Google Pixel 9 Review: Good things come in smaller packages

88%

Great

The Pixel 9 is a jump in terms of design and finish for Google, offering one of the most premium looks for the phones to date. There's new hardware inside, including more RAM, a brighter display and a new processor designed to improve AI performance.

• Design

After years launching two devices, Google has stepped up this year announcing four Pixel 9 phones, the Pixel 9, the Pixel 9 Pro, the Pixel 9 Pro XL and the Pixel 9 Pro Fold.

The Pixel 9 Pro XL and Pixel 9 go on-sale today, with the Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 9 Pro Fold set to arrive next month – so keep your eyes on TechGuide for the reviews as they’re published.  

I’m taking the Pixel 9 for a spin this week, with Scott taking on the Pixel 9 Pro XL review which you can see here.

The Pixel 9 is the base model for the series, including the new Tensor G4 processor but scaling back on the display, battery and of course only using a dual-camera system on the rear. 

Google, like many companies, has also raised the price on the Pixel 9, which starts at $1,349, compared to last year’s Pixel 8 which starts at $1,199. The bump in specs include a newer, larger and brighter display, bigger battery and improved rear cameras – and of course new AI features on-board.

Is the Pixel 9 worth it in a sea of new Pixel 9 phones? I’ve been using it for six days and here’s how it went. 

What’s New

The Pixel 9 series is a big jump for Google in terms of design. The display now melds into the side rails almost seamlessly, and the squared off rails on the side remind me of the iPhone and Galaxy S design. 

The rear of the Pixel 9 retains the glossy rear glass from the Pixel 8, though it now has that new pill-shaped camera bar. I liked the phone spanning bar from previous Pixels, but it’s a more cohesive design for Google and it looks great. 

Google hasn’t changed the button placement on the Pixel 9, with the volume rocker and power on the right as usual, with the SIM Tray, USB-C port and speaker on the bottom. 

I received the new Wintergreen coloured Pixel 9 for review, but there’s also a new bright Pink coloured option called ‘Peony’, as well as Obsidian (Black) and Porcelain (White) if you like a more classic colour choice.

If you like the new colour options, but don’t want the phone in that colour – you can also order a case in a range of colours. The Pixel 9 is the same size as the Pixel 9 Pro which will launch in a couple of different colours meaning you can get the case in Rose Quartz and Hazel as well as the four Pixel 9 device colours.

The Pixel 9 has increased the size of the display by 0.1”, offering an updated 6.3” Actua display with a peak brightness of 2700 nits – a jump of 700 nits from the Pixel 8 display. The display also now finally includes an ultra-sonic fingerprint sensor which is super-fast, although you still get the excellent Face Unlock if you want fast, touchless logins.

 

Internally, the new Tensor G4 offers faster app loading and web browsing, as well as new AI features including the latest Gemini AI with Multi-Modal input. There’s also been a bump in RAM to 12GB, though Google has again decided to start storage off at 128GB, however you can get a 256GB model if you want.

The new Tensor G4 and 12GB of RAM makes for a nice and smooth experience. I noted a couple of games I play are now able to handle more visual assets on-screen without stuttering and web browsing is now smoother.

What’s Great

The compact size of the Pixel 9 is what is going to be a big draw-card for a lot of people, though it faces competition later this year from the Pixel 9 Pro which will bring the pro features including Zoom Enhance, as well as the Telephoto camera sensor, and brighter display. 

The Pixel 9 will still have the latest features like ‘Add Me’, an option for anyone normally left out of group photos because you’re too busy taking the picture. Add Me uses Augmented Reality to add you into a group shot after it’s been taken. 

Demo Flips / Add Me (youtube.com)

The Pixel 9 can also take advantage of the new Auto Frame option in Magic Editor. The Auto Frame option lets you reframe shots you’ve already taken, with Google AI able to show you the best cropping, positioning and more  based on ‘known photographic techniques’. While you can crop, you’ll also find Google AI adding onto the picture and expanding it, with AI generating fill for the new image. 

On the Pixel 9 Google has added multi-modal input to Gemini which has expanded its usefulness. You can now add in images to help with your query making it more useful. 

You can also now start an ongoing conversation with Gemini Live, though you will need Google Advanced which is bundled with a Google AI Premium plan through Google One to use it – which at a cost of $32.99 per month (that includes 2TB of storage as well) is a bit pricey.

Gemini has been quite helpful in planning my raised garden beds, even going so far as telling me to get a garden roller to make sure the base is firm enough to support the sleepers – guess what I’m doing this weekend!

While it’s not a new feature, it is one of my favourites. Google Assistant Voice typing is also back on the Pixel 9, with some of the best, and most accurate transcriptions I’ve seen on a mobile device. It makes replying to messages on the go an absolute breeze.

In a win for longevity, Google has also announced that the Pixel 9 – as with the other phones in the series, will be receiving seven years of OS, Security and Feature updates, making it a phone that’s going to last.

AI

As Google moves forward as an AI company – a change they made in 2016 – the focus has moved towards finding new features and ways to apply AI. In the Pixel 9, those two new features are Pixel Studio and Pixel Screenshots.

Google’s AI generated wallpapers on the Pixel 8 series was fun, but Pixel Studio brings the AI generated imagery to a simple app you can have fun playing around with. Using simple text prompts, you can get an image generated in a number of styles.

I’ve been using this to add images to chats from offhand comments. Like my son commenting on being a robot on the soccer pitch.

If, like me, you take a LOT of screenshots, the new Pixel Screenshots is a life-saver. The app will apply AI generated descriptions, as well as use AI to help you find information from within the screenshots like Menu items, shopping lists and Wifi passwords. 

I’d love to see the AI applied to your photos as well as your screenshots – I have loads of WIfi passwords saved in pics – but it’s a great way to try and find information you’ve tried to remember. 

Camera

The Pixel Camera is again a feature of the Pixel 9, with Google offering their computational photography algorithms to deliver blur-free shots in almost any lighting conditions. 

The Pixel 9 includes a 50 MP main sensor, and 48MP Ultra-Wide sensor with 123° field of view, which also doubles as a macro sensor for shots as close as 2cm. There’s also a 10.5MP front-facing sensor embedded in the display on the front for taking selfies. 

The Pixel 9 camera is excellent, with great details on both rear sensors in all environments – I don’t think I took a bad shot over the past week. 

Final Thoughts

The Pixel 9 is the Pixel for those that don’t need, nor want all the bells and whistles of the full Pro Pixel experience. 

The compact form-factor in a premium design, which offers one of the smoothest experiences from Android available, and still gets the full 7-years of updates makes for a phone that’s worth a look. 

I’m again impressed with the 6.3” Actua Display, with the screen easily viewable in even full sunlight, and the dual rear camera system uses the same top-tier sensors as those in the Pixel 9 Pro series, making a great combo for those that don’t need a telephoto sensor. 

The Gemini and AI inclusions are interesting, and their usability and functionality are growing, but I’m still waiting on that ‘killer’ use case for AI. Things like AI summaries in Pixel Screenshots are starting to make the case for it – but with 7 years of OS, Security and Feature Drops, I can’t wait to see what Google tries next in AI and the Pixel 9 is ready to show them off when they’re ready.

For now though, the Pixel 9 remains the entry point for this years Pixel phones and the new features on-board. You can check it out now online through the Google Store online, as well as JB Hi-Fi, Telstra, Optus, Harvey Norman, Officeworks and Vodafone.