Pixel 6: The FINAL Review // Six Months Later!

So that means my one and only sim card has lived for the most part exclusively in this phone since about november, and for someone who reviews phones for a living, thats actually a really long time, but with the release of the galaxy s 22 lineup, not too Long ago, smartphone season really has kicked back into gear, and so, rather than having one main everyday device that i revert back to in between reviews, i usually just keep using whatever phone im currently reviewing until i switch over to the next one that im reviewing and So that means its essentially time to say so long farewell to the pixel 6 as my everyday device, but because of that, i wanted to do a final, updated review to let you know why i continued using it for so long and why i still recommend it For anyone looking to upgrade their android phone and also save a bit of cash, so with that being said, here is my updated six month later review of the regular pixel six Music. Now before we get to the key features that kept me using this phone. For so long lets, first tackle the question. Everyone is probably asking have the updates fixed all of the various issues. Well, lets unpack each of them, so the issue where the display would randomly clock itself down to 60hz without rhyme or reason and stay that way until you rebooted the phone yep thats now fixed and it no longer happens.

I think that one was fixed with the january update the issue where i would stop receiving notifications randomly yep that was fixed pretty quickly with the december update, which i actually manually sideloaded before the files got pulled down. What about the fingerprint sensor well from the get go, i always found that the sensor on this phone was quicker and more reliable than the one found on the six pro and for the most part i havent even noticed this sensor, which i think is a good Song, whether its improved for me, i dont, think its much better than when i first started using it, but again its never been a deal breaker or something ive ever noticed so take that for what it is. Oh hey, editing, sam here and remember that issue i mentioned in my initial review, where the keyboard would randomly freeze. Well, when i initially recorded the a roll for this video, it was still in fact happening and id actually found an article that explained how the issue was for some reason tied to the battery percentage dropping, and i even tested it myself to confirm that this was In fact, what was happening – and it was – but during the editing process of this video, a fix was finally released. So thank goodness that no longer happens as for wi fi or bluetooth connectivity issues ive actually never experienced either with my unit. So i cant officially speak to them, but from what ive read, these issues were also fixed with that same recent update, and so all of that being said, if any of the above bugs have been putting you off from buying this phone well theyve, actually now all Been fixed and the software is even more reliable than it already was all right, thats enough from editing sam back to the main video now from there.

I do want to address the areas in which i felt the device is still lacking, just so that if youre someone who places any of the following as a really high priority, then youll know straight away that this might not be the phone for you. The first of which is the display now i want to stress that this is not a bad display and in fact i really like most aspects about it. Some might be disappointed with the fact that its 90 hertz and not 120 hertz like its more premium flagship brother, but i actually dont have an issue with that aspect at all. What i have found to be slightly underwhelming is how bright the display gets again. This hasnt been a deal breaker for me, but whenever ive switched to using another phone for a video im filming or for some other reason, ive always found myself coming back to the pixel 6 and being slightly underwhelmed with how bright it can get in the brightest Of conditions where youre wearing sunglasses, you can still see the display, but only just and its certainly got nothing on the really bright displays of the recent s22 lineup of phones and then the second aspect ive really missed not having on this phone is a telephoto lens. Ive mentioned it lots now, but as someone with two kids often playing a distance away from where i am, i honestly just find that i dont capture as many photos or videos, because i know im too far away and i know that digital zoom is only going To get me so far when i was using the six pro or even when i switched to the iphone 13 pro for a short while, just recently, all of a sudden, i found myself capturing far more photos and videos, thanks purely to the fact that both phones Had telephoto lenses now again thanks to how much more affordable this phone is compared to both of those devices.

I cant really complain about the lack of a telephoto lens or the 90hz display that isnt super bright, but for the next iteration of this phone i would love for google to just blow us all out of the water and whack even just a two times. Telephoto lens onto the back of this phone, but preferably a three times lens that would be a game changer all right before we get to the reasons why ive continued using this phone for so long. I do want to take a quick moment to thank todays video sponsor anti stalker mobile security, so you ever find yourself having a conversation with someone only to then find that later that day, you start seeing ads on your phone specifically related to what you were talking About this is something called targeted marketing and it can actually come about because certain apps on your phone are listening in on your conversations in the background, and so this is where anti stalker comes into play. Anti stalker can detect any instance of an app using your microphone or camera and will then show you a full breakdown of these apps, including how long they were using the microphone or camera for, as well as showing you, which apps have sent your data and where Theyve sent it to so you can click on the detection and see the ip the domain and the country where its server is located and collecting your data from.

