Tag: Google Pixel 2 XL

Screener Screenshot App Now has Google Pixel 2 Frames

Screener, the app that allows you to pop your screenshots into a device frame, has already been updated with frames for the new Google Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL.  The update came almost immediately after Google’s big event yesterday and was a server-side push to the app so no new download or OTA update is required.

If you aren’t familiar with Screener, you’ve seen it in action on virtually every screenshot provided in posts here on the site.  It allows you to take a screenshot as you normally do (Power+Volume Down) and then put it in a frame of a particular device.  It gives your screenshots a much more professional look than just the screen itself.

Google Pixel 2 Supports eSIM but only for Project Fi Customers

After digging into the specifications of the Google Pixel 2 phones, it was discovered that both devices support eSIM technology.  But Google was quick to point out that the new electronic SIM will only be activated and used for Project Fi customers for now.

eSIM, as the name suggests, is an electronic SIM card.  It replaces the physical plastic card that you get from your carrier, including Project Fi.  It is a reasonably new standard and the first consumer device to leverage it was the Apple Watch series 3.  That hasn’t gone as smoothly as Apple has wanted which is likely one of the reasons that Google is limiting it to just their own service for now.

Pixel 2 Owners Get Original Quality Uploads to Photos Until 2020

Now that the dust has settled a bit from yesterday’s massive Google product event, we can start digging into the details.  One of the items in the afterglow that caught a lot of people’s attention has to do with Google Photos and the new Pixel 2 lineup.

As readers are likely aware, with the original Pixel and Pixel XL, users had unlimited uploading of original quality photos to Google Photos.  On every other device out there this counts against your Google Drive quota (remember, Google Photos leverages your Google Drive for storage) so it was a nice perk to have indeed.  Everyone else has to use High Quality, a compression process that allows Google to look at the content of photos to train their AI, in order not to use their Drive quota.  Frankly, I use HQ on my other non-Pixel devices because the compression is pretty lossless, especially if photos are under 16MP.  The original Pixel and the Pixel 2 both have 12MP cameras so technically, there is no reason not to use HQ.

In the fine print yesterday it was discovered that for owners of the new Pixel phones, the Original Quality uploads will be available until 2020.  After that, uploads will start counting against your Drive quota.  This cause a lot of consternation for some but frankly, it isn’t a surprise or a big deal.

Google Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL Officially Announced

Google has officially announced the 2nd generation of Pixel phones, the Google Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL.  The two phones are updates to last year’s first Pixel lineup and bring a handful of tweaks and improvements to the devices.

One of the most noticeable change is the updated Pixel launcher for the devices.  It has been heavily redesigned with the search bar at the bottom of the display and a more personalized top widget with weather and calendar information.

As for the devices themselves, there wasn’t much of a mystery on either given the leaks about both devices over the course of the past few weeks.  The HTC-built Google Pixel 2  will come in three colors:  Kinda Blue, Just Black and Clearly White.  The first color is very similar to the Ice Blue that was on the Nexus 5X  while the Just Black and Clearly White are similar to the color options on the Pixel today.

The phone is powered by the Snapdragon 835 SoC and is coupled with 4GB of RAM.  It has a 5″ display

Google Event Live Stream Information

The much anticipated Google event to launch the next generation of Pixel phones, the new Pixelbook, the new Google Home Mini and many other things happens tomorrow.  The event kicks off at 9 a.m. Pacific here in the US.  That’s 12 p.m. Eastern and 5 p.m. London time.  The event is being held in San Francisco.

As they have done with previous events, Google will be streaming the event live on YouTube.

You can go to YouTube and watch it there or you can simply watch it below.  Either way, you can set yourself a reminder to tune in for the event.

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Google Pixel Trade-In Program Goes Live

After being leaked a couple of days ago along with a slew of other leaks, the Google trade-in program for the Google Pixel is now live at the Google Store.  The program allows you to trade in previous Google Nexus phones, LG, Samsung, and iPhones to get a credit towards the purchase of a new Google Pixel or Pixel XL.

With the new Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL only a few weeks away, it is a little surprising to see Google open this program up now.  The assumption was that it would start when the next generation phones were announced.

As for the value that you get, it largely depends on how new your phone is and its condition.  For example, if I wanted to trade in my Nexus 6P with 64GB of storage, I would get back $155 since it is in working condition and doesn’t have a broken screen.  If I trade in my wife’s iPhone SE 128GB, that would get me $87.

First Look At The New Pixel 2 XL

With the launch of the new Google Pixel lineup just a few weeks away, we now know what the larger of the two anticipated phones will look like thanks to the team over at Droidlife.  They got official images of the upcoming Pixel 2 XL as well as pricing information.

First, as for colors, the LG built Pixel 2 XL will come in a “Black & White” color scheme as well as a “Just Black” look.  On the Black & White scheme, you have a black glass panel at the top that houses the camera and flash while the rest of the chassis is in white.  This is very similar to the current Pixel phones in look although there will be a few changes around the camera size and positioning.

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