Pixel 9 Professional overview: A images powerhouse

Google’s Pixel 9 Professional and Pixel 9 Professional XL are images powerhouses with a superb, iPhone-like design that even essentially the most hardcore Android followers will probably admit appears and feels nice.

Did I count on to be this blown away by the pictures and video Google’s newest flagship can seize? No, positively not, particularly since there aren’t notable digicam {hardware} upgrades over final yr’s Pixel 8 Pro. By way of wonderful, surprisingly true-to-life post-processing, I discover I favor the look of the Pixel 9 Professional’s photographs over even these taken with Apple’s iPhone 15 Professional, which had been my earlier favourite digicam array. Because of surprisingly useful AI photo and video features, Google’s Pixel 9 Professional options what I would confidently say is my favourite smartphone digicam ever.

Add within the clearly Apple-inspired design with its easy matte rear, minimized bezels, and tasteful shade choices, you might have a powerful all-around smartphone package deal. In fact, you possibly can argue that nobody wants a Pixel 9 Professional collection smartphone this yr as a result of the bottom Pixel 9 is an excellent machine that gives options usually reserved for higher-end smartphones, and I would wholeheartedly agree with this attitude — except you are actually into capturing pictures and movies together with your telephone. If that is you, then the Pixel 9 Pro’s further price is value its dearer price ticket. Its cameras are actually that good.

Editor’s Selection

Pixel 9 Professional

The Pixel 9 Professional brings a brand new squared-off design, the Tensor G4 chip, and new AI options like Pixel Screenshots to Google’s flagship smartphone line. It is obtainable beginning September 4th.

Execs

• Glorious AI-powered images options
• Nice-looking design
• Easy software program that is straightforward to navigate

Cons

• Costly
• Some AI options are a bit terrifying
• Sides aren’t matte

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Worth, availability, and specs

Google’s Pixel 9 Professional XL and Pixel 9 Professional can be found directly from Google and different retailers for $1,100 and $1,000, respectively, in porcelain, rose quartz, hazel, and obsidian (the latter featured on this overview). These costs are $300 and $200 greater than the $800 base Pixel 9.

The Pixel 9 Professional XL incorporates a 6.8-inch 1,344 x 2,992 LTPO OLED show, whereas the Pixel 9 Professional has a 6.3-inch 1290 x 2856 LTPO OLED display screen. Each shows embrace a 1-120Hz variable refresh price and Gorilla Glass Victus 2, with brightness reaching 2,000 and three,000 nits of peak brightness, respectively. The Pixel 9 Professional XL’s battery capability is 4,700mAh, and the Pixel 9 Professional’s is 5,060mAh. Their weights are roughly 7.7oz (221g) and 7oz (199g), respectively.

Storage choices begin at 128GB and lengthen as much as 1TB. This yr, RAM has been upgraded to 16GB from final yr’s 12GB. The smartphone additionally options Google’s Tensor G4 chip. Digital camera specs embrace an f/1.68 50-megapixel major huge shooter, a slightly upgraded f/1.7 48-megapixel ultra-wide digicam, and an f/2.8 48-megapixel telephoto shooter able to as much as 5x optical zoom. The entrance digicam has been upgraded to an f/2.2 42-megapixel shooter from final yr’s f/2.2 10.5-megapixel lens.

