ONLY 2 Reasons to Buy! 🤔 Pixel 8 Pro Review vs Everything Else

Reviewed 12 October 2023 - Aaron

This isn’t going to be like other reviews that simply regurgitate specs. I don’t want to do that, that’s boring. So I’m going to keep things simple and tell you what’s so special about the Pixel 8 Pro, and some ways it could be better.

As far as I’m concerned they are already leading the Android market with their computational photography chops. We saw what features like Super Res Zoom and Magic Eraser could do on the Pixel 7 Pro, and now Tensor G3 brings next level speed and some new camera features powered by AI.

That’s great, but it didn’t quite make me go WOW because every new version claims to be faster, smarter and more powerful. So what are the things that did make me go wow?

Read on because I’m also going to answer some of your questions about this device which includes some areas of improvement.

Camera Performance

Speaking generally in terms of the camera, this is a flagship device in every way.  It has fantastic stabilization so it’s easy to snap sharp images in low light. You can shoot up to 50MP Raw pictures with the rear camera, with good results yielding neutral cool colors and crisp detail without oversharpening.

Tensor G3 makes shooting pictures faster in low light using Night Sight. And I’ve always been impressed by how Pixel phones cleans up the image right up to 30x Digital zoom.

I haven’t talked about Magic Eraser, Photo Unblur, or Best Take, all of which uses AI to enhance your photos. Best Take, the newest feature, creates a composite image that makes everyone look their best (or their worse if you want to be cheeky) since you can pick manually which face of each subject to use. Interesting feature, but it’s only useful if you’re shooting pictures with kids or babies since they can be quite restless and naughty which makes it tough to get the perfect shot. 

What can be improved though, is shooting 50MP mode zoom shots in low light. Pictures don’t appear as sharp as when shooting in 12MP. And in terms of the front selfie camera, it’s okay, pretty decent, but you’ll have to do a bit of editing after, because front camera video looks a little washed out.

For video, its stabilization is pretty powerful. Depending on the stabilization mode there are different levels of cropping in. Whether it’s 4K Action mode or 1080p Locked mode (which makes handheld shots look like it’s shot on a tripod) you can expect a lot of cropping in, so you’re not going to get the full resolution yield. But it does work if you need it. (Click on the image below for demo)

What is very useful for videos is this new feature called Audio Eraser. It’s a tool that cleans background noise out of videos so that only your voice can be heard. Or you can also erase your voice if you want. (Samples) It's great because if you want to do something similar, you will have to use a PC video editor, now you can do it with a few taps on device. And it will also work for old videos shot on other devices. So as far content creation goes the Pixel 8 Pro is shaping up to be a powerful tool.

Speaker Sound Quality

But even if you’re not so much into content creation and you just want to enjoy videos and music, as a sound guy, I dig the sound coming from the Pixel 8 Pro’s speakers. It’s full and loud, and doesn’t sound shrill or distorted in the midrange. And there’s a consistency to it in situations with different noise levels with “Adaptive mode”. It automatically EQs the speakers so whether you’re in quiet or noisy situations, it sounds just as full.

That being said… It’s loud, but it doesn’t sound so open or spacious. You don’t really get a big stereo effect. (So if you’re playing games like PUBG or COD Mobile on it, you’ll get better awareness from wearing earbuds.) Here are some samples, have a listen.

The Future is Now

The camera was the first reason. The second big reason to buy the Pixel 8 Pro is, if what Google says is true, this is the most future proof device on the market now.

Already, anyone who buys a Pixel device gets software updates first among all Android devices, and Google has announced 7 years of updates for it, so you’ll be getting security updates and new features all the way into the year 2030. That’s great, and it’s something I hope other brands will match, because even if you don’t keep your phones that long, the next person you pass it on to will enjoy the benefits.

Google has also promised to stock parts for the Pixel 8 series for the next 7 years. I can imagine it being a logistical nightmare for most companies to do this for every flagship device moving forward, so even if this is Google we’re talking about, with their vast resources, that is not a small commitment.

It’s also one of only a handful of devices right now that supports WiFi 7. Most people still think that WiFi 6 is the latest, some know about WiFi 6E, but WiFi 7 is able to handle even more devices running on 2.4, 5 and 6GHZ bands. At this moment there aren’t many devices that supports WiFi 7, and only some routers. But having the Pixel 8 Pro means that it’s more future proof for when WiFi 7 does become widespread, apart from getting updates and parts till 2030.

This future proofing is definitely going to help the resale value of the Pixel 8 Pro.

Questions from viewers time!

Pixel 8 Pro’s battery life

It depends on usage, and the way I’ve been using it, shooting pictures and video, youtube, browsing the web, some working, with alway-on display because that’s how I prefer it, the Pixel 8 Pro, from full battery, lasted around 42 hours from Sunday 4pm to Tuesday 10am. Total screen time, 4 hours and 53 minutes. Charging it back to full took around 1 and a half hours on rapid charging. Not bad.

Pixel 8 Pro’s Camera Questions

Q: Does it do 4k 30 portrait mode video, what is the resolution of the action mode as the fps of the slow mode?

A: For portrait mode video you are really shooting in Blur mode, and that only shoots in FHD resolution, same goes for action mode because of the aggressive cropping in. For slow motion you can shoot either in 120 fps or 240 fps.

Q: Can you record cinematic video in 4k? Is the focus any better?

A: There isn’t a cinematic mode per se, but you can shoot in ‘blur’ mode which gives a more soft, cinematic look. In that mode, you can only shoot in 1080p. The focus is alright, it can be a little faster but this gives videos a softer, more natural look when transitioning between subjects. Sample here.

Q: Video quality in low light vs iPhone?

A: The Pixel 8 Pro is quite comparable to the iPhone 15 Pro in terms of shooting videos in low light situations. But I do think the Pixel 8 Pro’s stabilization is smoother, and color appears more contrasty compared to the iPhone 15 Pro’s shots which look a little more washed out. (Samples)

If we’re talking about shooting photos with the rear camera, the Pixel 8 Pro takes nicer looking shots that look a bit sharper, more evenly lit, and less greenish. On the front camera, you do get a flatter picture on the iPhone, while the Pixel 8 Pro looks more natural. But to get best results you need to be mindful not to shoot against a bright light. Pixel 8 Pro front camera has more of a lens flare issue than the iPhone 15 Pro. 

Pixel 8 Pro’s Thermals

Q: Does it have thermal issues?

A: Well, it gets quite warm only when I use the camera, even warmer when I shoot 4K videos. For gaming, I play PUBG on Ultra settings since the Pixel 8 Pro is more than capable of that, and it does get very warm after 15 mins, but never to the point of being too hot to hold. In other scenarios like watching YouTube, browsing videos on Insta and Twitter, not really. Overall it felt about the same as the 7 Pro.

Anyway, that’s all I have for now. I’ll keep using it, and if I’ve got more to add I'll come back with another review. In the meantime, check out my review of the iPhone 15 Pro.