Speakerphone (loudness, clarity)

Speakerphone (loudness, clarity) - Google Pixel 5 Real Life Review

Proper etiquette aside (hint: don't use speakerphone while doing your "business" in a public bathroom), rate this thread to express how you think the Google Pixel 5's speakerphone performs. A higher rating indicates that you love it: it's loud and it's clear.
Then, drop a comment if you have anything to add!

Pixel 5 has an 'under display speaker' earpiece, but the Pixel 4a/4a5G have a classical earpiece.
Video "Speaker comparison Pixel 5 vs. 4a" https://youtu.be/D5WP3HqJD9s
"Speaker quality? It’s honestly not the best, the one under the glass is clearly not as strong so you get an asymmetrical listening experience." https://youtu.be/ghYLxw6BKV0
https://www.reddit.com/r/GooglePixel/comments/j4wb4o/comment/g7nnrdr
"This is definitely the weakest point of the phone. It’s not quiet but there’s no bass at all unfortunately, for phone calls on speaker it will be fine, watching movies without headphones..... not so much. This is all subjective though as I’m using an 11 pro max and the speakers are great."
https://www.reddit.com/r/GooglePixel/comments/j4wb4o/comment/g7own2l
"Just had a go on some demo models in store and compared Pixel 5, Pixel 4a5G and OP5T (my current phone). I would say that there is tangible difference in sound quality between the 5 and 4a5G (and even my current OP5T). The sound is more 'twangy' and harsher than the the 4a5g, which does sound more balanced overall."

https://www.reddit.com/r/GooglePixel/comments/j5h654/comment/g7s9fph
"The P5 does sound more tinny and raspy than the 4A5G which has a nicer more rounded sound. I would say there is a noticeable difference between the two. I am not an audiophile or anywhere near but even I could notice a difference."

Ahhh why Google?, they always have to screw something up. Speakers are high on my list, i really wanted to get this phone but I guess I will have to wait another year to see what other shortcoming they will come up with.
Hopefully by then true bezel-less phones would have caught on.
Thx for the review.

Rashad83 said:
Speakers are high on my list.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Pixel 5 has an 'under display speaker' earpiece, but the Pixel 4a/4a5G have a classical earpiece. I will buy the 4a 5G instead!
Video "Speaker comparison Pixel 5 vs. 4a" https://youtu.be/D5WP3HqJD9s

SGH-i200 said:
Pixel 5 has an 'under display speaker' earpiece, but the Pixel 4a/4a5G have a classical earpiece. I will buy the 4a 5G instead!
Video "Speaker comparison Pixel 5 vs. 4a"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thx for the link, but the 4a is a no go for me with that bottom chin.

Apologies if this is a stupid question, but might the speaker quality be improved by software updates down the line, or are their perceived limitations all hardware-related?

Shouldn't really be an issue so long as it doesn't effect the volume or clarity while making calls.
Tiny phone speakers, as good as they may sound, are not how you should listen to music or videos.

bigbamboo5 said:
might the speaker quality be improved by software updates down the line, or are their perceived limitations all hardware-related?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
One speaker is behind glass and the other is not. They don't sound the same (stereo balance is bad). Surely Google can not trick the physics!
"Speaker quality? It’s honestly not the best, the one under the glass is clearly not as strong so you get an asymmetrical listening experience." https://youtu.be/ghYLxw6BKV0

Rashad83 said:
Ahhh why Google?, they always have to screw something up. Speakers are high on my list, i really wanted to get this phone but I guess I will have to wait another year to see what other shortcoming they will come up with.
Hopefully by then true bezel-less phones would have caught on.
Thx for the review.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You could get the 4A 5G then. Bigger screen, pretty much identical, costs less, and 6GB of RAM instead of 8GB. Pretty good trade-off is say.
Sent from my Pixel 4 XL using Tapatalk

xRogerxC said:
You could get the 4A 5G then. Bigger screen, pretty much identical, costs less, and 6GB of RAM instead of 8GB. Pretty good trade-off is say.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Rashad83 said:
Thx for the link, but the 4a is a no go for me with that bottom chin.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thx, but I already have replied to the suggestion.

The trade off I noticed in the videos is the 4a5g has a dimmer screen than the pixel 5 while the pixel 5 has a tiny speaker.
Personally I'll take a tiny speaker because most times I don't listen to speaker music unless I'm in he shower and even then it's a waterproof phone

xRogerxC said:
You could get the 4A 5G then. Bigger screen, pretty much identical, costs less, and 6GB of RAM instead of 8GB. Pretty good trade-off is say.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Also 90hz the pixel4a?..
60hz is a no go...phone is lagging like it still running kitkat...

Rashad83 said:
Ahhh why Google?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Waterproofing.

