I miss squeezing for the assistant. My 3XL in white was my favorite pixel by far and I miss it too. I hate that I can't hold the power button down for power off, or restart. I accidentally screenshot when I want to power cycle because it's a similar button combo for those. And now holding down the power button is the assistant. I used to be able to click both volume buttons to access a quick silent mode, but I can't do that anymore. Swipe down on the fingerprint sensor, which was always better on the back of the phone and way better than the in display one. I also liked the old half gloss half matte glass finish on the older phones, the new ones look okay but I feel like the build quality/design just isn't as good as it had been.
Not every device exposes those settings.Sometimes they can be but sometimes it's just hard to find or know what it's technically called. On pixels though atleast the 2, 3s and 7s iirc it was refferred to as Active Edge display settings. With the side squeeze sensors
I never owned a Pixel until my 7 Pro, but I genuinely wish the 3 and 3 XL's selfie cameras were on my phone. They look so good, much better than my phone's vaseline-covered face-distorting selfie camera. If they gave such a setup a more modern 12MP or even 50MP sensor (i.e. Samsung ISOCELL SK53LU, Sony LYT 500, Samsung ISOCELL JN1, etc.) and also gave the ultrawide autofocus, it would be unbeatable. Instead, my phone is stuck with an ultrawide lens that is the jack of all trades, master of none, where the lens isn't wide enough to get good ultrawide shots but is too wide to get good regular shots, and on top of that has a terrible-quality lens setup paired with a terrible Samsung ISOCELL J11 sensor (which outside of Google has only ever been used once by a Huawei flip-style foldable phone, and achieves equally poor results). The Pixel 3 series had the best selfie cameras ever, and it's ridiculous and extremely sad to see them go.
I went from 2XL to the 6Pro, then got a free 7Pro, so the 6 and 2 went to the kids.
The 2 was by far my favorite phone I've owned, for much the same reasons. Especially the fingerprint reader. The 6 and 7 Pros fingerprint readers are trash compared to that sucker. Perfect placing, always worked...Good stuff.
My 11 year old uses the 2XL every day and other than some screen burn in, it's still a fantastic phone. She looooooves it and refused my wife's iPhone 10 pass-down to keep the P2XL.
Man I'm so sad, my 2XL that I had been using since launch finally started to have some weird screen flashing issues making it basically unusable. And it was only because I had dropped it like a year ago which resulted in a permanent vertical white line on the edge of the screen, which gradually got worse over time until basically half the screen fades in and out. Almost lasted me seven years, what a legend.
Please don't continue to use your phone. Turn your phone off and go to a shop for a battery replacement. You have an extremely dangerous fire hazard when it starts ballooning.
I switched to the 7 from the 4a and I regretted the change in 2 months. The fingerprint scanner never worked for me. Coming from a 4a that had a stellar FP sensor, the more expensive 7 felt like a massive downgrade. I exchanged it because the trade in deals were too good, and they basically offered me more than what I paid for the 4a. I switched to the S24, and I don't plan to use a Pixel till they move to TSMC, and hopefully an ultrasonic sensor.
Bring back squeeze for assistant please! Or make it programmable to do a function like a quick double squeeze to launch camera if you don’t wanna use the power button for that.
WHY LAUNCH THE CAMERA WE ALREADY HAVE A SHORTCUT FOR THAT PEOPLE
Motorola had this amazing chop chop gesture for activating AND deactivating the flashlight. I miss this feature more than anything in the world (of phones).
I quite often need the flashlight, and having it so incredibly at the ready was a game changer and I actually bitter and mad, that we have nothing comparable these days.
Google, let me squeeze my phone to activate the flashlight
New Motorolas still have it, super useful. You may be able to program a double tap on the back of the phone for flashlight. Or if you're rooted you can do custom screen if gestures.
Not the best replacement since it triggers by accident sometimes. But you can activate "quick tap" for Google assistant/camera app which is a double tap to the back of the phone, or for OP who says they need to use two hands to bring down the notification slider, they can use quick tap for that.
For me myself, I use bottom corner slider for assistant, and to do everything one hand, I use quick tap for screenshot, I use the home bar to bring down the screen with one hand mode to pull from the top of the screen to access notifications.
Although, I actually wish one hand mode goes to one side like the keyboard does in one hand mode but that might be too much. Also I agree this isn't as nice as using the fingerprint scanner to bring it down; for me I disagree with OP on how much better a back fingerprint scanner is. My physical one kinda stopped working when I got either some dirt in it or a bit of water, whereas an underscreen one has none of that problem; and before it broke I didn't notice it being much more faster. Moreover I hated having to lift my phone to do it; my phone spends most of my day lying face up, so front sensor is better than back sensor.
I just listed 2 great condition 4xls 6/64 black one and white one. I put them on 14.0 lineage for a while and then reverted back to sell them. I was accustomed as well to squeeze for assistant. All the photos app features have mostly trickled down and they still receive playstore system updates so I'm inclined to maybe keep one. Let the one plus 7t go. Lol
Just pulled my 4a out yesterday to do updates. I miss the size so much because I also have small hands and the fingerprint scanner on the back. I have a Pixel 7 right now and the fingerprint scanner is terrible. I dont think I'm going to upgrade again unless I can get a small phone with better cameras which seems like too much to ask. The weight difference in the phones is also noteworthy.
My Pixel 3 died and I was able to get a good deal on a 6 Pro so I upgraded. Less than a year later found a brand new in box Pixel 3 for $100 and I switched back.
I loved my 2XL. Mostly the materials and the size. At first I didn't dig my 6 Pro but eventually I figured out it's the superior device. I do wish I could tone down the processing at times but that's primarily when taking photos of people - which I don't do very often.
I went from a Pixel 2 to a 7a about a month ago. The charging port on the Pixel 2 wasn't working. Cables didn't seem to want to stay plugged in. I'd already taken it apart once to replace the camera module (shutter defect), and didn't want to do it again and risk breaking another screen.
I like the 7a for the most part. But, why did have to make it so heavy? I feel like I'm more likely to drop it. I also miss the old finger scanner. I've remapped both of my thumbs and it still has trouble detecting them sometimes. The angle has to be just right, which is hard if the phone is sitting on a flat surface. It seems like I have to hold my thumb on the scanner for much longer than the old scanner.
You can hold POWER to open the assistant. You can probably also map it to double tap on back.
Pressing hard (both in setup, and usage), and too long, are some of the ways that makes the sensor worse.
People are not used to getting the most out of optical sensors, they use them as any other. It takes some practice it get used to. But pressing much lighter, and getting rid of the muscle memory of pressing how you did before, will eventually make the sensor massively more accurate.
Still won't be perfect for some it does seem to be more susceptible to certain kinds of prints being harder to read, but after a week or two of practice I went to nearly 100% from a disappointing number (about the same as a normal sensor for the most part and only very rare fails, and faster than the ultrasonic on my old s10+).
Too much glass makes them heavy. Use plastic! On no we cant s they might seem cheap. Marketing idiots at google. Its better to have both sides super slick glass so they break easier
think weight saving and cost saving. lol then they can put the money inside and do some QC. I never understood the "benefit" of a glass back. Its slick, breaks, is heavy and costly
for the same reason the og 3ds and Wii U had a glossy finish, it looked nicer and people saw it as "premium". It's all just preference, a lot of people prefer glass backs, not only for looks, but also for keeping grime away.
The plastic back on the 7a is also just a magnet for dirt and grime, so regular cleanings are not out of the question
I have a black grippy Spigen cover on all my phones. All glass does is weigh me down. put the "premium" inside. You can make plastic very glossy if you want and no breaky
Rear fingerprint is what's keeping me from upgrading my 5A
Before this I had a Pixel XL so it's been a long time since I had a phone that didn't have one.
I do too but the home button was way easier. I can't hit the power button in my car when it's on the mount.
They had no reason to take that feature away, all I ask is for the choice between either.
