Google unveiled several new devices at its August 13th Made By Google event, but despite the company’s annual Pixel event happening earlier than normal, there were few surprises.
As had leaked extensively ahead of time, Google announced four new Pixel 9 devices, including two sizes of Pixel 9 Pro, the much-anticipated Pixel 9 Pro Fold, and of course, the regular old Pixel 9.
The Pixel 9 is a direct upgrade to last year’s Pixel 8 and sports a few notable changes, including an upgraded ultrawide rear camera (however, the 9 still sports two rear shooters — you’ll need to go Pro for that vaunted telephoto lens), a brighter screen, improved battery and even a small design refresh.
The new design is probably what most people will notice first, and it will likely divide folks. I quite like the design and think it’s a welcome improvement on Google’s ‘visor’ styling introduced on the Pixel 6 series. That said, I also liked the camera bar from the beginning — as far as camera bumps go, it’s one of the few that’s stable when the phone’s lying on a table. Anyone who isn’t a fan of the camera bar likely won’t have much love for the new design.
From left to right: Pixel 9 Pro, Pixel 9, Pixel 8.
Along with the new camera bar design, the Pixel 9 series sports squared-off edges reminiscent of the iPhone. This is one of those smartphone trends that comes and goes, though this is the first time I think I’ve seen edges this square on a Pixel device. And like the Pixel 8, the Pixel 9 offers a matte metal frame with a glossy glass back panel, which is just as slippery as you’d expect. The Pro models have matte glass backs, which are grippier and overall the superior option. I wish Google would stop keeping matte backs exclusive to the Pro line, but alas.
New colours, better display, longer battery life
Aside from the new design, the Pixel 9 sports four colours, the classic white and black Porcelain and Obsidian options, along with two new shades, Wintergreen (green) and Peony (pink). Wintergreen is more green than the Pixel 8’s blueish Mint colourway, while Peony is a much more vibrant pink than last year’s Rose. Porcelain is pretty boring, but this year’s Obsidian is quite nice, albeit a total fingerprint magnet.
Google boasted that the Pixel 9 line is twice as durable as previous models. The Pixel 9 sports Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on the front and back. Coupled with Google’s promise of seven years of updates, the Pixel 9 seems like it’s built to last, though that remains to be seen.
The Pixel 9 features a 6.3-inch Actua OLED display with a resolution of 1080 x 2424 and a variable refresh rate from 60Hz to 120Hz. Google says it’s 35 percent brighter than the Pixel 8, boasting up to 1,800 nits (HDR) and 2,700 nits (peak) brightness.
Google also said the Pixel 9 battery lasts 20 percent longer, with a 4,700mAh typical cell compared to 4,575mAh in the Pixel 8. Other improvements include more RAM (12GB to the Pixel 8’s 8GB) and the Tensor G4 chip. Update 14/08/2024 at 3:10pm ET: A previous version of this story incorrectly said the Pixel 9 had 45W wired charging, but that’s not the case. Fine print on the spec sheet Google shared with MobileSyrup notes that the Pixel 8 has 27W charging (the same as the Pixel 8). The charging speed Google claimed was based on using the company’s new 45W charger.
The Pixel 9’s rear camera setup also got an upgrade with a 48-megapixel ultrawide sensor. The Pixel 8’s ultrawide sensor was 12-megapixel. Beyond that, the Pixel 9 sports the same 50-megapixel main sensor and 10.5-megapixel ultrawide selfie camera.
Finally, there are several new software features coming to the Pixel 9, like multimodal Gemini Nano running on-device, new AI features like Pixel Screenshots and Studio, improvements to Magic Editor, and more. You can read more about the new Pixel software here.
Worth an extra $150?
While the Pixel 9 definitely sports several improvements over the Pixel 8, it remains to be seen if the phone does enough to justify a $150 price hike in Canada. The Pixel 9 starts at $1,099, up from the $949 Pixel 8 price (and the Pixel 8 cost $150 more than the Pixel 7, so that’s a $300 increase in two years). And while it’s still several months away, there’s the inevitable Pixel 9a to contend with. The Pixel 8a was breathing right down the neck of the Pixel 8, offering a very similar experience at a fraction of the cost — the eventual Pixel 9a might do the same to the Pixel 9, though only time will tell.
The Pixel 9 is now available for pre-order and lands on store shelves on August 22nd. Stay tuned to MobileSyrup for more on the Pixel 9.
You can read all the news about today’s Google event by following this link.
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