MrBelter said:
Waterproofing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The new Xperia 5 II is waterproof and has front-firing stereo speakers, like the Pixel 2/3 sported.
Pixel 5 sound quality: "I upgraded from an OG Pixel and while my initial impressions of the Pixel 5 are that it feels superior in almost all areas, the speaker performance is very disappointing. The sound output feels muted and tinny compared to the OG Pixel." https://www.reddit.com/r/GooglePixel/comments/jb3o3q/enabling_mono_audio_on_the_pixel_5_improves/

sounds from the device is pretty good on speaker phone calls.
Watching youtube or listening to music it is ok, not fantastic. Not a deal breaker for me but may bother some

There is a reason that home speakers have grills instead of glass. No software can fix this.
How many actually take phone calls without bluetooth or a wired headset?

i'd think putting a screen protector on this would deaden the sound even more.

Mdizzle1 said:
sounds from the device is pretty good on speaker phone calls.
Watching youtube or listening to music it is ok, not fantastic. Not a deal breaker for me but may bother some
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agreed - its loud and clear for speakerphone calls and casual listening (and i have a tempered glass protector applied)
If you want to annoy people on trains or in parks with your bangin' bass tunes the look elsewhere - or do what most sane people do and use headphones :laugh:

wilbur-force said:
Agreed - its loud and clear for speakerphone calls and casual listening (and i have a tempered glass protector applied)
If you want to annoy people on trains or in parks with your bangin' bass tunes the look elsewhere - or do what most sane people do and use headphones :laugh:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes it's a non issue unless you cover the bottom firing speaker.

Related

From iPhone 6S to Nexus 5X. My Thoughts.

Prior to getting the 6S, I was a pretty diehard Android/Nexus user. I got the 6S because I wanted to change things up a bit and really liked the build quality of the new iPhones. However, of all the phones I went through, the Nexus 5 was my absolute favorite. It was a simple, solid, reliable phone. It just had a few draw backs. The camera was pretty terrible, the battery life was sub-par and the screen size was just a bit too small.
Luckily, Google solved all these problems with the release of the 5X. So I placed my order last week and the phone arrived on Tuesday. I've had a few days to compare it directly with my iPhone 6S, so I figured I'd provide some thoughts.
Size
I've read reviews that say the 5X is a weird size that doesn't feel right in the hand. I have to disagree with that. The size is rather perfect, if you ask me. The iPhone 6S is just a tad small and almost feels "too small" in the hand. Meanwhile, the 6S+ is way too big, like the Nexus 6 was. With all that in mind, I find the 5X to be the sweet spot in size.
Build Quality
Anyone who has a recent Macbook Pro or Macbook knows how well Apple builds their products. The 6S falls right in line with that expectation. The build quality is exceptional and tough to beat. Compared to that, you'd think the 5X's plastic build would feel cheap. However, like the Nexus 5, Google found a way to make their plastic phone feel like a very solid higher-tier phone. I like the 6S and 5X builds equally, in different ways. Some people mentioned that the 5X felt "light". However, when I hold them each in different hands, the weight difference between the 6S and the 5X is negligible at best.
Screen
The iPhone 6S screen is the clear winner, stock for stock. Out of the box, the 5X screen looks like s*** in comparison, there is just no denying that. The color temperature and color depth is terrible on the 5X. Side by side the Nexus 5X screen is just too warm and washed out. However, as Nexus owners should know, some simple RGB color tweaks with a custom kernel is all that is necessary to remedy that. So the fix for this will be available in short time.
EDIT
The more I use the 5X, the more I'm starting to agree with other commenters that the screen color is actually quite good. I previously preferred screen color temperatures closer to 7000 (like the iPhone). But after using the 5X for about a week, I've gotten used to the much more natural color tones on the screen. So much so that I actually just recalibrated my Macbook Pro's screen temperature to be closer to 6500, which better matches the 5X screen.
I'm finding that the lower, softer, color temperature is much easier on the eyes., especially in low light.
Finger Print Reader
The finger print reader on the 6S is very good. I find it to be accurate and fast. With that in mind, I had relatively low hopes for the one on the 5X. However, I am happy to say that I am VERY pleasantly surprised by how accurate/fast the 5X finger print reader is. It's as fast/accurate/consistent as the one on the 6S is and I'd actually argue that the finger print reader on the 5X is a tad bit snappier.
Camera
Anyone who follows camera comparison reviews knows that the camera on the 6S gets great results when compared to all the top dogs in camera performance. And most know that Nexus phones have never been known for having a quality camera. However, things have finally changed with the 5X. When I take sample pictures with both phones, for comparison sake, the 6S and 5X tend to produce the same high quality photos. However, in low light, the 5X still falls short to the 6S. But even the low light pictures from the 6S are nothing to write home about.
Phone Speaker
I work from home and have conference calls just about every day. So I utilize the the phone's speaker a lot. And I'll say that the voices through the speaker definitely sound more clear on the 5X than they do on the 6S. With the 6S I have to turn the volume to the max to hear people and even then, it's sometimes hard to hear them. With the 5X I keep it at about 50% volume and everyone sounds crisp and clear.
Overall, I am very happy with the 5X and, aside from the bad screen coloring on the 5X, I can't think of anything that I miss about the 6S. Google did a great job with this phone and I anticipate that I have finally found the phone that I will keep for at least the next 12 months, rather than changing it up seemingly every 3-4 months.