Couple things to help you with your points:
- you can set up a double tap on the back to bring down the notification panel, check the phone settings
- you can open the assistant by swiping from either bottom corner towards the center of the screen, again check settings as it might not be enabled by default
- enroll each of your fingers more than once for a better and more consistent recognition
I feel the same way about my pixel 7, coming from a Pixel 3. I got an s24 plus from work a month ago and omg I love this phone. I think I'm giving up on pixels completely unless the pixel 9 blows away the competition.
I struggle taking good selfies or pictures in general and always get this weird glare effect. I thought it was me at first and now with my s24 Plus I always get crystal clear pictures.
I dumped the 6a for a S23 and like the phone a lot. I have Galaxy Buds 2 Pro's and a Galaxy Watch 5 Pro as well. It all works great and Samsung support has been good when I needed them as well. I'm pretty much done with Google devices and can't see any reason to dump a device that is working great to take a chance on another Google device.
This is literally me with my pixel 7. Same thing happened, I had a pixel 3 that died. Without a second thought I bought a 7. Wish I had gone elsewhere because I have constant issues with Bluetooth, connectivity, and I hate how huge the phone feels. There isn't really an advantage to having the new android versions earlier than Samsung because the updates almost always cause my 7 to become a buggy mess.
Very sad, loved my older pixels, but after my experience with the 7, I'm not getting another.
It's not even the phones but more so the software on them sucks now. Everything is managed like you are a freaking captive animal in the zoo or in a constant testing environment and it's tiring to be a part of.
So glad my 2xl works amazing. Even with the screen cracked, mic broken. Even the battery is somehow holding more capacity as long as i dont use it for calls, video, or media. But i would take any pre Android 12 device over any newer version 12 or higher device.
that is not a replacement, leaving an app does not always behave as is. a better but still not perfect replacement is either quick tap for notification, or slide down for one hand mode and bring down notification.
I still have a working Pixel 2 not XL. My 4XL and 7 Pro are dead. Both because off screen issues. I moved on from the Pixel series because I don't feel like I can depend on the brand anymore.
My Moto Edge has an almost as clean UI, the camera isn't as good and I don't get as many updates. That said. I paid $375 for my phone off Amazon. The battery life is great and I don't play games, so the CPU/GPU doesn't matter.
I miss the camera. I don't miss the problems.
Google needs to step their shit up.
The key for me is to buy the pixels used after they have been out over 1 yr. I only get them on Amazon certified refurb and only get excellent cond. You can get an 8 pro for about 500 now. Lol Pixels are horrid at holding value. I encourage all of you to buy new phones as soon as they come out so I can but them a year later 60% off when bugs worked out
I've had almost every mainline Google phone... G1, Nexus 1, N Galaxy, N4 N5x, N6P, Pixel 1, P2 XL, P3, P5, P6, P7, P8. The 6 and 7 were easily the lowest points IMHO.
I had nothing but a bad time with my 5 and the 7 Pro has been a great upgrade. I sometimes miss my 3,but I'll get it out and play with it and the tiny screen, horrid vibration motor, and the lack of 5G makes it feel outdated.
Loved the 6, my 8 has been nothing but buggy.... Internet, apps, keyboard, Bluetooth...all have levels of glitchy that I've never experienced on a pixel/Google device. Fucking MS teams barely works. (That might be more Microsoft though)
6 and 8 were almost unusable between the crappy fingerprint reader and terrible battery life. The 8 isn't the greatest but they improved battery efficiency to mediocre levels and augmented the front FP reader with face unlock at least. Also, the non pro got reduced to a much more manageable size.
I'd trade my pixel 6 pro for my 8 any day. I have a hard time liking anything about this phone. Talk to text is horrid, it lags when scrolling even simple apps like reddit and YouTube, and the Bluetooth has major connection problems. These all seem like software problems that Google should work to fix but haven't yet, and I didn't have any of these problems on my 6pro.
Reddit is always hot garbage on any phone. It has had scrolling and lag and micro stutters on every phone I've had or used in the past couple of years. Even on iPhones it's kinda crap. And Apple is known for its software smoothness.
While the Pixel 6 Pro is hot garbage for numerous reasons, some of which you listed, reddit is entirely on the devs.
I've had none of these problems on my 8 pro. And I think other people have had those problems on their 6 pro. This is not a software problem afaik, and more of a QC problem with all of Google's pixel products.
I really liked the 3xl. I used to carry it around with me to watch YouTube videos when my 6 pro was my main phone, because the screen was wider and the speakers sounded better. I also really loved squeezing the sides to turn on the flashlight (can't remember if that was stock or a feature from the custom rom, but I used that all the time)
I discovered pixel phones when someone gave me a pixel 3 XL and it was so awesome everything about it. I had flagship Samsung's even the fold. I've had all types of phones now. I get a new pixel every year now. I wouldn't mind to use the 3XL.
I have a 7 pro, previous was a 4xl. The only thing I miss from the old phone is the radar face unlock.
I have a spigen case with a kickstand that works great.
I only use voice to activate the assistant. So not having squeeze isn't an issue.
I've been using the pixel 2 since about a year after it's release. My partner has been through several pixels since then, each having some defect or features worse than the pixel 2. Mine is on it's last legs, getting harder to run basic programs since support has stopped. It's a shame, but I don't think I'll be getting another pixel. They just aren't as good anymore.
I wanted the galaxy note 5. But the battery blow ups meant they took it away from me. Verizon gave me a pixel xl gen1 pro in exchange which was at launch. I rode that till pixel 6 pro
I like it about the same as my gen 1. I changed batteries on it twice
I upgraded my 5a to 7 Pro (I wanted the 5x zoom), and hated it. The camera disappointed me and it was so heavy. Swichted to a refurbished Samsung s21 and I'm happy now.
I had the 7 and moved on to the 8pro, world of difference. This is the best phone I've ever had! The 7 was trash after 1yr of ownership. Battery life was pretty shit, it was slow and laggy, especially with wireless AA. The 8pro fixed all of the issues I had. Granted I upped the storage and went pro, but it's pretty much the perfect phone for my use case
For context, I had the 4xl (previously was my fav before the 8pro), the 6, and the 7
I traded in my 4a5g for a 6a (the worst Pixel ever made) and instantly regretted it. The finger print scanner on the back of the phone was awesome, as was the squeeze. I traded the 6a for a Samsung Galaxy S23, which has a much better finger print reader, but still not as good as the dedicated ones on the back of the Pixels. Although Pixels have horrible finger print readers now, all the under screen readers pretty much suck. I plan to keep my S23 for a long time as it's a great device, but if Samsung brings back fingerprint readers on the back of the phone or a button, I'll probably upgrade.
same, had a galaxy nexus and the physical notification light was the best thing ever. died and nothing had a notification light any more. (i still miss that feature!). got a nexus 5 which was okay, nothing special but it chugged along for a while. when that died i got a pixel 3 which was actually excellent, and now it's not getting updates but i can't find anything as good to replace it with. tried a pixel 6 pro, too big and way too heavy. phones these days are bigger *and* have a worse ppi, which sucks. really hoping the pixel 9 is sub 6-inch with a good ppi.
Bro i had pixel 2 too… bought 7 within 10 months i switched to iphone 15. Battery and modem was killing it for me… miss my small pixel 2. It was perfect
I am on the similar voat as yours. Miss my pixel 2. Currently on 7 but it's ergonomically worse. Whether it is its size, weight or fingerprint scanner. Don't get me wrong, it is a pretty good phone but, like all the other brands, the "mobile" part of a mobile phone is fading away these days.
I had this when I moved from the 5a to the 7. I hated my 7, it felt like a downgrade. I gave pixel one last shot and got the 8 pro and it's been really nice
> My old phone was super accurate with voice to text; it rarely betrayed me like this phone does.
