually new.
Pros
- So many great software features
- Nice array of colours
- Strong camera hardware for the cost
Cons
- Some jank in the software
- The brandish lacks the 120Hz refresh rate of many similarly priced rivals
- A couple of odd design choices
Availability
- Britain RRP: £599
- U.s.a. RRP: $599
- Europe unavailable
- Canada unavailable
- Commonwealth of australia unavailable
Key Features
- Updated camera organisation New 50MP main photographic camera and secondary ultra wide
- Google'south first chipset Pixel 6 is powered by the Tensor chipset
- Android 12 Featuring the new Material You theming engine
Introduction
The Pixel 6 has had a launch unlike any other telephone I can think, with Google revealing only about every facet of the device alee of a full release.
Pair that with the excessive number of leaks, including all that Google itself has divulged, and there'southward very petty we didn't already know nearly this phone ahead of its grand unveiling.
Merely that release is finally hither and the Google Pixel six is now available to buy. I've had the Pixel 6 for about ten days now and I accept many thoughts most the direction Google has taken.
Sporting a new look, a chip designed to Google's spec, and a completely new camera sensor – plus a very tempting price – the search engine giant is certainly taking phones seriously over again. But how does it compare to the other big Android hitters similar the Galaxy S21 Plus, OnePlus 9 Pro and Apple's latest iPhone 13 Pro?
Blueprint and screen
- Completely new pattern
- six.four-inch 1080p OLED display with 90Hz refresh
- A apartment panel as opposed to the curved 6 Pro
When Google starting time unveiled the Pixel six in August, I was taken aback past how different it looked from other Pixel phones. The striking visor housing the rear cameras, the unique color combinations and the effort seemingly put in was at odds with the series' past. Pixel phones have never been ugly, but they've always focussed on functionality over visual flourishes.
Despite beingness initially wowed by the revamped design, my impression was tainted slightly when I get-go took it out of the box. Maybe seeing it in and so many images, both leaked and official, ahead of release made me accustomed to the looks but I wasn't as impressed as I was expecting.
From a number of angles, the Pixel six looks very much similar a Samsung phone. You really demand to flip it over and come across that camera strip to get a existent sense of pattern. Now, my opinion might vary wildly if my review unit wasn't a very boring Stormy Black hue. It's non really black at all, only a deadening nighttime grey that gets ever so slightly lighter towards the top. If you desire a phone that stands out, the Sorta Seafoam version looks a whole lot nicer.
I also observe it strange that Google has opted for a glossy glass rear when the matte finish seems to exist the wiser route to take. The Pixel 6 is prone to picking up fingerprints and it needs constant attention to go on it make clean. I guess almost people will put a example on immediately and never worry nearly this, but I still feel a matte finish would have been a smarter road to take.
Another odd pattern selection is the positioning of the volume keys, which sit immediately beneath the power push button. I've hit the book key instead of the ability button countless times during my time with the phone. The keys themselves aren't bully either, feeling mushy without any real resistance.
With all that said, the Pixel 6 is yet an bonny phone made from 100% recycled aluminium and it feels prissy to hold and to use. The sides have this industrial matte cease while the visor covering the duo of camera sensors is easier on the eyes than a huge camera bump. It also allows the phone to residue on a table without moving effectually likewise much when yous're typing.
The 6.iv-inch screen makes for a nice sized telephone. It's a piffling bigger than the iPhone 13 and Galaxy S21 but still minor enough to slide into decent-sized handbags and back pockets. In that location'due south a nice heft to it too and it is well constructed.
The telephone comes with an IP68 rating, which guards against any h2o-based accidents, and the glass dorsum allows for wireless charging. These are two features that aren't a dead-cert on handsets at this price.
One of the notable design differences betwixt the Pixel half dozen and Pixel half-dozen Pro is the latter's curving screen. The regular Pixel six, on the other hand, has a more than traditional flat panel – which I really prefer. Ideally, I would like a flat screen with the specs of the Pro model.
The Pixel half dozen has a six.iv-inch HDR OLED panel with an in-display fingerprint scanner (that's the outset fourth dimension we've seen this on a Pixel phone), a refresh charge per unit that can switch betwixt sixty and 90Hz, and a 1080p resolution. While these specs aren't anything special, in exercise they translate to a perfectly adequate screen on a $599/£599 phone.