Thread cleaned.
Keep the discussion civil.
-XDA Staff

Great review. Thanks for your effort.
Skickat från min E5823 via Tapatalk
---------- Post added at 11:55 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:53 AM ----------
What about sound with headphones? I imagine I'll use V4A but the low volume I read about is a bit of a bugger. Battery and lag I think either custom or stock updates will take care of.
Skickat från min E5823 via Tapatalk

dondavis007 said:
Great review. Thanks for your effort.
What about sound with headphones? I imagine I'll use V4A but the low volume I read about is a bit of a bugger. Battery and lag I think either custom or stock updates will take care of.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I hadn't tested that yet. However, I just used the in ear headphones that came with the iPhone and tested them with the same song on both the 5X and 6S back to back. I'm not sure how people are claiming it has low volume. With both phones set at 50% volume, the 5X is louder than the 6S. And at 80% volume the music is way to loud on the 5X.
I know there was a thread discussing the low audio volume and people were mentioning they were also having trouble getting the headphones all the way into the phone. I imagine many of those complaining about the audio volume simply hadn't pushed the headphones in all the way. The first time you push them in you really have to give them some effort until they "pop" fully into place. I had to do this with my 6S as well. Once you push it in all the way the first time, it's much easier after that.

In your last paragraph, by phone speaker you mean the speaker at the bottom? or the earpiece that you call with

This is a great thread, it shows you just how much $379 will get you compared to the $650 for the iPhone
It is almost the same device in an android atmosphere.
XPERIA Z5 GREEN

P.Fan said:
In your last paragraph, by phone speaker you mean the speaker at the bottom? or the earpiece that you call with
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I apologize for the confusion. I was referring to the phone speaker at the bottom, used to play music externally, or in my case, project voices during a conference call.
Jooosty said:
This is a great thread, it shows you just how much $379 will get you compared to the $650 for the iPhone
It is almost the same device in an android atmosphere.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, the 6S may cost more but as far as daily use, I can't think of any big areas that the 5X is lacking. The one thing the 6S has that I wish the 5X had, is force touch capabilities. Force touching apps to get to their quick shortcuts is actually extremely intuitive and made for a great user experience. I do miss that. However, double tapping the power button on the 5X to instantly open the camera is an excellent feature that may just trump that force touch feature.

Android has force touch capability and it works on my Nexus 5 and my Nexus 5x - there's a demo app called Force Touch which shows the pressure being exerted on the screen when you touch it. It's just not got any practical uses yet. IMO opinion Apple needed it because the long touch on the iOS home screen just makes the icons wobble and allows them to be moved around. It's marketing gumph that Apple does so well - creating the illusion that its products are somehow better than the competition even though the facts suggest otherwise.

My wife has an iphone 6 and yesterday when we played the same song from the same source, at highest volume in the car via aux cable, Her phone sounded much louder than my 5x. I just hope it is something that will "open" or it was just something that happened the first time. But the sound was noticeably lower as well as call speaker volume.

Unfortunately that's the verdict coming from most reviewers. The audio from the head phone jack isn't that great. IPhone had always had great sound quality though.
XPERIA Z5 GREEN

Yeah, I don't really understand most of the criticism the nexus 5X is receiving. Most seem really nitpicky. Almost like the larger bezels and 2gb of RAM has colored many people's impressions of the rest of the phone. So much was expected of this phone that it kind of broke some hearts and stung em up, so now trash talking. It doesn't help that there is a 6P, that allows you to still get a nexus and trash talk a nexus.
Sent from my Nexus 5X using XDA Free mobile app

As far as the screen is concerned, this blows the 6S out of the water from where I stand. My 5X has great color reproduction and the MUCH better pixel density make it a clear winner.

You know, the more I use the 5X, the more I'm starting to agree that the screen color is actually quite good. I previously preferred screen color temperatures closer to 7000 (like the iPhone). But after using the 5X for about a week, I've gotten used to the much more natural color tones on the screen. So much so that I actually just recalibrated my Macbook Pro's screen temperature to be closer to 6500, which better matches the 5X screen.
I'm finding that the lower, softer, color temperature is much easier on the eyes., especially in low light.