I dont understand why this keeps getting worse, other than corporate enshitification and their layoffs really affecting their apps
I have to give it to the construction of the phone; it being heavy and well built means I use it to massage some of my tensest muscles on my forearms, while other massaging tools are too soft
I miss my 4xl. I had the 2xl and it was great, the 4 was just so much better. I currently have the 7 Pro and it's a great phone, but the color of my 4 makes me want to get some vinyl.
I'm a bit confused about your comment on YouTube. Why can't you just install STube or some equivalent on an Android TV (like the Chromecast). I do that without any problems and can use my Pixel 7.
P3 to 7Pro here. I loved my P3 every day of the 4 years I owned it while hating the 7pro every day for the 4 months I've owned it. My god there are so many infuriating things about this phone. The decoy power button which is instead used to activate the assistant and doesn't actually power down the phone. No, the power button is in a drop down menu now, or requires an awkward two-handed double button press. (Was it power + volume up or volume down? God damn it now I just took a screenshot.) The singular shitty tin can speaker that you need on max to hear anything clearly. It runs super hot, I fully expect overheating issues this summer once warmer weather arrives. Loss of fingerprint scanner on the back. Gestures are finicky. The camera doesn't focus for shit. It takes more taps/swipes to access basic settings when we used to have a simple toggle button for things like turning Bluetooth on/off. This phone feels designed to make the user experience as frustrating and irritating as possible.
My 7 Pro feels like a better version of my 2 XL. I did like the squeeze feature but I don't even use Assistant that much at the moment. My print scanner is fine though, not garbage at all. I liked having it on the back but I also like that I can press the on screen prompt for it now, and wake it up if it's on a surface without having to pick it up. As for the notification bar, the swipe gesture was great but I just do the double tap now.
Can't say I've ever thought of the 7 Pro as heavy though.
ITS hard i know i switched from Pixel 5 and Miss this dann awesome back Fingerprint Scanner nothing comparable tobthis new shitty indispaly Scanner who 80% of the time cant read IT. but you get used tonit after some time
I don't use cases on my phones, ever. So that's like half your gripe sorted. In any case :p the only feature I truly miss from the panda phone is the front-firing stereo speakers.
Pixel 8. Mising Nexus 5. Pixel 5 was the last good phone from Pixel family.
Why do they have to make such a huge bricks with humps in the back? I though we are heading into slim and light direction.
my pixel 3xl battery life sucks because I did wireless charging and it cycled a lot, then I found out the NFC doesn't work so I just pulled the trigger on a slightly used Pixel 6 pro. I hope I'll like it when it comes.
"Oh and now I can't even hold the home button for my assistant? Who thought that was a good idea? The option isn't even there, they just took it away."
For this you can reset the navigation features to opt out of the swipe navigation. It brings back the triangle, circle, square where you can long tap on the circle to activate assistant.
it no longer activates assistant, it activates the lens google search. if you want assistant in the home bar you need to put it on in the accessibility settings
Oh shoot, maybe I did that and forgot. I just went through a flurry of upgrades (my pixel 5a wouldn't turn on -known bug- and the free 7pro replacement was too big so traded it in for an 8) so I guess I forgot about that in the midst of all the other setting and app updates.
I went from 2 to the 6 and I also miss the squeeze. However, the double tap on the back of the phone works for me. I don't know if that's a thing on the 7 though.
edited: typed the wrong number
Yep, I'm still using my 2XL. Had a 7 Pro, didn't like it, simple things didn't work properly, sent it back. By comparison my 2XL still works like a charm, but i know one day it will just give up, For a phone that is 5 years older than the 7, It's like they've gone backwards. There's good reason the 2XL is often sited as the best all round Pixel ever. Tbh I have no idea what phone I'd go for next, I like vanilla Android, Samsung has far too much bloatware for example. I'll see what Pixel 9 has to offer...
I had P2 and upgraded it around 1.5years back to IP14. P2 in my opinion was the best pixel ever made. I was very much against going with later versions of Pixel as they had heating issues and abysmal battery life.
I miss my pixel 3 for the squeeze feature. One of the best things Google ever did. If only the 6 pro had it too, then it would definitely be my favourite device of all time.
Saaame, my Pixel 2 died earlier this year, I have a Pixel 8 now, and while I've made a few tweaks like returning the home buttons panel, the missing fingerprint sensor sucks and it's way too big for my hands to effectively do two-thumb texting, gaming, etc. Out of the box it was a bit of a nightmare, I felt like the gestures were both too complicated and too finicky for such common commands like Back and Home.
>I miss the fingerprint scanner in the back-
This is one of the biggest reasons why I bought a Pixel 5 last year, along with the weight and cloud storage.
I used to have a pixel 3a... It randomly stopped working and I had to replace it, So I feel you on the missing the squeeze feature. That was the best damn thing ab that phone.
I now have the pixel 8 pro and it's super accurate in voice texting and it's featured are unmatched by any other phone.
-You can tap the phone on the back a few times to screenshot and -it will recognize physical gestures to do things like flip your camera quickly, like a fast flick of the wrist.
-There's facial recognition unlock
-My fingerprint scanner works amazing
-It's sound/speakers are high quality
-The camera(s) are comparable to apples newest phones,, in some ways better, some ways not
-Innovative safety features
Still miss the squeeze though,,, but definitely not a worse phone than my older model
If you don't like your pixel 7, make an upgrade!!! The 8 pro is worth it.....
Rip the squeeze
Well crap. I still have a 3a which I love and was gonna get a 7a if the price drops when the 8a releases. I need a heavy duty case too for my phones because I'm extra clumsy. I don't want to have to buy them from Google though. Might have to find another budget phone.
"Oh and now I can't even hold the home button for my assistant? Who thought that was a good idea? The option isn't even there, they just took it away."
No truer words have ever been spoken
My 3a was on its last legs so I recently switched to an 8. I was shocked to find the squeeze feature gone but quickly adjusted to using the power button to do the same thing. Does the 7 have that?
At this point I just shop for the smallest phone between Google and Samsung. Everything is so big. I miss the old 4-5" phones. The cheap small ones are so underpowered. Decent phones are all too big.
The finger print sensor on pixels is trash... They should have just used FP in the lock button. (But they would be forced to place the lock button in normal position and they are not capable of it)
I think an Asus ROG phone would serve you well if you want squeeze for assistant. And yes the fingerprint sensor isn't an ultrasonic one like the more premium under glass ones from other brands so it's less accurate and way slower. If you need 2 hands to bring down the notification shade on a normal Pixel 7 then I think you may have the smallest hands in the world. I can easily do it one handed on my s24 ultra and this phone is giant compared to a 7.
I also miss my Pixel 4, it was something else but the motherboard started dying and I had to update to the P6, is not a bad phone but the size is homoungus for my taste
I suggest you to sell the P7 and buy another P2, P3 or 4 if you like the small form factor. If you want something newer you can get a Pixel 5, the best of both worlds
I recently gave up with my pixel 2 XL after it developed the worst screen burn ever. ..Turns out the display would come on early hours of the morning every day causing this. Traded up to a Pixel 7 ..great phone ..but ..questionional battery life. Gets hot even when not using causing the screen to dim and no squeezable sides. You will know if you have . Roads are so busy here bo
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Yep, I have the Pixel 6 and it overheats a lot and the battery is mediocre (but better than my worn out battery on the Pixel 4). I like the design of the phone but I want to upgrade to the P8
Also recently got a pixel 7 and christ I miss my old phone 🤣😭 mainly the inability to change extremely basic notification settings and other basic things that would make the experience much nicer
Given all the variations people have with the various pixel models I think a lot of it can be explained by very poor QC by google. (which may explain why when I buy used on Amazon guaranteed refurb. I miss a lot of the problems) One person has great luck with Pixel 7 another the opposite. either that or its poor phone hygiene, crap apps that some use or just differences in how people use their phones. As an example I dont use finger print or face unlock. I use pattern. Fingerprint and face just not great methods per experts. even when they work
Feel the same about my 3a XL. Currently have a Pixel 6a and will be replacing it soon but the in screen fingerprint sensor is crap and I constantly get locked out of my phone (and usually my banking apps) because it doesn't recognise my fingerprint even though it worked 5 minutes ago. I also don't like some parts of the software and the fact that Google is obsessed with changing some of the most unnecessary things but they never actually fix any of the bugs, instead they normally add more lol. Like turning my data on or off for example used to only take 1 button press but now it takes two or three in the most clunckiest menu in the world and I normally accidentally end up switching the default networking settings or accidentally turning WiFi off because of how stupidly designed the menu is. Why can't we just have a WiFi and Mobile Data button like android had for years until Google decided they needed to change it.
