More Reading

Post navigation

197 Comments

  • Play54s

    Google is paying 97$ per hour! Work for few hours and have longer with friends & family! !pa74d:
    On tuesday I got a great new Land Rover Range Rover from having earned $8752 this last four weeks.. Its the most-financialy rewarding I’ve had.. It sounds unbelievable but you wont forgive yourself if you don’t check it
    !pa74d:
    ➽➽
    ➽➽;➽➽ http://GoogleFinancialJobsCash74MarketMax/GetPay$97/Hour… ★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★:::::!pa74l..,…..

  • well, im glad i went with the s8….ugly af and i need my headphone jack f your iphone nonsense

  • Agree to that the new layout has turned me off. I know it’s not what you want to hear but this was my primary android site I would check daily and since the update I have not really used it except following a twitter post to a topic I see. Hope you guys can get this cleaned up and made more useful to find topics

  • America24s

    Google is paying 97$ per hour! Work for few hours and have longer with friends & family! !pa35d:
    On tuesday I got a great new Land Rover Range Rover from having earned $8752 this last four weeks.. Its the most-financialy rewarding I’ve had.. It sounds unbelievable but you wont forgive yourself if you don’t check it
    !pa35d:
    ➽➽
    ➽➽;➽➽ http://GoogleFinancialJobsCash35BuzzCafe/GetPay$97/Hour… ★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★:::::!pa35l..,….

  • I’m on the XL currently and am considering skipping this iteration of flagships altogether. The only two I’m still interested in are the XL 2 and the Note 8. I’ve used Bluetooth headphones almost exclusively for a few years now, thanks to LG’s tones, but the option of plugging in wired headphones as a backup is a significant letdown. NOT a deal breaker though.

  • Front facing speakers aren’t enough to sway me away from the new XL. If the screen is a bit larger then yes, but same screen size, probably not.

  • I’ve just come across Nokia 8 leaks and am really unsure which to get; HTC Pixel 2 or the Nokia 8.

  • Funny, if they hadn’t gone ape sh*t and gotten rid of the headphone jack, this would be pretty close to my perfect phone. Would still be missing a big battery (it won’t have one) and wireless charging (it won’t have it), but dang. With front facing speakers, rear fingerprint reader, OLED (I assume), small side bezels (like this appears to have), flat back, and high end specs, this is right there. And I trust HTC built hardware over LG. I’ve never cared about tiny top/bottom bezels, and I’ll gladly take them if it means front facing speakers. Don’t want or care about curved edges.

    I could see maybe considering one of these a few months after release for a steep discount off what will likely be a high initial price, as all the sheep follow the tiny bezel trend.

    Curious about the XL but from the looks of it they’ll do some things right while screwing up some others. The eternal wait continues…

    Edit: Wait why are the power and volume keys in the (old) wrong order? Gah! No!

  • Wow if this is accurate, I’m disappointed. I thought this was going to be my next phone. 6″+ screen phone choices are already limited..then they go ahead and screw this up…Wonder is the 2XL will be different…

  • IF this is legit (a big if), then terrible, just terrible. This design was unacceptable last year. For late 2017? Just forget it. But again, that’s an IF.

    • They are legit. Leaks around this time of Pixels are always legit especially coming from Bass.

      • Agreed on the Blass pattern here. But I guess I’m just hoping this can’t actually be happening…i was really looking forward to this phone, it probably wasn’t going to supplant my newly beloved S8, but I’d have given it a thought if it really rocked. But this mail-it-in design effort was the reason I didn’t get it LAST year. Surely they can’t be trotting out basically the same thing a full year later??

    • It was considered unacceptable last year by some because it didn’t have a home button or front facing speakers justifying those bezels. Apparently this one will have those speakers.

  • So only the Pixel will have the squeezy thing & the XL2 will have full vision. Wtf is G doing?

    • Reports from XDA and AP (citing supposedly reliable sources) indicate that the XL2 will also have the squeezy feature.

