During an event live streamed to the world, Google announced the launch of its latest smartphone. The Pixel 2 builds on the success of the original Pixel, and there are actually two new phones, a 5-inch Pixel 2 version and the 6-inch Pixel XL 2.
With a resolution of 12-megapixels, the Pixel 2 can also record 4K video.
Opened via a fingerprint sensor, the Pixel 2 is available in three colour designs (blue, white and black), with the XL 2 in two colours (white and black). The Pixel 2 phones charge impressively quick, in fact 7 hours of power can be achieved after just 15 minutes of charging. What’s more, the ultra vivid OLED display can show off 16-million colours.
The Pixel 2 sports a sleek design but is waterproof and full of technology.
But it’s the camera specifications that will really interest photographers. The original Pixel phone recorded an impressive DxO score of 89, but the Pixel 2 shows a massive jump forward, bagging a score of 98 – the highest ever awarded to a smartphone camera and besting the iPhone 8 phones, which recorded a score of 94.
There’s a single camera at the front (packing 8-megapixels) but the single camera at the rear boasts a massive resolution of 12-megapixels and features a f/1. 8 lens, which is optically stabilised to help deliver sharp images in low light conditions. At the event, more information was released about how the high quality images are produced and Google explained the Pixel 2 phones actually shoot a burst of images which are merged together to protect highlights from blowing out.
With a record DxO score, the Pixel 2 takes bursts of photos to protect highlights.
A portrait mode is available which works with faces and objects (such as flower heads) alike. The shallow depth of field is created by the camera using a depth map to assess the scene and via the use of dual pixel technology. Both the Pixel 2 and Pixel XL 2 are dust and water resistant. The Pixel 2 phones can also record ultra high-quality videos at 4K footage @ 30fps or 1080p up to 120fps.
Google are obviously reaching out to photographers and are even offering unlimited cloud storage for your images so you’ll never have to delete pictures because of a lack of space.
A 64GB Pixel 2 will cost $649, while a 64GB Pixel XL 2 is priced at $849, although Google are throwing in a free Google Home mini for early purchases. The phone will initially be available in Australia, Canada, India, Germany, the USA and the UK, with pre-orders starting today.
. digitalrev.com2017-10-6 03:00
