Google Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Professional (2022): Options, Value, Launch Date

If final 12 months’s Pixel 6 was a leap, Google’s new Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Professional smartphones are a small hop. At its Made by Google occasion in New York Metropolis at this time, the corporate unboxed its two new flagship telephones, each of which function small however welcome enhancements—like Face Unlock as a secondary option to authenticate your id, and a Cinematic Blur function that provides a portrait-like look to video footage.

The pair of Pixels aren’t the one {hardware} releases on the occasion. Google additionally provided up extra particulars in regards to the Pixel Watch, the corporate’s first-ever smartwatch, which you’ll learn extra about right here.

The Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Professional value $599 and $899, respectively, successfully staying the identical value as final 12 months’s Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Professional whereas nonetheless undercutting a lot of the competitors. This is every thing that is new. 

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Two P’s in a Pod

Pixel 7 is available in Obsidian, Snow, and Lemongrass.

{Photograph}: Google

Each new Pixels hold the identical total look Google debuted final 12 months with the Pixel 6, besides as a substitute of an all-glass digital camera bar on the rear, it is now largely aluminum. (Nice information, contemplating my Pixel 6’s digital camera bar is at the moment cracked.) The Pixel 7 is available in colours named Obsidian, Snow, and Lemongrass, and the Pixel 7 Professional is available in Obsidian, Snow, and Hazel. The colours and end are a bit extra muted than final 12 months’s units, which is a bit disappointing, however they actually look extra luxe. The Professional mannequin employs polished aluminum, and the usual Pixel has a matte end.

Two modifications I like? The Pixel 7 is a tiny bit smaller and lighter than the Pixel 6, with a 6.3-inch display (versus 6.4 inches). The Pixel 7 Professional sticks with the identical 6.7-inch display dimension, however the show glass has much less of a curve alongside the sides, which Brian Rakowski, vice chairman of product administration at Google, says was a change made in response to buyer suggestions. The display remains to be not fully flat like on the Pixel 7, although. Talking of screens, the one main change over final 12 months is display brightness. Google says these screens stand up to 25 p.c brighter when outdoor (1,400 nits peak brightness). 

There are not any substantial modifications to Google’s battery life claims for these telephones. The Pixel 7 has a smaller 4,355-mAh cell, which tracks contemplating its smaller dimension, and the Pixel 7 Professional has a 5,000-mAh battery—each of that are anticipated to final “past 24 hours” similar to the Pixel 6 sequence. In my testing, final 12 months’s units comfortably lasted a bit greater than a full day with heavy use, so you’ll be able to anticipate the identical right here. These telephones will cost as much as 50 p.c after half-hour of charging, which is gradual in comparison with their friends. You possibly can nonetheless recharge the brand new Pixels wirelessly too.

There’s nonetheless an in-display fingerprint sensor, however it’s not the one option to unlock the cellphone. Say hey to Face Unlock! You may keep in mind that Google tried out this function on the Pixel 4, however this new model is … worse. Sure, it could actually unlock your cellphone and cannot be spoofed by your personal photograph, however as a result of Google is not utilizing an array of 3D sensors like Apple makes use of for Face ID, Google’s resolution is just not as safe. So whereas Face Unlock offers you a faster path to your own home display, you’ll be able to’t use the function to authenticate funds or to signal into banking apps—you will have to make use of your fingerprint for these. It feels a bit half-baked, particularly because the Pixel 4’s Face Unlock was safer. “We’re not making an attempt to say it is probably the most safe factor ever,” Rakowski says.

Say Cheese

The Pixel 7 Professional is available in Obsidian, Snow, and Hazel.

{Photograph}: Google

Pixel telephones are identified for his or her high-quality cameras, however it’s troublesome to say precisely how a lot better the cameras are on the Pixel 7 sequence over their predecessors with out making an attempt them out.