Google Pixel 9 Pro XL review

Should you stay unconvinced that Google is severe about taking the smartphone combat to Apple and Samsung, the Pixel 9 vary ought to depart you in little doubt. This expanded lineup has a purposeful (if relatively acquainted) new look and an additional ‘Professional’ possibility, each of which carefully mirror Apple’s strategy.

Sitting atop this new vary is the Google Pixel 9 Professional XL. Whereas the identify could be new, in observe this cellphone is the direct successor to the Google Pixel 8 Professional, which we favored relatively loads. The Pixel 9 Professional is the true new cellphone within the vary, offering the identical options because the XL in a a lot smaller package deal.

As soon as once more, you’re a big flagship cellphone with a well-stocked triple-camera system, an enormous and sharp 6.8-inch OLED show, a bagful of AI tips up its sleeve, and a prolonged software program replace promise.

Recent design and generational spec bump apart, none of that is inherently new. With an additional £100/$100 added to the worth tag, enterprise as regular won’t lower it.

Design & Construct

• New flat design is premium however by-product
• Shiny body and matte again
• Barely heavier than the Pixel 8 Professional

Google has issued its largest smartphone design overhaul because it successfully hit the reset button with the Pixel 6 and 6 Professional. I’ve some blended emotions concerning the outcomes.

Beginning with the positives, the Pixel 9 Professional XL is a fantastically crafted, effectively put collectively flagship cellphone. For all that we admire Google’s smartphone work, construct high quality hasn’t at all times gave the impression to be high of its precedence checklist. Whereas it’s nonetheless early days, the Pixel 9 Professional XL seems like a high-end cellphone, worthy of sitting on a desk alongside the Samsung Galaxy S24+ and the iPhone 15 Professional Max.

Should you’re making such direct comparisons, simply be sure you don’t sit them face-up, since you would possibly find yourself going residence with the incorrect cellphone. My largest downside with the Pixel 9 Professional XL is that it cribs so clearly from the Apple playbook, which additionally implies that seems to be loads like Samsung’s personal tribute act.

Jon Mundy / Foundry

Jon Mundy / Foundry

Jon Mundy / Foundry

The complete Pixel 9 vary has received the form of flat-edged, curvy-cornered look that can probably have Apple’s designers elevating an eyebrow, if not consulting their authorized group. At 162.8 x 76.6 x 8.5mm, its width and thickness are inside fractions of a millimetre of the iPhone 15 Professional Max, whereas it weighs precisely the identical at 221g (which is 8g heavier than the 8 Professional).

That is particularly unlucky as a result of Google had managed to carve out its personal distinctive design language in earlier fashions. It might maybe be a stretch to name the Pixel look iconic – Google doesn’t promote sufficient telephones for that – however in a market filled with Apple clones and generic curved-edge Android telephones, the Pixel line stood out.

Fortunately, it hasn’t misplaced all semblance of originality. The signature Pixel digital camera visor won’t be the flowing, edge-to-edge focal point that it was, nevertheless it nonetheless makes fairly a press release. This time it’s a large pill-shaped module that stops simply in need of both edge.

Jon Mundy / Foundry

Jon Mundy / Foundry

Jon Mundy / Foundry

It’s purely subjective, however I choose it to Apple’s lopsided strategy and Samsung’s drab floating digital camera islands. It ain’t refined, nevertheless it’s fashionable and it implies that the cellphone is steady once you set it down on a flat floor.

The Pixel 9 Professional XL guarantees to be a minimum of as robust as its predecessor, with the identical Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2 to the entrance and rear, in addition to a metallic body with a shiny end. I choose the Pixel 9’s matt body, however on the this yr’s Professional telephones do now get a nicer matt end to the rear.

My mannequin is available in Hazel, which comes throughout as a form of putty gray. I additionally occur to have the smaller Pixel 9 Professional within the Rose Quartz shade, which makes fairly the assertion with its pale pink end and glitzy rose gold-like body. Obsidian and Porcelain have your black and white(ish) choices lined.