  • Well we thank you for this info. You just made us buy the Samsung Galaxy S8….with better looks and a headphone jack.

  • Bezels don’t matter to me at all, at least the bottom one was put to use with the speaker.

  • So a better version of the U11 with stock Android… Seriously if you’re one of these “I’m keeping my old phone forever arrrrggg no headphone jack it’s the end of the world!!!!” people just gtfo. Both devices look great. I’d lean towards this one for the stereo speakers. Especially if the camera is the same.

  • I make no apologies, I can’t stand those gigantic bezels. Cannot wait for the Note 8.

  • I’m not that impressed yet. We’ll have to see what the price is and if it doesn’t really have a headphone jack. If it’s too pricey I’ll just stick with my N5X for now, no real reason to upgrade since I’m not a heavy phone user.

  • Love the front facing stereo speakers. One of my favorite features on the 6P. But no headphone jack? That’s just bonkers! No Pixel 2 for me if that’s true.

  • The stereo speakers don’t excuse the enormous bezels. Look at the Motorola Nexus 6, that thing had stereo speakers and significantly smaller top/bottom bezels. This thing looks fugly.

    • Thing is, this looks to have a flat back (unlike the N6, which I own), so it’s harder for them to fit things in there. Curved back means they can stack things more in the middle. Harder to have room for things like speakers (which require actual space to function), and keep a flat back, without making the device longer.

      Bottom line: Flat back and larger top/bottom bezels vs curved back and small top/bottom bezels. I’ll take the former. Preferably with a big battery that makes it a little thicker but eliminates the camera bump as well.

  • Stereo speakers will be a welcomed addition. This now “outdated” design makes me a little more interested to see how things pan out with the Essential phone though. The next couple months should be interesting at least!

  • Honestly, I don’t mind this design if the phone retains the same dimensions (or similar) as the OG Pixel for the simple fact they’re at least making use of those larger bezels by adding stereo speakers. Of course, I’m hoping the bezels end up smaller irl, but if this is indeed the Pixel 2 then I’m game. I absolutely *adore* the size of the regular Pixel, and this image shows a distinct enough improvement of the overall design language from the previous generation…but that’s just me.

  • You know what’s even more irritating? Scrolling thru 11 comments not related to the topic before being able to reply about the topic.

    That said, I guess Google went with the, “If ain’t broke, don’t fix it, but let’s see if we can break it a little” approach.

  • As long as it’s significantly smaller and significantly cheaper than the XL with similar specs, it will be my next phone. I don’t like phones that are large overall, but bezels themselves don’t bother me much.

  • At one point I was thinking that it’s insane to remove the headphone jack.

    Then I realized… When was the last time I used the headphone jack? Maybe my Droid 3? Since then I’ve had a Droid RAZR HD MAXX, a Moto X 2014, and my current Nexus 6.

  • Sigh, it’s like we need to choose between smaller bezels and front facing speakers. Nexus 6 pulled it off both 3 years ago, though the bezels weren’t quite as small as today’s devices but it was close and a great compromise in my opinion.

    • The Nexus 6 was a 6″ (16:9) phone. It was huge. It is easier to fit things in a larger space. Not saying the Pixel 2 bezels shouldn’t be smaller but it probably isn’t as easy to minimize bezels on a small phone without compromising things like camera, battery etc.

      I’m sure another company like Samsung or LG could have done a better job though…

  • Am I the only one wishing they’d go “full pixel” on these things and make ’em white and flat (maybe slightly curved back), with the Pixel colorbar? Something of an actual design aesthetic, rather than these slabs?

  • So many opinions. Everyone is a design expert. Are they “bezels” when they contain major components of the device? No. I’m imagining an idiot crying about his large bezels while listening to music through his stereo front facing speakers.

  • And slowly the march back to the Nexus begins, but I suspect they are hoping to keep the premium prices. Its a slightly reskinned U11, so its basically a Nexus but with the new brand and a silly price. Not paying that kind of money for beta software on an existing phone that has been put in the microwave to be reheated.

