The Pixel 9 Pro XL is a mobile that follows the same hardware.

I have been testing the Pixel 9 Pro XL, Google’s top-of-the-range phone for next year, for a week: it has a slight hardware upgrade to be the best of the brand and is the most advanced in AI today, only at the level of Samsung in this sense.

It had been a while since Google had been as early as this year in presenting its new Pixel 9 family of phones, launched in the middle of August despite being the largest number it has ever presented in its history.

A month ahead of its usual launch schedule, which is usually in September or October, the US brand has made it clear that the Pixel 9 is not just another iteration in its history of smartphones, but a model to be taken into account by users and rival brands alike.

This year, the family has three different models to choose from: the standard Pixel 9, which opens the range, and two premium variants, the Pixel 9 Pro and the Pixel 9 Pro XL, the only one with a large screen, 6.8 inches compared to 6.3 inches for its younger siblings.

I have had the opportunity to test the Google Pixel 9 Pro XL, the most powerful model of all, for a week of intensive use.

Let me give you just a brief summary of what you’re going to find: it provides a slightly improved camera despite being a somewhat continuist model, and if there is something that will capture all the attention it is the great prominence of artificial intelligence and Gemini.

Design and connectivity: a new, elegant and flatter look that loses personality Pixel

In terms of design, Google combines in this Pixel 9 Pro XL decisions that I think are a great success with others that I am not so convinced about personally because I think they make it more similar to its rivals.

The Pixel 9 Pro XL is a notable revolution in appearance compared to its predecessor, the Pixel 8 Pro, and in that sense Google’s effort to breathe new life into a series of phones that had been around for three generations since the Pixel 6 with virtually imperceptible design modifications is appreciated.

Firstly, Google has replaced the traditional rounded side edges of the Pixel family with flat edges. This design decision, which Apple made five years ago (with the iPhone 12 series), has started to be adopted en masse by all Android manufacturers in recent months.

Flat edges allow for a more stable grip when holding the phone but have the problem that they can be annoying if you don’t use a case and that they make the phone feel thicker than its rounded alternative. At 8.5 millimeters thick and 221 grams, the Pixel 9 Pro XL is neither a thin nor a light mobile and its design does not hide this at all, although in return, the metal of its edge (aluminum) makes it feel very resistant.

To compensate for the flat edges, Google has modified the design of the corners of the phone, which were always rounded but this year they are even rounder to avoid sharp angles. This curvature is also applied to the screen, taking advantage of its narrow bezels, which are just over 1 millimeter wide and uniform in all areas. The appearance at this point also seems dangerously close to that of the iPhone, although it is undoubtedly elegant.

And the most obvious change is in the camera module, the only element with which manufacturers distinguish their phones today. Google had devised one of the most distinctive camera formats on the market, with the lenses distributed along a full-width metal strip that protected them. Looking at that module, you knew it was a Pixel.

But in this Pixel 9 family, Google has changed the concept and opted for a more conventional horizontal module, surrounded by a metal circle, but without the strip that previously characterized them. I didn’t like the change very much because it not only loses personality but also because it exposes the camera more to shocks.

Furthermore, the module protrudes two millimeters from the back, making it a much more unstable device when placed on smooth surfaces, something easily solved with a case.

I have tested the Pixel 9 Pro XL in the most discreet version, in obsidian black. I can confirm that both the feel of its aluminium edges and its back, made of a matte glass that leaves no fingerprints, is very pleasant and achieves the premium yet timeless effect that a mobile phone like this, costing over 1,000 euros, should strive for.

Google maintains its particular button layout in this flagship, being one of the only brands with the lock button at the top and the volume button at the bottom, something I don’t like too much and which is hard to get used to. The only novelty is that the SIM slot, which is not dual, moves from the side to the bottom.

Screen: the best panel ever used by Google is (almost) perfect

In terms of the screen, I think it’s safe to say that it is one of the strongest points of the Pixel 9 Pro XL, which is not surprisingly the largest model in the family, with 6.8 inches compared to 6.3 inches for its younger siblings, the Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro.

Its OLED panel stands out not only for its large size, which makes it ideal for watching videos comfortably, but also for its good color, deep blacks and image quality, as well as for other aspects such as the absence of light leaks in the corners or the wide viewing angle it allows, above the current standard.

The screen has everything you could ask of a high-end device today: HDR10+, a refresh rate of 120 hertz for smoother image movement, but starting from 1 hertz for static images, and battery saving thanks to LTPO technology, which works adaptively.

Another success is the brightness. With a value of up to 2,000 nits in high-brightness mode, the Pixel 9 Pro XL can reach a peak of 3,000 nits. I have used it outdoors in the middle of August and it achieves a clear image even on sunny summer days, which is a very good reference.

In addition, Google has taken great care to ensure the durability of the terminal against drops, with the use of Gorilla Glass Victus 2, the most resistant to date, both on the screen and on the back.

