Waiting for the Pixel 6
  • Posted byby Kellen

Waiting for the Pixel 6

The month of June just kicked off and with a quick glance at the calendar you start to…oh good lord this is going to be a long, sluggish year. 2021 may go down as the most uninteresting tech year in some time, unless one company can deliver. I feel like all that’s worth doing at the moment is sitting here patiently, trying to wait for the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro from Google to arrive.

No offense to the other players in the game, but what else do we have to look forward to?

The Samsung Galaxy Fold 3, a $2,000 foldable that is unlikely to introduce dramatic changes over last year’s Fold 2? I’m sure it’ll be nice, but we’re about to leave the couches behind and get back out into the world. Couch phones had their moment to shine. We need to be mobile again, my brother. There’s also no Note 21 and I’m not about to get excited about a Galaxy S21 FE.

The Galaxy Watch 4 line with Wear OS? OK, that could be fun and I am excited about the future of Wear and the fact that Samsung is switching back over, but we’re still talking about smartwatches. I love a smartwatch, you know that. Do I look forward to smartwatches like I do my next phone? No, no, no.

Pixel 6 Pro

A OnePlus 9T? We are assuming they’ll make one, right? Look, I thought the OnePlus 9 Pro was a solid phone, but it’s also a f*cking whale, the camera wasn’t special, and the battery life on it was horrendous. To be honest, the phone was borderline ugly too. It did not leave me wanting more, so unless OnePlus completely switches it up with the 9T, I can’t say I’m super excited about OnePlus’ finishing months of 2021.

After all of that, what’s left? Motorola has gone silent after last year’s Edge+ and the most interesting thing we know of from them is a leak of a new high-end smartwatch. Sony announced two phones that look excellent, but by the time they launch in the US at sky-high prices, they’ll feel like old news. Not that they won’t be good phones, it’s just that they already told us about them and then asked us to wait months to finally play.

And that brings us back to the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro. We think both will run Google’s own chip that will allow them to ditch Qualcomm. The designs have leaked and they look wild as hell in a so-bad-they-could-be-good way. We’re pretty sure a big camera overhaul is coming with that crazy design. Android 12 could bring all of the new UI hotness as a Pixel exclusive. It really looks like Google might (finally) go all out on a Pixel line.

So again, apologies to everyone else still playing, but unless you have some tricks up your sleeves, I’ll be over here waiting for you know what.

Hot renders made by the legend, @PhoneDesigner.

Written by

Kellen

It’s not often that you get to merge personal passions into a professional life, but that’s what Kellen did when he launched Droid Life in 2009. After working years of unsatisfying jobs in the medical and property management fields, he took a risk to try and create an online community while playing with the coolest gadgets on the planet each day, a risk that has turned out to be incredibly rewarding. Outside of Droid Life, Kellen is your typical Portlander who drinks way too much good beer, complains often about the Trail Blazers, and can be found out on the streets for a run, rain or shine.

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54 Comments

  • this right here is exactly how us Android fans feel lol there’s less and less players in the market and with everyone and they grandmamas against China, we also lose out on the OPPO, Xiaomi, Huawei etc. phones… I’m an avid 1+ user and completely agree with the 9 Pro being butt ugly and no need to upgrade, however I do think foldables are the future except just needs more time to make it better… Pixel though… I don’t know man, I just feel like it’ll come out and we’ll play with it then after about a week we’d be tired of it lol

  • Kellen waiting for the Pixel 6? No way!? Tell us something we don’t know lol.

  • I have the Note20 Ultra and although the software has gotten less buggy since launch, I’m finding myself wanting to get back to a pure Android phone. So glad Google got wireless charging back. That’s why I initially left (after the Nexus 6), and when they got it back, no Google phone really enticed me until this one. I love the Note20 Ultra hardware, and the squared-off screen edges in particular, but I will see what kind of Day One deals are offered on the Pixel 6. This is the first time I’ve had a saved Google Search on a phone since the Nexus 6. So yeah, waiting patiently.

  • I’m the same. Waiting on these phones so I can make a decision on my P4XL replacement. It’s either these or my first ever Sony.

  • Well I hope the new Pixel steps up its video capability. Current Android video capture/playback quality is GARBAGE compared to the iPhone’s. The difference is black hole and the sun.
    I hope they’re saying video will be greatly improved not just because of a gimbal-like system. That’s just for stability and won’t mean the quality of the video itself will improve.

    • The Pixel video isn’t that bad. It certainly isn’t the best but calling it garbage is a bit much.

      • I always thought it was fine until I saw my friend’s videos on his iPhone and I felt like throwing my 4xl into the bin. He’s zooming in while playing back and the frames are still crisp with no noticeable noise, for one. If it’s possible to have that kind of video quality, why can’t pixel do it? Software limitation? Hardware? Pixel even has its own “visual core” and yet..

