I’ve been an Android guy for 15 years. Fun fact: I have never owned an iPhone. I’ve been on Team Android since day one, and over that decade and a half, I’ve used phones from nearly every major brand you can think of — Samsung, LG, OnePlus, and more. But for the past few years, I’ve been all-in on one brand: Google Pixel.
My current daily driver is the Google Pixel 9 Pro, and whenever I need to use another phone for work, I immediately find myself missing it. But what is it about this phone, and the Pixels that came before it, that keeps me so locked in? After a lot of thought, I’ve realized it comes down to a few key areas where Google consistently gets it right for me, even if it gets a few other things wrong.
It starts with the design
Ryan Haines / Android Authority
I take smartphone design very seriously. I realize that’s not common. Most people tell me they don’t even care what a phone looks or feels like, because it’s “just going to go into a case,” which I can’t argue with. However, I will always be obsessed with the designs of phones because that’s what creates (or, more often, doesn’t create) my emotional attachment to it.
With Pixels, I’ve almost always been a fan of the way Google designs them. Sure, there have been some missteps — the bathtub-sized display notch on the Pixel 3 XL comes to mind — but overall, I think Pixels have consistently been some of the best-looking phones out there. Since the Pixel 6, Google has leaned into its camera bar design, which is not only a bold and distinctive visual statement but also wonderfully practical. In a sea of phones that look frustratingly similar, the camera bar is instantly recognizable. Better yet, it prevents the phone from wobbling when I lay it on a table — a pet peeve of mine that drives me crazy with other devices.
Google hasn't always nailed design, but over the past few years, it's really come into its own.
The Pixel 9 Pro, specifically, has become my favorite design yet, mainly because it’s a powerful phone in a manageable size. I know plenty of Android fans love massive phones, but the Pixel 9 Pro hits the sweet spot for me. It’s comfortable to use one-handed, which has been a game-changer for my daily use and has made me feel more connected to the phone. It just feels right in a way no other device has.
Best of all, I don’t feel like I’m making a sacrifice for this smaller size. Ignoring a slight difference in battery capacity, the Pixel 9 Pro is virtually identical in specs to the larger, more expensive Pixel 9 Pro XL. You get the same performance, the same display quality, and the same versatile cameras. Right now, no other Android phone truly offers that top-tier, no-compromise experience in this form factor. In other words, the Pixel 9 Pro is the Goldilocks phone: just right.
The camera I can actually trust
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