Pixel Xl Review : Google's New Phone Isn't A Nexus— It's Better

GOOGLE HAS BEEN selling phones since the Nexus One landed almost seven years ago.

- Jason Cross

In fact, there have been eight Nexus phones, one each year through 2014, and two last year. They have generally been good phones, especially in the last few years. But the Pixel is not a Nexus. It’s better.

With the Pixel, Google did more than partner with a phone maker to slap Android on an already-designed handset. It created its own hardware and software innovations on top of stock Android. The result is a phone that may displease Android purists, but should delight everyone else. This is Google’s first real attempt to push a phone to the mass market, and the Pixel competes directly with the iPhone as well as pricey flagships from Samsung and LG.

For this review, we’re looking only at the Pixel XL. The Pixel is smaller, with a 5-inch 1080p display instead of the Pixel XL’s 5.5-inch 1440p display. The Pixel’s smaller display—along with its smaller battery—is the only difference between it and the XL model.

Not a Nexus Nexus phones were built in partnerships with hardware partners like LG, Motorola, and Samsung. Google would take a mostly developed phone, and work a deal to make it the next Nexus. Google would then ask for a few tweaks, slap on stock Android and Google apps, and then resell it. But with the two Pixel phones, Google says it has had its hand on the wheel from the beginning, with HTC acting as a mere contract manufacturer. This is a longer and riskier process, but gives Google the opportunity to more tightly integrate its services, as well as tune hardware and software together.