As you’d count on from a high-profile flagship cellphone, the Pixel 9 Professional 9 XL is IP68 licensed, so it’ll stand as much as a drenching in addition to essentially the most heinous of pocket lint assaults.

Display & Audio system

• Very good 6.8-inch, 120Hz OLED
• As much as 1344 x 2992 decision
• A lot brighter than earlier than
• Good stereo audio system

The Pixel 9 Professional XL’s Tremendous Actua show outshines its wonderful predecessor, which is saying one thing. It’s somewhat bigger at 6.8 inches (up from 6.7 inches), with the identical 1344 x 2992 most decision.

I say ‘most’ as a result of Google annoyingly units the default decision to a decrease 1008 x 2244. You’ll want to slip into the Settings menu and activate the complete decision manually. This would possibly betray a slight insecurity in its energy administration on Google’s half, however we’ll get to that later.

Jon Mundy / Foundry

Jon Mundy / Foundry

Jon Mundy / Foundry

There’s no insecurity with the remainder of the Pixel 9 Professional XL show’s output. It now hits as much as 2000 nits in HDR eventualities, with a peak brightness of 3000 nits. With auto brightness turned off, I measured a most brightness of 1198 nits, which is excellent for at-home testing.

Color accuracy can be impeccable. I used to be fairly blissful to stay with the default Adaptive color mode, which isn’t at all times the case even in flagship telephones. Nonetheless, when you do swap over to the Pure various, you’ll get fantastically balanced sRGB calibration with a 99.6% gamut protection and a mean Delta E rating of 0.65. This factor is fantastically calibrated, which is an efficient factor, since you don’t get the identical high quality tuning choices that you simply do on some rival telephones.

This pleasant display is flanked (in panorama orientation) by a pair of stereo audio system, and so they’re of an honest high quality. They could lack the precision and steadiness of the iPhone 15 Professional, however they nonetheless carry out effectively. The haptics, too, have that flagship cellphone pop and precision.

Specs & Efficiency

• New Tensor G4 not the quickest flagship chip in the marketplace
• Bumper 16GB of RAM, doubtless for AI
• 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB storage choices

Google has geared up the Pixel 9 Professional XL with its latest-generation Tensor G4 chip, and at this level we might just about copy and paste our broad strokes findings over from earlier Pixel cellphone critiques.

As soon as once more, our regular CPU and GPU benchmark exams reveal a chip that falls effectively behind rival processors like Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 and Apple’s A17 Professional. Should you’re after the very quickest flagship cellphone, the Pixel 9 Professional XL received’t stand as much as a Samsung Galaxy S24 Extremely or an iPhone 15 Professional Max.

Tensor G4 is greater than quick sufficient to execute all the regular sensible duties with an identical sense of fluidity to rivals, nevertheless. Genshin Affect runs solidly, if not flawlessly, on maxed out settings.

Jon Mundy / Foundry

Jon Mundy / Foundry

Jon Mundy / Foundry

As earlier than, the Tensor G4’s focus isn’t on multitasking or pushing fancy lighting results round. Google’s focus is now firmly on AI, and to that finish it’s geared up the Pixel 9 Professional XL with an enormous 16GB of RAM. Even the mighty Galaxy S24 Extremely ‘solely’ provides you 12GB.

Moreover the assorted on-device AI tips that we’ll get to in a second, this further RAM ought to assist see the Pixel 9 Professional XL by means of its prolonged help cycle. We don’t know the way effectively it’ll deal with the functions of 2031, however it might simply stand as much as the job higher than its contemporaries.

You get 4 storage choices right here, beginning at 128GB and topping out at 1TB. There’s no microSD growth potential, as anticipated.

Google Pixel 9 Professional XL benchmarks

Cameras

• Similar sturdy triple digital camera set-up as earlier than
• New 42MP selfie cam
• Add Me enables you to insert your self into group photographs
• Potential for upscaled 8K video

The Pixel 9 Professional XL packs a lot the identical rear digital camera system because the Pixel 8 Professional. That’s the identical 1/1.31in 50Mp f/1.7 broad sensor and the identical 48Mp 5x telephoto lens. The 48MP ultra-wide is somewhat totally different, with a narrower 123-degree area of view and a bigger f/1.7 aperture.

