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Google Pixel 2 and 2 XL announced

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Re: Google Pixel 2 and 2 XL announced

#601

Post by takeda »

NikolaeVarius wrote: post #27
codq wrote: post #3

As an audio engineer, the headphone jack removal trend is an absolute travesty in an industry that utilizes AUX IN audio capabilities night after night. I'm often using iPods or other local-music devices to pump sound into concert venues between acts. Taking away 1/8" audio standards in favor of USB-C or Lightning non-standardized ports causes chaos when needing to fill in music in a pinch. In my industry, I simply c…

I'm not against removing the Aux port on principal or anything, but I just don't understand why we're going toward removing seemingly core hardware. Even on desktops/laptops 3.5mm audio is still used. Why do we need dongles to use core features? Especially since we're removing an "out" port, now we're reliant on a single port to manage all in and out. I don't want to carry dongles to be able to use my phone normally.

And it is silly, because it is copying Apple move, but at the same time a different kind of port (USB-C vs Lightning).

So now, instead of a solid standard that has been for decades there's an attempt to have 3 standards.

WTF

Re: Google Pixel 2 and 2 XL announced

#602

Post by takeda »

jraedisch wrote: post #522

I am an Android user but it seems to me that it gets more and more invasive. Everytime I go somewhere it wants me to take photos and just now it advertised some Play Store movie. Search asks for location access on almost every search. To get rid of the search bar I need to install third party software. When I buy a premium phone I want the phone to work for me and not the other way around. The notification bar should…

Agree, these behaviors are only acceptable if the phone would be paid for by Google. It's very silly that we pay $1,000 for a phone that actually helps Google make even more money when we use it.

Re: Google Pixel 2 and 2 XL announced

#603

Post by trimtab »

maltalex wrote: post #402
modzu wrote: post #244

Earlier quoted context omitted.

you guys should try switching to a camera for your photography instead of a cellphone, then we can remove the camera from the phone too the idea that because bluetooth headphones exist means the jack shouldnt exist is not fair -- there are plenty of reasons the jack is plenty useful to plenty enough people the only excuse I can see to remove the jack is that when you sell a billion devices and the little jack costs a…

> when you sell a billion devices and the little jack costs a buck a device you just made yourself a billion dollars for nothing You're looking at it the wrong way. It's not the money you save; it's the money you make by selling adapters. Also, there might be legitimate engineering reasons for getting rid of the 3.5mm jack. It is rather large by modern standards, maybe there are also water-proofing concerns. It's a t…

If space utilization is the issue then use a 2.5mm jack. Like Palm (before HP) did over 10 years ago. Waterproofing a jack is not any harder than doing it for USB.

Eliminating the jack entirely just means I'll be looking elsewhere for my next phone and I've bought a lot of Google phones.

Bluetooth dropouts and interference are a regular occurrence. And dongles are not necessary unless the phone makers is just trying to make more money by removing existing functionality from the base device.

Re: Google Pixel 2 and 2 XL announced

#604

Post by on_and_off »

MattyRad wrote: post #128

I bought a Pixel when it came out, switching from the Nexus 5 primarily because Project Fi was an easy, cheap way to get off my parent's cell-phone plan and gain some personal independence. It was about time for a new phone anyway. I wish I had just stuck with the Nexus 5... it was a fantastic phone. Wireless charging (which I personally found to be the most useful feature), excellent dimensions, excellent price, and…

Why do you need a new phone anyway ?

Even as an Android dev giving a very rough time to my phones, they can easily last 2 years nowadays.

If you don't care too much about fluidity or photography, 3 or 4 years don't seem too long either, as long as you replace the battery.

Re: Google Pixel 2 and 2 XL announced

#605

Post by willtim »

pier25 wrote: post #418
willtim wrote: post #399

Earlier quoted context omitted.

TouchWiz is better than stock android now. It has lots of additional useful features, especially in the areas of split screen and power saving.

Can you mention a few of those additional features?

Off the top of my head: Knox secure folder, better split screen options (app pairs), app suspension, power saving modes, file manager, better camera app, many more configuration options.

