Google finally unveiled the much-awaited Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL at a major hardware event in San Francisco on Wednesday. The Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL are successors of two phones launched by the company last year and have been launched accompanied by a number of other Google products including Google Home, Pixelbook and Daydream VR headsets. The phone goes on pre-orders from today, while there is no information regarding shipping of the devices. The device is powered by Snapdragon 835 SoC coupled with 4GB RAM. Both the devices come with IP67 certification and Active Edge feature. The 3.5mm audio jack is missing from both the devices.

Price And Availability

The Pixel 2 is priced at USD 649 (roughly Rs 42,000) while the Pixel 2 XL has been priced at USD 849 (roughly Rs 55,000). The device will go on pre-bookings starting today in a few countries including India. However, the company has not revealed as to when the shipping of the device will start. The closest competitor to Google Pixel 2 in the asking price is the OnePlus 5 that features massive 8GB RAM and dual rear camera along with other hefty specifications.

The Google Pixel 2 will come in three colour variants, namely Kinda Blue, Just Black and Clearly White. The Pixel 2 XL will come in Black and Black and White colour variants. The Google Home Mini will be shipped along with each purchase for a limited period of time, but not in India.

Pixel 2 And Pixel 2 XL Specifications

The Pixel 2 comes with a 5-inch OLED display with a screen resolution 1920 x 1080 pixels and an aspect ratio of 16:9. The Pixel 2 XL, on the other hand, is slightly larger device as features a 6-inch QHD display with a resolution of 2880 x 1440 pixels and an aspect ratio of 18:9. The display on both the devices is the ‘Always On’ one and is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 5. The Google Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL are powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 SoC (4 Kyro cores clocked at 2.35GHz and 4 Kyro cores at 1.9GHz) coupled with 4GB RAM. The device will run on Android 8.0.0 Oreo out of the box.

The design of both the devices is similar to the phones launched by Google last year. Both the phones feature mostly-aluminum chassis, complete with the glass panel towards the top of the devices. The glass is much shorter and does not cover the fingerprint sensor as it did in previous devices. The branding sits towards bottom at the back, while the power button and volume rockers sit on the right side of the device. The speaker on the device are front facing and stereo one.

Rear Camera

Both the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL sport a 12.2MP camera on the rear with an aperture of f/1.8. The Pixel has AR stickers allowing you to place adorable emojis or Stranger Thing monsters next to your friends. The Google Pixel 2 camera received a 98 DXOMark score, which is the highest score bagged by any smartphone ever. The camera also features optical image stabilization for capturing clearer images.

Front Camera

There is an 8MP front selfie shooter with an aperture of f/2.4 on the both the devices. The front camera also features optical image stabilization. Using Pixel devices, you can store as many high-quality images and selfies as you want. There is also an unlimited storage for 4K videos and motion pictures.

Battery

The Pixel 2 is powered by a 2700mAh battery while the Pixel 2 XL is powered by a 3520mAh battery and there is fast charging support on both the devices. The company claims the devices can charge for up to 7 hours in just 15 mins.

Other Specifications

Both the devices will come in two storage variants including 64GB and 128GB. The Launcher on both the devices has been redesigned and there is a new ‘’at a glance” section at the top of the launcher that gives you quick access to weather and upcoming event. Finally, water resistance missing from previous Pixel devices has been introduced in the new devices with IP67 certification.

Similar to HTC U11, there is a squeeze feature on both the devices that allow you to squeeze the sides of the Pixel phones to quickly launch Google Assistant.

Similar to Apple, Google has removed the audio jack from both the devices which means that there is 3.5mm audio jack and you will have to depend upon the USB Type-C port for wired headphones.