On trial: Google Pixel 8 Pro

The Pixel 8 Pro certainly has the characteristics of a premium mobile. Made from a mix of recycled materials, it has a polished aluminium frame and smooth matt black glass. It’s big – 162.6 x 76.5 x 8.8mm – but sleek and has a reassuring weight that adds to the overall impression of quality. Mine came in a very cool Obsidian black finish. 

Pixel phones stand out from the crowd due in part to the stunning camera array on the back. Like some kind of futuristic visor, this design has evolved over the years and reaches near perfection with the 8 Pro, while beautifully showcasing one of the phone’s main selling points.

The camera functions on the 8 Pro have a dizzying array of features that will keep the avid photographer or video blogger busy all day long. It has four updated, pro-level cameras for better low-light photos, sharper selfies and Pixel’s best ever zoom. Pro controls enable advanced camera settings and full-resolution photography, while video-taking has been amped up with improved resolution and clear audio. Just download the Google Photos app to unlock some of the features.

And there are plenty of them – Best Take, Video Boost, Night Sight Video and more. This is a phone for those who embrace online media.

The display is sharp and the picture quality is amazing, great for entertainment and gaming. The stereo sound is also super crisp.

Google is powering its new 8 Pro with the Tensor G3 chip, its most powerful yet and this allows for the phone’s cutting-edge photo and video features and makes the phone fast and efficient. Once you get used to the navigation – I had to watch one or two YouTube videos to work out how to access the app store – finding your way around the different features of the phone is quite easy. There are all sorts of Google-owned applications like YouTube, YT Music, Meet and Maps, and they all work incredibly fast, so there are loads to play with. And if you fancy more, there’s also the Play Store.

Behind the scenes, the 8 Pro has an adaptive battery that, according to Google, can last more than 24 hours – with an ‘extreme battery saver’ that can extend this time to up to 75 hours if a charging port is out of reach. Battery life is dependent on usage but one evening when I fell asleep with it playing the Nasa channel on YouTube, it lasted well into the following morning and was then quick to recharge. 

There’s so much on this phone, especially relating to the cameras, that you might – and probably will – enjoy playing around with it for a while to see how everything works.

Personalising the lock page was more difficult than expected. However, this isn’t my normal day-to-day phone so maybe over time I would get used to it – if you’re an existing Android user you’ll probably know what to do from the off. Having said that it’s fast and powerful.

Price-wise, the Pixel 8 Pro that I tested retails for around £999, increasing to just over £1,000 for the 256GB version. Given Google’s commitment to free OS updates for seven years, this one might be a keeper.