• 	Pixel 9 Professional	Pixel 9 Professional XL
  Model	Google	Google
  SoC	Tensor G4	Tensor G4
  Show	6.3-inch Tremendous Actua show	6.8-inch Tremendous Actua show, 1344 x 2992 LTPO OLED, 1-120Hz refresh price, as much as 3000 nits peak brightness
  RAM	16GB	16GB
  Storage	128GB, 256GB, 512GB, 1TB	128GB, 256GB, 512GB, 1TB
  Battery	4700mAh, 24+ hours of battery life	5,060 mAh, 24+ hours of battery life
  Ports	USB-C	USB-C
  Working System	Android 14	Android 14
  Entrance digicam	42-megapixel f/2.2, 103-degree FOV selfie digicam	42-megapixel f/2.2, 103-degree FOV selfie digicam
  Rear digicam	50-megapixel f/1.68 huge digicam / 48-megapixel f/1.7, 123-degree FOV ultrawide digicam / 48-megapixel, f/2.8, 5x optical zoom, as much as 30x Tremendous Res Zoom telephoto digicam	50-megapixel f/1.68 huge digicam / 48-megapixel f/1.7, 123-degree FOV ultrawide digicam / 48-megapixel f/2.8, 5x optical zoom, as much as 30x Tremendous Res Zoom telephoto digicam
  Connectivity	Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.3, NFC, Extremely-Wideband chip, GPS, 5G mmWave, Satellite tv for pc	Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.3, NFC, Extremely-Wideband chip, GPS, Satellite tv for pc, 5G mmWave
  Dimensions	6 x 2.8 x 0.3-inches	6.4 x 3.0 x 0.3-inches
  Colours	Porcelain, Obsidian, Hazel, Rose Quartz	Obsidian, Porcelain, Hazel, Rose Quartz
  Weight	199g / 7oz	221g / 7.8oz
  Cost velocity	As much as 55% in half-hour with 45W cost	As much as 70% in half-hour with 45W cost
  IP Ranking	IP68	IP68
  Worth	$999	$1,099
  Safety	Fingerprint Unlock, Face Unlock, Titan M2 safety coprocessor	Titan M2 safety coprocessor, Fingerprint Unlock, Face Unlock
  Yr of launch	2024	2024

Pixel 9 Professional construct and design

An iPhone-inspired look even essentially the most hardcore Android followers will like

I lined it extensively in my Pixel 9 review, however I am a giant fan of the look of this yr’s Pixel 9 line. The Pixel 9 Professional adopts a glance paying homage to the iPhone, with its squared-off sides and barely rounded corners that make it total simpler to carry, particularly at awkward angles. The again is matte, not like the Pixel 9’s shiny rear, however sadly, its sides stay shiny, making them a smudge and dirt magnet. I’d have most popular a extra premium all-matte-everything look that is in keeping with the iPhone 15 Professional. This not solely feels higher once you run your fingers over it but in addition repels smudges and dirt higher.

Sadly, Google has ditched the visor for a sprawling digicam bump that appears prefer it was dropped on the rear of the machine. It isn’t a deal-breaker, particularly when you plan to place the machine in a smartphone case, but it surely’s a step again from the identifiable rear digicam visor featured in final yr’s Pixel 8 Professional.

General, the Pixel 9 Professional and Pixel 9 Professional XL are very solid-looking smartphones that supply a degree of refinement immediately noticeable from the second you decide it up. Pixel units have at all times felt fairly good, however the Pixel 9 Professional collection takes issues to a different degree.

It is value noting that that is the primary time Google has provided a bigger 6.8-inch model of its higher-end smartphone. A 6.8-inch display screen is a good dimension, and in my time with the machine, it hasn’t felt unwieldy. Folks like huge telephones, so it is smart for Google to supply a much bigger choice. However I favor the smaller 6.3-inch Pixel 9 Professional (it is simply simpler to make use of with one hand). In fact, it will come all the way down to your private smartphone dimension desire.

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The Pixel 9 delivers gorgeous efficiency and design, however its Reimagine AI instrument really scares me.

Pixel 9 Professional show

A surprising, high-end show that appears nice below almost all lighting situations

The Pixel 9 Professional’s show is gorgeous, surpassing the vibrancy of Apple’s iPhone 15 Professional display screen and, in some instances, even Samsung’s Galaxy S24 collection, by a major margin. The Pixel 9’s display screen is greater than vibrant sufficient at 1,800 nits with 2,700 nits of peak brightness, however the Pixel 9 Professional’s show takes issues to a blistering 2,000 nits with as much as 3,000 nits of peak brightness.

