Google Pixel 8
The Google Pixel 8 is unlike any other phone you can buy today. After testing it for nearly a week, I realized that the Pixel 8 and its AI features offer an early glimpse at how photography, calling and even our phone’s wallpaper could evolve. I wouldn’t run out and buy a Pixel 8 today solely because of these features, but it certainly shows how AI will continue to be integrated into our daily lives.
This photo never happened. CNET’s Jessica Fierro and Abrar Al-Heeti are normally all smiles. While taking a bunch of photos of them in a row, I was able to use Best Take and change their faces with these more serious ones from other photos. Can you tell that AI helped make this?
At first, Best Take creeped me out. But after applying it to a variety of photos of friends and coworkers, I think it’s incredible and works remarkably well. I can’t see any lines where the heads were swapped. (Yep, I actually wrote that.) And I still can’t fully get my head around the possibilities that Best Take opens up. It’s the start of a path where our photography can be even more curated and polished, even if the photos we take don’t start out that way.
Will Best Take make us more vain by giving us another tool to present a seemingly ideal version of ourselves online? Or should I just enjoy that I can have a nice photo where my friends look their best at that possible moment? I’m still conflicted.
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The Pixel 8 is smaller, lighter and brighter
The Pixel 8 is like a svelte version of the Pixel 7. It’s shorter and less wide, although it’s actually 0.2 millimeters thicker. It weighs 10 grams less than the Pixel 7. Combine all that with the fact that nearly every edge is rounded over, and you’ll find, like me, that the Pixel 8 is incredibly comfortable to hold, with or without a case.
My review unit is the rose color, which in most lighting looks peach.
The Pixel 8’s rear cameras are nestled in a camera bar that spans the width of the phone.
The Camera app has a slight redesign. There are two icons at the bottom: a photo camera and a video camera. When I tap on the photo camera, all the modes under the viewfinder change to photo-centric ones like portrait mode and long exposure mode. And when I tap on the video camera symbol, the modes become specific for video like slow motion. It took about a day to get used to this change, but I’m a fan of the new layout.
Also, the Pixel 8 has a new macro focus feature that kicks in when the phone’s main camera is within centimeters of a subject. I like this addition and found it useful for food and coffee snaps, where I want to get close enough for the cup or plate to fill the frame while remaining in focus.
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The Pixel 8 has a new macro focus mode that kicks in when you get close to your subject, in this case breakfast.
The 12-megapixel ultrawide camera is the same as the one on previous Pixel models. The 50-megapixel main camera has a new sensor that Google claims can collect 21% more light. The front-facing camera is also new, but still only has fixed focus on the Pixel 8 – compared with the Pixel 8 Pro’s front-facing autofocus camera.
Take a look below at some of my favorite photos that I took with the Pixel 8.
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I took this with the Pixel 8’s main camera at 2x.
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This shot of a dog in the afternoon sun shows off the Pixel 8’s dynamic range. Notice the texture in the dog’s fur and how it contrasts the texture of the floor’s wood grain.
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The Pixel 8, like previous Google phones, takes excellent photos of people.
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A slice of Medovyk from Veselka in NYC taken with the Pixel 8.
Here are a couple of selfies I took with the Pixel 8.
Does the Pixel 8 take better photos than the Pixel 7? Yes. But they’re not dramatically different. Check out the photos below of the Manhattan Bridge. Both look great.
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Both of these photos of the Manhattan Bridge were taken seconds apart. The left image is from the Google Pixel 8 and the right one from the Pixel 7.
But if I punch in on where the main upright section intersects with the deck, you can see that the Pixel 8’s image below has more detail and sharpness. Notice the individual rivets on the metal uprights compared to the Pixel 7’s photo, where most of them don’t show up.
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The Best Take interface in Google Photos on the Pixel 8.
Remember the Magic Eraser that debuted on the Pixel 6 that lets you remove a distraction from your photo like someone in the background? Now there’s Magic Editor on the Pixel 8 and 8 Pro, which lets you do even more. It can remove someone from the background or even move your photo’s subject and resize it. I replaced the sky, ground and even the entire background in some photos. Basically, if you see someone jumping abnormally high in a photo taken on a Pixel 8, beware: that person may have used the Magic Editor to exaggerate things.
For example, below is a photo I took of CNET’s Tara Brown and Theo Liggians jumping off a rock. I used the Magic Eraser, which has been around for a couple of years, to remove the rock. It’s obvious something was altered.
The new Magic Editor did a better job, but things could look better.
But why stop there? I tried the Magic Editor a second time and replaced the actual zigzag tiled ground and artificial turf with one entirely made of bricks. This obscured the shadow left from the rock and made everything look more uniform. I have no idea where the Pixel 8 came up with the replacement ground since there weren’t any bricks in the actual surface and that’s one of the downsides to using AI this way.
Sadly, my colleague Jessica doesn’t actually float. Clearly this was made with the Magic Editor.
Here is an unedited Pixel 8 photo with Jessica (front) and Abrar.
A side view of the Pixel 8. Just look at how much that camera bar sticks out!