I also think that the screen on the 5X is pretty good. Sure, it a'int the best screen I've ever seen but it a'int the worst either.
There have been quite a few people who got defective "yellow tint" screens and google has been replacing those units. I wonder if the OP's device might be an affected unit?

myphone12345 said:
I also think that the screen on the 5X is pretty good. Sure, it a'int the best screen I've ever seen but it a'int the worst either.
There have been quite a few people who got defective "yellow tint" screens and google has been replacing those units. I wonder if the OP's device might be an affected unit?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't think it is. After looking at pictures of the affected units, mine is nowhere near as yellow. It's just a tad warmer than I'm used to but I've actually gotten used to it and when I change my laptop's screen settings down to a temperature of 6500 it matches the 5X screen almost perfectly. If my screen was abnormally yellow, I'd see it when comparing it to my laptop. I think my screen is fine.

I by far prefer the warmer yellows to the otherwise sickly greens.

warmer screens (redish) should help those that find phone screens keep them awake at night.. The theory beeing the White/Cold light from the screen activate a Wake hormone.

sn0warmy said:
I hadn't tested that yet. However, I just used the in ear headphones that came with the iPhone and tested them with the same song on both the 5X and 6S back to back. I'm not sure how people are claiming it has low volume. With both phones set at 50% volume, the 5X is louder than the 6S. And at 80% volume the music is way to loud on the 5X.
I know there was a thread discussing the low audio volume and people were mentioning they were also having trouble getting the headphones all the way into the phone. I imagine many of those complaining about the audio volume simply hadn't pushed the headphones in all the way. The first time you push them in you really have to give them some effort until they "pop" fully into place. I had to do this with my 6S as well. Once you push it in all the way the first time, it's much easier after that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't have the iPhone 6S to compare with but in my experience with the Nexus 5X the audio level using headphones seems to be somewhere in the middle of what you are getting(too loud at 80%) and what others seem to be getting(not loud enough even at 100%). For me even 100% isn't TOO loud but more than loud enough for most situations. If I was on a loud subway train or something then 100% might not be loud enough but it would have to be pretty loud around me.
Have you compared battery life between the iPhone 6S and Nexus 5X? I've always heard that iPhones had decent battery life so I can't imagine the iPhone 6S having worse battery life than the disappointing(but usually acceptable) battery life of the Nexus 5X.
Also, if the screen on the Nexus 5X was really that "warm" looking you might have gotten a bad one. I've heard that some people are getting with with a yellowish tint. Mine is fine.

Battery life on the iPhone was actually not that great. However, I was also using it right when the Facebook app was experiencing a battery drain bug that was affecting IOS devices.
I'm also a light user in general so my phones tend to last me about 2 days.

Endoran said:
Yeah, I don't really understand most of the criticism the nexus 5X is receiving. Most seem really nitpicky. Almost like the larger bezels and 2gb of RAM has colored many people's impressions of the rest of the phone. So much was expected of this phone that it kind of broke some hearts and stung em up, so now trash talking. It doesn't help that there is a 6P, that allows you to still get a nexus and trash talk a nexus.
Sent from my Nexus 5X using XDA Free mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Only thing making me hold off on the 5x and lean towards the 6p are the 128gb storage, 3gb RAM and the bigger battery. The metal build would be nicer, but the 5x is a better size imo. The stereo speakers would be nice, but I almost always use headphones or Bluetooth. Everything else looks great with the 5x. I just don't know if it would feel like an upgrade from my n5. I even prefer the color "wash out"
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

