It feels like the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro have been around for a while, thanks to their susceptibility to leaks and teasers. But now they are finally actually official.
The major addition is the Tensor G3 chipset – fabbed on Samsung’s 4nm process. It has a 9-core processor packing a single Cortex-X3 prime core, four Cortex-A715 cores, and another four Cortex-A510. The G3 packs Google’s Titan M2 security chip and enables Google AI with features like translation in real time, and call screening. The Pixel 8 sticks to 8 GB of RAM, while the Pro ups that to 12 GB. Both Pixel 8 phones are IP68 water and dust-tight and feature fingerprint and face unlock.
The Pixel 8 Pro has a Great Actua 6.7-inch 1344x2992px LTPO 1-120Hz OLED with a higher 2,400 nits peak brightness, topped by Gorilla Glass Victus 2. You’ll have a choice of three colors – Blue, Obsidian, and Beige.
Google Pixel 8 Pro
Three cameras sit on the back of the Pixel 8 Pro – a 50MP Octa-PD (phase-detect autofocus) wide shooter with OIS, a new 48MP Quad-PD ultrawide, and a 48MP Quad-PD 5x zoom camera with up to 30X Super-Res digital zoom. The front camera is a new 10.5MP unit with a wide field of view.
There’s a new skin temperature sensor next to the cameras that’s a Pixel 8 Pro-exclusive. The sensor is reportedly a Melexis MLX90632 unit and its sole purpose is to read temperature (of an object, like a frying pan) – there won’t be any clever photography tricks with this one.
Speaking of photography tricks, the new Pixel 8 series has Photo Unblur, Magic Eraser, Best Take, and Macro Focus (which uses the ultrawide). The Pixel 8 Pro has the new Pro Controls feature, which the 8 lacks.
Finally, the Pixel 8 Pro has a 5,050mAh battery with 30W wired charging and 23W wireless charging.
Moving to the Pixel 8, which is now 10g lighter and a bit smaller than its predecessor thanks to a move to a smaller 6.2-inch FHD+ display.
That Actua display is better in every way – it’s a brighter panel at 2,000 nits peak brightness, and finally has a 120hz refresh rate (it can joggle between 60Hz and 120Hz). It has Gorilla Glass Victus on top.
The Pixel 8 comes in Hazel, Obsidian, or Rose.
Google Pixel 8
The Pixel 8 also gets a new ultrawide, though it isn’t the same as the Pro. It’s a 12MP unit with autofocus and Macro abilities. Next to it is a 50MP Octa-PD main camera with 8x Super-Res digital zoom. The Pixel 8 has the same 10.5MP selfie camera as well.
The Pixel 8 has a 4,575mAh battery with 27W wired and 18W wireless charging.
Both new Google Pixel 8 phones come with a free VPN by Google One and a promise of 7 years of OS and security updates, which is the longest in the Android realm. As a matter of fact, the latest iOS 17 was only available to devices up to 5 years old.
The 128GB Google Pixel 8 starts at €800/$700/INR76,000, while the 128GB Google Pixel 8 Pro is €1,100/$1,000/INR107,000. You’ll get a free Pixel Buds Pro with a Pixel 8 purchase, and a Pixel Watch 2 with a Pixel 8 Pro purchase in Europe and the US. In India you are only getting 50% discount on the accessories.
