Pixel 9 Pro XL long-term review: Google’s Best Smartphone To Date Now Comes In Two Sizes

It’s taken me several weeks and months to come to this conclusion. The Pixel 9 Pro XL is one of the best smartphones of 2024, only surpassed by Google’s smaller and much-loved Pixel 9 Pro. A slab of metal and glass, the Pixel 9 Pro XL comes with a 6.8-inch display with a distinct camera module, making the smartphone a unique product in a crowded market.

There is much more to the Google Pixel 9 Pro XL than just the overhyped conversational Gemini Life and Pixel Studio image maker. It’s mainly vanilla Android software, amped up with some cool Pixel-only tricks (hello there, Now Playing), and a camera setup that is only a smidge behind the outstanding Vivo X200 Pro.

But if anything has surprised us all this year, it’s the new design language—and it surprised us in a good way. It’s slick and premium. If you think it's too large, you can switch to the smaller 6.3-inch Pixel 9 Pro (which has a different display and battery size but shares the same hardware otherwise).

The pill-shaped island design

Yes, the Pixel 9 Pro XL has a brand-new design. The heart of this change is the new pill-shaped island (rather than being edge-to-edge), which makes the phone look all the more premium. The edges are also flat and polished, compared to last year.

The XL looks vibrant, has several colour options, and is sharp enough for most eyes, even with the tiniest display and font size. Watching videos, especially live cricket action between Australia and India, has been a pleasure. The display has been very well calibrated out of the box.

Since this new design language debuted with the Pixel 6 Series, research and development have been in-depth, carefully considering each move before execution. Despite the massive 6.8-inch AMOLED panel, the smartphone is comfortable to hold for long hours. The frosted Gorilla Glass Victus 2 back panel helps with grip. The smartphone has an IP68 rating.

There are slimmer bezels (but even on all sides). Thanks to the flattened frame, accidental taps are long gone. Another immediately noticeable improvement is the display's brightness. It is rated at 3,000 nits of peak brightness, which is enough for viewing under the harsh rays of Delhi sunlight.

The pill-shaped island at the back provides a good guide for where to place your fingers when holding the smartphone. Thus, you won’t accidentally keep smudging the camera.

One thing I didn’t like about the design is that it isn’t very durable. I’d first recommend getting tempered glass and putting on a case. I’ve dropped my phone just twice, and because it was in my bag, it had several scratches. Yes, the build quality is better than before, but it still isn’t up to the standards of a Samsung Galaxy S Series or a OnePlus flagship smartphone.

Also Read: Pixel Watch 3 review: Google’s Third-Generation Wear OS Smartwatch Is The One To Buy

Hardware and software: Up to scratch?

Hardware is where Google has been stumbling over the past couple of years. The Tensor G4 is a step up from the G3 in the Pixel 8 Series, but not by much. The biggest refinement is that the Pixel 9 Pro XL doesn’t overheat at all (thanks to active thermal management). But is it as powerful as the Snapdragon 8 Elite or MediaTek Dimensity 9400 SoCs? The simple answer is no. But, for a smartphone that isn’t portraying itself as a gaming device, does that really matter?

Unfortunately, it does. Every so often, the smartphone begins to lag a touch. I’ve noticed this almost daily, and it is kind of frustrating. Sometimes, the fingerprint sensor won’t accept my fingerprint, an app takes a smidge longer to load, or it behaves like a smartphone at its limits while multitasking.

Nonetheless, the Pixel 9 Pro XL runs just fine for daily tasks. During a day full of photography in Mumbai, WhatsApp calls, texting, browsing, and using Google Maps for directions, I never felt like this phone would let me down. It’s good for the average consumer and punches above its weight for others.

Ever since the Android 15 update, I’ve noticed that the smartphone has been running much smoother than before. It’s fluid, intuitive, and one of the best software out there. Couple that with the fact that you get some Pixel-only features like Now Playing (which will automatically tell you the song playing without you having to open the Shazam app), and you’ve got winning software!

