Gadgetory

the pixel 2 and pixel 2 XL phones are finally here in the flesh from Google first there's no headphone jack it's a drag but you'll have to listen to music through wireless headphones or carry a dongle to plug in to your headphones it also has squeezable edges similar to the HTC u 11 just give it a quick squeeze and Google's digital voice enabled assistant launches oh and the phone is waterproof now - so you can rest easy if it ever falls into the pool or ocean unlike most current flagships the pixel 2 doesn't have dual cameras on the back but google insists that it's single lens camera is still the best around its portrait mode feature it uses a combo of algorithm training and a special image sensor Google also added optical image stabilization for steadier photos and video recording and there's a fun motion photo feature that animates your pictures inside the Photos app there's also google lense which Google introduced earlier in May lens works similar to Samsung's Bixby and lets you take photos and get immediate info about objects if you wanted to know more about a painting for instance just take a picture and lens will call up info about it it works on art landmarks and books in general the new pixel 2 + 2 XL looks tidier and cleaner than last year's there are fewer lines and visible bands going around the phone and the glass shade on the back runs right up to the phone's edges but there's a camera bump now and the top bezel and bottom chin on the pixel 2 are especially thick the main difference between the phones are mostly size and screen related and neither them are more advanced than the other the pixel 2 is smaller with a 5 inch 1080p display while the pixel 2 XL has a 6-inch 1440p display it also has a higher pixel density and a bigger battery to accommodate the larger screen the pixel 2 starts at $650 while the 2 XL starts at 850 dollars in the US and UK you can pre-order the phone starting today and pre-orders in Australia begin October 20th