Re: Google Pixel 2 and 2 XL announced

#606

Post by willtim »

pier25 wrote: post #596
willtim wrote: post #546

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My android experience has been tarnished more by Google bugs than Samsung ones. Android 5 was a very buggy release, so much infrastructural change with little user benefit. IMHO Samsung should have skipped it entirely. I guess they bowed down to user and media pressure to always ship the latest android (although the media criticised them anyway for poor battery life, caused by Android 5).

I had a Moto G at the time with almost stock and Android 5 worked perfectly for me.

There were many many bugs, but this one had a significant effect on battery life: https://issuetracker.google.com/issues/37038331

For end users, it was a big regression from android 4, even if you personally found it "perfect".

Re: Google Pixel 2 and 2 XL announced

#607

Post by kpxxx3 »

Ha. $950 for 128GB and no headphone jack. Personally I don't miss the jack too bad (sorry to all those that care). But, this thing is basically more expensive than the iPhone 8 Plus for half the storage. I guess they are competing with the X. Good luck with that. I don't see how this can do that. The processor even in the iPhone 8 trounces all the Android shit. And it's not like it matters that much because 3rd party software (large titles) often perform so much better on iOS (for a wide variety of reasons, not all of them fair).

I was yet another one screwed by the Nexus 6p battery debacle, and for $600, no it was not a "budget" phone. It was clearly marketed as Google's first attempt to dip their toes into being a serious handset manufacturer (a Pixel dry-run). The Pixel XL has/had problems too with memory storage, and then of course the whole continuing problem with uneven power management and battery life in real world use cases.

Android still hasn't gotten it's shit together and the Pixel 2 is still not ready to compete with Apple. Maybe I'll come back when Google has proven they are serious about doing things right.

Re: Google Pixel 2 and 2 XL announced

#608

Post by efrafa »

lopespm wrote: post #45

Honest question: for those of you who own a mobile device without a headphone jack, do you find it to be an encuberment? Personally I still find it a bit hostile to not have the jack available, since often times I find myself charging the phone and using the headphones (when watching videos for example), so having an adapter dongle for such a frequent task seems counterintuitive to me. I believe that if a device is c…

I have iPhone 7 for about a year, and it was never issue for me. I dont even carry that dongle. (I usually charge my phone at work where I dont need to use it)

Re: Google Pixel 2 and 2 XL announced

#609

Post by caf »

x0x0 wrote: post #600
caf wrote: post #567

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sure. The point here is that the promised "3 year minimum OS updates" for the Pixel 2 is a significant improvement on that.

My point is that 1 - Google has a history of living up to the absolute bare minimum promised. Apple does not. Per history, one can assume that when Google says they'll support for 3 years they mean 3 years and one day, and Apple means about 5. 2 - Google has a history of whining as if they are absolutely powerless, broke, and incapable of affecting what Qualcomm or others do. At least when it suits Google.

Which Apple device got 5 years support (from the last sale date, which is when a "minimum support" period applies from)?

Re: Google Pixel 2 and 2 XL announced

#610

Post by endorphone »

Akujin wrote: post #337
WrkInProgress wrote: post #313

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've used maybe 15 Android devices since it's inception. HTC, Samsung, Sony, Motorola, and "Google" (two Nexus devices and 1 Pixel). If I had to choose I would take stock Android in terms of aesthetics, ten times out of ten. However, over time Android has indeed taken MANY features from HTC, Motrola, Samsung and other OEMS and added them to vanilla android. I know I'm forgetting a lot more but off the top of my head:…

Yea... but how much of those features are really from HTC, Samsung, et al and not duplicates of features from iOS or even custom roms from XDA?

None of them? There is absolutely no question that these vendors tried some novel things that were later integrated within Android.

And if we need to talk about experience, I started with a G1 on Android 1.0, then G2, HTC Hero, Galaxy Nexus, Galaxy Glide, GS2, Nexus 4, GS3, Nexus 5, one other HTC that I can't remember the name of, Nexus 6p, GS8. I've tried a lot of devices, and I've rocked them all.

And through those with unique vendor additions, it was always a mix of ups and downs, and later to see many of those innovations being swept into the Android base.

I also question any claim that Android is "without frills, without skins". Android is 98% frills. With each iteration we have a new laundry list of frills. At the same time the core OS took until about version 7 to finally get basics like smooth scrolling down (something that vendor skins got to a much better state much earlier).

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