24 Hours with my New XZ Premium REVIEW

***UPDATED AGAIN****
This is my first time posting a review for phone, because I am that impressed.
A little background so you have an idea of where I am coming from. I have literally purchased every flagship phone a company has had to offer since 2009 (Very expensive vice) from Blackberry 10 devices, Windows devices, iPhones to Android devices. I have an absolute love for gadgets and phones, I hold no loyalty to any company period and never will, just because you have 2-3 products that were solid from the company doesn't mean its not going to create a turd every once in awhile. Loyalty with hardware generally in my opinion garners tunnel vision for someone and the user tends to ignore the downsides or errors with a product. Samsung built Note's 1-7 and the S series, you think all of them were great? No, but big publications I notice seem to think so and its not just Samsung, its all manufacturers for phones. Your decision to buy a phone should be based not only what speaks to you personally but can do what it needs to do for you, not what is "cool" or what everyone else has. Every individual is born with their own preference on things and people should use it.
Parts I am covering, if I left something out and you want me to add it or just ask a question please feel free.
*Overall Build Quality
*Screen Quality
*OS overall functionality and speed
*Sound Quality with HD Bluetooth (LDAC) / Reception
*Camera
*Battery Life
*Summary (Praise and Gripes)
Build Quality
The second you take this phone out of the box and peel off the plastic covering it, you know you are holding top quality piece of hardware, you will find yourself looking all over it from top to bottom for a couple of minutes easy. It's edges are smooth, you don't feel any sharp points while holding the phone, it is a bit slippery (I use a case on every phone no matter what) so I would suggest a skin if you don't like cases. I don't have the brass to walk around with 800 dollars possibly slipping out of my hands and into the wind. Even the speaker grills to the USB-C port cutouts are top notch. I LOVE where they placed the fingerprint sensor, right on the side where my thumb is, this should be the location for every phone ever built in my opinion. I've been using the Blackberry Keyone for a week now and one of the big things I love about a Blackberry is the build of almost all their phones (Priv was garbage) and you will hear a lot of people just say the Keyone is a solid built brick and they are right. This guy is right there with it except glass, it has some nice heft in your hand when you hold it. I would rate the build of this phone without a doubt the 2nd best built quality wise across all platforms of phones so cheers to Sony for that.
Screen Quality
So I put this guy up against the the S8 Plus, and the iPhone 7 Plus. The reason I put the iPhone 7 Plus in here is because its only 1080p and the Sony shows 1080p until you are actually running 4k so its not always in 4k mode FYI and there is not an option to change this (Stupid!) So I was running content side by side against these 2 guys and weather its in 1080p or 4k, theres no comparison, the detail is just stupid. The blacks are amazing and the fact that this phone is an IPS display out-doing an AMOLED is crazy talk. This is the king of displays hands down no contest not even up for debate.
OS overall functionality and speed
Ok so some of you are familiar with Google's Nexus phones and the latest being the Google Pixel and know that since you are getting everything Google intended the user experience on Android to be, for the people that are new or aren't familiar with these Android devices, lets just say you should really try one out, they are bloat free and extremely fast phones. So for the last year or so, the Google Pixel was the fastest Android phone period, it really blew people away at how fast opening and closing applications to having a ton run in the background just wouldn't slow the thing down. So I have always said the there's fast, then there's Google Phone fast...... until now. I dont even know where to begin on how stupidly fast this phone is anything you do or throw at it, and you can say "well it has the Snapdragon 835 in it", yeah that's true but if phones were purely off a spec sheet, the Samsung Galaxy S8 and Plus would run at the same speed, software implementation with hardware is extremely important. In no way shape or form is the Galaxy S8 or Plus even in the same solar system as this thing. You can lookup on Youtube there are posts of people running tests this guy and it's quite embarrassing how much faster this Sony is and the one thing I never see reviewers do is show how actually using all the applications while have all of those open at the same, time. This phone does....not....slow....down. Run 10-12 apps on my S8 Plus, lagasaurus rears its ugly head, micro shudders you know what I am talking about. People that claim that theirs never does that is a liar. There are only a few phones on Android that I would say are free of Lag and Micro Stutters, Google Pixel, HTC M8, talk about butter...mmmm...butter.... There could be the argument "who needs that many apps open", well believe it or not when you are busy sometimes, you don't always close everything down and really you shouldn't have to in this day in age with tech. The ease of use navigation using Sony's launcher and the Settings is so simple it doesn't need a spotlight to be hones, its clean and straight forward and you aren't digging for options unlike some out there.
Sound Quality
(Speakers)
There are 2 front facing stereo on this guy, and I do and I know a lot of people love the fact they are facing you and not facing down so when you are cupping the phone it blocks the sound. Its a huge plus for this phone, the sound quality out of the speakers are not amazing but solid, games or Youtube or speakerphone on a call is loud enough that you can hear what is going on even if your surroundings are not so quiet. Quality wise I wouldn't say its going to win awards nor would I say its going to blow you away like some of HTC's boom sound on previous phones or like the Blackberry Passport. But all in all its right where it needs to be and if you need louder speakers I suggest getting some headphones.
(Headphones)
So I own quite a few headsets ranging from Blue Headsets, Sony MDR-1000X, Sennheiser HD 800s just for example, Plugging any one of these guys and listening to all sorts of music sounds just awesome, not just good but actually awesome. I'm not going to go any further into it because this is a very very subjective category given some people are audio files and some are not, some people can actually hear certain sounds and some actually physically cannot (yes you can actually go see a doctor to see which frequencies you can actually hear).
(Reception/ Call Quality)
So this is just my experience with AT&T, I can't give claim to other carriers. The calls are clear and precise and people say they can hear me just fine, no echos. I can hear people with no issue at all same goes for putting the call on speaker as mentioned before. I have 0 complaints in this department.
Camera
Alright sorry about the long delay for the Camera review. Now I will state from the start I am not a pro photographer and nor am I skilled with manually adjusting camera's. I will keep this short and sweet because you can find a ton of pictures from this phone online in forums or YouTube for reference. I did a comparison between the S8+ the iPhone 7 Plus and the Google Pixel. I personally prefer the natural colors that come from the iPhone and the Sony and the Pixel, popping colors from the Samsung might be yours so I believe it to be personal preference. So what I was looking at purely on these phones was, how clear are the pictures and is the shutter lag bad? For a simple user, that's all you care about. I immediately ignore low light references because they are null, who the heck takes pictures in the dark? Majority people send pictures of things or family/friends during the day, if you need low light go buy a DSLR. Back to the camera. The selfie camera I can barely tell the difference between all of them, they are all clear and I would say the Pixel is a little less detailed. I can distinguish what is what as clear as day in all of the front facing cameras. The rear camera, like I mentioned before, the S8+ is the only one that has extremely high saturation, but quality overall, I cant really tell the difference they all look fantastic in my opinion and maybe on some pictures some look more sharp than others but all of them are extremely fast to take a photo and it looks great. As far as the slow motion, its not very easy to use nor can I think of many places or instances I will use it. As far as the few I have seen with camera issues, I am sorry to hear that I would get the phone replaced because the photo quality is right up there with the best and if you are getting any different that is substantially noticeable, then that means there is something wrong.
Battery Life
So this might be premature but usually with phones battery life is horrible at the start because it needs to break-in and a phones software needs to settle in. Well I for one can say since day one its like the rules of everything we know don't apply here, I would consider myself to be a heavy phone user. I watch YouTube, Funimation shows, Wifi is on all day, I really don't cut things out or turn things off on phones just to save battery because I am either too lazy, or it cuts out to much functionality. I take the phone off the charger at 630AM every morning, then at lunch I'm always at 75% or more. I plug it in and let it charge, I don't while I clear out some emails and work and by the time I pick it up again its at 100% and I don't have to plug it in until bed time which is 11PM roughly, and when I am ready at 11PM, its at 65%. I have never got this thing down below 60%. I have no complaints here for battery life.
Summary
As you noticed I haven't spoken about the bezels, and I am not going to because its irrelevant, they are there because of the speakers and Sony's choice, if it bothers or you don't like it that's fine go buy another phone. There are quite a few other phones out there that are worth your hard earned money, and the more you spend I believe you should get more. "When I spend more money I want less" said NO ONE EVER! Sony does not disappoint in this regard yet in the past, I would highly beg to differ. If you look at everything you are getting with this phone, its really hard to think of anything that they left out. HD Bluetooth Sound, LDAC, Headphone Jack, 4k Screen, Stero Speakers, Front Facing Speakers, Amazing Camera, Awesome build quality, Rapid 3.0 Charging, USB-C, Fingerprint Sensor, Notification Light I mean the list goes on the only thing its missing is Cake. My only real negative things I can say so far right now is that the US version of this phone has a disabled fingerprint sensor, I purchased the UK variant to get around this. Also I actually like the Sony launcher a lot, I always use Nova or Action Launcher 3, been toying with Evie another great launcher, you can change the Grid Size and Icons to whatever you like too. Theres no option to change the screen resolution which does bother me, I am not saying my phone needs to be in 4k all the time because of obvious reasons but at least 2k. But other than that, this phone deserves a lot more attention that it will actually get.
Hope this helps anyone looking to get a phone or just plain curious about this guy and what it has to offer. Cheers!:fingers-crossed:

