Hot Take: Pixel 5 and Pixel 4a 5G

04 October 2020


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  • Anonymous
  • XUt
  • 04 Oct 2020

David, 04 Oct 2020Totally agree with the comments about the size of the phone... moreand the iPhone 12 mini with the smallest screen of the year by far at 5.4", though it remains to be seen if it'll have an HDR screen or if the 2200 mAh battery will be any good.

It's probably the closest to the Pixel 5 since they have similar specs at the same price point too.

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    • Pixel5Sucks
    • kqy
    • 04 Oct 2020

    Anonymous, 04 Oct 2020This is quite biased article. Having the best chipset was m... moreDoes the fact that it doesn’t need a SD865 change the fact that this is still a terribly overpriced device? Not really. With a SD765G, these devices should have been priced at $350 and $500, which is what they will probably quickly drop down to when they immediately do poor numbers. The Pixel 5 is literally shipping with a worse chipset than last year’s Pixel 4. I get that Qualcomm probably isn’t willing to sell them 855’s anymore, but come on. This just looks bad. They should have relaunched the whole line with a new name at a cheaper price and ditched the 5G to reach those more competitive prices. For what people care about coming from Pixels, which is software, cameras, and longevity, the Pixel 5 is barely better in the camera department and decidedly worse in the longevity department. If Google can support the Pixel 5 for 3 years, there’s no reason other than marketing that they can’t support the Pixel 4 for even longer. And it’s not like Google doesn’t know this, which is why it confuses me that they even bothered with this mistake. There’s a reason that in their reveal event they try to draw attention away from this inconvenient spec by calling it a “Qualcomm Snapdragon processor” and leaving it at that.

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      • David
      • dU%
      • 04 Oct 2020

      Totally agree with the comments about the size of the phone. All the other phones mentioned in the article are huge and don't fit well in the hand.

      The most interesting phones of 2020 are the S20, Pixel 5 and Xperia 5 II because they are the ideal size for holding and using with one hand.

        • ?
        • Anonymous
        • nUr
        • 04 Oct 2020

        This is quite biased article. Having the best chipset was meaningful in times when mid-range was not enough to ensure fluent operation. Now days "mid-range" 765 is more the enough for normal work, given the OS is not loaded with tons of crap which (surprise) applies to pixels of all android phones :)

        So the only sensible sentence and what should have been a conclusion is: "The only thing people seemed to want from a Pixel phone is a good camera and clean software. " ... and a better battery life, which P5 will deliver by both volume and lower consumption.



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          • Anonymous
          • pQr
          • 04 Oct 2020

          prasad-gsma, 04 Oct 20201. A typical 18-55mm kit zoom is designed to cover both end... more"A typical 18-55mm kit zoom is designed to cover both ends, ultra-wide and telephoto without being extreme on either end. 18mm or equivalent isn't just "wide" by any stretch of the imagine. A standard focal length would be 35mm. Most smartphones have 26mm as their wide camera. Even by smartphone standards, 18mm would be ultra-wide. So no, a kit zoom doesn't go from wide to telephoto, it goes from ultra-wide to telephoto."
          Which full frame camera has a kit lens with 18mm? 18-55 is a kit lens for Aps-c cameras. The full frame equivalent focal length of 18-55mm on a Canon Aps-c camera is approximately 29-89mm. Full frame kit lenses start at 24mm. So no, kit lenses as well as point and shoot cameras nearly always start at a 24mm equivalent field of view, which isn't ultra wide. Not 16mm or 13mm.

          2. "you can't fake the background compression from a telephoto" Actually that's a thing that you don't need to fake. The perspective and the relationship between background and foreground only depends on the distance. So it is identical when you use digital zoom at the same distance to the scene. It is a common misunderstanding.