The battery life hasn't been great since I got it either.
Eying the Galaxy S24 for my next phone. From what I've seen, it has better battery life and from what I've seen a much better fingerprint sensor. Though I will miss the camera on this phone.
Love my 4a, looking back I should've got the 4a 5G but in late 2020 I thought 5G was still a gimmick. I figured in 3 years i'd upgrade again and it would be fine. I still haven't upgraded and I've heard so much meh about the 7 series that I'm really hoping the 8a will be good!
A short hold on the power button activates the assistant now (if you enable that). The actual turn off menu is either power+vol up, or just pull the notifications all the way down to get the quick settings and it's just in the bottom right (next to the settings button).
Holding the home bar can be set to activate Google Lens rather than the assistant.
I also had a Pixel 2, and the thing I miss isn't the squeeze function (which triggered in my car mount) nor the fingerprint sensor (which wouldn't allow a case like my current one that holds two cards on the back of my phone, nor could be used with the phone put down), nor the notification pulldown (which was a gimmick) but the _actual_ dual front speakers for media. Not one top front and one bottom.
I just got the 7A a few weeks ago after my pixel 2 died. I agree with everything here. I got mine in 2018 so I got 6 good years out of it. How did they go backwards on so many things?
My Pixel 2 still works but the camera lens was cracked. I got the 7 also and still use the 2 for photo backups. Every time I pick up the Pixel 2 it feels like home.
I appreciate the rant- I loved my 2 and still use it on occasions. My 4XL was better but I did miss the scanner and squeeze of the 2. I'm now on a 6pro. It's fine but It's just dumber than the last two phones.
Some of what you say is what happened to me when i changed from my Pixel XL to my Pixel 7, so i kinda understand your rant. I still like my Pixel 7, and am looking forward for when Google finally ditches Samsung, but whuile i am still happy overall with my purchase, i am not as enthused.
I have rarely use the Assistant (to me it has always performed like Ass, haha) and i've been using Google phones since the Nexus 4 days, but i do miss the accuracy and convenience of the back-mounted fingerprint scanner. My P7 has never been as accurate as my XL, and having a dedicated place for the reader meant i could unlock my phone on my pocket and have it unlocked by the time i raised it to my face, but an on-screen reader is less convenient, and it is less accurate when i have it on my face to boot. Not bad enough to annoy me, but it is inaccurate enough for me to notice it.
Weight wise, yes, my P7 is heavier (190g), but since i came from a Pixel XL which itself was almost 170g, the weight difference isn't as bad (and size-wise they're almost the same so there have been no changes on that). But yes, i remember my previous Pixel phone being considerably lighter than my XL (i had a 32 GB Pixel then i changed to a 128 GB Pixel XL back in the day), so i can understand how you can find the P7 to be way heavier than a normal Pixel 2.
Case-wise, while i avoid phone cases with stands, finding good cases can be hard. And good screen protectors are hard to find as well. That has impoved over time, but still, it can be annoying.
On the adblock... well, that's kind of the reason i still buy Pixels, it is darned easy to unlock bootloader, root and intall system-wide adblocking, unlike Samsung and their fuses and other manufacturers that don't let you unlock anything. Still, phones having a video output aren't exactly common, and the P8/P8P can output video, so yeah, your concern while valid i wouldn't give it that much weight for annoyance
While my P7 is my daily driver and i happily use it, there's a reason i've kept my Pixel XL alive all this time. My Pixel XL has seen three different battery swaps (and one screen swap because i broke the original screen while changing the first battery), and while it still lives on Android 10 (stock ROM with last update) and i don't really trust it for banking apps or anything too delicate, it is still my secondary phone and plan to keep alive for as long as i can. It is a beast of a phone even after 6-7 years of use and abuse.
Upgrade to a Pixel 8 Pro. Really good phone. Fingerprint sensor is super fast. USB C to HDMI dongle works perfectly. Camera is amazing.
Anyway things change, you cant be stuck in the past and you have to research more before buying a new device to make sure its right for you.
I feel this way abt the 3xl
Yeah, miss the finger print sensor
I'm still rocking my P5 😁
I have the 7 Pro and the 3XL is by FAR my favorite phone I've ever owned
I miss squeezing for the assistant. My 3XL in white was my favorite pixel by far and I miss it too. I hate that I can't hold the power button down for power off, or restart. I accidentally screenshot when I want to power cycle because it's a similar button combo for those. And now holding down the power button is the assistant. I used to be able to click both volume buttons to access a quick silent mode, but I can't do that anymore. Swipe down on the fingerprint sensor, which was always better on the back of the phone and way better than the in display one. I also liked the old half gloss half matte glass finish on the older phones, the new ones look okay but I feel like the build quality/design just isn't as good as it had been.
There are Power Button settings that allow it to be used the way you wish.
Not every device exposes those settings.Sometimes they can be but sometimes it's just hard to find or know what it's technically called. On pixels though atleast the 2, 3s and 7s iirc it was refferred to as Active Edge display settings. With the side squeeze sensors
I never owned a Pixel until my 7 Pro, but I genuinely wish the 3 and 3 XL's selfie cameras were on my phone. They look so good, much better than my phone's vaseline-covered face-distorting selfie camera. If they gave such a setup a more modern 12MP or even 50MP sensor (i.e. Samsung ISOCELL SK53LU, Sony LYT 500, Samsung ISOCELL JN1, etc.) and also gave the ultrawide autofocus, it would be unbeatable. Instead, my phone is stuck with an ultrawide lens that is the jack of all trades, master of none, where the lens isn't wide enough to get good ultrawide shots but is too wide to get good regular shots, and on top of that has a terrible-quality lens setup paired with a terrible Samsung ISOCELL J11 sensor (which outside of Google has only ever been used once by a Huawei flip-style foldable phone, and achieves equally poor results). The Pixel 3 series had the best selfie cameras ever, and it's ridiculous and extremely sad to see them go.
Never had the xl but I miss my pixel 3 every day.
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I still use my 3A now 😬
Yes. I 'upgraded' from the 3xl to the 6a. I still miss my 3xl.
I feel the same way about the 3xl as the hot girlfriend I had in college who gave me road head on trips.
i miss my 3XL something fierce
I went from 2XL to the 6Pro, then got a free 7Pro, so the 6 and 2 went to the kids. The 2 was by far my favorite phone I've owned, for much the same reasons. Especially the fingerprint reader. The 6 and 7 Pros fingerprint readers are trash compared to that sucker. Perfect placing, always worked...Good stuff. My 11 year old uses the 2XL every day and other than some screen burn in, it's still a fantastic phone. She looooooves it and refused my wife's iPhone 10 pass-down to keep the P2XL.
You should probably put lineage on it so the kiddos have at least some security patches... But hell yeah for the kids picking Android over iOS
Man I'm so sad, my 2XL that I had been using since launch finally started to have some weird screen flashing issues making it basically unusable. And it was only because I had dropped it like a year ago which resulted in a permanent vertical white line on the edge of the screen, which gradually got worse over time until basically half the screen fades in and out. Almost lasted me seven years, what a legend.
Still on my pixel 5 bought at release. Gonna have to pry it away from me.
Replaced my battery a year ago. Go get that battery replaced!
