Google Pixel 5

Nutty_Death said:
https://www.theverge.com/2018/10/16...-camera-best-phone-android-sales-market-share

Obviously one tech news article isn't an authority but this is certainly the sentiment of what I understood the pixel line to be.
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Hmm, so maybe you're referring to this -

Like the Nexus line before it, Google’s Pixel represents the company’s vision for the optimal Android user experience.
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As it says, 'like the Nexus'... and they were never close to being top of the range... and I don't think that the quoted statement means they are expected to be. A lot of people have posted, they buy Pixels for the user experience... because it's optimal :) The standard they set is around user experience, not hardware. Having just spend a week with the 4a, I can say the user experience is great, and that has very midrange hardware!
 
AndyCr15 said:
they buy Pixels for the user experience... because it's optimal
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Why is it more optimal than Samsung’s vision of Android? Or OnePlus’s vision? I can’t understand the slavish affection many people have for “Google apps”, like Google’s efforts somehow can’t be bettered by talented programmers working for other companies.
 
Squink said:
Why is it more optimal than Samsung’s vision of Android? Or OnePlus’s vision?
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You'll have to ask The Verge, as it's their words, I simply copied them. (Tbf, probably lots of people in this thread will be able to say why) My point was its not about top end hardware.

Personally, Samsung's, whilst a lot better these days (as they get closer to stock?) was always a little clunky and duplicating apps is never good. OnePlus' UI is reasonable, but then they're are only just finding their way round to an always on display...
 
Squink said:
Why is it more optimal than Samsung’s vision of Android? Or OnePlus’s vision? I can’t understand the slavish affection many people have for “Google apps”, like Google’s efforts somehow can’t be bettered by talented programmers working for other companies.
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Oneplus do a good job. But come on samsung just hired a bunch of butchers and tasked them with making an impressive designed and top spec phone awful
 
AndyCr15 said:
Hmm, so maybe you're referring to this -



As it says, 'like the Nexus'... and they were never close to being top of the range... and I don't think that the quoted statement means they are expected to be. A lot of people have posted, they buy Pixels for the user experience... because it's optimal :) The standard they set is around user experience, not hardware. Having just spend a week with the 4a, I can say the user experience is great, and that has very midrange hardware!
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I read the article more as Android being designed to make the best Pixel phones by fostering a synergy between hardware and software. Having both leads to market leading stand out features.

If Android is about user experience then essentially any phone could have that, it's the hardware additions alongside software which made Pixels stand out, pushed development of Android and demonstrated future possibilities.

For me the main USP has been the camera, which is what puts me off getting another brands phone, that alongside having the extra unecessary bloat added, just to make their offering stand out.

I just feel like now they need to up their hardware game to go alongside the software improvements, that are the same on my 2xl as they are on the 5.
 
Squink said:
Why is it more optimal than Samsung’s vision of Android? Or OnePlus’s vision? I can’t understand the slavish affection many people have for “Google apps”, like Google’s efforts somehow can’t be bettered by talented programmers working for other companies.
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Samsung's UI is overall less intuitive and refined vs stock Android. I say overall because whilst it has some nice additional tweaks such as scrollable screenshots, good implementation of one handed usage (top part of app is a large text banner, forcing recent content to easier position of thumb until you scroll down then the text banner fades away), it's still an eye sore and still gets a lot wrong:

  • Applications that have zero justification to being on the phone other than the payment agreements Samsung has with Microsoft and Facebook - these apps are on the market place, they shouldn't ever be shipped on the device. Yes some can be removed, but some can't.
  • Confusing settings - On stock Android you have one setting to optimise battery usage per app. Samsung has adaptive battery (which seems like the stock Android way), putting apps to sleep, or even deep sleeping. Sleeping apps says "These apps won't run in the background" and the deep sleeping section says "Deep sleeping apps will never run in the background" :confused:
  • Duplication of services - I have two 'find my watch' features on my Z Fold2, one in the wearable app that isn't an optional install if you have a Samsung wearable and one via the SmartThings app
  • Poor copycat version of iPhone features that are so bad in comparison it's laughable - The AR Emojis don't look great and can't be sent with transparent backgrounds like memoji
  • The Galaxy store - This is just full of amateur themes, it really cheapens the brand and I would love for the Galaxy store to be removable. It serves literally no purpose for me
  • 3rd party services used to provide services built directly into Google - e.g. Hiya service for call spam filtering, which I'm sure means I have to send them my contact list if I accept this feature? It reads that way anyway
  • Camera - Samsung never get praised in the same light as the iPhone 11 Pro or Pixel phones in reviews because they just don't have the software experience like Google or Apple for computational photography
  • Sloppy UI elements - I've literally lost count of the toast notifications I get where the text inside them isn't aligned vertically within the toast. It just looks so unprofessional because it's such a basic thing
There are so many examples where Samsung just don't have the software experience to compete with Google, it's actually hard to know where to start:
  • Tizen was once coined to be the platform to free Samsung from Google, but that did not work on phones - One security researcher said it was the worst code he's ever seen
  • Samsung desperately wants to follow in Google and Apple's footsteps in regards to selling you content, but keeps failing - Remember Milk?
  • Bixby is universally panned by reviewers and users - this is yet another example of Samsung's desperation to have a competing service to Google's alternative despite nobody wanting it

Whilst having customisation is key there's just no balance to Samsung's approach - my Fold2 just has a ridiculous amount of options and it's too much, you turn one thing on and something else doesn't work but it's not clear the settings are mutually exclusive. That's typically what bad and/or unintuitive UI design does, it confuses the end user.
 
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Nutty_Death said:
If Android is about user experience then essentially any phone could have that
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Yes, the Pixel is setting the standard Google hope others would follow. Most do not.

Nutty_Death said:
it's the hardware additions alongside software which made Pixels stand out, pushed development of Android and demonstrated future possibilities.
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In your eyes? I mean, okay... if you like. I personally think they leave future possibilities to others, like Samsung with their folding screens. What makes you say Google use the Pixel to show others the future possibilities?

Nutty_Death said:
that alongside having the extra unecessary bloat added, just to make their offering stand out.
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Bingo! :)

Nutty_Death said:
I just feel like now they need to up their hardware game to go alongside the software improvements
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Oh, not bingo. So, we have a unique experience, optimised to work on mid range hardware to almost perfection, but we should put even better hardware in there, that isn't needed... and charge the consumer more for the same experience they would get at a lesser price?

I think we should agree to disagree and move on. I personally feel you're suggesting what you want and labelling it as what the Pixel stands for. None of us will actually know what Google intends the Pixel to be, so we can't really settle the discussion. To me they have never been about top end hardware. They are a step on from Nexus' devices, which were reasonably clearly labelled as developer tools, but with some polish and a great camera for the general public.
 
^^ That kinda sums things up quite nicely. I guess some of the apps like the AI assistant are supposedly better than stock on the Pixel, but that's not a massive plus.
 
Pixel 5 coming early it seems. Wife got her dispatch.

UyGhBiN.jpg
 
Yep, Black due tomorrow. ( Placed 30th btw )

*The IMEI is in the shipment order, so I processed the claim for the headphones. Confirmation email received, will see if I get confirmation in the next two days.
 
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