  • Bezels, oh the horror! Couldn’t care less. Never once said to myself “oh, I wish the bezels were smaller.”

    Stereo speakers is welcome, though. Still not worth an upgrade. My Pixel has been my best phone to date. Hopefully I can get my wife a 1st gen Pixel on discount soon!

  • I don’t hate it but I would have loved some bezel trimming. Anything with large bezels looks like a 2015 model after the G6 and S8’s.

  • Well its’a bout damn time. Finally I might have a new phone to jump to from the Nexus 6P…assuming development will be good lol. Stereo speakers are a MUST for me.

  • Am I the only one who doesn’t care about the bezels? As long as the SOC and camera are the same as the Pixel XL 2 I don’t mind.

    • Its not the bezel itself, its the issue with the size of the phone vs the size of the most important thing on the phone, the screen. Those giant bezels means small screen but big phone compared to the more slimmed models.

  • Dear God. They need to fire their entire phone design team and start from scratch for the Pixel 3.

  • This will mark 3 years in a row that I will not be considering Google’s phone for purchase at launch.

    I don’t know who is making the decisions over there, but they clearly need to be replaced.

  • What a disappointment. I don’t get a new phone every year so I passed on last year’s Pixel. I just want a smaller phone with great specs and design. Looks like I’m going with Pixel XL 2.

    Google better price this thing aggressively cause there’s no other excuse for a late-2017 device to look like this.

    • I thought it was odd too until I bought one. 99% of everything I do is vertically based so it is very useful after you use it for a while.

      • I don’t care how it looks I care how it functions. Agree that the vertical orientation is important but it also needs to be usable by a single-hand and phones are already tall enough to make that very tough. Most annoyingly I find it insane that to use it as a video device, those like Samsung need to crap-up the OS to add the painful “compatibility mode” to crop the 16×9 content that have become a standard in apps EVERYWHERE else.

        • The fingerprint gesture solves the notification reach issue and the ‘insane’ video cropping is your choice. If you like bezels than that is all it looks like when in standard 16:9 view. When I watch a video the phone looks just like this pixel with a huge chin and forehead. I never use the crop feature. Fortunately the tech world disagrees with you because in 3 months all the phones that matter will be 18:9.

          • So let me ask then, if the cropping thing is an option, what happens to the video when you don’t use it? Does it stretch the image to fit vertically and horizontally? If so I wouldn’t want that. It sounds similar to when I first got a flat screen TV and shows that were shot in 4:3 were stretched horizontally to fit to the screen’s edges and it looked horrendous, like a fun house mirror. Luckily, later TVs came out with keep original aspect ratio option. Yes it does show black bars on the side of the screen, but at least the people on screen don’t look like dwarves from LOTR, short and wide.

          • The default video view is standard 16:9 with black bars on each side. You have to select “fit to screen” to make it 18.5:9. Most videos look perfectly fine cropped. Yes, it crops it width & height but not nearly as drastic as the old SD 4:3 movies did when cropped and upscaled to 16:9. That did look like ass. Keep in mind that moving from 16:9 to 18.5:9 doesn’t take much cropping at all and isn’t nearly as noticeable. I use that view on most everything and seldom notice. Most videos aren’t filmed so close-framed that it chops anything off. I’m coming from a beloved Nexus 6P and I enjoy the screen experience so much better on the S8+. I feel like I got more ‘usable’ screen but I can reach freely all the way across the phone now. Now the camera on the S8+ and software is a different story……Nexus 6P killed it there.

          • So it’s no stretching the image to fit, it’s cropping some of it out? No. I’d rather they stretch the image. At least then the entire image is there. There have been many time where the broadcaster’s “formated to fit you TV” has cut out something that was actually worthwhile.

