- 1 day ago
I got to check out the latest Google Pixel 11 phones, including the Pixel 11, 11 Pro, 11 Pro XL, and the Pixel 11 Pro Fold. Here are my first impressions! Enjoy!
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Timeline
0:00 Design
2:43 Cameras
4:51 Software
5:58 Performance
6:54 Displays
7:15 Battery & Charging
8:39 Pricing & Conclusion
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PATREON
HowToPersonalize - https://www.patreon.com/howtomen
______________________________________
SOCIALS
➨ Reddit - https://www.reddit.com/r/HowToMen/
➨ Instagram - https://Instagram.com/howtomen
➨ Twitter - https://twitter.com/howtomen
➨ Website - https://zaap.bio/howtomen
➨ Business Inquiry - howtomen@gmail.com
______________________________________
Timeline
0:00 Design
2:43 Cameras
4:51 Software
5:58 Performance
6:54 Displays
7:15 Battery & Charging
8:39 Pricing & Conclusion
Category
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TechTranscript
00:00Google just dropped the newest Pixel lineup, the Pixel 11, Pixel 11 Pro, the Pro Excel,
00:05and yeah, a new foldable too, the Pixel 11 Pro Fold.
00:09And I got to spend some time with all of them, so here's everything you need to know.
00:12First off, Google didn't really go crazy with the changes this year.
00:15Honestly, all the models look pretty similar, same size, similar design,
00:19just a few tiny tweaks here and there.
00:21Even the Fold is pretty much the same, it's only 10% lighter and 1mm thinner.
00:26And you know what? I actually don't mind it overall, especially with the slab phones.
00:31I mean, I'm a fan of that bar-style camera look.
00:33But I get it, some people might be over it already, since it's been almost 5 years with the same
00:37design.
00:38I mean, that said, they did clean up the camera bar this year across the whole lineup, including the Fold.
00:43It's now one smooth sheet of glass that just blends right into the metal frame,
00:47kind of like what they did with the Pixel 6 back in the day.
00:50Now, the downside is that they did end up dropping the temperature sensor,
00:53which, to be honest, I don't really use much.
00:55And in return, they added in a new RGB notification light called the Highlight.
01:00Think of it like those old-school LED notification lights that we used to have when someone just texted you,
01:05but it's been modernized now.
01:07I mean, it's bigger, it has a full range of colors,
01:10and it only works when the phone's just lying flat on its back.
01:14And look, I do like it, but I think Google just limited its full potential.
01:17Like, right now, you can only use it for your favorite contacts, just each with their own color,
01:22or when you trigger Gemini.
01:24It just glows, showing that it's listening.
01:26But that's kind of it.
01:28There's no option to link it to app notifications, your charging status, or even a timer going off.
01:34Just simple stuff like that would have been so nice to have.
01:37But maybe, you know, hey, just a quick software update could easily just fix that down the line.
01:42What can't be fixed is the hardware, though.
01:44I mean, I do wish they was placed on the front.
01:47I would have just loved that.
01:48I mean, maybe around the camera hole punch, that would have been great,
01:51since I don't always have my phone facing flat down on its face.
01:55Still, I appreciate them trying something new.
01:57Now, the colors.
01:58The base Pixel 11 definitely has the most fun options out there.
02:01Purple, bright pinkish red, a nice green, and obsidian black.
02:06The bigger 11 Pro and Pro XL are just more muted, but they're still nice.
02:10You got light red, green, black, and light blue.
02:13And then the Fold, I think it's easily the most boring options, just black and green.
02:18If I had to pick one, though, I'd go with the blue Flog model.
02:21I mean, that one just looks so clean.
02:23And don't worry, PixelSnap is still here.
02:25Google's take on Apple's MagSafe, basically similar.
02:28Same thing, actually.
02:29And I'm honestly glad that it's still here.
02:31I mean, I used it all the time on my Pixel 10 while filming things or while I was working,
02:36just docking it on a stand or snapping it onto a MagSafe charger when I was on the go without
02:42a case needed.
02:43Now, as for the cameras, this is definitely where the Pixel 11's improve the most, especially on the software side.