Regardless of the minuscule {hardware} variations, Google is all concerning the picture processing, and the signature Pixel look continues to be very a lot intact. Photographs taken with the Pixel 9 Professional XL would possibly lack the pure nuance of the iPhone 15 Professional Max, however they pack an enormous contrasty punch with out making the whole lot look too bizarre or overblown.

Google’s processing-heavy strategy nonetheless implies that evening photographs are usually disconcertingly brilliant. Once more, not everybody will admire how Google eradicates any pure sense of shade or murk in such low gentle snaps, however for sheer picture readability, the 9 Professional XL is correct up there with one of the best.

Google balances out color and tone effectively from ultra-wide proper as much as 5x, and photographs even look fairly good at 10x. Extreme noise makes 30x a little bit of a no-no to my thoughts. They’re removed from a shame, however the Pixel 9 Professional XL received’t be dethroning the Galaxy S24 Extremely within the excessive zoom stakes.

Speaking of which, Google’s Zoom Improve is a neat new trick, albeit one which was promised on the launch of the Pixel 8 Professional, and which can be out there on that older cellphone. It takes your zoomed in and low-res photographs and fills within the gaps between the pixels utilizing AI, making them seem sharper. It really works to a sure extent, in that contemporary element is undoubtedly equipped to such blurry photos.

The impact might be considerably uncanny, nevertheless, producing weird-looking textures in pure parts like shrubbery and in areas the place there isn’t adequate visible information to extrapolate from. Within the beneath comparability picture, which is a 30x shot taken with the 9 Professional XL, the Zoom Improve shot is to proper. As a technique to deliver older snaps as much as some type of trendy customary, there’s clear worth right here, however Zoom Improve is much from being the completed article.

The brand new 42Mp selfie digital camera is essentially the most consequential {hardware} improve right here. Alongside auto-focus, it creates photographs with first charge depth and dynamic vary. You possibly can select between a basic close-up 1x view or a wider 0.7x, which is best for group selfies.

Speaking of group photographs, Google’s most enjoyable new addition is Add Me, which helps you to add your self to group photographs. You are taking your snap, then get somebody to run over and take the cellphone when you take your home.

They will information you into place utilizing a useful preview display, which elements in depth data. The impact is technically spectacular, and I used to be capable of have enjoyable with the function by taking an image of two variations of me standing facet by facet.

Jon Mundy / Foundry

Jon Mundy / Foundry

Jon Mundy / Foundry

I do should query the sense wherein that is actually capturing the second, nevertheless, in a lot the identical manner as I query the worth of fixing a gray sky to an attractive sunny day. Name me old fashioned (or simply outdated).

Google has additionally lastly introduced 8K video to its smartphone vary – form of. Video Increase will take an ordinary 4K video and upscale it within the background. In my expertise it notified me that the method was full about two hours after I took it. With no 8K display handy, I can’t touch upon the standard of the ultimate footage, aside from to say that it appeared good on a contemporary MacBook Professional display.

Battery Life & Charging

• Day-long battery life with maxed out settings
• Helps Google’s 45W charger (not equipped)
• Different chargers don’t appear to work so effectively

Google has geared up the Pixel 9 Professional XL with a barely larger-than-average 5,060mAh battery, nevertheless it doesn’t make for particularly spectacular stamina. Don’t get me incorrect, the cellphone will final the overwhelming majority of individuals by means of a full day, however there have been one or two events the place it made me nervous.

The cellphone will final the overwhelming majority of individuals by means of a full day, however there have been one or two events the place it made me nervous

On one 15 hour day of particularly intensive utilization throughout a variety of community environments, with round 6 hours and 25 minutes of display on time (together with 2 hours 20 minutes of YouTube viewing and a bunch of digital camera photographs), I used to be left with simply 6% left within the tank.

Admittedly, that’s on the excessive finish of my utilization, and I think most different individuals’s too. However I nonetheless would have favored somewhat extra headroom from my super-sized flagship cellphone.