The only negative point to highlight about the Pixel 9 Pro XL’s screen is that Google still hasn’t managed to make the panel’s automatic brightness work in a precise or, at least, logical way. Although it happens a little less than with its predecessor, this flagship continues to lower the brightness when the light in the room has not changed.

This is very annoying, for example, if it happens to you as it has happened to me, in the middle of video game sessions, when those seconds can be critical. Luckily, it has only happened to me once or twice in a week of use.

The sound is somewhat below the magnificent screen performance in this Pixel 9 Pro XL. Google has achieved a slightly higher maximum volume than in the Pixel 8 Pro and a quality that is relatively well maintained at maximum volumes, but which fails to create an immersive effect, due to the speaker being located only at the bottom, with the upper one only being used for calls, but which is not as powerful.

Performance: plenty of internal power, but the Tensor G4 chip falls short of expectations

In terms of internal power, the Google Pixel 9 Pro XL has everything you would expect from a top-of-the-range handset and is more than capable for everyday use, but I was disappointed when comparing it with the competition.

Google’s 2024 flagship uses the Tensor G4 processor, the new chip made by the US brand itself, which this year uses 4-nanometer advanced process architecture but has really advanced in AI processing.

This achieves extremely good day-to-day performance, with applications that download and run in the blink of an eye, and smooth operation in general with no noticeable lag or delays.

Its configuration is completed with 16 GB of RAM for all models, and storage starting at 128 GB (1,199 euros), somewhat scarce for a mobile that focuses so much on the camera, up to 256 GB (1,299 euros), 512 GB (1,429 euros) and even 1 TB of internal storage (for no less than 1,689 euros).

As for the benchmarks, I wasn’t surprised to see the Pixel 9 Pro XL lag behind its rivals that use Qualcomm chips, because this is something that has been happening since the American brand started using its own Tensor chips, which have other advantages.

What has disappointed me is finding such a large difference with respect to its rivals in all the tests, and even that it has lagged behind the Pixel 8 Pro from a year ago in some areas such as multicore processing. I don’t think it’s tolerable for a 1,200-euro phone to be less powerful than its predecessor, and there are no excuses — the improvement in AI, above all — that are worth it.

Despite these tests, the Pixel 9 Pro XL is a phone that meets all the minimum requirements if you are a user who plays video games on your phone, thanks to both its internal power and its smooth-refreshing screen and quality sound, although its speakers are too easy to accidentally cover when holding it.

In the 10-minute battle royale online competitive games of Pokémon Unite, in my experience the mobile phone gives you a certain advantage over your rivals, it charges quickly and in general everything is very smooth. I have noticed some heating at the back, but not excessive.

Software: Android 14 shines thanks to Gemini’s AI, faster and more accessible than ever

In the software department, there are rarely any relevant things to say about recent Android phones, but this is not the case with this Pixel 9 Pro XL, where I think this is perhaps the aspect in which the terminal stands out the most.

Google’s flagship runs as standard with Android 14, although as usual it will be one of the first to be updated to Android 15 when it becomes available in September — it would have had it as standard, had it not been for the change of dates. The customization layer is pure Android, although as always, it is focused on you using Google services.

For example, Google Photos is the application that functions both as a gallery and as an image editor and manager, which is fine if you have contracted cloud storage with Google, but it can be a bit overwhelming if you have to use the 15 GB of free cloud storage to compress years of memories.

But what is most striking is undoubtedly that the Pixel 9 family, with this Pixel 9 Pro XL at the forefront, is characterized by having the most solid commitment to artificial intelligence so far by Google, which is precisely one of the companies that is investing the most in leading this technology and here it shows off.

The lock button is once again like it used to be with the Google Assistant button, because when you hold it down it opens Gemini, Google’s generative AI assistant, with which you can interact with text, images from the gallery or directly from the camera.

Queries with Gemini work especially fast on the Pixel 9 Pro XL, as they take almost no time to execute from the moment you type them in — and only a little longer if you send a photo — something that shows the company’s expertise in the development of the Tensor G4 chip, making it stand out in this area. Using Gemini from this mobile phone today is a superior experience to using tools like ChatGPT from the web.

In addition, Google has incorporated some of the features we have already seen in high-end AI-enabled handsets launched this year, such as Samsung’s Galaxy S24 and Z Fold and Flip 6 series, as for example it allows you to directly translate WhatsApp chats in another language through the Instant Translation feature, which can be activated in the settings.

The AI automatically detects when there are words in another language in the text and shows you a button to translate into your main language. It works in a somewhat literal way, as a single word in English already activates it, and it is not perfect for the colloquial style that many use from their mobile phones, but I find it very useful.

In general terms, I think that the comprehensiveness and power of Google’s AI bet for this Pixel 9 Pro XL, from hardware to software, makes it one of the phones that best fulfills the label of designed for AI that everyone uses today, and I think that today only Samsung’s high-end range is at its level — not by chance, as both companies share technologies.

Camera: a hardware déjà vu that continues to work like a charm

In the camera department, Google was already playing it safe, as the camera was undoubtedly one of the most celebrated aspects of its predecessor, the Pixel 8 Pro.