The show appears nice, however at instances, I’ve really discovered it too vibrant, particularly when viewing content material below darkish situations, forcing me to show the brightness down. Alternatively, I respect the added illumination when utilizing the machine outdoors below direct daylight. You can even clearly see how a lot brighter the Pixel 9 Professional show is in comparison immediately with the Pixel 9’s display screen.

Each the Pixel 9 Professional and 9 Professional XL sport larger decision shows than the Pixel 9, at 1344 x 2992 and 1280 x 2856 pixel decision, respectively. Colours are vibrant, and pictures, movies, and video games look sharp, however not wildly higher than my expertise with Google’s base Pixel 9, regardless of its OLED development versus the Pixel 9 Professional XL and Pixel 9 Professional’s higher-end LTPO display screen know-how. To me, this simply speaks to how good all of the shows in Google’s Pixel 9 lineup are.

As a unfavorable aspect observe, I managed to get a really nasty scratch towards the center of the Pixel 9 Professional XL’s show, regardless of its supposedly sturdy Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2 development. I am fairly cautious with my units, so I’ve no clue how this occurred, but it surely’s value mentioning. That stated, I do not assume this can be a widespread problem with the Pixel 9 Professional show and it is most likely simply unhealthy luck on my half.

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The Pixel 9 Pro is great, but here are 5 reasons why I’m waiting for the Pixel 10 Pro

Google’s Pixel 9 Professional is a slam-dunk success, however I am nonetheless not satisfied it is time to take the Pixel plunge.

Pixel 9 Professional digicam

This yr’s key promoting level is superb digicam efficiency (and never solely due to AI)

The principle cause to buy the Pixel 9 Professional or Pixel 9 Professional XL over the Pixel 9 is for the additional digicam options the higher-end telephones supply. First off, the Pixel 9 Professional XL incorporates a f/2.2 48-megapixel telephoto lens with as much as 5x optical zoom. These are the identical specs as final yr, and total, photographs shot with this digicam look stellar. I nonetheless favor a telephoto lens over an ultra-wide, and it will be nice if Google ditched the latter from its base Pixel 9 in favor of an actual optical zoom.

On the AI aspect of issues, “Tremendous Res Zoom Video” is again once more and a bit extra spectacular than final yr. The visible improve continues to be considerably minimal, however clips look noticeably clearer typically. The characteristic is irritating to activate because it requires you to activate “Video Enhance” and change to 5x optical zoom earlier than zooming into no matter digital zoom you want, but it surely works properly and stays spectacular. As you may see above, the fish are barely clearer and extra vibrant within the Tremendous Res Zoom enhanced clip above, even with X’s dismal video transcoding.

On that very same observe, Video Enhance additionally stays spectacular, notably in terms of smoothing out panning, which continues to be surprisingly uneven with the Pixel 9 Professional line, particularly when switching between lenses (the iPhone 15 Pro beats the Pixel 9 Professional relating to video). It will be nice if there was a technique to activate Video Enhance completely, although I perceive why there is not provided that the characteristic requires each file to be uploaded to Google’s servers. Like final yr, movies can generally get caught changing to Video Enhance and take upwards of half-hour to course of, particularly when you use the Pixel 9 Professional line’s new 8K upscaling (this can be a welcome addition, however I haven’t got a lot use for 8K footage). This implies when you’re trying to put up one thing rapidly, Video Enhance usually is not an choice.

Sticking with getting nearer to topics, this yr “Zoom Improve” means that you can enhance the standard of photographs shot with digital zoom. Just like Tremendous Res Zoom Video, the modifications are refined however nonetheless noticeable, giving zoomed pictures extra definition and an total barely clearer image that is usually extra vibrant. Sometimes, the farther you zoom in digitally, the extra spectacular the outcomes are when utilizing Zoom Improve. The enhancements are fairly minimal, however when you’re into images, you may discover them.

