From time to time, I’ll grab a random device from the Virgin’s review closet and spend a week or two in it. It is mainly out of random curiosity and to compare “old” products with the latest and greatest. Most recently, I was attracted to the Google Pixel 5. So I did a factory reset, upgraded my phone to Android 12 and have been using it as a daily driver for the last few days.
The experience has been fantastic. I have very large hands (an iPhone 13 Pro Max doesn’t seem out of place in them) and I prefer large screens, so I don’t think it can change completely to the Pixel 5. But it’s such a good “small” phone (by the standards of 2022) that I have certainly felt tempted. The Pixel 5 makes it easy to do anything I need with one hand. Its mid-range processor works better than ever with Android 12, and this phone still seems unique alongside the competition.
Google gave up on the design and size of the Pixel 5 too soon. I used one last week. It’s even smoother now on Android 12. It still looks and feels unique.
This should be the Pixel version of the iPhone SE and should be updated every two years. pic.twitter.com/UXLfrms4p0
– Chris Welch (@chriswelch) June 20, 2022
Above all, I was disappointed because Google gave up the style and size of the Pixel 5 after a year. The smallest phone in the company line is currently the Pixel 5a, which has a 6.3-inch screen. On its own merits, Google is slowing things down slightly with the next 6A. But with the A-Series models, you’re giving up features like the 90 Hz display and wireless charging. That way, the Pixel 5 could be the last of its kind in the Google line. Also for even bevels.
The Pixel 5 is smaller than the Pixel 5A and 6A, with more premium hardware to boot. Image: Google
Now I find myself wishing Google would keep the 5 as an “iPhone SE” style product that is updated with hardware updates every two years, without losing what makes it good. We cover some of the strengths of the Pixel 5.
Design and materials: The Pixel 5’s 6-inch OLED screen is surrounded by thin, symmetrical bezels that make the phone comfortable and usable with one hand. And the textured “bio resin” coating on the body of the 5 results in a unique feel and a reassuring grip when you grab it all day long. The volume rocker shares this texture, while the power button is made of shiny metal, which makes it easy to distinguish between the two by touch. Due to its feel and size with the hand, the Pixel 5 is one of those phones that can run out of casing without causing much dismay.
Before Google went all out on the common “glass sandwich” design with Pixel 6 and 6 Pro, previous models in the series often used distinctive materials and textures that helped the phones stand out. With the Pixel 2, it was the almost thick back cover of the black model. The Pixel 4 had adherent side railings. But after the 5’s bio resin, I’m still a big fan of the Sorta Sage green color with this finish, Google opted for a more basic feel in hand with last year’s flagship.
The Pixel 5’s bio resin finish offers a unique feel to the hand. Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge
A better screen: the OLED panel of the Pixel 6 can look perfectly fine according to first impressions. But in all honesty, it’s mediocre. There are many threads on Reddit that complain of uniformity issues, an unsightly green hue at lower brightness levels, and other imperfections. The magnificent LPTO panel of the Pixel 6 Pro does not present any of these problems, so it is clear that Google was content with less as part of reaching the price of $ 599 of the 6.
Even the screen of the Pixel 5 seems to me to be of a slightly higher quality than the 6 that replaced it. Both are 90 Hz screens, but the white dot, uniformity and overall image of the 5 are a little more pleasing to my eyes. Sometimes this can be reduced to variation between individual units, but I hope to see it better with the Pixel 7.
Pixel Imprint Rear Fingerprint Sensor: I’m still disappointed that phone manufacturers have decided in unison to move the fingerprint reader from the back of the phone, where the index finger often rests naturally while the fingerprint hold, right down to the screen. Google’s Pixel Imprint scanners were perhaps the fastest and most consistent in the entire Android ecosystem, and well, let’s say the on-screen sensor on the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro has never matched it, even after Google improved performance through software updates. .
Steady camera performance: Google spent several years optimizing its computational photography for the 12-megapixel main camera shared by the Pixel 5 and its predecessors. And while it doesn’t have the dynamic range of the Pixel 6/6 Pro and doesn’t offer features like Real Tone or Magic Eraser, the Pixel 5 is a consistent shooter. You know what you’ll get, which can’t always be said of the Pixel 6 line. I don’t love the nasty background blur you sometimes get from the larger sensor of the 6, but that’s something Google will definitely improve on.
The Pixel 6A will soon be Google’s smallest phone. Image: Google
The Pixel 5 is not perfect
While I’m mostly pleased with the good performance and overall responsiveness of the Pixel 5 on Android 12, there are still times when the mid-range Snapdragon 765G processor hits a wall and sinks. Take a picture and the frustrating delay while the phone processes the shot is still present. The 5 can also be hung up if you get too ambitious with multitasking.
While it sells me the look and feel of the Pixel 5, Google’s hardware quality assurance isn’t always the best. Many units have a small space between the screen and the body. After the phone’s launch, the company said the vacuum was nothing to worry about, but it’s exactly the kind of minor detail that I find annoying.
And then there’s this terrible speaker under the screen, which still sounds very small in most cases, even after Google tried to improve it with an “adaptive sound” setting. Those symmetrical bevels didn’t come without compensations.
But even considering these disadvantages, there is still something special about this phone. I was about to buy one at Woot, which sells new and unopened Pixel 5s for $ 450. Apparently, Google must have come across some additional inventory in a warehouse somewhere. With the rumor of Apple’s mini iPhone being removed from the next line of iPhone 14s, it looks like small phones are coming out (again). This makes this a tempting time to shop. The only asterisk to consider in the case of Google is that software support for the Pixel 5 will end in October 2023.
But maybe then Google will reintroduce a small Pixel that doesn’t skimp on hardware features and isn’t so smoothly adopted by its older siblings.