TheGoogle Pixel 8and thePixel 8 Probring some typical generational upgrades to the table with only enough design changes todifferentiate them from the Pixel 7 serieson a close inspection. While these iterative updates don’t catalyze a major overhaul for the Pixel experience, the divide has clearly widened in one key area. The Pixel 8 Pro is now more “pro” than the standard Pixel 8, cementing the fact that it is not merely an XL version of its non-Pro sibling with just a bigger screen and battery. And that is both a boon and a bane for anyone interested in either Pixel 8 handset.
Earning that Pro suffix
Besides the usual differences in their display sizes (and by extension resolution) and battery capacities, there are quite a few thingsthat set the Pixel 8 Pro far apart from the Pixel 8this year. Starting with the display, the Pixel 8 Pro comes with a brighter panel and uses superior LTPO tech that allows the screen to dial down to 1Hz, while the Pixel 8 maintains a lower limit of 60Hz, which too is serviceable. Furthermore, Google has used the newest Gorilla Glass Victus 2 only on its Pro phone, though the usual precautionary measures for a glass sandwich apply equally to both handsets.
But Pixel phones aren’t known for their displays, are they? Google flaunts the impressive Pixel camera experienceand rightly so. The Pixel 8 Pro takes a big leap on that front, making it a much more capable camera system than the standard 8 — and hardware alone isn’t the reason this time around. The Pro model has always had better camera hardware, which is still the case this year. While the Pixel 8 and 8 Pro share the same 50MP main sensor, the latter gets higher-res 48MP sensors for both the ultrawide and the telephoto cameras. That is one big jump in resolution from 12MP for your wide-angle shots that will now look much crisper. Even the front camera on the Pro gets autofocus now.
However, in typical Google fashion, the real difference lies in software. The highlight, an almost magical face-swapping feature called Best Take is available for both Pixel 8 models, but the pricier sibling takes things a couple of notches higher. Google has finally taken the Pro moniker seriously and given the Pixel 8 Pro its own Pro Controls in the camera app for manual control over your photos and videos.
Google is also trying to catch up to the iPhone’s reputation for greater video quality with something called Video Boost and Night Sight Video.Videos recorded on your Pixel 8 Pro will undergo some processing on Google’s cloudand, with some AI magic, come out better looking than ever. While neither of these features is available right away, the Pixel 8 Pro will stand out from the crowd when these video enhancements land in a few months.
Generative AI has been the talk of the townfor a little while now, and the Pixel 8 Pro packs quite a few AI tricks up its sleeve. Google has managed to customize a large language model to run natively on the Pixel 8 Pro, which otherwise takes big data centers to work. For you, this means AI will be far quicker to analyze your input and give prompt responses without relying on the cloud. The company showed some use cases like improved Gboard response suggestions and grammar fixes —something we’ve been insisting on for a while. Besides that, generative AI can alsomakestuff, like creating the background when you remove an object or a person from your photos using Magic Editor (already available on the Pixel 8 Pro), summarizing your audio recordings and articles, and more — all on the Pixel 8 Pro natively.
The price hike conundrum
Pricing for the two Pixels is a little tricky this year because Google decided to hike their prices by $100. So, the standard Pixel 8 now starts at $699 while the Pixel 8 Pro at $999 — maintaining their price difference of $300.
In the Pixel 8 Pro’s favor, all the upgrades Google has made do add up, even justifying spending an additional $300 for the real Pro experience. As previously said, you aren’t just getting a Pixel 8 with a bigger screen — like the iPhone 15 Plus is to the iPhone 15 — but there are quite a few advanced software and hardware distinctions that make it worth spending more. It’s almost as if Google wants to lure you into skipping the Pixel 8 and going for the Pro model instead, and that’s a problem, too.
The ignored middle child
Between the affordablePixel 7aand the top-end Pixel 8 Pro, the standard Pixel 8 appears more like a stepchild. Aside from the hardware differences (which have always been there between the Pro and non-pro models), Google is heavily relying on software features to upsell the Pixel 8 Pro — or intentionally make the Pixel 8 look bad in comparison.
The Pixel 8 is certainly no slouch, considering it has so much going on for itself at such a reasonable price (even after the price hike) — in fact, it is the phone that most people should get. Understandably, Google had to cut some corners to keep its price in check, from using the first-gen Gorilla Glass Victus and a 1080p display to a dual-camera setup and dropping the temperature sensor. But there are a few things that are hard to swallow.
As Google showcased, many of those tempting photo and video editing features rely on cloud processing to achieve the desired results. That means the Pixel 8’s hardware isn’t the limiting factor; in fact,Google has stated that the high server costsof processing these video files are keeping it from bringing the features to other Pixel phones, at least right now. While that rationale is logical, it nevertheless leaves the Pixel 8 users feeling neglected. At least the new pro camera mode (despite the paradoxical name) could’ve made it to the non-Pro phone, or even the ability to take full-res 50MP shots would’ve been appreciated.
The recently launched Apple iPhone 15 series follows a completely different strategy in comparison. The non-Pro iPhone comes with old silicon, giving the iPhone 15 Pro a clear edge in terms of performance. But the two Pixel 8 devices share the same Tensor G3 for performance parity, which shouldideallymean equal capabilities as well. But as Google stressed multiple times on the stage, the Pixel 8 Pro is its real flagship for 2023 — the Pixel 8, on the other hand — is the upper mid-range phone that gets you a taste of premium features but nothing more.
If you have already decided on a budget, then your choices are clear between the two Pixel 8 models. While there are quite a few things that the standard Pixel 8 isn’t getting, the list of features it comes with is indeed longer than last year’s, including some fancy AI features like Best Take. And how can you forget the unrivaled7 years of software and hardware support? Either phones appear reasonable at their respective price points, and Googlesweetens the deal by throwing in a Pixel Buds Proor the newPixel Watch 2(this freebie offer ends soon, so hurry up). All you need is to keep in mind what you’ll be missing out on with the non-Pro Pixel 8 and if spending an additional $300 on the Pixel 8 Pro makes sense for you.
Google Pixel 8 Pro
The Pixel 8 Pro is really the pro upgrade you’d want to go for this year. It has a lot going on for itself, both in terms of hardware and software, justifying its price difference over the standard Pixel.
Google Pixel 8
The Pixel 8 delivers excellent value by giving you the best of Google’s Pixel lineup like Best Take and Magic Editor at a rather affordable price. And there are few phones in the competition that can even come close to its image quality.