          • Ok, so the choice is cropping the image and make full use of your display, or don’t and have back bars. Whereas with a 16:9 display device, it takes up the entire display.

            I’ve held the S8 in the store, and I can honestly say I’m not impressed. These phones are starting to look like remote controls. I’m reminded of comments about Apple’s display ratio when they added essentially an extra row of icons, and most people thought the same way. Now everyone has to have this new ratio. Sorry I just don’t get it. And what’s going to happen with tv screens? There was talk that this is supposed to be the new standard going forward. It was one thing to do so after almost 60 years of having a 4:3 ratio, but we’re not even 20 years since 16:9 became the standard, and now they want to change it up again. Well, I suppose TV manufacturers will like selling TVs with the new standard, and probably charge a prime for it for the first few years.

          • I don’t get your argument. If you like big bezels, Congratulations. Most people don’t. Choice is good. I can choose 16:9 and my phone looks like a pixel for the 1 out of 100 times I’m using my phone to watch a movie. The rest of the time I get more usable screen in the same foot print. That’s a win in my book. TV’s are different although most movies are filmed in 21:9 cinematic ratio. Buy this new HTC Pixel with the huge bezels. The rest of the people will be on the wait list for the Pixel XL with the small bezels and 2017 design.

          • I wasn’t talking about the bezels, I was saying I’m not a fan of the new aspect ratio. And you can have minimal bezel design in 16:9 as well.

      • I thought it was useless. Just gives you a smaller screen. and with a video going, those bezels became as large as anything else.

  • The front is looking like a Sony phone. They use those big bezels because of their front facing speaker setup.

  • As someone experiencing problems with the headphone jack on the Pixel maybe its a good thing its been dropped because evidently the hardware on HTC’s side is crap.

    I would blame Google but since it wasn’t Android O’s fault and I’m experiencing it on Nougat after downgrading I’m just going to blame Bezel Lover HTC.

  • Ugly af! I thought I’ll convince myself and people around me to skip the iPhone and finally go for an Android with a classy feel. If this turns out to be true, then, well much better off with Apple and OnePlus/ Moto Z (for Android).

  • As someone limping along with my love/hate affair Nexus 6p, I am really looking forward to the Pixel2 XL. The only thing that will likely create pause for me will be the sticker shock at this point. Maybe we need to create a thread for best Bluetooth headphones for our die has been cast it would appear?

      • I shouldn’t have to get used to it. Removing the headphone jack is customer-hostile. Not all of us have BT headphones.

        • You’d be wise to get yourself a pair of BT headphones, unless you plan on keeping your current phone for many years, or buying phones from yesteryear.

    • Maybe HTC will release the HTC “Jack” next year in response? It will be the first phone to include dual headphone jacks. One plays music in mono and the other in stereo and it combines the two creating “HDR Hi-Fi” audio. 😉

    • I don’t even know if the headphone jack in my current phone works. Or if it worked in my previous phone. Or even the phone before that. I listen to podcasts about 8 hours a day, but I’ve been using bluetooth headphones to do it for at least 4 years. So I’m OK with no headphone jack.

  • This makes me happy about OnePlus 5 looking like an iPhone.
    It could be very worse, like the new Pixel….

  • Maybe I’m one of the weird ones, but after seeing the Pixel in person I liked the design and my wife and I ended up getting the smaller Pixel.

    Maybe it’ll be the same with this, because this design looks terrible on the back. I liked the larger glass myself.

  • i honestly don’t care about it looking like this. zero fucks given, however the lack of a headphone jack is a deal breaker for me. guess ill buy another pixel and just keep it around as a backup

  • Man, those renders looked so much better than that…. Thing. Still probably getting one tho.

  • Last year Google had large bezels for apparently no reason and people didn’t like it. Now they have large bezels for stereo speakers that people say they want and people still don’t like it. Damned if you do, damned if you don’t.

    • Look at the N6. Had front facing speakers and very small bezels. No one but Google and HTC know for sure why they remain so large on the the Pixels.