    • Yeah hoping the new Samsung built shooter will help them with their video game. It definitely needs some help. I continue to be baffled at how good their photos are in comparison to how bad their video capture is.

  • The fact that it seems like it’s going to have an ugly hole in the display makes me consider just keeping my 4 another year.

    • I have a Pixel 5 and the hole punch really drives me crazy. And that’s with it being off to the side where it’s less intrusive. Being in the middle is even worse. Although the massive size of even the “small” Pixel 6 is the bigger factor for me.

  • I mean, when you get right down to it, this is what happens when tech matures and capability outstrips what most need.

    When was the last time an average user had a reason to get excited about a PC? Sure the M1 Macs were interesting to people doing video editing and coding and new Nvidia and AMD releases were exciting for gamers, but those are niche markets. But most people use their computer to pay their electric bill and do some amazon shopping. Phones have basically arrived to that point.

    When it comes right down to it, I could basically do 100% of my computing and photography with a $350 Pixel 4a and a $300 Chromebook and not really be limited much at all. Anything beyond that is just diminishing returns. I’m fully participating in those diminishing returns, mind you, but can fully see how I haven’t really seen any real increase in mobile capability in the past 5 years or so, it’s just been all small quality of life stuff that’s nice but not groundbreaking.

    • Pretty much agree with all you said, yet here I am, trying to be patient for the 6. Pixels 4 and 5 didn’t do it for me, so I’m still rocking the P3. I still think cameras on phones have more room to improve and I’m really excited to see what the 6 is capable of.

      • Phone call sound quality can be improved a lot.

        Durability also. Pointless to have a pretty phone we can’t look at because it’s covered in a case

        And photography/video, agreed

      • To me, none of Pixels didn’t do it for me. It’s been as if Google didn’t give a shit about what Pixel fans have been telling them. I’m no longer looking forward to anything coming from Google. Maybe my expectation was too high?

  • Def waiting for the Pixel 6 XL! I have a still working OG XL as backup and my daily phone is a Pixel 3 XL I was looking to get the 5 but only wanted an XL model which Google didn’t see fit to offer. So 6 it is for me. The 3 is about to end its update life.

  • I’m waiting for the Pixel 6, probably going to be out on the 6 Pro because of the curved screen. Also waiting for the Sony Xperia devices, not sure which way I’ll go there. Want the XP 1 III but due to cost might go XP 5 III. Then there’s the Pixel 5a, which could very likely be a winner for the price and specs. But then I’m not sure why I’d go with that and not just keep going with my 4XL.

    Decisions decisions in a few months. If I go with the Pixel 6 I’m going to need a fat case to balance out that camera hump.

    • Some cases have already leaked.. and they don’t get rid of the bump. Instead they extend outwards to encapsulate it.

  • I always come back here when my phone starts to get old to get hyped up about buying something new. Pixel 6 is definitely getting me excited, but by the time it comes out the foldable Pixel could be right around the corner, and could be the foldable that actually looks like something I want to use. I guess we’ll see. At the very least my Pixel 3 won’t last another year with a bad charging port and its battery getting worse by the day.

    • I have consistently found that when battery life deteriorates, a wipe and restore always brings the battery performance back to as-new. A bit of a pain, but well worth it if you need longer battery life. Typically do it every 8-12 months.

    • Just bought a new Pixel 3 for $160 as a backup to my aging P3. It’s so refreshing to have battery left by the end of the day.

      • Not a bad idea. It’s the first phone I’ve ever had that doesn’t feel stuttery or slow after 2+ years, but yeah the battery is a huge drag.

        • replace it. and the usb flex. probably cost $25 and takes a couple hours with all that Pixel 3 glue.

  • So there are these new, non-confirmed renders of how the pixel 6 is going to look like, and a refreshed UI that copies iOS in many ways and this is new and exciting. But every Pixel is new and exciting no matter what, and every other manufacture lags behind them every year so why does Samsung and apple sell more phones? lol.

    • – “so why does Samsung and apple sell more phones?”

      The Pixels are only sold in a handful of markets and carriers. Even if Google eventually expands to more markets the sales won’t compare to Samsung and Apple because they’ll never be available in China, the worlds largest smartphone market, because Google is blocked from doing business over there.

      Were you somehow under the impression that the Pixels are sold everywhere, and if so how?

  • Same. Been running Oneplus since the 3. Pixel is looking really tempting after OP dropped the ball with the 8T and 9.

  • What about the Pixel 6a? Sure I’m going to enjoy reading all the reviews for this one, but I’m cheap af, and I’m sure this will be $900+

    • I’m guessing $799 for the 6 and $999 for the 6 Pro. That is assuming that they can put $200 worth of seperation between them. Best case scenario, $749 and $949.

  • It’s going to be a long 4 months. I’m hoping for leaks on the Pixel watch.

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