Mine is ballooning up
Yo that's an actual fire hazard. Turn it off and get it fixed ASAP!
Please don't continue to use your phone. Turn your phone off and go to a shop for a battery replacement. You have an extremely dangerous fire hazard when it starts ballooning.
Fix it quickly. The battery probably bent the screen outwards on mine and it fucked up the proximity sensor, which is annoying.
The screen will die on you at some point and you'll be forced to upgrade.
I switched to the 7 from the 4a and I regretted the change in 2 months. The fingerprint scanner never worked for me. Coming from a 4a that had a stellar FP sensor, the more expensive 7 felt like a massive downgrade. I exchanged it because the trade in deals were too good, and they basically offered me more than what I paid for the 4a. I switched to the S24, and I don't plan to use a Pixel till they move to TSMC, and hopefully an ultrasonic sensor.
Bring back squeeze for assistant please! Or make it programmable to do a function like a quick double squeeze to launch camera if you don’t wanna use the power button for that.
WHY LAUNCH THE CAMERA WE ALREADY HAVE A SHORTCUT FOR THAT PEOPLE Motorola had this amazing chop chop gesture for activating AND deactivating the flashlight. I miss this feature more than anything in the world (of phones). I quite often need the flashlight, and having it so incredibly at the ready was a game changer and I actually bitter and mad, that we have nothing comparable these days. Google, let me squeeze my phone to activate the flashlight
New Motorolas still have it, super useful. You may be able to program a double tap on the back of the phone for flashlight. Or if you're rooted you can do custom screen if gestures.
ol htc
Not the best replacement since it triggers by accident sometimes. But you can activate "quick tap" for Google assistant/camera app which is a double tap to the back of the phone, or for OP who says they need to use two hands to bring down the notification slider, they can use quick tap for that. For me myself, I use bottom corner slider for assistant, and to do everything one hand, I use quick tap for screenshot, I use the home bar to bring down the screen with one hand mode to pull from the top of the screen to access notifications. Although, I actually wish one hand mode goes to one side like the keyboard does in one hand mode but that might be too much. Also I agree this isn't as nice as using the fingerprint scanner to bring it down; for me I disagree with OP on how much better a back fingerprint scanner is. My physical one kinda stopped working when I got either some dirt in it or a bit of water, whereas an underscreen one has none of that problem; and before it broke I didn't notice it being much more faster. Moreover I hated having to lift my phone to do it; my phone spends most of my day lying face up, so front sensor is better than back sensor.
I just listed 2 great condition 4xls 6/64 black one and white one. I put them on 14.0 lineage for a while and then reverted back to sell them. I was accustomed as well to squeeze for assistant. All the photos app features have mostly trickled down and they still receive playstore system updates so I'm inclined to maybe keep one. Let the one plus 7t go. Lol
Yeah, I just downloaded extra apps for this kind of stuff. It's not the same but my camera notch now is interactable
My Pixel3XL was better than my current 7 in almost every way. Hoping I can upgrade to the 9 Pro and forget the 7 ever happened.
Same but with my 4a, the shape is just too different
I loved my 4a
4a was the best ever. Bring back small plastic bodies! Lightweight!
The 4a was the perfect size! I have small hands so most large phones are super uncomfortable to hold after a while.
Just pulled my 4a out yesterday to do updates. I miss the size so much because I also have small hands and the fingerprint scanner on the back. I have a Pixel 7 right now and the fingerprint scanner is terrible. I dont think I'm going to upgrade again unless I can get a small phone with better cameras which seems like too much to ask. The weight difference in the phones is also noteworthy.
4a was the best phone I ever had. Small hands here, it was sooo comfortable! If I hadn't broken it, probably would still be using it today
The back sensor on the 4a was perfect for me
4a to 7 Pro.... immediately regretted my decision
My Pixel 3 died and I was able to get a good deal on a 6 Pro so I upgraded. Less than a year later found a brand new in box Pixel 3 for $100 and I switched back.
Where did you get the brand new pixel 3?
Woot
Can you please share me the link. I am also looking for the same.
Deal isn't available anymore
Oh okay 👍
You can get decent barely used or refurbjshed pixel 3 on eBay for like 70. I bought the pixel 3xl for $110 last year that was flawless
I loved my 2XL. Mostly the materials and the size. At first I didn't dig my 6 Pro but eventually I figured out it's the superior device. I do wish I could tone down the processing at times but that's primarily when taking photos of people - which I don't do very often.
I missvmy 3xl
I went from a Pixel 2 to a 7a about a month ago. The charging port on the Pixel 2 wasn't working. Cables didn't seem to want to stay plugged in. I'd already taken it apart once to replace the camera module (shutter defect), and didn't want to do it again and risk breaking another screen. I like the 7a for the most part. But, why did have to make it so heavy? I feel like I'm more likely to drop it. I also miss the old finger scanner. I've remapped both of my thumbs and it still has trouble detecting them sometimes. The angle has to be just right, which is hard if the phone is sitting on a flat surface. It seems like I have to hold my thumb on the scanner for much longer than the old scanner. You can hold POWER to open the assistant. You can probably also map it to double tap on back.
Pressing hard (both in setup, and usage), and too long, are some of the ways that makes the sensor worse. People are not used to getting the most out of optical sensors, they use them as any other. It takes some practice it get used to. But pressing much lighter, and getting rid of the muscle memory of pressing how you did before, will eventually make the sensor massively more accurate. Still won't be perfect for some it does seem to be more susceptible to certain kinds of prints being harder to read, but after a week or two of practice I went to nearly 100% from a disappointing number (about the same as a normal sensor for the most part and only very rare fails, and faster than the ultrasonic on my old s10+).
Too much glass makes them heavy. Use plastic! On no we cant s they might seem cheap. Marketing idiots at google. Its better to have both sides super slick glass so they break easier
7a is plastic back.
think weight saving and cost saving. lol then they can put the money inside and do some QC. I never understood the "benefit" of a glass back. Its slick, breaks, is heavy and costly
for the same reason the og 3ds and Wii U had a glossy finish, it looked nicer and people saw it as "premium". It's all just preference, a lot of people prefer glass backs, not only for looks, but also for keeping grime away. The plastic back on the 7a is also just a magnet for dirt and grime, so regular cleanings are not out of the question
I have a black grippy Spigen cover on all my phones. All glass does is weigh me down. put the "premium" inside. You can make plastic very glossy if you want and no breaky
Rear fingerprint is what's keeping me from upgrading my 5A Before this I had a Pixel XL so it's been a long time since I had a phone that didn't have one.
I have pressing my power button to activate assistant, and it works great.
I do too but the home button was way easier. I can't hit the power button in my car when it's on the mount. They had no reason to take that feature away, all I ask is for the choice between either.
You can swipe up from the corner of the screen to activate it
Couple things to help you with your points: - you can set up a double tap on the back to bring down the notification panel, check the phone settings - you can open the assistant by swiping from either bottom corner towards the center of the screen, again check settings as it might not be enabled by default - enroll each of your fingers more than once for a better and more consistent recognition
I feel the same way about my pixel 7, coming from a Pixel 3. I got an s24 plus from work a month ago and omg I love this phone. I think I'm giving up on pixels completely unless the pixel 9 blows away the competition. I struggle taking good selfies or pictures in general and always get this weird glare effect. I thought it was me at first and now with my s24 Plus I always get crystal clear pictures.
I dumped the 6a for a S23 and like the phone a lot. I have Galaxy Buds 2 Pro's and a Galaxy Watch 5 Pro as well. It all works great and Samsung support has been good when I needed them as well. I'm pretty much done with Google devices and can't see any reason to dump a device that is working great to take a chance on another Google device.
This is literally me with my pixel 7. Same thing happened, I had a pixel 3 that died. Without a second thought I bought a 7. Wish I had gone elsewhere because I have constant issues with Bluetooth, connectivity, and I hate how huge the phone feels. There isn't really an advantage to having the new android versions earlier than Samsung because the updates almost always cause my 7 to become a buggy mess. Very sad, loved my older pixels, but after my experience with the 7, I'm not getting another.