The 1080p resolution doesn't bother me in the slightest and sharpness is never an effect here. It'south a colourful, bright panel too with iii distinct modes for tweaking the colours to your personal preference. HDR video doesn't quite take the eye-searing vivid point of the top-stop phones but it's on par with the similarly-priced Asus Zenfone 8.
Ane characteristic I really similar is an Extra dim way which ramps the brightness all the way downward. I admit I oftentimes check my telephone earlier I go to sleep and this mode makes information technology a lot kinder to the eyes. Having it easily accessible in the quick settings panel is nifty too.
I do miss having a 120Hz refresh rate though and it's ane of few features I really wish this phone had. It's not that uncommon to come across 120Hz at this cost (Asus Zenfone 8, OnePlus 9) either.
The 90Hz console is, of form, smoother than a 60Hz Android screen and it adds some extra zip to scrolling and swiping. Information technology does feel a footling janky though and information technology's not the near responsive screen around. Sometimes my touches won't register and other times my swipes to go back to the homescreen volition exist completely ignored. I'm not sure whether is the screen's fault, the Tensor chipset or the software, so maybe there's promise it'll go fixed.
Camera
- Ii main cameras on the dorsum, including a new 50MP principal sensor
- Dark Sight mode returns, every bit do many other nice additions
Arguably the most important slice of the Pixel 6'southward jigsaw is the photographic camera. Pixel phones have stood out from the oversupply in the by as a issue of their crawly photograph skills and information technology's often the matter that has kept me coming dorsum. Pixel phones have often topped our best camera phone lists in the by, because of this.
The Pixel 6 has a duo of cameras on its rear. There's a large 50-megapixel primary wide sensor (1.2μ pixels, f/i.85, 1/13in sensor) and a 12-megapixel ultra-broad with a 114-degree field of view. These hardware features are paired with Google'south very good photo-processing algorithms.
There's an obvious missing feature here, and that's whatever kind of optical zoom lens. Similar Apple, with its iPhone xiii and iPhone 13 Pro, the telephoto zoom camera is exclusive to the pricier model. If y'all desire the 4x optical zoom, you'll take to opt for the Pixel 6 Pro.
All the zoom skills on the Pixel 6 come up via digital zoom and while the results are actually not bad (see the images of the java beans) it'southward non a match for an actual folded zoom lens like the Pro.
The Tensor scrap also uses its machine learning and AI skills to add in some new features, such every bit a Magic Eraser tool that easily lets you remove photobombers from your snaps. This works, most of the time, very well. I found a few shots of people on a beach in my Google Photos library and managed to remove them all completely with barely any warping to the background. I can run across myself using this a lot.
There's a Motion Photo pick, too, which adds some spark to snaps of fast-moving objects such as cars, although this doesn't seem to be accessible on my Pixel 6 review unit. Google has also worked on skin tones, with Real Tone adapting the white balance to amend adapt diverse skins types. This isn't something you lot tin plough on or off, it'south just ever there and it'southward great to meet.
These features would all fall into insignificance if the actual photos weren't good, however.
Let'southward commencement with regular daytime snaps. Near phones can handle these well, but the Pixel 6 certainly impresses thanks to that big sensor. There'due south a wonderful shallow depth of field expect when y'all're upward close to an object, like the tacos below, and this gives a real professional expect to snaps.
The colours in the photos I captured were mostly natural, though not always. The sky, for instance, in the picture featuring the span is far more brilliant than information technology actually was, while some tin can expect a lot duller. There was actually a few times when the image I was seeing through the viewfinder struggled to get a proficient read on the colours. Sometimes potent lite sources tin make for a very yellow picture, although the HDR style does gainsay this quite quickly.
What was never a trouble though was detail. In that location is so much detail packed into these images and it doesn't plough to mush when you zoom in. With the picture of the dog, the facial fur is distinct without looking besides sharpened.
In dimmer situations, like inside a bar or a darker room, the photos I took were vivid and kept the same hit of particular. At that place are plenty of images below taken at sunset that prove the Pixel's prowess when the light is outset to disappear.