02:48And all the Pixel 11's also have larger sensors to let in more lights and take better shots at night.
02:53And the Pro models can even now zoom up to 120x with super zoom, which is pretty crazy.
02:59And then in the software, Google once again introduced a few new clever camera tricks, which are really fun to
03:04use.
03:04For instance, there's now this new camera mode called Magic Capture.
03:08Basically, instead of trying to find the perfect time to snap a shot, Magic Capture does the work for you.
03:13Because once you start it, the Pixel will start to capture the entire moment instantly.
03:17And it'll record a video and also grab high-quality photos for you at the same time.
03:22And then on top of that, it'll also automatically crop the photos and unblur them too and try to pick
03:27the best shots for you.
03:29I can definitely see this being amazing if you're at a game and you want to capture that perfect shot
03:33or your kids are playing around and jumping in the pool.
03:36Anything where you'd normally just smash that shutter button 40 times in a row and hope that one of those
03:41pictures just looks good.
03:43Now you can just tap a single button and point the camera and let the phone figure out the best
03:47shots.
03:48I definitely need to test this more because the real question is how often will it actually give you a
03:52picture or video that you'd actually want to keep?
03:55And then on top of that, there's also a brand new creator tab within the video settings that adds a
03:59bunch of new features to just help you make content.
04:02Like there's now a built-in teleprompter inside the camera, which is actually really amazing.
04:06So if you're filming a TikTok or even something quick for a school project,
04:10you can literally have your script sitting right over the viewfinder to just read it easily.
04:14There are also other tools in there as well.
04:16Like you can trim clips, rearrange them as well in a timeline.
04:19You have speech enhancement and it automatically saves clips into specific project albums too.
04:25Now, I don't think I'm going to start filming my entire YouTube channel on a pixel,
04:28but for quick content while traveling, I mean, yeah, I could definitely see myself using some of this.
04:33Google also added camera looks.
04:35It basically lets you create your own film style look and then shoot with that style already applied.
04:40So instead of taking a normal photo and then sitting there editing afterward,
04:43you can kind of create your own signature look like adjusting the shadows, contrast, etc.
04:48and just keep shooting with whatever you created.
04:51Now let's talk about the software.
04:53This is definitely where Google always does their best.
04:55Of course, these phones ship with the latest Android 17 update
04:58and still get seven years of OS updates and security patches.
05:01And yeah, on top of that, they're always the first to receive the latest Android updates too.
05:05So that's always nice to have.
05:06But most of the new stuff this year just revolves around Gemini intelligence
05:10and Google is really starting to blur the line between using AI as a separate app
05:14and having AI just baked into everything you're doing.
05:17For example, if someone texts you asking when you're free,
05:19the phone can surface your calendar availability.
05:21Or on top of that, it can surface other suggested options.
05:25Gemini also has better task automation too, meaning it can do things for you
05:28like order groceries, book a ride, reorder something you'd normally buy or book a trip.
05:35Voice typing has also gotten better too.
05:37It's got this new Rambler feature where it uses Gemini in the Gboard app
05:41and you can talk to it normally and it'll give you a clean message in the end
05:44with improved punctuation and grammar.
05:47Just a lot of smart improvements like that across the board.
05:49I'll be sure to test them all once I get the actual phone in my hands.
05:52And trust me, I go super detailed with my one month phone reviews.
05:56So make sure to get subscribed so you don't miss out on that.
05:59Now powering all these phones is Google's newest chipset called the Tensor G6.
06:03You remember that song from back in the day?
06:04And with this upgraded processor, Google says that the phones will be more power efficient,
06:10apps will open slightly faster, browsing will be faster as well,
06:13and the TPU has 50% more computing power for all these AI and camera features.
06:18But that doesn't mean that it'll be able to compete with the same speeds
06:21at the latest Galaxy or iPhone devices.
06:24Those chipsets that they have in those phones are just way faster and more powerful,
06:28especially for gaming.
06:29In my testing with past Pixel devices, when it comes to just everyday tasks
06:33and especially with some AI features,
06:36the Tensor did its particular job just handling all that processing power.