It needs to be famous that this was with the show decision bumped proper as much as the utmost, so you’ll undoubtedly get extra battery life by protecting it on the default. Samsung does the identical factor with the Galaxy S24 Extremely, nevertheless it manages to wring extra spectacular stamina out of its flagship cellphone regardless.

As a curious facet be aware, the Pixel 9 Professional additionally has a decrease decision by default, although the common Pixel 9 doesn’t, suggesting a basic distinction in show tech between the tiers.

Jon Mundy / Foundry

Jon Mundy / Foundry

Jon Mundy / Foundry

Maybe I’m being harsh right here. In spite of everything, the Pixel 9 Professional XL lasted 10 hours and 1 minute on our regular PC Mark World 3.0 battery check – an enchancment of round half-hour over the Pixel 8 Professional. Alternatively, the Galaxy S24 Extremely lasted greater than two hours longer, and that needs to be the benchmark that premium Android telephones are aiming for in 2024.

Google has improved the charging provision for the Pixel 9 Professional XL, nevertheless it’s not a significant trigger for celebration. 45W is best than earlier than, nevertheless it’s nonetheless removed from best-in-class. What’s extra, you’ll have to splash out on Google’s particular USB-C Energy Charger accent if you wish to attain the claimed speeds of 0 to 70% in half-hour.

I attempted charging the cellphone with each a current 120W Oppo charger and a 30W Asus charger, and received the identical lesser results of 0 to 55% in half-hour. No matter technique Google is utilizing to wring out the utmost charging pace right here, it certain is finicky.

23W wi-fi charging can be attainable, although once more you’ll have to put money into Google’s bespoke Pixel Stand accent. Alas, the newest Qi2 standard is not supported.

Software & Apps

• Android 14, with Android 15 to follow
• Seven years of updates
• Pixel Studio and Pixel Screenshots added

Google launched the Pixel 9 family way earlier in 2024 than it usually would, and as a result Android 15 isn’t ready for the launch at the time of writing. This means that the Pixel 9 Pro XL, like the rest of the range, ships with Android 14.

That’s a little awkward for a major flagship phone. At launch, the experience of actually using the Pixel 9 Pro XL day to day is much like the experience of using the Pixel 8 Pro.

However, this instantly places it near the top of the smartphone league, ahead of all the cluttered custom UIs from Samsung, Xiaomi, Oppo and co.

Jon Mundy / Foundry

Jon Mundy / Foundry

Jon Mundy / Foundry

The curious Thermometer app makes a return, tying in with the sensor found just below the camera flash on the Pro models. It can take the temperature of your coffee or your hob, but it still hasn’t received the necessary regulatory approval to be used on people, which renders it somewhat less than useful.

At launch, the experience of actually using the Pixel 9 Pro XL day to day is much like the experience of using the Pixel 8 Pro

Google is way more interested in AI than vanilla software these days, and the likes of generative AI wallpapers, voice note summaries, and real time translation make a return. The main tweak with the 9 series is that Gemini AI is now the default assistant, rather than Google Assistant.

Gemini is very (often spookily) smart with its understanding of conversational requests and has the ability to respond in kind. Asking for a picture of a pig wallowing in mud didn’t just surface said picture – it also provided a brief audible and textual summary of why they do so.

However, I still find Gemini to be lacking when it comes to basic Google service integration. For example, it doesn’t always play nicely with the network of Google Nest and Chromecast Audio speakers dotted around my home, frequently failing to understand which device I’m referring to when I issued a request to play some music or set a timer.

It also doesn’t automatically hook into my YouTube Music account and play music from an artist when I ask it to. My Pixel 8 with Google Assistant handles this just fine.

Jon Mundy / Foundry

Jon Mundy / Foundry

Jon Mundy / Foundry

There are a couple of new artificial intelligence apps that make their debut with the Pixel 9 range, too. Pixel Studio is the one you’ll probably use to show off to your friends and family, before forgetting all about it. It lets you type in any descriptive term you like, then creates an appropriate piece of AI-generated artwork. If you’ve ever wondered what “a duck-billed platypus enjoying a sunset wearing a sombrero” looks like, well, just type it into this app. After a few seconds of AI processing, Google will show you.

