I'd already spent a lot of time with the Pixel 10 Pro XL in Paris -- including extensively testing its camera -- so there was a lot I already liked about it. I'm keen on the design, the display is vibrant and bright enough to use under the midday Paris sunshine and the camera is capable of taking some really great-looking images.
Now that I have Google's new flagship phone in my hand I've been able to dive deeper, playing games, using the new AI tools and generally finding out what this phone is really like to live with. It's too early still for a full, rated review, so here I wanted to give some of my initial thoughts and impressions from the time I've spent with it.
Watch this: The Google Pixel 10 Pro XL's Camera Is So Smart, It Almost Took the Photos for Me 07:57
You can still read my full hands-on article, as well as watch my video above where I put the camera to the test. And if you're interested in the cheaper base Pixel 10, you can read about that here.
So, let's dive in.
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Capable Tensor G5 processor
I couldn't really use the phone beyond the camera in my first round of testing so I was excited to finally be able to boot it up and see how it handles. It packs Google's latest Tensor G5 processor, along with 16GB of RAM. The company has made various boasts about this chip's performance increases over its predecessors.
Andrew Lanxon/CNET
I'm yet to run our usual suite of benchmark tools on the phone -- Google seems to block them in the Play Store during testing periods, which is unhelpful -- so my observations are more anecdotal. But it certainly seems like a nippy piece of kit. Swiping around the Android 16 interface is swift and lag-free. Apps, including the camera, open quickly.
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