When the light gets even worse, there are 2 options. The Night Sight mode will kick in automatically and burnish up shots and this is cracking for static moments where you tin can proceed the telephone steady for a few extra seconds. You can likewise enable Night Sight manually – something you can't do on the iPhone 13. The bigger master sensor used here does mean Night Sight can be used less equally more low-cal hits the sensor and it'southward by and large ameliorate in darker situations without any computational aid.
I took the Pixel vi and iPhone 13 Pro to an Arsenal football match and both churned out very good snaps in the darkness. The shots from the iPhone were marginally warmer in tone (you lot tin see the two below) but whether or not that'southward better is down to personal preference. I'd say the Pixel vi produced an paradigm more akin to what I was actually seeing.
Some of the occasional operation jank I have mentioned throughout this review is nowadays in the camera besides. Sometimes when booting from a locked state the photographic camera jumps around in unlike orientations and flashes to black before it lets me shoot.
For the selfie photographic camera, images are fine but nothing special. Information technology'due south a similar story for video, especially compared to the iPhone 13. 4K 60fps video looks skilful and the stabilisation is excellent, but in that location's certainty fewer options here than elsewhere.
Performance
- This is the first phone to utilise Google's Tensor chipset
- There's 8GB RAM too, 5G and 128/256GB storage
- Tensor powers many of the ML and AI elements here
Ane of the nigh interesting parts of the Pixel 6 is the new chipset. Instead of the usual Qualcomm SoC (arrangement-on-chip) you'd typically observe in a Pixel phone (or any other Android handset, for that matter), the Pixel 6 is powered past Google's own Tensor silicon.
Rumours suggest Tensor is built by Samsung, and is similar to one of the Korean brand's Exynos chips that you'd find in many European versions of its phones. Notwithstanding, it too features a number of elements that Google has been refining over the years, including a focus AI and ML (machine learning).
Tensor should give Google more control over the phone and it'southward likely one of the reasons that the search behemothic is now promising a minimum of five years of security updates. Google has only promised 3 years of actual Android updates though, which is a little apropos. Non considering three years isn't a lot (information technology is by Android standards) but I had hoped this might be the offset Android phone e'er to rival iPhones for continued software back up.
Paired with the Tensor SoC is the Titan M2 co-processor, which covers all the security aspects of the phone.
It'southward of import not to purely focus on the performance aspects of Tensor, every bit it doesn't really seem to be the area Google is focussing on and there are enough of phones out at that place that do identify a greater emphasis on pure operation. It falls well backside the A15 Bionic chipset in Geekbench numbers and while it simply near beats the Exynos 2100 for single-core performance, it's not as capable when it comes to multi-core.
Most Android phones are fast enough though, even those that sit in our all-time cheap phone list.
In real-world use, I oasis't been also concerned about performance, aside from the responsiveness issues I mentioned higher up. Games play fine and are on par with the higher-end devices powered by Qualcomm chips. At that place'due south 5G back up likewise and 8GB RAM and 128GB or 256GB of storage. Notation that there'southward no way to upward that amount, so choose wisely.
What really excites me most Tensor is how information technology powers some of the smaller features that accept been on Pixel phones before. The auto-translate skills for case are fantastic, as are live captions that appear when yous're watching videos. Tensor seems to make these far quicker to announced. It's a similar story for the first-class Vocalization Recording app, which can eerily accurately transcribe conversations almost immediately.
Tensor is as well working in the background to aid the camera. Here the AI and ML skills assistance make features like the Magic Eraser as accurate every bit they are.
Some other highlight of the Pixel half-dozen is the version of Android 12 it'due south running. Android 12 and the Textile You theming engine is a step upwards in terms of the wait of the software, and it does feel new and fresh. Icons and default apps now mimic the colours of your wallpaper, while there are a number of redesigned widgets that look keen – in particular, I'one thousand a fan of the updated clock which moves around every bit the seconds tick by. It's only a shame there are so few of these new widgets from Google itself, with apps like Gmail, Calendar and more yet stuck with the old style.
There'south a new look for the quick settings shade that makes those settings easier to spot thanks to larger icons, a really squeamish Security panel that combines a password checker and device safety tips plus easier access to smart home controls. Some of the new elements take a while to become used to, but overall information technology's a sleek update that finally adds something new in terms of design.