06:39And I'm sure the Pixel 11 will be the same story.
06:42Just don't expect it to be like a gaming phone.
06:44Oh, and I'm also sad to say that the base Pixel 11 still doesn't have a vapor chamber.
06:48So, I mean, it might get hotter like the other devices,
06:51while the Pro devices do still have that cooling vapor chamber.
06:55Now the displays on the Pixels are also pretty much the same as before.
06:58Same size, resolution, refresh rate, and more.
07:01The only real change is that the Pro models and Foldable can get a bit brighter.
07:05Both the 11 Pro models and Foldable can now reach up to 3,600 nits peak brightness
07:10instead of 3,300 nits.
07:12And the Pro Fold also got slimmer bezels for a better screen-to-body ratio.
07:16For the battery, it's kind of weird.
07:17I mean, they have pretty much the same battery capacity as before,
07:20but with slight differences, like very slight.
07:23Like the Pixel 11 has 4,985 milliamp hours now,
07:27which is 15 milliamp hours more than last year's model.
07:31And then the Pro models both slightly dropped a few dozen milliamp hours of capacity
07:35when compared to its processor.
07:37And the Pro Fold got the biggest hit out of all the devices.
07:41And yeah, I do think it's kind of funny that the Pixel 11 is technically the only Pixel device this
07:46year
07:46that got a bump up in battery capacity slightly.
07:49But obviously, capacity isn't everything.
07:52The Pro has that more efficient LTPO screen,
07:54so we'll have to see what real-world battery looks like in my full review.
07:58So again, get subscribed.
07:59If anything, I really just wish that they just would have switched over to a silicon carbon battery.
08:04Just like every other phone out there,
08:05even the latest Galaxy Foldables finally made the switch,
08:08and it really benefited them to just make the phone thinner and give you even more capacity.
08:12Now, as for the charging, it's still the same as before.
08:15The Pixel 11 and 11 Pro charge up to 30 watts,
08:17and then the 11 Pro XL can charge up to 45 watts.
08:21And then here's the sad part.
08:22The Fold can only charge up to 30 watts,
08:24which I think is kind of a crime for a phone that just costs almost $2,000.
08:29Luckily, all these phones support 25-watt wireless charging this time,
08:33where unlike before, out of all the slap phones,
08:35the Pixel Pro XL was the one that only supported it.
08:38As for the pricing, the base Pixel 11 is starting at $900,
08:41and then the 11 Pro is going for $1,100,
08:45and the Pro XL is $1,300.
08:48And then get this, the 11 Pro Fold is a whopping $1,900.
08:53Yeah, all starting at 256 gigabytes of storage,
08:57with 12 gigabytes of RAM for the slap phones,
09:00and 16 gigabytes base for the foldable.
09:02So they're all definitely not cheap.
09:04But still, with that said,
09:05I actually do like what Google did with the Pixel 11 series.
09:08I don't think this is one of those upgrades
09:10where you look at it and immediately go,
09:12oh my god, this is completely different.
09:14But the software improvements are incredible and very useful.
09:17The highlight seems like something I could definitely get behind too,
09:20just help me use my phone less.
09:22All the new camera features that it comes with seemed very amazing,
09:25and it's still got that Pixel snap,
09:26which pretty much no other Android phone has.
09:28But of course, those are only my first impressions.
09:30I still need to see how good the cameras are at night,
09:33whether the Tensor G6 is actually faster,
09:36how long those batteries really last,
09:38how useful highlight is after the honeymoon phase wears off,
09:41and whether all of these new AI features actually work
09:43the way that Google says they do.
09:45So I'll be putting all these phones through a ton of testing
09:47over the next few weeks,
09:48and I'll definitely let you guys know
09:49what I think in my full review.
09:51Anyways, type this video right here
09:52to learn about every major new feature found within Android 17,
09:55the same software running on the new Pixel 11 series.
09:58Thanks so much for watching,
09:59and I'll catch you guys in the next one.
10:02Kapow!
10:02Kapow!
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