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Google Pixel 3 and 3 XL Announced With Bigger Screens and Best Cameras Yet (theverge.com)
Google on Tuesday unveiled the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL, its latest flagship Android smartphones. "For life on the go, we designed the world's best camera and put it in the world's most helpful phone," said Google's hardware chief Rick Osterloh. From a report: The Pixel 3 starts at $799 for 64GB, with the 3 XL costing $899. Add $100 to either for the 128GB storage option. Core specs for both include a Snapdragon 845, 4GB RAM (there's no option for more), Bluetooth 5.0, and front-facing stereo speakers. Also inside is a new Titan M security chip, which Google says provides "on-device protection for login credentials, disk encryption, app data, and the integrity of the operating system." Preorders for both phones begin today, and buyers will get six months of free YouTube Music service.
The Pixel 3 and 3 XL both feature larger screens than last year's models thanks to slimmed down bezels -- and the controversial notch in the case of the bigger phone. The 3 XL has a 6.3-inch display (up from six inches on the 2 XL), while the regular 3 has a 5.5-inch screen (up from five inches). Overall, though, the actual phones are very similar in size and handling to their direct predecessors. Google has stuck with a single rear 12.2-megapixel camera on both phones, continuing to resist the dual-camera industry trend. But it's a different story up front. Both the Pixel 3 and 3 XL have two front-facing cameras; one of them offers a wider field of view for getting more people or a greater sense of your surroundings into a selfie. [...] A new Top Shot option will select the best image from a burst series of shots. Like Samsung's Galaxy Note 9, it will weed out pictures that are blurry or snaps where someone blinked. Super Res Zoom uses multiple frames and AI to deliver a sharper final photo even without optical zoom. There's another interesting feature on the new Pixel handsets: To help you avoid calls from scammers, Google is adding Call Screen to the Pixel, a new option that appears when you receive a phone call. Whenever someone calls you, you can tap a "Screen call" button, and a robot voice will pick up. "The person you're calling is using a screening service, and will get a copy of this conversation. Go ahead and say your name, and why you're calling," the Google bot will say. As the caller responds, the digital assistant will transcribe the caller's message for you. If you need more information, you can use one of the feature's canned responses, which include, "Tell me more," and "Who is this?" There is an accept and reject call button that's on-screen, so you can hang up or take the call at any time.
The Pixel 3 and 3 XL both feature larger screens than last year's models thanks to slimmed down bezels -- and the controversial notch in the case of the bigger phone. The 3 XL has a 6.3-inch display (up from six inches on the 2 XL), while the regular 3 has a 5.5-inch screen (up from five inches). Overall, though, the actual phones are very similar in size and handling to their direct predecessors. Google has stuck with a single rear 12.2-megapixel camera on both phones, continuing to resist the dual-camera industry trend. But it's a different story up front. Both the Pixel 3 and 3 XL have two front-facing cameras; one of them offers a wider field of view for getting more people or a greater sense of your surroundings into a selfie. [...] A new Top Shot option will select the best image from a burst series of shots. Like Samsung's Galaxy Note 9, it will weed out pictures that are blurry or snaps where someone blinked. Super Res Zoom uses multiple frames and AI to deliver a sharper final photo even without optical zoom. There's another interesting feature on the new Pixel handsets: To help you avoid calls from scammers, Google is adding Call Screen to the Pixel, a new option that appears when you receive a phone call. Whenever someone calls you, you can tap a "Screen call" button, and a robot voice will pick up. "The person you're calling is using a screening service, and will get a copy of this conversation. Go ahead and say your name, and why you're calling," the Google bot will say. As the caller responds, the digital assistant will transcribe the caller's message for you. If you need more information, you can use one of the feature's canned responses, which include, "Tell me more," and "Who is this?" There is an accept and reject call button that's on-screen, so you can hang up or take the call at any time.