On the optical zoom aspect, photographs are clear, crisp, and spectacular, notably at 5x, which I discovered very helpful on a latest crusing journey. Nevertheless, I’ve skilled camera tilt at 5x zoom that causes photographs to be considerably off-kilter. I have been fixing this with a fast crop, however I am assured Google will resolve this problem within the coming weeks with a digicam app replace. Together with the already talked about telephoto lens, the Pixel 9 Professional collection options an f/1.7 50-megapixel huge digicam that is the identical as final yr’s major digicam.

It nonetheless snaps nice pictures that strike a steadiness between the over-processed really feel of Samsung’s Galaxy collection and the more and more out-of-this-world tackle images Apple has been pushing for the previous few years (check out the sky in iPhone 15 Professional pictures, and you will see what I imply). Of all of the flagship smartphones at the moment obtainable, the Pixel 9 collection provides essentially the most true-to-life photographs, which is a bit ironic given the tech large’s emphasis on AI this yr, bringing into query what {a photograph} even is anymore.

Pixel 9 digicam options like “Add Me,” which lets you create a composite group shot with out asking a stranger to snap the photograph, are additionally a part of the Pixel 9 Professional collection’ quiver of AI-powered performance. “Add Me” works simply as properly with the Pixel 9 Professional line and is the sort of harmless AI characteristic I really discover helpful.

One essential factor to notice is that the Pixel 9 Professional’s AI digicam options don’t work when you might have the primary shooter set to 48 megapixels as a substitute of 12 megapixels, which is a disappointing transfer on Google’s half. This probably has one thing to do with the present AI processing pipeline and the way Google makes use of the bigger sensor, however it will be nice to see compatibility with 48-megapixel photographs within the Pixel 10 Professional collection nonetheless.

Talking of 48-megapixel photographs, I do not discover the necessity to snap them fairly often except I intend to crop the picture ultimately. The shutter can also be nonetheless a bit slower when utilizing the complete sensor, making it troublesome to quickly take pictures, which was a problem whereas snapping photos on the Toronto Worldwide Airshow, forcing me to principally keep on with 12-megapixel photographs. It was nonetheless potential to rapidly snap the pictures I wished with the 48-megapixel sensor, however I wanted to be very intentional with my photographs.

There’s additionally the f/1.7 48-megapixel ultra-wide shooter that gives a minor improve over final yr’s ultra-wide. It snaps first rate pictures, however past the occasional macro shot, I do not discover myself utilizing the ultra-wide digicam fairly often. And eventually, there’s the f/2.2 42-megapixel front-facing digicam that snaps clearer photos than final yr’s selfie shooter. I am not a giant selfie particular person, however the pictures I shot are clear, with even publicity all through. I usually discover that selfie cameras blow out a picture’s highlights, and that is not the case with the Pixel 9 Professional collection’ front-facing digicam.

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The Pixel 9 Professional helps Tremendous Res Zoom in video for the primary time, and it is a good instance of AI-enabled options that make sense on Google’s telephone.

Pixel 9 Professional XL efficiency

The Tensor G4 benchmarks below the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, however who cares?

On the efficiency aspect, Google’s Tensor G4 runs nice within the Pixel 9 Professional XL. Even below a heavy load, I did not expertise the identical warmth points as I sometimes encountered with the Pixel 8 Professional, probably due to the brand new inner cooling design and the telephone’s bigger dimension. Nevertheless, the Tensor G4 just isn’t that a lot of a bounce over the Pixel 8 Professional when it comes to uncooked efficiency. For individuals who care about benchmarks, the Pixel 9 Professional XL scores 1,901 for single-core and 4,707 for multi-core, whereas the Pixel 9 Professional hits 1,966 for single-core and 4,723 for multi-core.

These marks are properly beneath these of units powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. Nonetheless, I did not encounter a single occasion of slowdown, whether or not I used to be looking the web, taking part in video games, doing minor photograph edits in Adobe’s Lightroom CC, or watching the occasional video on YouTube.