In this Pixel 9 Pro XL the brand has decided not to change what already works, keeping exactly the same three rear lenses for the main camera, although there have been some interesting new additions in the form of new camera modes.

Before getting into that, let me tell you about all the camera lenses on Google’s Pixel 9 Pro XL:

Wide-angle main camera: 50 megapixels, f/1.68, OIS, LDAF.
Ultra-wide angle: 48 megapixels, f/1.7, 123º, OIS, LDAF.
Telephoto lens: 48 megapixels, f2.8, 5x, OIS, LDAF
Front camera: 42 megapixels, f/2.2, 103º.

Pixel 9 Pro XL continues to stand out for what its predecessors have done for several generations: the ease of point and shoot, and the ability to get good shots without effort or difficulty even in less than optimal conditions, thanks to a combination of good hardware and, above all, a lot of computational photography.

There is only one exception: the telephoto lens, which adds light to distant details, as you can see in the previous example, and which gives a completely different aesthetic to the main camera and the ultra-wide angle, something you will notice when you go from 4x to 5x zoom.

It still has the virtues, but also the defects of previous models, since the preview it shows tends to be very different from the final result you get in the photos, as it does not take into account the image processing that is carried out, which changes the result a lot.

Although post-processing tends to change the color of the sky excessively at times, as has happened in the previous example in the main camera, where it is somewhat blown out, something that does not happen in the other case, which is more blue and balanced.

Portrait mode was already one of the things I liked most about the Pixel 8 Pro and it stands out again in this model. Google achieves portraits with personality thanks to the quality of the sensor and the color it picks up, with good blurring and cropping precision that could be much improved (note the hair).

If there is something I would ask the American company, it is to allow taking photos in portrait mode with the best sensor it incorporates, the telephoto lens, with which the best shots are traditionally achieved, even if you have to move a little further away to do so.

As a result of that decision, all photos in portrait mode are taken with the main camera, so zooming in does not change the aesthetics but only changes the framing and adds potential noise to the photo.

As you can see, the difference between the 1.5x and 2x optics, the two suggested by the camera app, is minimal, and in both cases it has problems cropping the subject from the background, blurring strands of loose hair (it was much messier than it appears). It can go up to 3x, although with the same characteristics and drawbacks.

Something very similar happens with the portrait mode on the selfie camera, although surprisingly in this case the cropping of the hair becomes somewhat more precise than on the main camera (it is usually the other way around).

The use of portrait mode, both on the rear and front cameras, manages to give the face an additional touch of light that seems studio-like, and with the use of bokeh it manages to give more prominence to the figure against the background, which tends to be blown out with the blur.

Battery life: the battery still lasts for just one day but it charges a little faster

The battery has never been the strong point of Google phones and I’m sorry to say that things haven’t changed much in this Pixel 9 Pro XL.
In terms of capacity, it maintains practically the same figure as last year’s model, going from 5,050 mAh to 5,060 mAh, almost the same as most current phones, both high and mid-range.
This capacity, added to the good energy management of the Tensor G4, means that the battery lasts a little longer than its predecessor, but the starting point was already bad, because it has just enough capacity to last a day if the use is moderately intensive. Even on a normal day, you’ll be lucky if you get to bed with more than 40% left, so you’ll have to charge it every day.

Fast charging is the point in which Google is lagging behind the most since it stopped including the charging adapter in the box, as is the case again in this Pixel 9 Pro XL and as soon as it will be mandatory by law throughout the EU. But even so, it has achieved slight improvements.

The Pixel 9 Pro XL takes around an hour and 15 minutes to charge from 0 to 100% thanks to its 37W charging system, an improvement on the 30W of last year’s model. I was able to test it thanks to the fact that I had a 40W PD charger at home, and I encourage you to get one if you don’t want 3-hour charging cycles that will take you back to 2017.

With a wireless charge of 23W, Pixel 9 Pro XL completes a battery section with slight improvements over last year but still far behind, especially the Chinese brands, although in this case focused on safety, long-term durability and sustainability, something that would have to be assessed in the long term to see if it fulfills Google’s promise of 7 years of support.

Verdict: is a Google Pixel 9 Pro XL worth buying?

The Google Pixel 9 Pro XL is a phone that aims to compete at the top end of the market, and it’s no surprise that the basic version, with 16+128GB, costs 1,199 euros, 100 euros more than its predecessor.

Its screen is truly excellent and its great camera continues to justify the fact that this mobile is worth more than 1,000 euros, but the lack of significant innovations in hardware makes it difficult to recommend the Pixel 9 Pro XL if you have the opportunity to get a Pixel 8 Pro at a considerably lower price, at least at first.

It should never happen that a high-end 2024 mobile is less powerful than last year’s, but it is true that in return Google is making what is surely the best mobile for AI tasks in this Pixel 9 Pro XL, so I do recommend it if you want to be ahead of the game in this technology, because only the best Samsung can compare with it.