Google has unveiled the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL at the Made by Google event in San Francisco this morning, with the phones now available to pre-order on the Australian Google Store.
As their latest flagship phones, the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL of course run Android 8.0 “Oreo” out of the box, with Google promising a ‘minimum 3 years of OS and security updates’. Google is also launching their Google Lens feature that they announced at Google I/O earlier this year as a launch exclusive for these latest Pixel phones, but it will be coming to other devices after a time.
The design has been revamped on the Pixel 2 this year, with a smaller visor for the phones, with the fingerprint sensor sitting just below the glass visor on the rear. A new feature for the new Pixel 2 phones includes ‘Active Edge’, utilising the squeezable frame we saw introduced on the HTC U11, which will bring up Google Assistant to let you access all those features.
Hardware wise, the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL will be available in two sizes and four colors. The Pixel 2 with a 5.0″ AMOLED display in Clearly White, Kinda Blue while the Pixel 2 XL gets a 6.0″ pOLED display and will be available in Black & White and Just Black.
Under the hood, the phones are powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 SoC with 4GB of RAM and come with options for either 64GB or 128GB of onboard storage. The phones get stereo front-firing speakers but unfortunately no headphone jack but will include a headphone Adapter to connect a 3.5mm jack to your Pixel.
The Pixel phones will stick with a single camera setup this year which has topped DxOMark’s mobile ratings with a score of 98. The Pixel phones feature a rear 12.2MP camera with zero shutter lag and a front-facing 8MP camera. The camera incorporates a new Portrait Mode which generates a true depth map with a single lens, with a dual pixel sensor technology offering a left and right view allowing you to take beautiful selfies that offer a background blur, it works on both people and objects.
Full specs for the phones include:
| Pixel 2 | Pixel 2 XL | Release date | — | — | Screen size | 5.0-inch | 6.0-inch | Screen technology | AMOLED | pOLED | Resolution | 1,920 x 1,080 | 2,880 x 1,440 | PPI | 441 | 538 | Rear camera | 12.2MP (1.4μm) | 12.2MP (1.4μm) | Front camera | 8MP (1.4μm) | 8MP (1.4μm) | Chipset | Snapdragon 835 | Snapdragon 835 | Core config |
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| Ram | 4GB | 4GB | Storage | 64GB/128GB | 64GB/128GB | MicroSD | No | No | Battery | 2,700 mAh | 3,250 mAh | Battery removable | — | — | Connector | USB C | USB C | Headphone Port | — | — | Headphone Location | — | — | Speaker Configuration | Stereo front-firing speakers | Stereo front-firing speakers | NFC | Yes | Yes | Android OS | Android 9.0 | Android 9.0 | Vendor skin | — | — | Dimensions | 145.7x69.7x7.8 mm | 157.9x76.7x7.9 mm | Weight | 143g | 175g | Colours |
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Availability
Both the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL are not yet available to pre-order on the Australian Google Store but you can join the waitlist, with prices looking quite premium. A Google Home Mini will be included with any purchase of a Pixel 2/Pixel 2XL until 31st of December (or while stocks last) to offset that premium pricing – at least a little.
Google has again partnered with Telstra as the exclusive carrier partner for the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL with pre-orders going live on the 20th of October.
The Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL will also be available through JB Hi-Fi for those wanting to walk into a retail store to purchase a Pixel 2 or Pixel 2 XL.
Pricing for the phones looks like this:
| Pixel 2 | Pixel 2 XL | |
|---|---|---|
| 64GB | $1,079 | $1,399 |
| 128GB | $1,229 | $1549 |