          3. "But the focal length can easily be faked"
          No, it can't. You can crop in order to get the same field of view, but that's not the purpose of a tele lens. The purpose of an ultra wide angle lens is the field of view. But of course the purpose of a tele camera is NOT the field of view, otherwise nobody would use a tele camera as every ultra wide angle camera contains the field of view of every tele camera. The purpose of a tele camera is mainly the increase in details. Digital zoom gives you 0% more details and that's also roughly true when it comes to Google's zoom in perfect light conditions without shadows.
          There is 3rd party software, which lets you create an ultra wide field of view with a 4:3 aspect ratio by the way. So it is not that difficult to produce an ultra wide field of view with a tele camera (Brenizer method), but getting the details of a tele camera with an ultra wide angle camera? Nearly impossible. The best method for producing more details is the sensor shift technique, which no smartphone offers (as I said Google's handheld solution doesn't work and basically only improves the noise, which leads to more details in not perfect light conditions), but even then you would not get the details of a tele camera + sensor shift.

          4. The Pixel 4 already had an ultra wide angle camera. It was the 21.5mm equivalent selfie camera. It produces decent results (good enough for social media) when it is used as a rear camera for landscapes.

            Guys,

            It's one thing to post your opinion but it's another thing to be completely biased and hell bent on trying to make it look bad. Yes the pixel 5 is clearly positioned to ensure the 4a 5G sells better but man have you skimped over a lot of details to get your point across.

            IPhone 11 is not a comparison, it's got a 720p screen and it's LCD. It's DECIDEDLY mid range in fact. If it isn't, then you rather call the SE 2020 as flagship as well. Its almost the same after all minus the ultra wide?

            IP 68 rating is expensive, you as a team have corroborated to that multiple times. How did you forget that?

            Lack of aluminum to touch and feel is true, but don't you agree it improves the built quality nevertheless? It won't snap as easy?

            Oneplus nord camera's will never be able to compete on the same level. Tons of videos online where it doesn't seem to be on the same level as even the 3a.The only serious competition here is Samsung FE and to be fair that might actually be a better phone.

            Opinion pieces are always nice to read but guys, please do a better job here. At least try not to be too biased..!

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              • Rippy
              • sfc
              • 04 Oct 2020

              AskJeeves, 04 Oct 2020Damn. GSM Arena *really* hate Pixel phones huh? Aside fr... moreGood comment because I've noticed over a period of time the author of some of these articles at gsm arena always has some sort of negative take or stab, clever on the way they slant it but you can definitely see it

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                • Yeah
                • n1}
                • 04 Oct 2020

                R3mba, 04 Oct 2020Why No ONE but NO ONE mentioned SIZE OF PIXEL phones!!!! bu... moreI'm gonna buy this just for the size, it's perfect! Perfect screen size, no weird 21:9 aspect ratio and it's going to be amazing to hold. I hate big phones! This one is just perfect, I don't mind spending more money on it that I should. I don't want to buy a freaking tablet for one handed use anymore.

                  • R
                  • Rippy
                  • sfc
                  • 04 Oct 2020

                  Rippy, 04 Oct 2020Totally agree. I'm using the smaller Pixel 5 and I abs... moreTypo I'm using the smaller 3

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                    • Rippy
                    • sfc
                    • 04 Oct 2020

                    R3mba, 04 Oct 2020Why No ONE but NO ONE mentioned SIZE OF PIXEL phones!!!! bu... moreTotally agree. I'm using the smaller Pixel 5 and I absolutely adore it. The pocket friendly one-hand size for me it is practical, compact, has a large screen, great camera, reliable as hell and has a fantastic software experience. 2 years on it still feels like new and at this stage I do not think I will ever buy another brand of phone maybe except for a Nokia when they refine their line. So when we look at the five, with a unquestionably good chipset, bigger battery and is about the same size with even a bigger screen, so for me you get the best of both worlds. Unlike the three having a dual SIM is not possible even though it has ESIM plus physical SIM some carries just do not have the capacity to run both in the phone, I know the four does which by the way is a great looking device so here is hoping the five will be the dual SIM beast I wanted to be

                      Anonymous, 04 Oct 2020'While there's no doubt the backtracking on the h... more1. A typical 18-55mm kit zoom is designed to cover both ends, ultra-wide and telephoto without being extreme on either end. 18mm or equivalent isn't just "wide" by any stretch of the imagine. A standard focal length would be 35mm. Most smartphones have 26mm as their wide camera. Even by smartphone standards, 18mm would be ultra-wide. So no, a kit zoom doesn't go from wide to telephoto, it goes from ultra-wide to telephoto. Besides, the bigger point of that argument was that we shouldn't have to choose between the two and that Google should just provide both.