Less showy but potentially far more useful is Pixel Screenshots. If you’re someone who’s always pressing those power and volume-down buttons to capture something important on your phone’s screen, this is the tool for you. It collates all of your screenshots, using AI to produce smart summaries of the information contained within, as well as making them searchable. You can add screenshots to collections, or add your own contextual notes.

Jon Mundy / Foundry

Jon Mundy / Foundry

Jon Mundy / Foundry

Once again, Google is offering seven years of Android versions and security updates, making it the best in the business alongside Samsung.

Price & Availability

As you can probably tell, the Pixel 9 Pro XL is a phone of fairly modest upgrades – visual overhaul notwithstanding – which makes it all the more problematic that it has received a considerable price hike. All four storage options have received a £100/$100 bump over their Pixel 8 Pro equivalents.

The 128GB model starts things off from £1,099/$1,099, while the 256GB model costs £1,199/$1,199, the 512GB unit costs £1,319/$1,319, and the range-topping 1TB model will set you back £1,549/$1,549.

Outright, the phone is available from the likes of Google and Amazon within the UK and Google and Amazon within the US. See extra choices in our Pixel 9 offers article.

On contract, see one of the best choices within the widgets beneath.

The outright worth locations the Pixel 9 Professional XL perilously near the mighty Samsung Galaxy S24 Extremely (from £1,249/$1,299.99) and the iPhone 15 Professional Max (from £1,199/$1,199).

See extra alternate options in our information to one of the best telephones you should purchase.

Final yr’s mannequin itself represented a significant worth hike over the Pixel 7 Professional, but it nonetheless supplied a notably cheaper various to its premium rivals.

Why is that this yr’s mannequin all of the sudden deemed a direct competitor worthy of the identical outlay? The one facet that’s actually going the additional mile right here is the bump up in RAM, which is hardly essentially the most thrilling of high-end options.

Must you purchase the Google Pixel 9 Professional XL?

The Pixel 9 Professional XL is one other wonderful flagship cellphone from Google, holding a lot of the identical attraction because the Pixel 8 Professional. Nonetheless, I’m undecided it represents a significant development, a minimum of not for the additional cash that Google is charging.

Its new design is kind of a departure from the established Pixel blueprint, however I’m not satisfied that’s an excellent factor. In some respects, it makes the cellphone look extra generic than earlier than, with a mode that screams ‘iPhone’.

There’s a brand new bigger and brighter show, which is an absolute magnificence. The battery life is improved, however nonetheless nearer to sufficient than good, and also you’ll additionally have to make an extra buy to learn from the quicker (however nonetheless not quick) charging speeds.

Google’s digital camera system is way the identical as earlier than, which implies that the Pixel 9 Professional XL is able to taking wonderful photographs in all lighting situations. The brand new selfie cam is nice, and Google is at all times enhancing its picture processing, however there’s been no main step up general.

Google’s software program and AI tips are, as at all times, forward of the chasing pack, whereas the seven yr replace promise continues to be among the finest within the enterprise.

Once more, although, there’s nothing right here that you simply wouldn’t be capable to say for final yr’s Pixel 8 Professional, which is real cut price if yow will discover a big low cost.

Specs

• 6.8-inch QHD+ 120Hz LTPO OLED
• Google Tensor G4 chipset
• 12/16GB RAM
• 128GB/256GB/512GB/1TB non-expandable UFS 3.1 storage
• 5060mAh battery
• 45W wired charging
• 23W wi-fi charging
• 50Mp f/1.7 major digital camera
• 48Mp f/1.7 ultrawide digital camera
• 48Mp f/2.8 telephoto digital camera
• 5x optical zoom
• 30x digital zoom
• 42Mp f/2.2 entrance digital camera
• 5G
• Wi-Fi 7
• Bluetooth 5.3
• IP68
• Gorilla Glass Victus 2
• 162.8 x 76.6 x 8.5 mm
• 221g