*audiophile

Nice! I will get mine tomorrow !

Shnig said:
*audiophile
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Language flame as first reply. Thank you Internet, faith restored.

ukemochi said:
This is my first time posting a review for phone, because I am that impressed.
A little background so you have an idea of where I am coming from. I have literally purch...........
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is there an option settings to change the display scaling or alternatively in developer settings to change the dpi or smallest width?
I always find Sony and Samsung to be scaled like a child's play phone.
Thanks

You can change icons size and grid settings on homescreen and app list.

Are the Volume and Camera buttons made out of metal? or are they the same as the side?

Lazaros_K said:
Are the Volume and Camera buttons made out of metal? or are they the same as the side?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
All the buttons on the phone are of the same material and it seems like a hard plastic, its not cheap feeling at all.

FartyParty said:
Nice! I will get mine tomorrow !
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You will be impressed, enjoy.

I am thinking about this phone to replace my Sony Z3 compact but $800 isn't an easy pill to take.
I am also thinking about the HTC U11. I am going to make a choice in the next few days as the screen on my Z3 compact is failing due to the seal failing. I know a dud can happen but I have had two Z3 compacts fail me so I am on the fence.

Just got mine today and boy does it feel premium
Amazing quality bloody hell!!
Also fired up the 4khdr demo video amd was blown away

sfex3best said:
Just got mine today and boy does it feel premium
Amazing quality bloody hell!!
Also fired up the 4khdr demo video amd was blown away
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Enjoy it!

4ktvs said:
I am thinking about this phone to replace my Sony Z3 compact but $800 isn't an easy pill to take.
I am also thinking about the HTC U11. I am going to make a choice in the next few days as the screen on my Z3 compact is failing due to the seal failing. I know a dud can happen but I have had two Z3 compacts fail me so I am on the fence.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hope this helps, I dont know where you live but if you are in the US, order from the UK from Clove Tech, you pay the EX-VAT price which is huge savings. They sell it for 540 pounds which is 697 dollars, and their variant unlocked version has the fingerprint scanner, where as if you wait for the US to get it you will pay 800 dollars and thats not including tax and you DONT get a finger print scanner.
Im sorry about your Z3 bud, I bought one for the wife quite awhile back and hers is still plugging away. Best of luck.