      • Yeah I don’t think HTC knows how to make phones with small bezels. It may be a Chinese thing. The Nexus 6 and Moto X Pure Edition were developed while Google was in control.

        • I dont think its a “know how” thing. Its because its just a recycled HTC phone that Google is rebranding. And since its that and HTC is insistent on having that button on the front the chin is there. Google is just saying, “Well its hard to remove that giant chin so lets just at least put something there this time.

          We dont even know if its a real stereo speaker setup. It could just be a front facing one like the 5x.

          • That would suck if the speaker setup is like the 5x. Now that you mention it, the last time Google had a non recycled design for a phone was when LG made the phone. Interesting…

          • I think it helped that LG was still trying to build their brand and were far more willing to go with Google’s suggestions (like fingerprint reader on the back, etc) as did Huawei. But that was Nexus, back when Google was still using as a test bed and a way to get affordable phones into developers and enthusiasts hands. They could go with smaller vendors.

            Frankly they wouldnt be facing much of this had they stuck with the Nexus setup. Keep the phones affordable and youll tolerate some bugs and shortcomings. But charging the same as a flagship is too much.

          • HTC’s full name is 宏達國際電子股份有限公司

            They’re Taiwanese.

        • HTC is from Taiwan not China. The Mi Mix which is from China kicked off this new trend of bezel free phones.

    • Providing two cutouts for speakers but only putting a speaker into one of them. Because, symmetry…and they ran out of time…again? Let’s hope not.

  • Just a no on the bezels unless this phone comes in sub $500 can’t expect premium pricing on old design.

    • With the OnePlus 5 8gb variant coming in at $539, it’s pretty unlikely Google will price it for less. I went with the OP5 and couldn’t be happier. This beast screams (bezels and all)

  • Man that chin and forehead mane…… glad they have the front speakers but…..that face doesnt look right to me.

      • Not exactly true. Many of the Pixel 2 leaks and renders showed an infinity-like screen, similar to the one rumored to be on the Pixel XL 2.

    • I mean its HTC… what do you expect? Thank God there isn’t an extra black bar with Google on the front.

    • HTC has had the worst bezels of any manufacturer for years. I would actually be surprised if it didn’t have gigantic bezels coming from them.

      • Couple names come to mind that have larger bezels.. Sony, Apple, few chinaphones.. like xiaomi and huawei

  • After careful and lengthy consideration, I really do NOT like this new site layout! I just don’t. It’s more difficult to tell when new content has been posted, and articles look suspiciously similar to ads, or at least are in places normally reserved for ads, making everything much more difficult to follow.

    Can you guys at least do just one news story per “line”? Sigh…

    • Nothing to do with the subject. However you are correct that this site is 99% unbearable.

      I suggest you do what I now do. Just visit less often, maybe once or twice a week. Suffer through the topics if you can find them and be done.

      • Without an ad blocker there is no way I could come here. Even with an ad blocker the design is punishing 🙂

      • I do too. I don’t even see ads anymore and it makes the site much more easier to read.

        • They even put an ad right at the top top of the comments section when you open it up. That’s even more annoying than how the ads look like the articles.

      • I’ve been trying Ad Nauseam as an “ad blocker” for sites that I want to support. Seems to take care of the crappy ads while also helping to support the publishers. At some point, the advertisers will catch on and do something about it but it’s working well enough for now.

        I haven’t yet introduced Ad Nauseam into my mainstream browser but I run a Canary build as a pseudo-sandbox specifically for this purpose.

      • with ad blocker its even worse. there are just giant pockets of empty white space.

        This design makes my eyes hurt. just no flow to this

      • Same here. Been visiting it less and less since the new layout. Posting a reply to this comment 2 days after it was posted can verify that. The one thing I do like is the new logo, but that’s about it. The only thing the remodel seems to have done is make it more convenient for ads. Though I understand they’re important to the continuation of the site, so no real complaint there. Heck I’d just be happier if they’d change the font for the articles lol.

