Pixel: First Impressions

Just got my Pixel 5" last night and have been thoroughly impressed with this device so far. I wanted to share my initial thoughts after less than 24 hours of use. 

The phone was shipped via FedEx in a small box that looked nothing like there would be a phone inside. This is great because it was shipped with no signature required, and at these prices could be risky sitting on my front step in a box that looked like a phone may be inside. However, the box had no extra stuffing inside, so the smaller phone box inside was able to travel all throughout the box. This had me concerned, but upon opening the phone has zero damage at all.

I am not going to get into great detail about features and functions, but will cover my thoughts and experiences on a high level. 

Right out of the box I was very impressed with the weight and feel of the device. It was extremely light, but felt solid. Which I guess should be expected at this price point. The one big thing for me was the size of the phone. It's like a throwback to when I had the Nexus 5, due to it being so much smaller than the 6P.

The phone had about 50% charge when I took it out of the box, which was great cause I could just get started and not have to wait for it to charge up. I chose to setup the Pixel using the included transfer OTG dongle. It should be noted, in order for the cable to work you have to insert the correct end in the Pixel, which is the end that you place the adapter on. If you put the other end in the Pixel, nothing will happen. Transfer from my 6P was quick and easy as most of my data (contacts, photos, email, calendar) are all kept in the cloud on the corresponding Gmail accounts. The transfer essentially moved anything stored on the device such as any photos I didn't remove first. 

All of the Gmail accounts I had on the 6P transferred even though they had 2-step Authentication. I did receive an email notifying me that this was happening. My work Exchange account however did not transfer. Apps themselves did not transfer, as those needed to be downloaded.

Setup and download of all the apps took about 35 minutes (I have about 92 apps on the device). 

The screen was extremely smooth and responsive, more so than any other device I have had, including the N5, N6, N6P and N7. Even more responsive was the fingerprint scanner. After setting that up (which took a mere seconds) the scanner recognizes my finger and opens the phone in less than a second. What I found even nicer was that when my finger was wet, it still was recognized, whereas other fingerprint scanners I have used had trouble with wet fingers. 

Without going into great detail, the Google Assistant on the Pixel is miles ahead of the one in Allo.  It speaks to you, answers your questions accurately, and gives you peace of mind. And with the right settings you don't even have to turn on your phone to start interacting with the assistant.

Quick discussion on the battery. The rapid charge is great. Remember it was advertised as 7 hours of battery for 15 minutes of charging. Well who knows how that is determined, but I was charging at a rate of about 1% per minute, that's pretty darned good. The battery definitely seems better than my previous devices, but I haven't really used it long enough to get a gauge of how long it will last.

The speakers are pretty good and seem louder than I have experienced with other devices. 

I am not a great photographer and really can barely tell the difference between a photo and a cartoon, so I wont even try to give my impression on the camera. I will say that my wife, graphic designer, seemed impressed. 

Finally, although I only use my own photos for my wallpaper, the walls that are included are incredible. Live and dead ones, the quality and resolution are beautiful. 

Well there you have it - my Google Pixel first impressions. So far I am very happy. Hopefully you will also have similar experiences when you start using your Pixel.