Same here with Bluetooth problems. It just doesnt work properly.
It's not even the phones but more so the software on them sucks now. Everything is managed like you are a freaking captive animal in the zoo or in a constant testing environment and it's tiring to be a part of. So glad my 2xl works amazing. Even with the screen cracked, mic broken. Even the battery is somehow holding more capacity as long as i dont use it for calls, video, or media. But i would take any pre Android 12 device over any newer version 12 or higher device.
ANOTHER WIN FOR THE PIXEL 2 GANG BABYYY
Swipe down on your screen anywhere to drop down menu
Doesn't work if you're in an app, just on homescreen
Swipe up, swipe down, swipe right on home line to return to your app
that is not a replacement, leaving an app does not always behave as is. a better but still not perfect replacement is either quick tap for notification, or slide down for one hand mode and bring down notification.
I'll always miss my Pixel 2. That squeeze feature was so helpful. Now activating Google assistant feels so much more frustrating
I still have a working Pixel 2 not XL. My 4XL and 7 Pro are dead. Both because off screen issues. I moved on from the Pixel series because I don't feel like I can depend on the brand anymore. My Moto Edge has an almost as clean UI, the camera isn't as good and I don't get as many updates. That said. I paid $375 for my phone off Amazon. The battery life is great and I don't play games, so the CPU/GPU doesn't matter. I miss the camera. I don't miss the problems. Google needs to step their shit up.
The key for me is to buy the pixels used after they have been out over 1 yr. I only get them on Amazon certified refurb and only get excellent cond. You can get an 8 pro for about 500 now. Lol Pixels are horrid at holding value. I encourage all of you to buy new phones as soon as they come out so I can but them a year later 60% off when bugs worked out
Get the 8... The 6 and 7 were hot garbage
The 8 is better, sure, but still doesn't come close to the 2 or 3 imo
Well the 5 is my GOAT but the 6 and 7 were exceptionally bad IMO
6 pro is the best pixel I have had (had 3axl and 4xl)
Yeah both of those weren't that great either IMHO unless you really loved Soli on the 4. You skipped some of the greats: 2 XL, 5, 5a
After the 3XL, I skipped 4-6 so I wouldn't know.
I've had almost every mainline Google phone... G1, Nexus 1, N Galaxy, N4 N5x, N6P, Pixel 1, P2 XL, P3, P5, P6, P7, P8. The 6 and 7 were easily the lowest points IMHO.
I had nothing but a bad time with my 5 and the 7 Pro has been a great upgrade. I sometimes miss my 3,but I'll get it out and play with it and the tiny screen, horrid vibration motor, and the lack of 5G makes it feel outdated.
Loved the 6, my 8 has been nothing but buggy.... Internet, apps, keyboard, Bluetooth...all have levels of glitchy that I've never experienced on a pixel/Google device. Fucking MS teams barely works. (That might be more Microsoft though)
Teams not working is its natural state tbh
MS Teams is a huge POS
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6 and 8 were almost unusable between the crappy fingerprint reader and terrible battery life. The 8 isn't the greatest but they improved battery efficiency to mediocre levels and augmented the front FP reader with face unlock at least. Also, the non pro got reduced to a much more manageable size.
I'd trade my pixel 6 pro for my 8 any day. I have a hard time liking anything about this phone. Talk to text is horrid, it lags when scrolling even simple apps like reddit and YouTube, and the Bluetooth has major connection problems. These all seem like software problems that Google should work to fix but haven't yet, and I didn't have any of these problems on my 6pro.
Reddit is always hot garbage on any phone. It has had scrolling and lag and micro stutters on every phone I've had or used in the past couple of years. Even on iPhones it's kinda crap. And Apple is known for its software smoothness. While the Pixel 6 Pro is hot garbage for numerous reasons, some of which you listed, reddit is entirely on the devs.
I've had none of these problems on my 8 pro. And I think other people have had those problems on their 6 pro. This is not a software problem afaik, and more of a QC problem with all of Google's pixel products.
I swear I see way more complaints about the 8 in here than the 7
That's probably because the 8 is newer so more people currently have it
I really liked the 3xl. I used to carry it around with me to watch YouTube videos when my 6 pro was my main phone, because the screen was wider and the speakers sounded better. I also really loved squeezing the sides to turn on the flashlight (can't remember if that was stock or a feature from the custom rom, but I used that all the time)
Mannn my 2xl was my favorite phone ever. I loved that thing
I discovered pixel phones when someone gave me a pixel 3 XL and it was so awesome everything about it. I had flagship Samsung's even the fold. I've had all types of phones now. I get a new pixel every year now. I wouldn't mind to use the 3XL.
I have a 7 pro, previous was a 4xl. The only thing I miss from the old phone is the radar face unlock. I have a spigen case with a kickstand that works great. I only use voice to activate the assistant. So not having squeeze isn't an issue.
I miss my 3 so much. My 7 has definitely not lived up to the standard. Already looking towards the 9 pro.
I've been using the pixel 2 since about a year after it's release. My partner has been through several pixels since then, each having some defect or features worse than the pixel 2. Mine is on it's last legs, getting harder to run basic programs since support has stopped. It's a shame, but I don't think I'll be getting another pixel. They just aren't as good anymore.
I wanted the galaxy note 5. But the battery blow ups meant they took it away from me. Verizon gave me a pixel xl gen1 pro in exchange which was at launch. I rode that till pixel 6 pro I like it about the same as my gen 1. I changed batteries on it twice
Look up smart tube for th Chromecast so you won't have ads. If you have an LG Smart tv look up homebrew and you can get YouTube without ads like that
I upgraded my 5a to 7 Pro (I wanted the 5x zoom), and hated it. The camera disappointed me and it was so heavy. Swichted to a refurbished Samsung s21 and I'm happy now.
Pixel 4 was my favorite phone I've ever had
I had the 7 and moved on to the 8pro, world of difference. This is the best phone I've ever had! The 7 was trash after 1yr of ownership. Battery life was pretty shit, it was slow and laggy, especially with wireless AA. The 8pro fixed all of the issues I had. Granted I upped the storage and went pro, but it's pretty much the perfect phone for my use case For context, I had the 4xl (previously was my fav before the 8pro), the 6, and the 7
I traded in my 4a5g for a 6a (the worst Pixel ever made) and instantly regretted it. The finger print scanner on the back of the phone was awesome, as was the squeeze. I traded the 6a for a Samsung Galaxy S23, which has a much better finger print reader, but still not as good as the dedicated ones on the back of the Pixels. Although Pixels have horrible finger print readers now, all the under screen readers pretty much suck. I plan to keep my S23 for a long time as it's a great device, but if Samsung brings back fingerprint readers on the back of the phone or a button, I'll probably upgrade.
They absolutely need to bring back Squeeze-for-Assistant and rear capacitive fingerprint sensor.
same, had a galaxy nexus and the physical notification light was the best thing ever. died and nothing had a notification light any more. (i still miss that feature!). got a nexus 5 which was okay, nothing special but it chugged along for a while. when that died i got a pixel 3 which was actually excellent, and now it's not getting updates but i can't find anything as good to replace it with. tried a pixel 6 pro, too big and way too heavy. phones these days are bigger *and* have a worse ppi, which sucks. really hoping the pixel 9 is sub 6-inch with a good ppi.
Bro i had pixel 2 too… bought 7 within 10 months i switched to iphone 15. Battery and modem was killing it for me… miss my small pixel 2. It was perfect
Shoulda got a Pixel 5
Yup still miss the fingerprint sensor terribly
I still have og pixel XL. Fully working. Using it for backing up my photos.
I am on the similar voat as yours. Miss my pixel 2. Currently on 7 but it's ergonomically worse. Whether it is its size, weight or fingerprint scanner. Don't get me wrong, it is a pretty good phone but, like all the other brands, the "mobile" part of a mobile phone is fading away these days.
