Google exits the Nexus and brings us a brand new line of phones with a big G stamped on its back. The middle man is mostly gone now for these official Google phones as the company moves further into hardware than they ever have before. The new devices are a big deal, but for more reasons than the new back tattoo.
Here's our first look and hands on with the Google Assistant powered Google Pixel and Pixel XL.
See also: Google Pixel and Pixel XL officially announced: everything you need to know 
At first glance, the phones don't look especially impressive – Google phones have a reputation of having a look that screams 'reference device' and these are no different. A unibody metal design gets an extra area of glass on the back that starts around the fingerprint reader and stretches up to the top. It's a unique design trait that will probably get the same split opinion that the Nexus 6P got for its camera wedge, but that extra shine does help differentiate what is essentially another metal phone. A defined chamfer adds some dimension to the sides of the device as well.
The best way I came up with to describe these phones: it's almost like an iPhone was mashed up with a Moto Z Force. However, unlike the two just mentioned devices, there is definitely a headphone jack located up top – a detail that was left out until the final slide at the presentation by cheeky Google.
Coming in black, white, and blue colors, the Pixel and Pixel XL quite literally look like brothers – one bigger and one smaller – and have a lot of the same features and internals. The only differences between the two lie in the screens and battery capacities. The Pixel has a 1080p screen (another detail left vague in the presentation slides, as it said 'high definition AMOLED') and the smaller 2770mAh battery while the Pixel XL has the 5.5 inch Quad HD display with the larger 3450 mAh capacity.
Other than size, there is hardly anything really differentiating the two devices, and that provides a level of choice not often seen in smartphone lines – the kind that provides virtually the same overall experience no matter which phone the user picks. Of course, the price gap has to be taken into consideration but that will be discussed later.
Underneath the hood are powerful specs that put the Google Pixel one step forward and a couple steps back – these the first devices to sport the Snapdragon 821 for what should be a really speedy user experience in the Pixel version of Android Nougat (7.1). However, onboard storage is a bit of a misstep as 32GB is the base storage with a large, $100 leap to 128GB being the only other choice. On top of that, expandable storage fails to penetrate the Google phones once again, even from the transition from Nexus to Pixel.
Storage might not be a huge deal this time around, however, as there is one big incentive for users to go Pixel. With the powerful and highly rated camera package available to it, Google Photos will also provide unlimited cloud storage of videos and photos are full resolution. This means that all captured media can be kept safe in the cloud and removed from the phone safely to save precious storage space.
And as the term 'Pixel' suggests, the camera of the Pixel phones are a very big deal for this new line of phones. On paper, it sounds like the cameras have the same specifications as last year's Nexus devices – 12.3 megapixels at f/2.0 aperture and sporting 1.55 μm sized pixels. All of this made for a winning combination for one of our favorite cameras, especially in low light, the Nexus 6P. This year, enhancements hope to make the Pixel one of the best smartphone cameras around. Even a bolstered HDR+ mode that is defaulted to auto is available to make the best pictures out of lesser than ideal conditions.
Video stabilization was touted plainly by Google, as OIS is missing this time in the camera package. To plenty of photography buffs, hardware stabilization is more ideal to any software equivalents, but Google's sample of the stabilization was an impressive demo. The Pixel EIS is definitely something that we will have to test extensively when we get our own review unit.
Altogether, the camera package is shaping to be another hit for Google, especially if they can build upon the success of last year's offerings. And to put their best foot forward, the Pixel was tested by DxOMark and was given a rating of 89 – the highest rating they have given out to any smartphone. Intriguing indeed.
Which brings us to Android, the bedrock of the Nexus Pixel line. Nougat is, of course, at the helm when it comes to software, but the Pixel has its own sub-flavor in the form of Google Assistant. Anyone that has used the new Google Allo may be familiar with Assistant, which scours the current screen for search terms, responds to users' questions and queries with conversation-like candor, and is even more contextually aware than Google Now. The main draw for Google Assistant was that it was embedded in the Allo application. But with the Pixel, Assistant is always listening and is always at the ready no matter where users are in Android.
With the hot words of "OK Google," the Pixel and Pixel XL spring into action and an area on the lower third of the screen comes up. Speech to text conversion is done in realtime and instead of the phone responding back in its robotic voice, a textual confirmation of the request received is given and the task is carried out. Whereas there used to be a layer of Google and Google Now involved before, the movement to the actual completed task is done in record time, and in most cases, done with the appropriate application.
This is the part that seemed a little too accurate for comfort, for it seemed that few tasks could actually stump the Assistant. Even questions that might have required a bit more context were carried out with speed and tactfulness, like asking the Assistant to play me wrestler TJ Perkins' entrance from WWE. Once I said the request, Youtube appeared and played the video in question.
Now, the same result would have happened in Google Now, but noticeably missing is the layer of Google actually performing the search and then finding the appropriate application – parts of the search you pretty much see happening in real time. Instead, Google Assistant is performing all of those tasks basically at once and getting users to their requested task as quickly as possible, and it can be evoked at any time by simply saying the phrase or holding down on the home button.
This is only one example from almost a dozen successful queries that I tested on Google Assistant. A nod should also be given to the microphones of the Pixel phones which were able to pick up my voice accurately (90%) in the crowded and very noisy venue. If you haven't tried Google Assistant out yet, you really should. Do so in Allo for now, but remember that that functionality is now baked into the very DNA of Android Nougat – the 7.1 edition currently only available to the Pixel phones.
Google Assistant isn't the only software trick up the Pixel's virtual sleeves. This version of Nougat has the Pixel Launcher, which offers a little more polish compared to the APK that was leaked some time ago. Swiping up from the dock brings up the app drawer and circles are more the motif for this launcher. Another Google G is in plain view at the top, opening up a familiar Google Now search bar. Details like that make it clear that Google Now on Tap was just a stepping stone to a much bigger evolution and that, we now know, is Google Assistant.
These new Pixel phones are available for pre-order now at the Google store, where unlocked versions start at $649 for the smaller Pixel with 32GB of onboard storage. Upgrades to 128GB cost $100 for either phone while going to the Pixel XL will set you back another $129.
That price sounds familiar, and that's a big deal for two reasons – yes, the Google Pixel seems to be squarely targeting the iPhone crowd with offerings that are obviously different from Apple's phones but are valued at the same high price point. Google fans may flock to the Pixel, as it is the only place to get what is Google's furthest evolution of Android yet. However, the price also somewhat alienates any of the users that were hoping for another year of at least somewhat affordable Android – whereas last year's Nexus phones had a premium offering that was supplemented by a lesser but more affordable complement, the opposite is true this year – to get the best, you'll have to pay the premium.
And for Google, the Pixel might be the jump off they hope will lead to their greater Assistant ecosystem that includes Google Home. We'll just have to see if the phone actually moves, given its price, and if it eventually does live up to that potential.
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