The Google Pixel 8 Pro: A Powerful AI-Driven Smartphone With Some Familiar Drawbacks
The Google Pixel 8 Pro is the latest flagship from Google, boasting a brand-new design, a powerful AI-enabled chipset, and a suite of AI-powered camera features. While it builds upon the strengths of its predecessor, the Pixel 7 Pro, some of the Pixel 8 Pro’s shortcomings remain, leaving some users questioning if it’s truly a worthy upgrade. This review takes a deep dive into the Pixel 8 Pro to see if its AI advancements outweigh its drawbacks.
Google Pixel 8 Pro Price in India: A Price Hike for Features?
Unlike last year, the Pixel 8 Pro finally offers a 256GB storage option in India, a welcome change after years of users complaining about the limited 128GB base model. The 128GB variant retails for Rs. 1,06,999, while the 256GB variant costs Rs. 1,13,999. This price increase, a hefty Rs. 22,000 over the Pixel 7 Pro, makes the Pixel 8 Pro Google’s most expensive Pixel smartphone to date in India. Considering the lack of free cloud storage and the fact that you still only get 128GB of storage at this price point, many users might find it difficult to justify the cost.
Google Pixel 8 Pro Design: A Refined, But Familiar Feel
The Pixel 8 Pro features a more distinct design compared to its predecessor. Gone is the curved edge display, replaced by a flat display, bringing a more modern, minimalist aesthetic. However, the phone retains the familiar Pixel design, especially with its sharp, protruding camera module. This module, while chunky, actually aids in grip, giving users a place to rest their finger for support.
The rear panel, finished in a sleek matte glass, is a first for Google’s Pixel lineup and boasts a luxurious feel. While it’s incredibly smooth and slippery, this contributes to resisting fingerprints. The phone weighs a balanced 213 grams, neither too heavy nor too light, which further contributes to its overall premium feel.
Key Design Changes:
- Flat display
- Matte-finished rear glass
- Refined, visor-like camera module
- No curved edges
Google Pixel 8 Pro Specifications & Software: An AI-Driven Android Experience
Under the hood, the Pixel 8 Pro is powered by Google’s new Tensor G3 chipset, built on a 4nm manufacturing process. This chipset, boasting a nona-core architecture, promises enhanced performance and efficiency. However, Google is focusing on its AI capabilities, making the Tensor G3 a powerhouse for AI-related tasks.
The phone comes standard with 12GB of RAM and offers up to 256GB of storage, with no expandable storage or additional SIM card slot. However, you can utilize the eSIM functionality to use two numbers on the same device.
Key Features & Specifications:
- Tensor G3 chipset
- 12GB RAM
- Up to 256GB storage (no expandable storage)
- Dual SIM (eSIM)
- WiFi 7
- Bluetooth 5.3
- NFC
- UWB support
The Pixel 8 Pro runs Android 14, which feels similar to Android 13 on the Pixel 7 Pro. However, it boasts several new AI-powered features, like the:
- AI Wallpaper: This feature generates unique and interesting wallpapers using Google’s AI. It requires an internet connection to work.
- Read Aloud: Google Assistant can now read aloud web pages, including translated ones, making it a handy tool for hands-free reading.
- Magic Editor: This AI-powered editing tool allows you to reposition people and objects in a photograph, making it a powerful tool for photo manipulation.
- Best Take: This feature analyzes a sequence of photos of the same scene and chooses the best one, even combining elements from multiple photos.
- Audio Magic Eraser: This tool identifies and removes unwanted sounds in a video, giving you more control over the audio in your recordings.
While these AI features are impressive, the Pixel 8 Pro still suffers from the same camera bug that plagued the Pixel 7 Pro: Night Sight photos are not saved when transitioning between zoom levels. This issue requires a phone restart or app crash to fix.
Google Pixel 8 Pro Performance: A Mixed Bag of Power and Heat
The Pixel 8 Pro’s 6.7-inch QHD+ OLED display excels in bright sunlight and delivers accurate colors in the Natural color mode. Its 120Hz dynamic refresh rate, which can drop to 1Hz when not in use, performs flawlessly.
However, the battery life remains a concern, while slightly improved compared to the Pixel 7 Pro. The Pixel 8 Pro managed 14 hours and 15 minutes in our video loop battery test, which is still behind many other flagships in this segment. For example, the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, priced at Rs. 20,000 more, achieved 21 hours and 7 minutes in the same test.
Key Performance Points:
- Excellent QHD+ OLED display
- 120Hz dynamic refresh rate
- Slightly improved battery life compared to the Pixel 7 Pro
- Still falls behind other flagship phones in battery life
While casual and high-end games run smoothly on the Pixel 8 Pro, it falls short compared to Snapdragon-powered rivals, especially when it comes to graphics-intensive titles. The phone does get warm after extended gaming sessions but doesn’t overheat, primarily due to CPU throttling. However, frame drops are noticeable during demanding gameplay due to the Tensor G3’s focus on AI rather than pure gaming performance. Ray-tracing isn’t supported, and touch responsiveness feels sluggish in fast-paced games.