                      2. You can't fake every aspect of a proper telephoto lens. You can't easily fake the background blur and you can't fake the background compression from a telephoto. But the focal length can easily be faked, which is generally what's important. There is no way to go wider than what your lens can achieve. Panorama isn't even remotely the same thing as using an ultra-wide lens. You have to stand there and take multiple shots and even then it usually only works on a single axis, not the full 360-degree view you get with an ultra-wide lens.

                        Faisal, 04 Oct 2020Correction: Pixel 1 had headphone jack. They ditched it in ... moreCorrected.

                          • J
                          • J
                          • SnU
                          • 04 Oct 2020

                          Pixel 5 all the way during black friday! Probably will go for 450euro then!!

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                            • Anonymous
                            • D6e
                            • 04 Oct 2020

                            Anonymous, 04 Oct 2020Pixel 2 doesn’t have headphone jack The pixel 2 has a headphone jack

                              the design is unique i love the new baseless it's fit all the corners but the specs nothing special

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                                • AngryLithuanian
                                • mE0
                                • 04 Oct 2020

                                I agree the prices in dollars do not make sense for Pixel phones.

                                But here in UK Pixel 5 is cheaper than S20 FE, iPhone 11 or Oneplus 8 Pro. And pre-order bundle is quite atractive with Bose QC 35's.

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                                  • Anonymous
                                  • pQr
                                  • 04 Oct 2020

                                  'While there's no doubt the backtracking on the headphone jack was a downgrade, most of us will agree that an ultrawide is preferable to a 2x telephoto if you could only have one. You can easily fake a 2x zoom digitally — and Google is especially good at this — but there's no way to fake a wider field of view than what your lens can capture."
                                  That's so so wrong.
                                  1. I am sure that most people prefer a tele camera. That's why camera manufacturers like Canon, Nikon, Sony, Fujifilm, Panasonic, etc always give you a kit zoom lens or point and shoot camera that goes from wide to tele (not ultra wide).
                                  2. No, you can not fake a tele camera. It is not possible to achieve the details of a tele camera with an ultra wide angle camera. But with a tele camera you can achieve an ultra wide field of view via a panorama, so it is the opposite. You can fake ultra wide, but you can not fake a tele camera. Google's "super resolution" zoom is a marketing stunt and sadly some people simply believe those marketing stunts. I have a Pixel 3a. Google's zoom basically only improves the noise, that's why it leads to more details in low light conditions or in shadow areas of perfect light conditions, other manufacturers would use those algorithms at 1.0x. Try Google's zoom in perfect light conditions without shadow areas and there is basically no difference when compared with traditional digital zoom. Only contours might look smoother due to machine learning (which only guesses). In perfect light conditions there is no advantage over the digital zoom of a Nexus 5x, which even has a wider lens. You can also compare the zoom results with single frame Lightroom mobile dng files in perfect light conditions, there is no advantage. Furthermore even if Google's zoom would work someday, it doesn't work with videos, doesn't work with dng files and it doesn't work with moving objects and doesn't capture more light per time from an object than the main camera. For example smartphone periscope cameras capture more light per time from objects than main cameras due to the larger entrance pupil.

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                                    • Anonymous
                                    • vIe
                                    • 04 Oct 2020

                                    Annas, 04 Oct 2020This is always an statement from people who cannot afford..... moreGOOGLE makes iPhone a better value fir money

                                    I am buying an iPhone 12 mini this year, not some no name pixel from data mining internet ad agency

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                                      • Anonymous
                                      • vIe
                                      • 04 Oct 2020

                                      R3mba, 04 Oct 2020Why No ONE but NO ONE mentioned SIZE OF PIXEL phones!!!! bu... moreiPhone 12 mini is the only choice at this price

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                                        • Anonymous
                                        • nb2
                                        • 04 Oct 2020

                                        How do you know most people agree an ulta wide lens is preferable to a 2x telephoto? I don't.

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