With all the AI features in the Pixel 9 Pro XL, this device constantly feels like an all-arounder. Magic Eraser is one of my favourite AI features on this device. I can seamlessly remove the heads of people in the photo that are unwanted.

Zoom Enhance and Gemini Live (which I didn’t really care for) also worked as advertised. One AI feature that surprised me is Google’s updated Pixel Weather app. The AI-generated report at the top of the homepage is genuinely useful. It’s a helpful reminder of the day ahead if you plan to step out.

I’ve had a couple of issues concerning the software. From the random gestures not working to my 5G not turning on, I’ve had to restart the phone every time for this to be fixed. I checked with many others, and none of them have faced this issue. Maybe it’s just my unit. I was hoping for a software update to fix it, but that hasn’t happened to date.

Those pill-shaped island cameras

The Pixel 9 Pro XL features four cameras (three on the back and the selfie camera on the front), neither of which disappoints. There’s the 50MP primary sensor (with OIS and an f/1.7 aperture), the 48MP ultra-wide camera (with f/1.7 aperture), a 48MP telephoto (with OIS, 5x optical zoom and f/2.8 aperture) and a 42MP selfie camera (with f/2.2 aperture).

The Pixel 9 Pro XL takes fantastic photos right off the bat. It’s an easy-to-use camera setup, one which doesn’t need to tweak the setting. Two things that really impressed me this time around were the much-improved motion tracking (so you get far less blurry photos) and the telephoto sensor. 5x photos look superb, with a great amount of details retained. Even 10x shots were very useable. But what impressed me the most was the 30x Super Res Zoom. I can finally enter a stadium with a Google Pixel smartphone and feel confident of capturing some worthy shots of the action on the field before me.

Saying this, the Pixel 9 Pro XL’s cameras are still a step behind the vivo x200 (with its outstanding portrait shots) and the Oppo Find X8 Pro.

Unsurprisingly, selfies have gotten the biggest update because who doesn’t want to snap their own photos today? Just snap a selfie, and you’ll feel a difference almost immediately. There may be some oversharpening, but the clarity, details, and dynamic range are far beyond what could be captured with previous Pixel devices.

Last but not least, the low-light photos were excellent. They came out with excellent detail (thanks to the primary sensor size) and accurate colours.

Also Read: Google Pixel Buds Pro 2 Review: The Excellent Fit & Sound Quality Makes These the Best Wireless Earbuds of 2024

Battery and charging: A hit and a miss

Battery life is far better than on the Pixel 8 Pro. I’ve consistently gotten a day and more of use out for this smartphone. At times, I was even able to eke out a day and a half before having to plonk the smartphone on the table and plug it in. It’s not the smartphone with the best battery life, but it does a commendable job, especially if you’re coming from an older Pixel device.

Why did I say it was a hit and a miss? The miss is that the Pixel 9 Pro XL charges very slowly. It takes nearly 80 minutes to juice the smartphone from 0 to 110, which is slower than most other smartphones on the market.

Verdict: What’s holding me back?

Yes, I have said that the Pixel 9 Pro XL (and more so, the Pixel 9 Pro) is one of the best Android smartphones for 2024. That’s true. However, the fact that Google is all but confirmed to be switching to TSMC for its chips in 2025 is holding me back from giving this smartphone an instant recommendation.

Yes, buy the Pixel 9 Pro XL (or the Pixel 9 Pro, depending on your size preferences), and you won’t be disappointed. You get a fantastic display (much brighter than before), excellent cameras, a great in-hand feel, and excellent battery life.

It’s a crowded market, full of smartphones with better cameras (Oppo Find X8 Pro, vivo X200 Pro) and ones with better battery life (OnePlus 13 immediately comes to mind). Still, the Pixel is an excellent all-rounder, thanks to the addition of many new AI chops.