Android 12 will of course be available on older Pixel phones (and other Android devices, although don't expect the same features everywhere), merely it does feel every bit if it has been designed for these Pixel phones specifically.
Bombardment Life
- 4600mAh bombardment
- No charger included
Throughout the 10 days I have been using the Google Pixel 6 it has typically gotten me through the day with about v-10% or so left by the finish of it.
If you lot really push button it with intensive tasks, especially gaming, information technology depletes a trivial faster than I would expect, yet standby time is splendid. Forget to put information technology on charge overnight and information technology'll only lose a couple of pct points come morning.
When it comes to charging Google states this supports upward to 30w, all the same you'll have to provide your own plug as there's only a cable in the box. You can buy a 30w capable plug directly from Google (£25) or provide your own. I don't have ane of Google's, and then I used another 30w capable charger for this review.
I managed to get a 50% charge in 36 minutes, while a full 0-100% charge took 115 minutes. I similar that you can charge halfway relatively chop-chop and this should assistance the long-term health of the battery. It is non, however, among the fastest phones effectually when it comes to charging.
Qi wireless charging is supported too, though to benefit from the faster 21w speeds you lot'll demand ane of Google's new Pixel Stands which I do not have access to nevertheless. If that changes, I volition update this review accordingly.
Latest deals
Should you purchase information technology?
Software is a big factor in how yous use a phone: Google excels at software and in that location are and so many neat tricks here. Plus yous'll become plenty of updates and five years of security updates.
Sheer performance is your key reason to upgrade: Google'southward focus with the Tensor chipset isn't on blazing operation, and for me that's fine. I adopt the AI and ML elements hither more, but if you want the fastest phone effectually in that location are better choices, even at this price, like Zenfone eight or OnePlus nine.
Final Thoughts
For £599/$599, the Pixel 6 is a great selection. A smattering of bugs and odd design choices concord information technology back from utter greatness, just it packs some of my favourite software features e'er on a telephone, plus a very capable camera at that. The Pixel line has always had more amuse than your typical Android phone, and the Pixel 6 has that in swathes.
If y'all're comparing this confronting the Pixel five (which actually launched at the same Uk price) then it's i of the biggest year-on-year jumps I take ever seen in a phone.
The camera, design, performance and just nearly everything else has been improved. If yous idea Google was going to autumn into the rhythm of taking no risks with its phones later 2020'southward focus on cheaper devices then both the Pixel vi and Pixel 6 Pro volition testify you wrong.
As has ofttimes been the case before, there are some abrasive bits that let the phone downward. While the design is overall very overnice, some choices strike me as odd – notably the glossy back and power key placements. At that place'due south too a little wobble in daily utilize, with some performance jank and lack of screen responsiveness existence an result.
How we test
We examination every mobile phone we review thoroughly. We employ industry standard tests to compare features properly and we use the telephone as our main device over the review catamenia. We'll e'er tell you what nosotros find and we never, ever, accept coin to review a product.
Used as our main handset during test period
Camera tested in variety of situations with all modes
Tested with synthetic benchmarks and real world utilize
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FAQs
Does the Pixel 6 has Qi charger?
There is support for Qi charging
Tin can the Pixel 6 tape 8K video?
In that location's no 8K video here and information technology tops out at 4K 60fps
Does the Pixel six come with a instance?
There is no case included
Trusted Reviews test data
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Geekbench 5 single cadre
Geekbench 5 multi core
1 60 minutes video playback (Netflix, HDR)
xxx infinitesimal gaming (intensive)
30 minute gaming (light)
1 hour music straming (online)
1 hour music streaming (offline)
Time from 0-100% charge
Time from 0-50% accuse
3D Marking – Wild Life
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Full specs
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Uk RRP
Us RRP
EU RRP
CA RRP
AUD RRP
Manufacturer
Screen Size
Storage Capacity
Rear Camera
Front Camera
Video Recording
Battery
Wirless charging
Fast Charging
Size (Dimensions)
Weight
Release Date
Outset Reviewed Date
Resolution
HDR
Refresh Rate
Ports
Chipset
RAM
Colours
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Source: https://www.trustedreviews.com/reviews/google-pixel-6
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