Google Pixel 3: Plans | Pricing | Specs

Design

• Three colour choices
• Glass back for wireless charging.

• Read our full overview of the Google Pixel 3's design

  Google provides the Android operating system that runs the vast majority of smartphones sold today. It's also got a long history of providing its "own" phones, starting with the affordable-but-now-discontinued Nexus line and now with its Pixel phones.

  Google Pixel phones are meant to provide something of a blank slate for other manufacturers to live up to, and we're already seeing early hints of what to expect out of the search giant this year. 2018 will be a critical year for Google's in-house phone ambition, having spent billions acquiring much of HTC's design team to meet its own phone aspirations.

  Prior to launch, the Pixel 3 was the handset for which the least overall information had been leaked, with much of the focus on the larger and more expensive Pixel 3 XL.

  The Pixel 3 is a 5.5-inch phone with a notable "notch" display, housing its dual front facing camera array. It's available in three colour styles: the standard "Just Black" and "Clearly White" as well as the new "Not Pink" colour, which is, of course, actually pink, just in case you were confused.

  The Google Pixel 3 features a 5.5-inch display with 2160x1080 pixel resolution on what Google claims is a specifically designed OLED display.

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Camera

• Single-lens camera only

• Read our full overview of the Google Pixel 3's camera

  The Pixel 3 is a premium flagship phone, but Google has stuck to its single-camera philosophy at the back, providing just a 12.2MP single lens. Where Google is claiming superiority is in how it implements machine learning to optimise not only shot selection, but also how it stitches images together for everything from taking photos that skip people blinking to smarter zoom via multiple exposures.

  It's also claiming superior low-light performance, calling out Apple's recently launched Apple iPhone XS specifically at its launch event via the photo below:

  

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Performance

• Snapdragon 845 processor
• Active Edge support

• Read our full overview of the Google Pixel 3's performance

  Google always makes its Pixel phones into premium devices, which in 2018 means we expected a Snapdragon 845 under the hood with at least 4GB of RAM. That's exactly what we got, too.

  Where Google says it's differentiating is in software, although there aren't all that many features that will remain unique for the Pixel 3 family this time around. The Pixel 3 will run on Android 9 ("Pie"), and that's already available for existing Google Pixel owners, although some optimisations such as the low-light photography feature will remain a Pixel 3 exclusive for a short while.

  2017's Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL featured a version of HTC's "Edge Sense" that gave them squeezable sides to invoke the Google Assistant, and this is still present in the Google Pixel 3.

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Battery life

• Smaller battery than most premium flagships
• Wireless charging

• Read our full overview of the Google Pixel 3's battery life

  The Pixel 3 features a 2,915mAh battery. That's not immense in flagship terms, although that smaller display screen may well give it a little more battery endurance than competing large-screen handsets.

  The one area where Google did make changes in the Pixel 3 family was with the inclusion of wireless charging. The Pixel 2 notably didn't have wireless charging capabilities.

  The Google Pixel 3 is Qi compatible, and Google will sell its own Pixel Stand for charging the Google Pixel 3. It'll add specific notification and photo frame features, powered by Google Photos as well.

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Early Verdict

• Google has a stiff fight on its hands against other premium flagships

• Read our early Google Pixel 3 verdict

  Google pitches the Google Pixel 3 as the next coming of smartphones, but in 2018 with a mature smartphone market and a design that, while decent, doesn't appear to be anything special, it may struggle to stand out.

  That being said, if you prefer a clean Google experience, and especially if you're all-in on Google's information-centric approach to apps and the wider Google ecosystem, it's competitively priced for a flagship phone in an era where we're seeing some flagships tip over the $1,500 mark and beyond.

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Pricing and availability

Google Pixel 3

Google's newest flagship

The Google Pixel 3 provides the best of Android and Google's own vision of a premium smartphone that's uniquely Google-centric.

Buy Now

• The Google Pixel 3 is available outright through Google's online store starting at $1,199
• Telstra, Optus and Vodafone all offer the Pixel 3 on contract, too

Google has announced its local pricing for the Google Pixel 3. It will sell outright in Australia for $1,199 with 64GB of onboard storage or $1,349 for a 128GB model.

The Pixel 3 will also be available on contract through Telstra, Optus and Vodafone.