Call screen sounds nice and all but something I would actually use is an automated robot that would be super mean to the whoever was calling, or (it being Google and all) hack a robodialer to kill the servers it uses for the day at least, maybe calling the number back 10 thousand times or so on my behalf...
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
Seriously, it seems like no manufacturer on the Android side of things cares about smaller phones. Where are the 4.5" Android phones with decent specs? I had a difficult time finding one a couple of years ago. I ended up with a Sony Xperia X Comact, which I felt was a tad overpriced for what I got, though have been very happy with it (especially because no carrier sells it directly, so it can only be purchased unlocked and with a relatively uncluttered Android implementation). I am wondering what I can expect to find (or not find) when I need to eventually replace it.
My Nexus 5 works fine; I suppose I should thank Google for compelling me to stick with it.
Idiot fashionistas accepting micro increments in features for huge price hikes...
Whenever someone calls you, you can tap a "Screen call" button, and a robot voice will pick up. "The person you're calling is using a screening service, and will get a copy of this conversation.
I've had this feature for ages with a voicemail service and it doesn't even require action on my part. I just don't answer the call. If it's a known telemarketer or scam it will be automatically blocked and receive a recording indicating that the number is no longer in service. If they leave a message I get a transcript of the message they leave and can respond (or not) at my convenience. I very rarely answer my phone if it is a number not already in my address book. Spam calls get added to a blacklist which is then shared with other users of the service similar to email spam filters.
This feature from Google sounds fine but it also sounds like unnecessary work. I'd rather just not answer the call since that is less work for me.
You'll never get bothered with pesky announcements about security breaches affecting your data!
#DeleteChrome
Slashdot is full of press releases today. Yay! Lets go buy some stuff!
Um... Okay, google.
The only part of the above I wished my phone had was the super res zoom. The weeding out blurry images would be good, except my phone has such good low light sensitivity (Xperia XZ2 Premium) that in the couple weeks I've had it I've so far not managed to get a single meaningfully blurry shot in "normal" photography tasks (e.g. excluding things like astrophotography). :) I mean, I can make it happen if I try, but I have to try to make it happen. Just the other day I was out doing astrophotography with it and discovered when looking at my photos that the northern lights were out (I couldn't see them, but the phone could, quite clearly). Could also clearly make out the brightest seven stars in the Pleiades, too, and see echoes of others (they probably would have been clearer had I not been holding the phone by hand and had seeing conditions been better).
Or to put it another way: better cameras beats software to remove the defects of inferior cameras. Which is why it's baffling to me that they only included one rear camera. More rear cameras means more sensor area and more aperture, and gives more options for how to handle the incoming light. For example, XZ2 Premium's second rear camera is greyscale, so it lacks the colour filters and is thus more sensitive to light. This data gets then blended in with the main colour camera to enhance it. The difference in position between the two cameras also allows for using the parallax data (such as for making really nice bokehs).
Rear cameras are for serious photography. Front cameras are just for cutesy stuff.
"Close the door! What, were you born in a barn?" -- Police chief, "Jesus Christ Supercop"
Hi,
I didn't buy last year's Pixel Phones, because of the poor screen-to-body ratio. Had high hopes for this this year's edition to fix this, but it doesn't...
What's with the ridiculously large notch? Why the huge black bar on the bottom?
Hey Google, it's 2018...
All the best,
Till
So why is it only being used on the Pixel line? Why cant all androids have it?
Good-bye
If the Titan chip is designed also to kill off root, it's a deal breaker.
"Forget the engineers." -Carly Fiorina, briber of MIT Technology Review.
Name of the service?
Currently I use YouMail but there are other equivalent services out there. I have no relationship with YouMail except as a reasonably satisfied customer and there may be better options available. I haven't actually listened to a voice mail in quite a long time. The automated transcriptions are usually good enough to get the gist of what is being said. It also let's me assign different voice messages to different callers so my wife gets a nice friendly custom greeting whereas someone from work might get a more serious greeting and telemarketers get a "the number you have dialed is no longer in service" message.