Great review, roll on camera pictures and review. Oh and battery life

Just to share my 2 cents.
Received mine this morning.
Pros -
Build quality is incredible, ts like a piece of jewelry or an expensive watch. Fit and finish is superb.
The colour choice "Midnight Black" is awesome
Performance is very good, smooth and snappy
Photos compared to my s7 edge are actually very very good. Better in some.
Video recording is also very very good.
On the fence -
Whilst the screen is very very good, i personally still prefer the look of amoled panels. Even with a 4k HDR beast the s8 in my opinion still has a better screen. Its a good screen, a very good screen just not the best.
The bezels are a little large and considering the speakers aren't very powerful i'm not sure what the trade off is.
Cons -
Speakers even being stereo are not particularly loud but if you have had a Sony phone in the past then you are probably used to this.
Bloat - There is a bit of bloatware pre installed, it can be disabled but not uninstalled.
Screen - If you're going to give us a 4k screen give the user the option to choose 4k resolution at all times. Its my choice to sacrifice battery life if i choose to.
A couple of bits that i'm not sure are specific to my unit, the vibration motor isn't very powerful and there is a faint click sound occasionally when it is buzzing. Nothing that would make me believe it has a fault but i can hear it.
Also my screen has missed a couple of inputs, it may be me just getting used to it.

jms.flynn said:
Just to share my 2 cents.
Received mine this morning.
Pros -
Build quality is incredible, ts like a piece of jewelry or an expensive watch. Fit and finish is superb.
The colour choice "Midnight Black" is awesome
Performance is very good, smooth and snappy
Photos compared to my s7 edge are actually very very good. Better in some.
Video recording is also very very good.
On the fence -
Whilst the screen is very very good, i personally still prefer the look of amoled panels. Even with a 4k HDR beast the s8 in my opinion still has a better screen. Its a good screen, a very good screen just not the best.
The bezels are a little large and considering the speakers aren't very powerful i'm not sure what the trade off is.
Cons -
Speakers even being stereo are not particularly loud but if you have had a Sony phone in the past then you are probably used to this.
Bloat - There is a bit of bloatware pre installed, it can be disabled but not uninstalled.
Screen - If you're going to give us a 4k screen give the user the option to choose 4k resolution at all times. Its my choice to sacrifice battery life if i choose to.
A couple of bits that i'm not sure are specific to my unit, the vibration motor isn't very powerful and there is a faint click sound occasionally when it is buzzing. Nothing that would make me believe it has a fault but i can hear it.
Also my screen has missed a couple of inputs, it may be me just getting used to it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I too have one in hand. I think the color is Deep Sea Black but who cares, right? :silly:
The large bezels help when you need to hold the phone in landscape mode. I too think it would be nice if the speakers were a little louder but I think it is a result of the waterproofing. If they were to boost the volume signal then they would probably distort too much and then we would complain about that. Can't win.
My vibration is a little soft also, but then again the only phone I know of with a strong vibration is the Moto X Pure. The wife has a brand new one because she smashed the screen in the one I gave her and she loves it (as do I) and the vibration on that thing will knock the fillings from your teeth. Not sure if it has to do with the amount of power being sent to the motor, or the motor itself. I just know that every phone I have ever owned except the Pure has a relatively weak vibration.
I am OK with the screen being at the default of 1080. Plenty good enough for a 5.5 in screen. I have an Amoled phone and comparing the two screens it's hard to tell which is which. The XZ Premium screen looks great in bright sunlight so no problem there. So far I love it. I do wish that Sony would unlink the ringtone volume from the notification volume. I know it can be done because I have another phone running Nougat 7.1.1 and they are not linked. What I did was use a ringtone creator app to artificially lower the volume of the sound I use for notifications (texts) and that way when the volume is on full for the ringtone the notification volume appears to be about half as loud... just the way I like it.
I would recommend this phone to anyone! :good:

figo_rulz11 said:
Great review, roll on camera pictures and review. Oh and battery life
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you, and as far as the camera and battery life added into the review, I will do it at the end of the week so the battery is broken in and I have some time to really play with the camera in all aspects, I should have something up by Saturday.

ukemochi said:
I'd would keep on eye on that click sound, you and the guy that posted just right after you mentioned that the vibration isn't that strong, but mine vibrates pretty strong and actually manages to scare the crap out of me at work because I'll have it on the desk and it goes off (co-workers will always make dirty jokes in reference to the sound) but that's something I will keep my ear open for on that click sound, so far nada.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Its not clicking the duration of when the vibration motor is active which makes me believe it isn't a fault. As an example if i get a call and my phone is on vibrate i don't hear it at all. Its only when i have vibrate on screen tap and use the soft keys. It's like the faintest of clicks when the vibration motor is initializing. Again nothing to make me think its faulty but i noticed it straight away.

jms.flynn said:
Is there an option settings to change the display scaling or alternatively in developer settings to change the dpi or smallest width?
I always find Sony and Samsung to be scaled like a child's play phone.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah you can change it in the developer settings best setting to ever come to android for none rooted users anyways

Proper etiquette aside (hint: don't use speakerphone while doing your "business" in a public bathroom), rate this thread to express how you think the Google Pixel 3 XL's speakerphone performs. A higher rating indicates that you love it: it's loud and it's clear.
Then, drop a comment if you have anything to add!

