Google Pixel 3 review – a powerful Android phone with an excellent camera

AFTER a nearly endless stream of leaks, the Google Pixel 3 has finally arrived in the UK, and it justifies the hype it has generated.

It's one of the best Android smartphones the Sun has seen to date, and here's why.

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Google Pixel 3 design - sleek, sharp and comfortable

The Pixel 3 is the most well-designed smartphone Google has produced until now, pipping previous models in terms of looks and its display.

It's marginally smaller overall than the Pixel 2, but its touchscreen is 10% bigger, coming in at 5.5 inches versus 5.

Better yet, the Pixel 3's sharper resolution and greater pixels per inch (443 vs. 441) mean that images on the device look crystal clear and highly immersive.

And at a thickness of 7.9mm, the smartphone is 0.6mm leaner than the Samsung Galaxy S9 and only 0.1mm off the iPhone XS.

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Google Pixel 3 performance - fast, powerful and capable

Equipped with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 845, the Pixel 3 was able to handle pretty much everything task we threw at it.

We put it through various rounds of Fortnite and PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, and thanks to its 4GB of RAM it was able to process such demanding games smoothly.

Likewise, the 4GB RAM (identical to that found in the Galaxy S9 or iPhone XS) lets you keep multiple apps open at once, so that you can multitask without causing the phone's performance to slide.

It also comes with either 64GB or 128GB of internal memory, which isn't as impressive as some of the bigger options for the S9 or the iPhone XS, but both options are still enough to download a healthy supply of apps, photos and music.

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Google Pixel 3 features - artificial intelligence, AR and 'digital well-being'

Google is famed as a company that has uses artificial intelligence to power its search engine and free-to-use applications.

It's therefore little wonder that, as with the Pixel 2, one of the Pixel 3's biggest selling points is its use of artificial intelligence.

This is most obvious in the new Top Shot feature, which uses AI and object recognition to recognise the best image in a burst of photos taken in quick succession.

We found that this feature saves you from having those 'perfect moments' ruined by someone blinking or by an unfortunate facial expression.

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Google also combines AI and its tried-and-tested experience with search engines in the excellent Google Lens feature, which first appeared with the Pixel 2.

Google Lens uses AI to search images for relevant info and to act on it: for example, if you point the phone at a telephone number while in Lens, you'll be able to call it directly.

And with the Pixel 3, Google Lens has been integrated more fully into the device.

For example, we found it useful to be able to quickly call up Lens mode while taking normal photos, while it's also handy to be able to call up Lens again from the recent apps screen.

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Another fun feature for photographers is the new Playground mode, which uses AI and augmented reality (AR) to insert lots of virtual objects into your photos.

It may be a novelty, but we had lots of fun posing with stormtroopers from Star Wars, while there are plenty more virtual models to download for those who enjoy fooling around.

Less of a novelty are the new 'Digital Wellbeing' settings, which enable you to set limits on how much you use apps and on your notifications.

One very useful aspect of this is the ability to simply rest the phone face-down, which automatically switches off all notifications and allows you to enjoy quiet evenings at home without being disturbed.

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Google Pixel 3 review verdict

Google has entered its third generation of smartphones with the Pixel 3, so you'd expect it to have learnt how to make a streamlined, fully rounded device by now.

The Pixel 3 is such a device, and while it may not quite boast the sheer power of the Samsung Galaxy S9 or the iPhone XS, it's an impressive machine.

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It has a sharper, bigger touchscreen than the Pixel 2, as much as RAM the S9 and iPhone XS, and its camera is possibly the best (and most fun) in the business.

And as a final comment, its 2915mAh battery has plenty of staying power compared to the Pixel 2 and iPhone XS, as well as fast recharging times (it took us around an hour and a half to go from 50% to 100% charge).

It is, with the Pixel 3 XL, perhaps the best Android phone you're likely to see this year.

What do you think of the Google Pixel 3? Let us know in the comments.

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