        • America24s

          Google is paying 97$ per hour! Work for few hours and have longer with friends & family! !pa35d:
          On tuesday I got a great new Land Rover Range Rover from having earned $8752 this last four weeks.. Its the most-financialy rewarding I’ve had.. It sounds unbelievable but you wont forgive yourself if you don’t check it
          !pa35d:
          ➽➽
          ➽➽;➽➽ http://GoogleFinancialJobsCash35BuzzCafe/GetPay$97/Hour… ★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★:::::!pa35l..,…

        • Play54s

          Google is paying 97$ per hour! Work for few hours and have longer with friends & family! !pa74d:
          On tuesday I got a great new Land Rover Range Rover from having earned $8752 this last four weeks.. Its the most-financialy rewarding I’ve had.. It sounds unbelievable but you wont forgive yourself if you don’t check it
          !pa74d:
          ➽➽
          ➽➽;➽➽ http://GoogleFinancialJobsCash74MarketMax/GetPay$97/Hour… ★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★✫★★:::::!pa74l..,….

    • I thought I was the only one who absolutely HATES this new layout.
      I’ve been spending more time on android police. I’ve been with droid life since the beginning and use it used to be my go to Android news site I still stop by a few times a week to see what’s new.

      • Same here. Love DL and have been following since the beginning but the new layout has pushed me to Android Police.

      • I can’t stand the new layout. I would much rather check AndroidPolice solely because the layout is much much nicer.

      • Ha, exact same here. I’ve basically boycotted AA – talk about going _completely_ to sh*t – but have been increasingly going to AP, and to DL a bit less.

    • 100% agree. The upgrade is a downgrade in just about every way to me – readability, commenting, ease of navigation, new posts, presentation of ads, etc.

    • I would have to agree with everything you say. I have been a DL fan since the beginning. It is my go to source for everything android and now not so much. The new layout is very confusing. Glad someone else feels the same way and it’s not just me.

    • Unfortunately, they’re in too deep and won’t revert back. I suppose I just don’t like change. I thought the old site was just fine. I could see changing the header/logo, small things etc.. But this is a bit overwhelming imo. It’s not terrible, but I firmly believe the last iteration was just fine.

    • New layout does a better job highlighting the ads, for sure. Which means higher ad revenues. And guess what: DL crew gotta eat. They’re not charging subscription fees here. So on behalf of the DL crowd, I like it.

    • Agree and I prefer the old logo too. New one just seems really awkwardly off balance with the weird big speech balloon. Go back to the old one!

    • I agree too. The site has become too hard to navigate through and having to click another button just to find the comments is horrible. The adds have gotten out of hand.I have been on this site since the beginning and really enjoy the articles. The whole sad thing about this is that among all the thumbs up and likes people give on all these responses regarding their dislike for the new website set up is nothing will probably be done. This is just A small amount of people that disagree with the website as I do. I’m not trying to be negative or anything but please Kellen, listen to what the people have to say. I come to this site every day to see what’s new in the android world but it’s just getting harder and harder to come back. I only speak for myself and I’m just one person but please fix this Site. You and Tim both do a great job writing the articles and I want to give you guys props for that. keep up the great work ! End rant

      • Totally agree. I’ve been coming here for literally years and with this new change it’s unreadable and I’m moving away from it. I loved being able to read down to where I last was and knowing I was caught up, now I’m frustrated and don’t want to sift through everything. Be Craigslist and keep it the same because it’s simple and readable/usable.

    • I don’t know exactly what it is about the layout but I’ve visited DL significantly less since the update. I didn’t replace with another Android site, just don’t come here often and read a lot less content.

  • Bland. Ascetically speaking, it doesn’t look any better than the current Pixel phones. So far I am unimpressed, but it is early and I’ll wait for more leaks/official info to make a more accurate assessment.

Comments are closed.

Related Posts

back to top