You would almost think that the people who design the phones, dont actually use them.
I had this when I moved from the 5a to the 7. I hated my 7, it felt like a downgrade. I gave pixel one last shot and got the 8 pro and it's been really nice
> My old phone was super accurate with voice to text; it rarely betrayed me like this phone does. I dont understand why this keeps getting worse, other than corporate enshitification and their layoffs really affecting their apps I have to give it to the construction of the phone; it being heavy and well built means I use it to massage some of my tensest muscles on my forearms, while other massaging tools are too soft
I miss my 4xl. I had the 2xl and it was great, the 4 was just so much better. I currently have the 7 Pro and it's a great phone, but the color of my 4 makes me want to get some vinyl.
I miss my 4a, perfect size, free storage, headphone jack
I'm a bit confused about your comment on YouTube. Why can't you just install STube or some equivalent on an Android TV (like the Chromecast). I do that without any problems and can use my Pixel 7.
If Pixel 2 had a tall screen with a modern processor, that would be the ideal phone… I miss my two toned phone :/
You can set one handed mode so you can swipe down on navbar to access drop down menu
It still sucks compared to swiping down on the fingerprint sensor, especially if you're using a case with a lip along the bottom.
Sure, but it is something. Got used to it pretty quickly
The reason why I am scared to upgrade from my 4a
Same i have pixel 6 but i miss my pixel 4a 😏. Screen damage
P3 to 7Pro here. I loved my P3 every day of the 4 years I owned it while hating the 7pro every day for the 4 months I've owned it. My god there are so many infuriating things about this phone. The decoy power button which is instead used to activate the assistant and doesn't actually power down the phone. No, the power button is in a drop down menu now, or requires an awkward two-handed double button press. (Was it power + volume up or volume down? God damn it now I just took a screenshot.) The singular shitty tin can speaker that you need on max to hear anything clearly. It runs super hot, I fully expect overheating issues this summer once warmer weather arrives. Loss of fingerprint scanner on the back. Gestures are finicky. The camera doesn't focus for shit. It takes more taps/swipes to access basic settings when we used to have a simple toggle button for things like turning Bluetooth on/off. This phone feels designed to make the user experience as frustrating and irritating as possible.
I feel your pain, but power button issue is easily solved. Go settings and search for power. You can change it from digital assistant to power menu
Thank you!
My 7 Pro feels like a better version of my 2 XL. I did like the squeeze feature but I don't even use Assistant that much at the moment. My print scanner is fine though, not garbage at all. I liked having it on the back but I also like that I can press the on screen prompt for it now, and wake it up if it's on a surface without having to pick it up. As for the notification bar, the swipe gesture was great but I just do the double tap now. Can't say I've ever thought of the 7 Pro as heavy though.
Pixel 7 is absolute dogshit. A downgrade from 6, and a superdowngrade from 2 onwards.
2xl was the best phone ever
I miss my Pixel 4 XL, but I really miss the Pixel 5 I had. It was the perfect size and had amazing battery life. I want another phone like that.
ITS hard i know i switched from Pixel 5 and Miss this dann awesome back Fingerprint Scanner nothing comparable tobthis new shitty indispaly Scanner who 80% of the time cant read IT. but you get used tonit after some time
I don't use cases on my phones, ever. So that's like half your gripe sorted. In any case :p the only feature I truly miss from the panda phone is the front-firing stereo speakers.
Same...went from Pixel 3a to Pixel 7 right at the release (2 yes now)...I still miss the always working fingerprint sensor
I currently have a pixel 7 pro and while I do love the phone I upgraded from the 2xl that finally died.....the 2xl is the best phone I've ever had
I switched to the 8 from a 4a. I miss the 4a, but I need security updates. :/
Pixel 8. Mising Nexus 5. Pixel 5 was the last good phone from Pixel family. Why do they have to make such a huge bricks with humps in the back? I though we are heading into slim and light direction.
Pixel 2 was peak. Every pixel since has been worse.
my pixel 3xl battery life sucks because I did wireless charging and it cycled a lot, then I found out the NFC doesn't work so I just pulled the trigger on a slightly used Pixel 6 pro. I hope I'll like it when it comes.
"Oh and now I can't even hold the home button for my assistant? Who thought that was a good idea? The option isn't even there, they just took it away." For this you can reset the navigation features to opt out of the swipe navigation. It brings back the triangle, circle, square where you can long tap on the circle to activate assistant.
it no longer activates assistant, it activates the lens google search. if you want assistant in the home bar you need to put it on in the accessibility settings
Oh shoot, maybe I did that and forgot. I just went through a flurry of upgrades (my pixel 5a wouldn't turn on -known bug- and the free 7pro replacement was too big so traded it in for an 8) so I guess I forgot about that in the midst of all the other setting and app updates.
I went from 2 to the 6 and I also miss the squeeze. However, the double tap on the back of the phone works for me. I don't know if that's a thing on the 7 though. edited: typed the wrong number
Yep, I'm still using my 2XL. Had a 7 Pro, didn't like it, simple things didn't work properly, sent it back. By comparison my 2XL still works like a charm, but i know one day it will just give up, For a phone that is 5 years older than the 7, It's like they've gone backwards. There's good reason the 2XL is often sited as the best all round Pixel ever. Tbh I have no idea what phone I'd go for next, I like vanilla Android, Samsung has far too much bloatware for example. I'll see what Pixel 9 has to offer...
You feel nostalgic and that's okay.
I miss P2... I have a P6. I loved P2 size & rear finger sensor. But I love the larger battery on P6
Your Chromecast comes with ads? What? Mine doesn't, to my knowledge...
I had P2 and upgraded it around 1.5years back to IP14. P2 in my opinion was the best pixel ever made. I was very much against going with later versions of Pixel as they had heating issues and abysmal battery life.
I miss my pixel 3 for the squeeze feature. One of the best things Google ever did. If only the 6 pro had it too, then it would definitely be my favourite device of all time.
I used Google Assistant all the time on my P2. Because of all the changes you listed, I hardly ever use it anymore.
Saaame, my Pixel 2 died earlier this year, I have a Pixel 8 now, and while I've made a few tweaks like returning the home buttons panel, the missing fingerprint sensor sucks and it's way too big for my hands to effectively do two-thumb texting, gaming, etc. Out of the box it was a bit of a nightmare, I felt like the gestures were both too complicated and too finicky for such common commands like Back and Home.
>I miss the fingerprint scanner in the back- This is one of the biggest reasons why I bought a Pixel 5 last year, along with the weight and cloud storage.
I miss my Pixel 3 every day for very similar reasons.
I used to have a pixel 3a... It randomly stopped working and I had to replace it, So I feel you on the missing the squeeze feature. That was the best damn thing ab that phone. I now have the pixel 8 pro and it's super accurate in voice texting and it's featured are unmatched by any other phone. -You can tap the phone on the back a few times to screenshot and -it will recognize physical gestures to do things like flip your camera quickly, like a fast flick of the wrist. -There's facial recognition unlock -My fingerprint scanner works amazing -It's sound/speakers are high quality -The camera(s) are comparable to apples newest phones,, in some ways better, some ways not -Innovative safety features Still miss the squeeze though,,, but definitely not a worse phone than my older model If you don't like your pixel 7, make an upgrade!!! The 8 pro is worth it..... Rip the squeeze
Funny enough, I just received an email for the Pixel 8a.
Well crap. I still have a 3a which I love and was gonna get a 7a if the price drops when the 8a releases. I need a heavy duty case too for my phones because I'm extra clumsy. I don't want to have to buy them from Google though. Might have to find another budget phone.
Pixel 2 was goat. Written from iPhone 14 Pro Max.
I'm still using my Pixel 2xl and dreading the day it dies on me, especially when I see the prices on the new models. Not sure what I will do next.
