What's inside the new Pixel phones? A lot of awesome.
The , and they're better than last year's models in every way. Manufactured by two companies this time, HTC and LG, there are substantial differences in the way the two phones look, but on the inside they're almost identical.
While Google hasn't overhauled the aesthetics of the smaller Pixel 2, it gains dual front-facing speakers (and loses a headphone jack), benefits from IP67 water and dust resistance, has an improved 1080p OLED display and an upgraded Snapdragon 835 processor, along with a 2700mAh battery.
The larger, tall-but-narrow Pixel 2 XL has a 6-inch 2880x1440 pOLED display with diminutive bezels that keep the overall chassis size to a minimum. Think but slightly taller. Inside, there's a 3520mAh battery — bigger than the Pixel XL — along with the same CPU and RAM specs.
What could be the most interesting change from last year is the addition of optical image stabilization (OIS) to augment the existing electronic stabilization from last year. There's still a 12.2MP rear camera sensor, with 1.4μm pixels, laser and phase-detection autofocus, all with an f/1.8 aperture.
Finally, a built-in eSIM is interesting because it opens up the possibility of Google offering Project Fi to any customer who wants it, even without a carrier SIM card installed.
Category Google Pixel 2 Google Pixel 2 XL
Operating System Android 8.1 with Google UI Android 8.1 with Google UI
Processor Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 Qualcomm Snapdragon 835
RAM 4GB 4GB
Display 5-inch 1920x1080
AMOLED
Gorilla Glass 5
2.5D glass, 441ppi
95% DCI-P3 color space 6-inch 2880x1440
pOLED
Gorilla Glass 5
3D glass, 538ppi
100% DCI-P3 color space
Rear Camera 12.2MP f/1.8
1.4μm pixels
OIS, EIS
PDAF, LDAF 12.2MP f/1.8
1.4μm pixels
OIS, EIS
PDAF, LDAF
Front camera 8MP, 1.4μm pixels
f/2.4, fixed focus 8MP, 1.4μm pixels
f/2.4, fixed focus
Video capture 4K @30fps, 1080p @120fps, 720p @240fps 4K @30fps, 1080p @120fps, 720p @240fps
Battery 2700 mAh
Non-removable 3520 mAh
Non-removable
Charging USB-PD, 18W rapid Charging USB-PD, 18W rapid Charging
Connectivity USB Type-C, Bluetooth 5.0 USB Type-C, Bluetooth 5.0
Fingerprint sensor Yes, on rear Yes, on rear
Additional features Active Edge sides, eSIM Active Edge sides, eSIM
Storage 64 / 128GB 64 / 128GB
Water resistance Yes, IP67 Yes, IP67
Colors Kinda Blue, Just Black, Clearly White Black & White, Just Black
Security updates 3 years 3 years
Platform updates 3 years 3 years
Dimensions 145.7 x 69.7 x 7.8 mm 157.9 x 76.7 x 7.9 mm
Weight 143 g 175 g
The , and they're better than last year's models in every way. Manufactured by two companies this time, HTC and LG, there are substantial differences in the way the two phones look, but on the inside they're almost identical.
While Google hasn't overhauled the aesthetics of the smaller Pixel 2, it gains dual front-facing speakers (and loses a headphone jack), benefits from IP67 water and dust resistance, has an improved 1080p OLED display and an upgraded Snapdragon 835 processor, along with a 2700mAh battery.
The larger, tall-but-narrow Pixel 2 XL has a 6-inch 2880x1440 pOLED display with diminutive bezels that keep the overall chassis size to a minimum. Think but slightly taller. Inside, there's a 3520mAh battery — bigger than the Pixel XL — along with the same CPU and RAM specs.
What could be the most interesting change from last year is the addition of optical image stabilization (OIS) to augment the existing electronic stabilization from last year. There's still a 12.2MP rear camera sensor, with 1.4μm pixels, laser and phase-detection autofocus, all with an f/1.8 aperture.
Finally, a built-in eSIM is interesting because it opens up the possibility of Google offering Project Fi to any customer who wants it, even without a carrier SIM card installed.
Category Google Pixel 2 Google Pixel 2 XL
Operating System Android 8.1 with Google UI Android 8.1 with Google UI
Processor Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 Qualcomm Snapdragon 835
RAM 4GB 4GB
Display 5-inch 1920x1080
AMOLED
Gorilla Glass 5
2.5D glass, 441ppi
95% DCI-P3 color space 6-inch 2880x1440
pOLED
Gorilla Glass 5
3D glass, 538ppi
100% DCI-P3 color space
Rear Camera 12.2MP f/1.8
1.4μm pixels
OIS, EIS
PDAF, LDAF 12.2MP f/1.8
1.4μm pixels
OIS, EIS
PDAF, LDAF
Front camera 8MP, 1.4μm pixels
f/2.4, fixed focus 8MP, 1.4μm pixels
f/2.4, fixed focus
Video capture 4K @30fps, 1080p @120fps, 720p @240fps 4K @30fps, 1080p @120fps, 720p @240fps
Battery 2700 mAh
Non-removable 3520 mAh
Non-removable
Charging USB-PD, 18W rapid Charging USB-PD, 18W rapid Charging
Connectivity USB Type-C, Bluetooth 5.0 USB Type-C, Bluetooth 5.0
Fingerprint sensor Yes, on rear Yes, on rear
Additional features Active Edge sides, eSIM Active Edge sides, eSIM
Storage 64 / 128GB 64 / 128GB
Water resistance Yes, IP67 Yes, IP67
Colors Kinda Blue, Just Black, Clearly White Black & White, Just Black
Security updates 3 years 3 years
Platform updates 3 years 3 years
Dimensions 145.7 x 69.7 x 7.8 mm 157.9 x 76.7 x 7.9 mm
Weight 143 g 175 g