I think the only real advantage for the Pixel (and Nexus) series was they came with stock Android – no worrying about manufacturer overlays and carrier overlays adding their own levels of bloatware and delaying updates
this post was submitted on 01 Aug 2025
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I hope graphene starts making oem devices. That's the only reason I would want a pixel anyway. And after all the stuff I've been hearing about battery fires with them, I am quite concerned.
I owned the Nexus 6P and loved it. I owned the Pixel 1 and loved it. I owned the Pixel 3A and loved it. But now I'm just extremely concerned about the way the hardware has gone recently.
Currently I am using a OnePlus Nord N200 5G
Nexus 4, Nexus 5, Nexus 7, Pixel, Pixel 5, and now Pixel 8 user.
For the most part the hardware is fine but what really sets them apart is pulling it out of the box. Clicking the build number until I'm a developer, turning on USB debugging and OEM unlocking, rebooting and installing my own choice of OS or ROM.
they're slowly enshittifying though, i won't be surprised if soon they stop letting us unlock bootloaders.
That specific thing is going to happen real soon. Now that pixels aren't officially recognised as testing platforms anymore, (they've been replaced with Cuttlefish in android studio). There is no point in keeping it possible, especially since grapheneOS is starting to get a very bad rap among law enforcement in the EU (and probably the US)
I think we are just a few updates from a total lockdown of our bootloaders. À la Samsung.
If they do I go...
To be fair, the a models are the "sucks" versions of the real phones. But I would agree that if a lower quality model just sucks, then it shouldn't be sold at all.
I've had a 1,3, and 7 since the original pixel launch.
I have the 4a 5g, it doesn't suck. Been very reliable all these years
this Is true. something to think about
I mean, 7A was never a flagship, so it isnt shocking the thing doesnt impress. IMO, the A Pixels are just adequate. And that is how they are positioned. They are literally "midrange" for a reason.
My partner liked her 6A well enough, but she isnt a techie with a bazillion things going on it. And now the battery is nerfed a bit, but I guess that's the breaks with older devices.
I like my 8 Pro well enough. I do wish it weren't so thick, but that is mostly battery so it feels worth it. Other than that, I could wish it had a removable battery, headphone jack, IR, hell even a stylus. But again all those things would add up to being way less battery life, huge, etc.
All that said, if I felt like I had better choices, I would ditch Pixel and never look back. I am really only on this thing for GrapheneOS and the relockable bootloader. I require control over my own device. Everything else is way lower priority.