Benchmark Scores:
- AnTuTu: 1,038,343
- Geekbench (Single-Core): 1,629
- Geekbench (Multi-Core): 3,274
Despite the overall performance improvements, the Pixel 8 Pro still struggles with photo processing, with issues persisting from the Pixel 7 Pro. Portrait mode photos take noticeable time to process, and shooting a few consecutive portrait mode photos will cause the camera to stop capturing images until processing is complete. This can lead to missed moments while shooting, especially if you are capturing rapidly changing events. RAW photo processing also takes longer than on some competitors, like the iPhone 15 Pro Max.
The Pixel 8 Pro continues to exhibit heating issues, particularly when using the camera app, especially in modes like Portrait and Night Sight. The phone also heats up significantly outdoors when connected to 5G networks. Google continues to omit vapour chamber cooling, which is found on many competitor flagship phones and contributes to cooler operation during intensive tasks.
The new Face Unlock feature is remarkably fast and secure, comparable to Apple’s Face ID, but it struggles in dim lighting, making the fingerprint sensor a more reliable option in those situations.
Google Pixel 8 Pro Cameras: A Strong Core With AI-Enhanced Features
The Pixel 8 Pro boasts significant camera upgrades, including a new 48-megapixel ultra-wide-angle camera replacing the 12-megapixel one found on the Pixel 7 Pro. The primary camera has also been improved, now boasting a brighter 50-megapixel sensor. While the primary camera’s improvements are subtle, the addition of the new ultra-wide camera is a significant upgrade.
Key Camera Features:
- 48-megapixel ultra-wide-angle camera
- Brighter 50-megapixel primary camera
- 5X telephoto camera
- Pro Controls mode
The Pixel 8 Pro introduces Pro Controls, a new pro mode that allows users to adjust advanced camera settings like:
- Brightness
- Shadows
- White balance
- Focus
- Shutter speed
- ISO
Pro Controls is designed for enthusiasts and makes it simple to control your camera settings, offering more versatility than even the iPhone 15 Pro Max.
Key Improvements in Pro Controls:
- User-friendly interface
- Comprehensive settings menu
- Lens selection for choosing between Auto and Manual
Image quality from the primary camera is nearly identical to the Pixel 7 Pro, with only slight differences in tone. The Pixel 8 Pro favors cooler tones, while the Pixel 7 Pro opted for warmer hues. The level of detail is exceptional, but the color accuracy can sometimes fall behind, even if the photos look appealing. Low-light images are fantastic, but the primary camera tends to crush blacks in scenarios with strong contrast.
The ultra-wide-angle camera, now sporting a higher-resolution sensor, delivers more detail and dynamic range in daylight. Colors are accurate, and macro photography is noticeably improved, allowing you to capture subjects from as close as 2 cm.
The 5X telephoto camera continues to deliver impressive image quality, delivering crisp detail in daylight. Images captured using this lens are ideal for portraits and close-ups, with a natural bokeh effect. The Super Res Zoom manages quality images up to 10X (hybrid zoom), but quality quickly degrades beyond that.
While video quality was a point of weakness on the Pixel 7 Pro, the Pixel 8 Pro showcases a significant improvement. 4K 30fps video from the primary camera is sharp, boasts a good bitrate, and delivers a smooth frame rate. Stabilisation is also excellent, another notable upgrade over the Pixel 7 Pro. Low-light footage is detailed and features minimal noise. HDR footage in 4K 30fps appears somewhat saturated but still offers good contrast and detail, even in low light.
Google Pixel 8 Pro Review: Verdict
The Google Pixel 8 Pro stands out from previous Pixels with its advanced AI capabilities. Google’s focus on AI is evident in the phone’s ability to handle a wide range of AI-related tasks, often without requiring an internet connection. The impressive Pro Controls mode offers a powerful degree of control for mobile photography enthusiasts.
However, the hefty price increase may deter some users from upgrading from the Pixel 7 Pro, as many of the new features, except for the seven-year commitment to software updates, may not be considered essential upgrades.
The Pixel 7 Pro, currently available for as low as Rs. 63,999, offers a compelling alternative, especially considering its strong image quality and competitive price point. While its video recording capabilities lag behind the Pixel 8 Pro, users looking for a value-oriented option should consider it.
If you’re willing to spend upwards of Rs. 1,00,000 in India, the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra presents a compelling alternative. While the Galaxy S23 Ultra costs Rs. 1,24,999 for the 256GB variant, it offers better zoom capabilities, a larger and more vibrant display, exceptional battery life, and the benefit of Samsung’s Galaxy ecosystem, which includes smartwatches, audio accessories, tablets, and laptops.
Ultimately, the Pixel 8 Pro is a powerful smartphone with several impressive AI-powered features, but its shortcomings in battery life, performance, and pricing may make it a difficult sell for many users. If the advanced AI features are a top priority, and you’re willing to accept the higher price, the Pixel 8 Pro is a great option. If not, there are other compelling flagships available on the market that may be a better fit for your needs and budget.