Speakers are horrible at low volume. Anything below 50% is muffled. When they are turned up they sound amazing.

Compared to my HTC U11 I replaced with the Pixel 3 XL, they sound terrible, the bass is non-existent and the clarity is terrible. They do get loud though, wish Google made them sound a little bit better.

I was just doing some testing/comparing with what I came from (Moto E4 Plus), and the XL blows it out of the water. I tested some music, and YouTube videos. So much louder, crisper, clearer, and has full body bass. The other thread about the vibration being so bad I can't agree with either. Yes I have some vibration, but at full volume on both phones, the XL has about doubled the vibration of the Moto, but it isn't a deal breaker. It's nothing I would complain about considering how much the sound is more like a home theater for me compared to the Moto.

Speakers are muffled, but louder then my Pixel 2 XL.

My top speaker is muffled and only about 10% of the total sound. Almost like there is hardly any sound coming out of the top speaker

dontbeweakvato said:
My top speaker is muffled and only about 10% of the total sound. Almost like there is hardly any sound coming out of the top speaker
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's by design from Google. There's a bunch of articles on it, and I think even in some threads here. The top speaker is to compliment the bottom, not to be equal.

Makes sense. I do think I remember hearing something about that

The speakers are not that impressive, especially at low volume. Sound is muffled and there is distortion or white noise when watching YouTube reviewers like JerryRigEverything or LinusTechTips.
Sent from my Pixel 3 XL using XDA Labs

I am not to impressed with the audio volume on speaker phone as well. At least compared to my Galaxy S8+ that I would rate as "ok" . I would rate the Pixel 3XL as "poor" for a speaker phone. I wanted to love the Pixel after almost a week of use I am returning it back to Google today. It was hard to justify spending $950 on a phone and trading in a S8+ that is just about better at everything for what I use than the Pixel. Screen brightness in the sun was another issue I had against the Pixel.

My speakers sound good. I watched JerryRigEverything and I eventually did hear the distortion but I had the volume so low that I had to put it up to my ear and couldn't watch the video. I've played songs and at different volumes I don't hear any distortion.

I have the 3xl, and find the speakers at full volume sound better with the screen face down. I suspect the vibration of the phone backside makes full volume clarity worse on a hard surface.

I just got my Pixel 3 XL.
I also have the speaker problems.
First:
Watching YouTube Videos with Music or voices.
Absolutely not clear, it is distorted.
It is the bottom speaker.
Then I called Google service.
During call (I used normal phone function with top speaker) I could hear some sounds. Not very loud but frequently repeating. Something like vibration or a "cricket". Not easy to describe. Especially when the volume of conversation is not so high.
Now Google wants me to do some other solution possibilities and if it's still not working then I shall contact my provider/dealer.
I guess finally they wanna exchange the devices.
The wording sounded that they already know very good about that issue.

My notifications sounds are really wierd and there's distortion when I listening to podcasts ... That's was the deal breaker for me . I can't justify spending 1.5k on a phone with really bad speakers and hoping for a update. Sadly I was loving this phone besides of that issue.

can anyone report if the December update improved the speakers when listening to media?. Distortion might've been addressed in this update.

Marsh10 said:
can anyone report if the December update improved the speakers when listening to media?. Distortion might've been addressed in this update.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So far, since installing the update I haven't had any at all. Some people on other threads are reporting the same. While some say there are still certain (really specific) use cases and frequencies where they are experiencing the buzzing/distortion.
I personally had muffled sound issues at low volumes, which for me is totally gone so far. It is crisp and clear now.

tyea said:
I have the 3xl, and find the speakers at full volume sound better with the screen face down. I suspect the vibration of the phone backside makes full volume clarity worse on a hard surface.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I feel the same way about the phone's backside vibrating at high volumes, I also noticed that it can be affected by a case that has a little bit of play like mine does.

I came from a Samsung S7 and feel like it had a better quality sound specially, after a mixer path mod. Also had a scenario the other day when I made a phone call and it sounded like someone else was there like when you use a land line and someelse in your house trys to make a phone call not knowing you where using the phone. Also 2 different people told me they couldn't hear me but when I call them back they hear me fine.

Wow okay. Nice speaker. My phone have mx player and it's really nice too.