Google Pixel XL vs Nexus 6P: Does the Nexus hold its own? By Android Police

The Google Pixel Excel is an awesome smartphone. The Nexus 6p was and still is, an awesome smartphone, but when Google announced the pixel, it meant two things one, it meant Google was finally ready to release their very own smartphone one that would allow them to go head-to-head with mainly Apple and Samsung a phone over which they had full control of both software and hardware and two. It meant the unfortunate death of the Nexus, a brand so dearly loved by the Android community. The last phone to carry that Nexus name was the Nexus 6p. It was part of Google's ongoing collaborations with other OEMs to release a phone with top-notch specs, but at a lower cost. Ever since the beginning, the Nexus smartphone name was always accompanied by the name of its builder.

You had these Samsung Galaxy Nexus, LG, Nexus, 4, LG, Nexus 5, somewhere on the device you'd see their branding and some time the design of the phone was heavily influenced as well. If you remember the Motorola Nexus 6, that thing was pretty much a Moto X on steroids. The two looked nearly identical, so Google's pretty much had enough of that. As you may or may not know, Google's pixel is actually built by HTC, but the design was all in Google's hands and if you'll notice, there's zero HTC branding here. But with the last of the Nexus smartphones, we have a phone that appears to many as one still capable of competing for consumer pockets well over a year after its release.

So how well does the 6p compared to Google's new baby, the pixel XL? Let's go ahead and take a look at what exactly differentiates the two? Is it out with the old and in with the new, or does the old expose the new when the well we built Nexus 6p was released, I called it the best Android phone ever made in my review. It was a near-perfect smartphone because it did almost everything well with little to no sacrifices boasting an extremely attractive 5.7 inch, quad HD AMOLED display, flanked by stereo speakers, had USB type-c a rather beefy 3450 William hour battery. A super solid, 12, megapixel camera, a 499 dollars starting price and a sleek smooth, aluminum build which can be extremely slippery by the way. This goes for the pixel as well, so to help with that I went ahead and slapped some deep brand skins on mine. You can find the ones that I'm using in the description, so really it was almost as if t 6p could do no wrong for the money.

No other phone was coming close to the 6p, at least in my opinion, not to mention one of the nexuses the biggest perks, getting the latest versions of Android. First, although it may be a developer build. My 6p is running Android 7.1.1, which is actually sitting atop the 7.1 on my pixel excel this developer, build of Android seemed to breathe new life into my 6p, as it appears to have gotten even smoother. At first, I thought it was the placebo effect, but the more and more I used the phone. The more I became convinced that it wasn't.

This one-year-old phone is straight butter. In all honesty, I would have no problem whatsoever. Tossing my sim card back into the 6p and using it as my daily driver. It's still that good the pixel excel, on the other hand, is built better. It has a newer, faster processor, and it has a much better set of cameras, and while we should expect these types of upgrades, especially after a year, there really isn't too much else that separates these two phones.

Well, of course, you could argue that the pixel has Google Assistant, which might I mention is not only unique to the pixel out of the box. It's also pretty much the main selling point of the phone according to Google, but you can actually get Google Assistant on your 6p and other devices as long as they're rooted. So there goes that and the pixels fingerprint reader can actually be used to activate the notification shade with a down swipe, although it appears as if Google is looking to bring that feature to the 6p. So there goes that to something that does heavily separate. The two is the price never has a nexus phone launched with a starting price over 650 dollars.

The closest we've come to. That was the Nexus 6 from 2014 that launched at that exact 650 dollars, and it was still cheaper than the competition. Now, as I stated before the 6p started at $4.99, the pixel XL, on the other hand, starts at seven hundred and seventy dollars. Google clearly threw caution to the wind. With this one bumping up the price to compete with Apple's, iPhone and Samsung's Galaxy.

So by now, you're, probably asking yourself two questions: one is the pixel Excel really worth that much and two? If so, is it really worth dang near three hundred dollars more than the 6p? To answer those questions? You really have to consider what the pixel has going for it and how it stacks up to its competition. The pixel runs buttery smooth pure stock Android and has a gorgeous display, solid, build quality and a killer camera, and while it may not be the most consistent camera out there, it's definitely up there. With the cameras found on the iPhone, 7 and Galaxy S7 edge, you could easily say it's top to the pixel charges extremely fast, with USB power delivery and, in my use, I averaged about five and a half to six hours of screen on time. So what else can this phone do? Well, not all that much to be honest, I mean you've, got phones like the s7 and iPhone seven sporting water-resistance, the iPhone 7 HTC, 10 and Nexus 6p have great sounding stereo speakers. The LGA, 20 and s7 have expandable storage and the V 20 and iPhone 7 plus have dual camera lens setups, and none of these things can be found on the pixel XL.

So what makes this phone worth that extra cash? This is totally a viable question, especially when considering Google's young assistant is spearheading the pixels marketing campaign. So when looking at the big picture, aside from the speck bumps, there really isn't that big of a difference between these 6p and Excel, let's be real here sure the pixel is newer, faster, more solid. It's the best stock Android phone out there, but I'll be honest with you guys. After using both devices extensively I'd be way more comfortable recommending buyers to snatch up a 6p at 500 bucks, then a pixel XL at 780 dollars only under certain conditions. However, now, if you're someone who takes a lot of pictures- and you rely on your phone to capture that perfect moment, the pixel XL is definitely worth the extra cash.

However, that's not to say that the 6p doesn't have a capable shooter. The 6p actually still takes perfect shots, but at the end of the day, it's no question which one is superior. If money's no object and you're looking for the latest and greatest again, the XL is your phone, but if you're hesitant due to the price- and you don't necessarily need the latest and greatest specs- and if pictures aren't your main focus, no pun intended, then the 6p comes out the clear winner. If you're in the market, for a phone, and you're, considering these two devices, I'd say: save a few Benjamin's pick up a 6p and wait for the second-generation pixel XL. If you already own a 6p I would still recommend that you wait an upgrade, isn't totally necessary.

In my opinion, I've said it before, and I'll say it again. Google's first attempt at a complete in-house smartphone was a good one, but I just missed the market could have easily hit and if it did hit that mark, it would have been a home run. Google will take what they learned from this. First go-around and they'll come back swinging with the second generation pixel. As of now, the Nexus 6p is still a heavy hitter.

So what do you guys think which phone is better pound-for-pound? Let us know by dropping a comment down below we'd love, to hear your feedback, but that does it for the video I hope you guys enjoyed it. If you did feel free to hit that like button subscribe to the Android police channel, if you haven't already, but that does it for me, I'll talk to you guys in the next one, and thanks for watching.

Source : Android Police