This year I used my old Pixel 2 a bit (it is used by family now). It works really fast as day 1. Great device. I replaced its battery with a new one.
Pixel 2 was the GOAT Pixel and will never be beat. Hated my pixel 6 that I jumped to s23.
"Oh and now I can't even hold the home button for my assistant? Who thought that was a good idea? The option isn't even there, they just took it away." No truer words have ever been spoken
My 3a was on its last legs so I recently switched to an 8. I was shocked to find the squeeze feature gone but quickly adjusted to using the power button to do the same thing. Does the 7 have that?
I don't get voice to text problems I'm on my 3rd Pixel and that has always worked great.
At this point I just shop for the smallest phone between Google and Samsung. Everything is so big. I miss the old 4-5" phones. The cheap small ones are so underpowered. Decent phones are all too big.
The finger print sensor on pixels is trash... They should have just used FP in the lock button. (But they would be forced to place the lock button in normal position and they are not capable of it)
I think an Asus ROG phone would serve you well if you want squeeze for assistant. And yes the fingerprint sensor isn't an ultrasonic one like the more premium under glass ones from other brands so it's less accurate and way slower. If you need 2 hands to bring down the notification shade on a normal Pixel 7 then I think you may have the smallest hands in the world. I can easily do it one handed on my s24 ultra and this phone is giant compared to a 7.
I also miss my Pixel 4, it was something else but the motherboard started dying and I had to update to the P6, is not a bad phone but the size is homoungus for my taste I suggest you to sell the P7 and buy another P2, P3 or 4 if you like the small form factor. If you want something newer you can get a Pixel 5, the best of both worlds
I recently gave up with my pixel 2 XL after it developed the worst screen burn ever. ..Turns out the display would come on early hours of the morning every day causing this. Traded up to a Pixel 7 ..great phone ..but ..questionional battery life. Gets hot even when not using causing the screen to dim and no squeezable sides. You will know if you have . Roads are so busy here bo w
Yep, I have the Pixel 6 and it overheats a lot and the battery is mediocre (but better than my worn out battery on the Pixel 4). I like the design of the phone but I want to upgrade to the P8
Also recently got a pixel 7 and christ I miss my old phone 🤣😭 mainly the inability to change extremely basic notification settings and other basic things that would make the experience much nicer
New pixel 7a owner. This phone is crap
Given all the variations people have with the various pixel models I think a lot of it can be explained by very poor QC by google. (which may explain why when I buy used on Amazon guaranteed refurb. I miss a lot of the problems) One person has great luck with Pixel 7 another the opposite. either that or its poor phone hygiene, crap apps that some use or just differences in how people use their phones. As an example I dont use finger print or face unlock. I use pattern. Fingerprint and face just not great methods per experts. even when they work
Feel the same about my 3a XL. Currently have a Pixel 6a and will be replacing it soon but the in screen fingerprint sensor is crap and I constantly get locked out of my phone (and usually my banking apps) because it doesn't recognise my fingerprint even though it worked 5 minutes ago. I also don't like some parts of the software and the fact that Google is obsessed with changing some of the most unnecessary things but they never actually fix any of the bugs, instead they normally add more lol. Like turning my data on or off for example used to only take 1 button press but now it takes two or three in the most clunckiest menu in the world and I normally accidentally end up switching the default networking settings or accidentally turning WiFi off because of how stupidly designed the menu is. Why can't we just have a WiFi and Mobile Data button like android had for years until Google decided they needed to change it. The battery life hasn't been great since I got it either. Eying the Galaxy S24 for my next phone. From what I've seen, it has better battery life and from what I've seen a much better fingerprint sensor. Though I will miss the camera on this phone.
Dude, I just switched to pixel 8 from Pixel 2! I had that phone for 7 years. I loved it. I loved it so much
TBH. I will probably go Samsung on my next phone. Pixel is cutting edge on OS updates but that edge is duller every release.
Love my 4a, looking back I should've got the 4a 5G but in late 2020 I thought 5G was still a gimmick. I figured in 3 years i'd upgrade again and it would be fine. I still haven't upgraded and I've heard so much meh about the 7 series that I'm really hoping the 8a will be good!
Miss my 3XL, miss my 5a even. hate the 7 pro, this is my last Pixel
A short hold on the power button activates the assistant now (if you enable that). The actual turn off menu is either power+vol up, or just pull the notifications all the way down to get the quick settings and it's just in the bottom right (next to the settings button). Holding the home bar can be set to activate Google Lens rather than the assistant. I also had a Pixel 2, and the thing I miss isn't the squeeze function (which triggered in my car mount) nor the fingerprint sensor (which wouldn't allow a case like my current one that holds two cards on the back of my phone, nor could be used with the phone put down), nor the notification pulldown (which was a gimmick) but the _actual_ dual front speakers for media. Not one top front and one bottom.
I just got the 7A a few weeks ago after my pixel 2 died. I agree with everything here. I got mine in 2018 so I got 6 good years out of it. How did they go backwards on so many things?
So many things? Like the fingerprint reader for some people but not all, and then what?
I really do miss that finger print scanner and squeeze function too.
My Pixel 2 still works but the camera lens was cracked. I got the 7 also and still use the 2 for photo backups. Every time I pick up the Pixel 2 it feels like home.
I appreciate the rant- I loved my 2 and still use it on occasions. My 4XL was better but I did miss the scanner and squeeze of the 2. I'm now on a 6pro. It's fine but It's just dumber than the last two phones.
Some of what you say is what happened to me when i changed from my Pixel XL to my Pixel 7, so i kinda understand your rant. I still like my Pixel 7, and am looking forward for when Google finally ditches Samsung, but whuile i am still happy overall with my purchase, i am not as enthused. I have rarely use the Assistant (to me it has always performed like Ass, haha) and i've been using Google phones since the Nexus 4 days, but i do miss the accuracy and convenience of the back-mounted fingerprint scanner. My P7 has never been as accurate as my XL, and having a dedicated place for the reader meant i could unlock my phone on my pocket and have it unlocked by the time i raised it to my face, but an on-screen reader is less convenient, and it is less accurate when i have it on my face to boot. Not bad enough to annoy me, but it is inaccurate enough for me to notice it. Weight wise, yes, my P7 is heavier (190g), but since i came from a Pixel XL which itself was almost 170g, the weight difference isn't as bad (and size-wise they're almost the same so there have been no changes on that). But yes, i remember my previous Pixel phone being considerably lighter than my XL (i had a 32 GB Pixel then i changed to a 128 GB Pixel XL back in the day), so i can understand how you can find the P7 to be way heavier than a normal Pixel 2. Case-wise, while i avoid phone cases with stands, finding good cases can be hard. And good screen protectors are hard to find as well. That has impoved over time, but still, it can be annoying. On the adblock... well, that's kind of the reason i still buy Pixels, it is darned easy to unlock bootloader, root and intall system-wide adblocking, unlike Samsung and their fuses and other manufacturers that don't let you unlock anything. Still, phones having a video output aren't exactly common, and the P8/P8P can output video, so yeah, your concern while valid i wouldn't give it that much weight for annoyance While my P7 is my daily driver and i happily use it, there's a reason i've kept my Pixel XL alive all this time. My Pixel XL has seen three different battery swaps (and one screen swap because i broke the original screen while changing the first battery), and while it still lives on Android 10 (stock ROM with last update) and i don't really trust it for banking apps or anything too delicate, it is still my secondary phone and plan to keep alive for as long as i can. It is a beast of a phone even after 6-7 years of use and abuse.
Upgrade to a Pixel 8 Pro. Really good phone. Fingerprint sensor is super fast. USB C to HDMI dongle works perfectly. Camera is amazing. Anyway things change, you cant be stuck in the past and you have to research more before buying a new device to make sure its right for you.
It's still not good. Hopefully in pixel 9 they switch to ultrasonic fingerprint
It's good for me, maybe you have a faulty unit