Except you are the definition of a smartphone energy person, you may discover only a few points with the Pixel 9 Professional’s efficiency even when you’re a giant multi-tasker, due to its ample 16GB of RAM. Smartphone chips have been overkill for years, and the Pixel 9 Professional XL isn’t any exception. Battery life lasts properly into the late night with reasonable use, just like my expertise with the Pixel 9. Provided that the Pixel 9 Professional XL incorporates a bigger 5,060 mAh cell versus the Pixel 9 Professional’s 4,700 mAh, the latter machine provides barely higher battery life.

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How I use my Pixel 9’s Screenshots app to remember everything

The Pixel 9 makes use of its on-device Gemini Nano mannequin to investigate and catalog each screenshot you are taking. Right here’s learn how to use it greatest.

Pixel 9 Professional softwareAI coupled with a throwback to an easier period of iOS

On the software program aspect, Google’s Pixel 9 Professional collection helps all the identical considerably terrifying AI options because the Pixel 9, together with “Reimagine,” which lets you add almost something to a picture with prompts, and Pixel Studio, Google’s AI app that generates photographs. There’s additionally Screenshots, a superb app that makes use of AI to floor related screenshots, and extra.

Reimagine’s guardrails are fairly unfastened. With creative prompts, you may simply trick it into creating off-putting photographs, and in some instances, these AI-edited pictures look very convincing. Do not get me mistaken, they’re usually ridiculous-looking and clearly pretend, however that is not at all times the case (try that image beneath of a submarine in Lake Ontario). Alternatively, Pixel Studio is a foolish AI picture generator in keeping with Meta AI or OpenAI’s DALL·E 3 that works fairly properly.

My key concern is that these photographs is likely to be posted as actuality with none apparent indication that they’re AI-generated. It is a slippery slope we have been sliding down for months, and it is solely a matter of time earlier than these options attain different Android units, making AI-altered and generated photographs much more widespread on social media.

For extra on the Pixel 9 collection’ potential AI pitfalls and the intense implications Reimagine may have, check out my Pixel 9 review. It is value mentioning that even in its early state, Gemini and its extra conversational counterpart, Gemini Dwell (which is free for a yr with the acquisition of a Pixel 9 machine and $20/month after), work shockingly properly. Despite the fact that I’ve encountered the occasional glitch, I’ve by no means really been in a position to have a dialog with an AI earlier than Gemini/Gemini Dwell. Does speaking to an AI assistant match into my workflow, although? Not likely, and I am undecided it ever will.

Lastly, I am a giant fan of the Pixel’s Android pores and skin. It is easy, simple, and clear. In truth, I discover it simpler to navigate than iOS 18. Apple’s cellular working system has grow to be more and more sophisticated over the previous few years, and Android 14 working on the Pixel 9 collection has made that much more obvious (the replace to Android 15 is coming quickly). It is also nice that Google has promised to supply seven years of software program updates to the Pixel 9 line.

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Do you have to purchase the Google Pixel 9 Professional?

It is considered one of Google’s most full smartphone packages in years

Most individuals ought to go for the usual Pixel 9, however when you’re into images, the Pixel 9 Professional collection has quite a bit to supply. It captures my favourite smartphone pictures but, providing a extra true-to-life steadiness that sits firmly between Samsung’s intense saturation and Apple’s more and more inconsistent, out-there tackle photographs and movies. That is in stark distinction to the varied photograph and video AI options provided by the Pixel 9 Professional collection, together with Zoom Improve and Tremendous Res Zoom Video, which I discovered notably helpful.

That stated, I am nonetheless involved about Reimagine’s broader implications, given how straightforward it’s to make use of and the way convincing the outcomes may be generally. Moreover, I have not discovered a technique to combine Gemini into my life, regardless of its spectacular capabilities. General, the Pixel 9 Professional line provides considered one of Google’s most full smartphone packages in years, however when you’re not an avid photographer, it can save you just a few hundred {dollars} and keep on with the usual Pixel 9.

Editor’s Selection

Pixel 9 Professional