I've also used Google Voice in the past as well but it's not actively being developed that I can tell.
about all the automated perfunctory rudeness out there these days?
Gmail's auto reply suggestions (buttons) are a case in point. I never use them because they all seem to be some craftily worded way of saying "thanks now f**k off".
These things all seem to be designed by and for "oh so busy" self-important tech executive types wishing to lord it over the vast unwashed masses.
"Call screen" kind of fits right in. Wasn't "please leave a message" quite rude enough?
Where are we going and why are we in a handbasket?
Which is why it's baffling to me that they only included one rear camera.
The answer to that is obvious - they are catering to the selfie crowd.
Rear cameras are for serious photography. Front cameras are just for cutesy stuff.
"Serious photography"? I guess it depends on what you mean by the word serious. I use my smartphone camera a lot and it takes good pictures but the optics in any of them cannot get as good an image (usually) as I can with the glass in my "real" camera. Beyond a certain point you need bigger/better glass to get better images. My That said my smartphone is (usually) FAR easier to use and more portable than carrying around a several point and bulky DSLR. I think the "real" cameras have a lot they should be learning from smartphones, particular with regard to user interface and image sharing and networking. They take great pictures (if you know what you are doing) but the user interface and image management are WAY behind state of the art.
What I'd like to see is a detachable battery case with some better camera optics (modular so you aren't tied to a specific phone model). I can't always carry around a dedicated camera but I usually can carry around a thicker phone.
Hi,
Many of you are complaining about Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL for lack of 3.5 mm headphone jack, maximum 4 GB RAM, starting price $799, ugly notch, lack of storage expandability, non-removable battery and so on. Please understand that our team is very smart and busy copying all the features of iPhone and we have done an excellent job. If you have any complaint, please send it to Tim Cook. Once Apple fixes some of those, we will gladly fix them as well. The only thing we did different is that we put two cameras in the front instead of in the back as narcissistic Android users like selfies over regular photography.
Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google
I mean, what can one do with these devices that can't be done with a $300 phone? Oh, you can do things better? How much better? What's the value of these phones, beyond the status one? And not so much either - anyone can get one those devices by paying little amounts each month over the years. On this basis, why would anyone want to buy one these phones? To play?
Yet another worthless phone lacking an SD card slot.
Not only does a MicroSD slot provide the ability to add additional storage later in life without buying a new phone, but it provides a mean to back one's phone up in the event of a hardware failure (has happened to me twice). Don't give me that "just use the cloud" bullshit... if you don't know by now why that's not a reasonable solution, you don't even belong on Slashdot.
I didn't hear about any of this, and don't want to. Right after the headphone jack was removed, I vowed never to buy from them again. Everything Google wants to brag about now falls on deaf ears. You hear me, Google? Or is your headset battery dead?
The Pixel 3 starts at $799 for 64GB, with the 3 XL costing $899. Add $100 to either for the 128GB storage option. Thatâ(TM)s a $150 and $50 premium over last yearâ(TM)s models, respectively.
Ah, so it's not just Apple that's inching up their pricing year over year.
Dear Slashdot: next time you want to mess with the site, add a rich-text editor for comments.
I'd really like to see a system diagram showing how this service operates.
Do these voicemail providers have a means to register themselves with your carrier so that unanswered calls get routed to them instead of being handled by your carrier's voicemail?
Also I noticed that although YouMail's terms of service contain a binding arbitration clause, they do have an affordance for opting out by sending a letter to a snail mail address within 30 days of signing up.
But on the upside, its wireless discharging is quite impressive.
"Close the door! What, were you born in a barn?" -- Police chief, "Jesus Christ Supercop"
Every year, ever phone wants to brag "best camera ever". Yet the phone cameras going back the last few years of every flag ship model are all so close together who really gives a damn?
And they are all total garbage even next to a 10 year old DSLR kit you can pick up for $100 on ebay. Are phone cameras really worth so much bragging?