Google’s Tensor chip has never been about pure horsepower. Instead, it targets optimizing specific tasks and powering all those AI capabilities mentioned earlier. And that’s the case for the Pixel 8’s Tensor G3 chip. During my six days with the phone, I never ran into any performance issues. When I was downloading Genshin Impact and PUBG Mobile and setting them up, the Pixel 8 did get very warm. But that was the only time I noticed this happen.
The G3 chip along with Android 14 makes the Pixel 8 a delight to use. There’s Face Unlock, which is once again secure enough to use for contactless payments, even without the Pixel 4’s fancy radar sensor. There are strange non-camera AI features like AI Wallpaper that creates an original wallpaper for your home screen based on MadLibs-style prompts. You can’t enter your own words and are limited to a list of words for each entry. I can also use Google Assistant to read articles aloud, and there’s a summarize feature that I never got to work. Anytime I asked the Assistant to summarize a story I’m met with the message, “Sorry I can’t summarize on this device yet.”
Call Screen debuted on the 2018 Pixel 3 and lets the Google Assistant answer a call while you listen in. On the Pixel 8, the Call Screen’s voice sounds like an actual human. I can’t tell if it’s fake or a recording of an actual human voice, which shows you how far Google has pushed this technology over the past five years.
The Pixel 8 has a slightly bigger battery than last year’s Pixel 7. Over the six days, the Pixel 8 had no problem making it through a full day on a single charge. I’m still working on running CNET’s arsenal of battery life tests and performance benchmarks, so check back soon for the results.
Final word on the Pixel 8
Google Pixel 8Google Pixel 8 ProGoogle Pixel 7AGoogle Pixel 7Display size, tech, resolution, refresh rate, brightness 6.2-inch OLED; 2,400×1,080 pixels; 60-120Hz adaptive refresh rate6.7-inch OLED; 3,120×1,440 pixels; 1-120Hz adaptive refresh rate6.1-inch OLED; 2,400×1,080 pixels; 60 or 90Hz variable refresh rate 6.3-inch OLED display, FHD+ (1080 x 2400 pixels) , 90HzPixel density 428 ppi489 ppi361 ppi416 ppiDimensions (inches) 5.9 x 2.8 x 0.4 in6.4 x 3.0 x 0.3 in6.00 x 2.87 x 0.35 in 6.13 x 2.88 x 0.34 inDimensions (millimeters) 150.5 x 70.8 x 8.9 mm162.6 x 76.5 x 8.8 mm152 x 73 x 9.0 mm155.6 x 73.2 x 8.7 mmWeight (grams, ounces) 187 g (6.6 oz)213 g (7.5 oz)193 g (6.81 oz)197 g (6.9 oz)Mobile software Android 14Android 14Android 13Android 13Camera 50-megapixel (wide), 12-megapixel (ultrawide)50-megapixel (wide), 48-megapixel (ultrawide), 48-megapixel (telephoto)64-megapixel (main), 13-megapixel (ultrawide)50-megapixel (wide), 12-megapixel (ultrawide), Front-facing camera 10.5-megapixel10.5-megapixel13-megapixel10.8-megapixelVideo capture 4K4K4K4KProcessor Google Tensor G3Google Tensor G3Google Tensor G2Google Tensor G2Storage and RAM 8GB + 128GB, 256GB12GB RAM + 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, 1TB8GB + 128GB8GB + 128GB, 256 GB,Expandable storage NoneNoneNoneNoneBattery 4,575 mAh5,050 mAh4,385 mAh4,355 mAh Fingerprint sensor Under displayUnder displaySideUnder displayConnector USB-CUSB-CUSB-CUSB-CHeadphone jack NoneNoneNoneNoneSpecial features 5G (Sub 6, mmWave); VPN by Google One; 7 years of OS, security and Feature Drop updates; front-facing camera has autofocus; 13W Qi wireless charging; 30W wired charging; USB-3.2 speeds via USB-C; IP68 dust and water resistance; Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on front and back5G (Sub 6 and mmWave); VPN by Google One; 7 years of OS, security and Feature Drop updates; front-facing camera has autofocus; 13W Qi wireless charging; 30W wired charging; USB-3.2 speeds via USB-C; IP68 dust and water resistance; Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on front and back5G (Sub6, mmWave); IP67 rating; 18W fast charging; 7.5W wireless charging 5G, Magic Eraser, Photo Unblur, Real Tone, Face Unblur, Long Exposure Mode, Action Pan; Hold For Me, Wait Times, Direct My Call Live TranslateUS price off-contract $699 (128GB)$999 (128GB)$499 (128GB)$600 (128GB)UK price £699 (128GB)£999 (128GB)£449 (128GB)£599 (128GB)Australia price AU$1,199 (128GB)AU$1,699 (128GB)AU$749 (128GB)AU$999 (128GB)
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Every phone tested by CNET’s reviews team was actually used in the real world. We test a phone’s features, play games and take photos. We examine the display to see if it’s bright, sharp and vibrant. We analyze the design and build to see how it is to hold and whether it has an IP-rating for water-resistance. We push the processor’s performance to the extremes using both standardized benchmark tools like GeekBench and 3DMark, along with our own anecdotal observations navigating the interface, recording high-resolution videos and playing graphically intense games at high refresh rates.
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Article source: https://www.cnet.com/tech/mobile/google-pixel-8-review-best-take-levels-up-ai-enhanced-photos/#ftag=CADe34d7bf