Leaked render provides a clear view of the Google Pixel phone

[HEXUS]

Comes in the wake of the leak of 4K Google Chromecast Ultra photos and details.

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[virtuo]

Wow, that looks incredibly meh

[marshalex]

They never have been lookers. I'd be more concerned with the price as the Google branded handsets have always undercut the major players by a significant margin. I'd think they'd lose a good few customers if the pricing is correct

[virtuo]

I think the Nexus devices up to the N5 have looked quite nice - I know this is just a render but it doesn't have a single standout feature. Hope it's fake.

I agree on the prices, Nexus to me always meant good value - but recently it's not been the case. Not that this is a Nexus technically, but still for that kind of money there's probably better specced and certainly better looking devices competing against it.

[this_is_gav]

The N5 was at least functional in its simplicity, with it's grippy rubber-like back.

The 6P looked absolutely hideous when the leaks came out and I was flat out refusing to buy one on princple, but in the hand it's actually rather pretty. The black visor is rather minimalist, even on the silver one.

I'll reserve judgement on the Pixel phones, as while I doubt I'll get one (more than happy with my 6P) they do apparently have something lined up that hasn't been leaked yet:

We announced the 1st version of Android 8 years ago today. I have a feeling 8 years from now we'll be talking about Oct 4, 2016.

[iworrall]

"top mounted headphone jack"? That's a bit avant-garde, isn't it?

[cptwhite_uk]

I've resized the visual based off the 5" screen as a reference point. Overalls appear to be 141mm x 69mm, and here's the size compared to the Nexus 5 and Nexus 5X:

Obviously the size is only in comparison, actual size shown isn't necessarily true as it will depend on your monitor's DPI settings.

[preter_s]

Much as I would love timely Android OS updates, I would NEVER consider Nexus/Pixel devices.

No removable batteries, no removable micro-SD card storage, no FM radio etc.

What's the point of timely Android updates when the phone becomes useless when the battery dies? Or can only hold 80% of its charge?

What's the point if I have to pay Google for Google Drive storage cos I'd be constantly running out of storage?

What's the point when I have to rack up mobile data costs for listening to streaming music? No doubt they wish Nexus/Pixel users would be using Google Music!

What's the point if I have to drain my battery to run Google Drive and Google Music all the time? Killing my battery even sooner before the 1 year warranty / 2 year contract?

Google was never serious about Ara! If Google was truly environmentally conscious, they would not deny consumers those features!

Shades of Apple eh Google?

[Spreadie]

Wow, that looks incredibly meh

Just curious as to what you were expecting, given that the vast majority of phones are almost indistinguishable from one another?

Honestly, another vaguely rectangular black slab won't turn any heads and, to be honest, nor should it. I buy phones based on value and useful features and, like most people, I stick it in a protective case so it really doesn't matter how it looks.

[excalibur1814]

"$649"

If we keep buying the day will come when it'll hit $999. Keep the wheel turning over and over again. Just look at the price for nVidia cards!

[virtuo]

Just curious as to what you were expecting, given that the vast majority of phones are almost indistinguishable from one another?

Honestly, another vaguely rectangular black slab won't turn any heads and, to be honest, nor should it. I buy phones based on value and useful features and, like most people, I stick it in a protective case so it really doesn't matter how it looks.

Well I suppose you have a point, from a front-on view there isn't much to design, but I still think given the front view of pretty much any other phone I'd have a good stab at identifying it, I'd believe someone if they told me this was an iPhone 4 with the button removed.

As for what I was expecting, well I have learned not to expect much these days, this just seemed to take it to another level in my opinion. For something 'revolutionary' I was hoping it'd stand out in one way or another. Yes it's only a "leaked render", maybe it'll be nicer in the flesh. I'm not a fan of the overly round corners, though.

I also buy primarily on performance and value, but I'll admit if it looks boring then I'll lose interest fairly quickly.

[Dashers]

None of which will have a SD slot and will cost orders of magnitude more for a few more pence worth of memory chips.

[crossy]

Wow, that looks incredibly meh

Yep, I'm with you on that. Then again, I thought that the 5X was hideous in the renders, but in the metal (?) it's actually quite businesslike. So much so that my wife has one...

No it's the price that I have issue with - it seems pretty steep for the "privilege" of being a beta tester for Google, when there's other phones like Samsung's range for about the same money or less, but with a much higher feature count. Plus they're made by HTC and I've not had good experiences with their build quality.

[peterb]

Headphone jack? How terribly yesterday!

[Lanky123]

Headphone jack? How terribly yesterday!

It's ok - I know this great mod you can do to fill in the hole!