Google Pixel 4 smartphone - pros and cons

The mobile phone market is expanding relentlessly. The best manufacturers never stop working on new gadgets, trying to create phones that are more powerful, faster, and superior to the competition.

From time to time, new brands appear, as well as companies known in slightly different industries enter the smartphone market.

A giant like Google could not resist creating consumer devices. The largest search company has created its own line of Google Pixel smartphones with reliable quality.

In September 2019, a new Google Pixel 4 smartphone was released. Read about its advantages, disadvantages, prices, functionality and other features in our review.

A little about the company

Google is known as the largest search engine in the world, although it was once just a student project. But now Google is the most valuable brand according to Brand-Finance.

The search giant is gaining momentum every year, is engaged in new projects and charity.

Not so long ago, Google experts offered the inexpensive Nexus mobile series that won the hearts of consumers. But the developers did not stop there and created a by no means budget line of consumer gadgets Google Pixel. The prices of these smartphones and tablets can rival the iPhone.

About model

In the summer of 2019, in response to leaked information about the development of a new model, Big G posted an official image of the smartphone on Twitter. According to the already established tradition, the device will be presented to the venerable public in the fall. It looks like Google wants to squeeze out such mobile mastodons as Apple and Samsung, which are releasing the new iPhone 11 and Galaxy Note models. It is not known whether the company from the sunny town of Mountain View will have enough strength to lure users. The previous attempt, frankly, was weak.

Specifications:

Camera

According to the specification, the rear camera is represented by a block of two sensors with resolutions of 12.2 and 16 megapixels.Here Google really surprised and ignored the main trend of the season. At the moment, only the lazy has not announced a smartphone with a 48 megapixel main camera resolution. And Google has created three times less, only 16 megapixels. And there are only two modules, not four, like the others. Although if you look more closely, there is another hole on the camera module, and it is not yet clear what it is. Another unannounced camera, or some kind of sensor.

With the characteristics of the cameras, everything is standard, one is telephoto, the other is wide-angle, both support optical image stabilization. The 16 megapixel camera also has a 2x optical zoom.

For shooting at night, there is a dual LED flash. And for super sharp photos, there is an HDR mode. Unfortunately, the manufacturer did not provide samples of photos from this device, so it is difficult to say how worthy the footage will be.

The front camera is also represented by two modules, with a resolution of 8 megapixels. However, the issuing company does not say what the second module will be used for. Enhance selfies, bokeh effect or something else. But the official specification indicates the presence of the Face ID system and, most likely, the second matrix will act as a sensor to unlock the phone.

• HDR mode;
• face recognition function.

• the modest resolution of the matrix today.

Screen

The Google Pixel 4 uses a P-OLED matrix with a resolution of 1080 x 2160 pixels. Display diagonal 5.7 inches.

Finally, manufacturers have moved the front camera and speaker to the frame and got rid of the obscenely large "bangs" like in Pixel 3. Aspect ratio 18: 9 is the most popular, fans of watching modern movies on the device will be disappointed - black bars will always be with them.

The pixel density per inch, although not the highest, is above average ~ 424 ppi. You will have to try hard to see individual points.

• P-OLED matrix.

• aspect ratio 18: 9.

Filling

The insider message indicates that smartphones will be released in at least two trim levels: with 64 and 128 GB of internal memory. Unfortunately, it won't be possible to expand it anymore, there is no memory card slot.

RAM in both models will be installed on 6 GB. The device is based on the Qualcomm SDM855 chipset. A nimble eight-core Snapdragon 855 processor and a graphics core based on Adreno 640 will not leave fans of modern games indifferent. The performance of less resource-intensive applications with such characteristics of the device will be excellent, and the user will not experience any inconvenience in the work.

• the processor and graphics core run at high performance.

• memory card cannot be inserted.

Design

In terms of design, the Pixel 4 is minimalist. Nearly. If not for one detail - the camera unit. Such a construct on smartphones is criticized not only by the company "One and a hundred zeros", but also by competing manufacturers.

This arrangement of cameras looks a bit cumbersome, especially on the perfectly flat back surface of the device. But there is no escape from her. And it's not that manufacturers specifically want to annoy users of their products. It's just that all modern cameras do not fit into the thin cases of smartphones, so you have to make the camera block stand out. Overall, the Pixel 4 is a classic candy bar.

"Corporation of Good" is at the forefront of technological progress, and harshly suppresses attempts to listen to music through wires.

Of the physical connectors, there is one - USB 3.1 Type-C, located on the bottom edge between the speakers.

The Google Pixel 4 clearly lacks a fingerprint scanner, perhaps it was moved under the display or on the power button.

• minimalist design;

• location and appearance of the camera unit;
• there is no audio jack.

Autonomy

In the field of nutrition, the model is equipped with the most modern technologies:

• wireless charger;
• fast charging;
• USB Power Delivery 2.0.

And everything would be fine, but there is one weak point in this circuit - the battery capacity. It is only 2800 mAh, which is not enough today. Perhaps, as manufacturers of the Android system, Google will use software-based methods to save energy. But more than a day of active use of the device, the battery charge is unlikely to be enough.

• fast charging;
• wireless charger.

• low battery capacity.

Connections

As noted above, the device is equipped with only one USB 3 Type-C connector, all the others are wireless. On board there are:

• dual band Wi-Fi;
• bluetooth of the latest 5 version;
• module for contactless payment NFC;
• GPS module supporting all major navigation systems.

Apparently, the company from sunny California dislikes music lovers, otherwise it is difficult to explain the fact that there is no audio jack and a radio receiver module.

System

Of course, Android 10 is installed here and only in its pure form. There is an opinion that the corporation releases smartphones only in order to present the Android OS in its original form, devoid of any shells, which are awarded to its third-party manufacturers. Accordingly, all the most "delicious" novelties of this system will be in this device. This is primarily about the Face ID function, which has long been present in the apple competitor.

conclusions

Judging by the published data, the smartphone received fairly average performance across the board. You cannot call it a camera phone, the competitors have clearly better models. Gaming, too, with a stretch, needs more RAM.

Internet surfing - yes, no problem, only the battery is weak. The only advantage that should attract a separate category of buyers is Android 10, devoid of any "shell".

Although, it is likely that there will be pleasant surprises that we do not know about yet. It is unlikely that the big G will release such a mediocre model. Let's hope that one of the pleasant surprises will be the price, which is still unknown.