It also shows you if the domain is identified as stalk aware suspicious or as a data tracker and fair warning. You may find the results a little shocking. The app doesnt just show you what apps are being sneaky itll actually allow you to block them, which it does so by creating a local vpn, and this means those apps just wont – be able to track or send your data anymore. On top of that, the app also features whitelisting, an anti theft, alarm permission manager, a quick toggle to mute, your microphone, plus a stack more and beyond. All of that, its actually free to download so make sure to use my link down in the description to check it out and start protecting your phone today and so from there. We come to the great aspects of this phone. The features that kept me using it for so long, even though i had a lot of other much more expensive options sitting in the cupboard and for me there were really three main components that put it above the rest, the software, the design and the haptics. So, firstly, the software and ill admit when i first started using android 12. I really didnt like it, but as with most controversial software updates over time, ive actually come to really enjoy android 12 and i think im going to miss this particular pixel flavor of android 12. Whenever i switch over to other phones, this year features like how quickly the phone boots up or this beautifully implemented one hand mode.

Even the back tap functionality to quickly open up a particular app or shortcut is super helpful. But aside from all of that, if ive said it once ive said it a thousand times the real game, changer that makes android 12, so good uh, all of those beautiful buttery animations across the entire os. Now, on top of that, for anyone who doesnt know ive actually rooted my pixel 6, and that is actually part of why ive kept using it for so long. Its meant that i havent had to use googles silly pixel launcher, which makes for an awful customization experience. But rather ive been using a magisk module called quick switch to set a third party launcher called launcher 12, as my default launcher, and that means now i can both customise my home screen and continue to have those buttery animations when using gestures. You might then ask well why not just use a phone that lets you customize the stock launcher rather than rooting a phone, but this is where i have to give props to google intentionally or not. They just make the routing process so dang easy much easier compared to pretty much every other device on the market. Ive actually got videos that walk through the entire pixel 6 routing process and videos that cover how to continue using banking apps with a rooted phone. So if youre interested ill leave a playlist linked below, but if google hadnt made it so easy to root their phones, then actually it probably wouldnt still be using the pixel 6.

, but secondly, the design and, aside from the glossy back, nearly everything else about the design Of this phone is excellent for starters, these matte rails, which i think make the phone just that much more comfortable to hold. Then we have the flat display, which i think makes it much easier to use and then finally, we have this camera bar on the back, which means there is no wobble whatsoever when using this phone flat on a table, which is actually something ive really appreciated and Have missed when using other phones, the only other downside in regards to design are these slightly thicker than usual bezels, but, judging from the leaked renders of the pixel 7 lineup. This is one of the few aspects. Google will be improving with the next lineup, but no joke out of all of the android phones. I used and reviewed last year. This one had my favorite feel in the hand, which is actually a super high priority for me and then finally, the haptics and if youve watched literally any of my phone reviews, you should know how highly i value good haptics in a phone. And for me, this phone has the best haptics of any android phone released over the past two years and thats, because theyre firm, yet subtle, which is such an important and apparently hard combination. Tonight, even the six pro goes too hard with their haptics, but the haptics in this phone have just made typing and navigating around the os feel really premium and its honestly made the phone a true joy to use, oh and actually one bonus component.

I love with this phone is the battery life even back in my initial review, i was raving about how good the battery life was, and it has remained just as reliable and impressive to this day now. Is it iphone 13 pro or pro max level? No, but its actually better than the 6 pro and a lot of other devices in this mid to flagship pricing, territory, Music and so after all this time, ive got to be honest and say im sad to be wrapping up my time with the pixel 6.. It has been a very solid performer over the past few months and i dare say its probably going to take me a little while to stop missing it. So for me, if the lack of a telephoto lens and the slightly under par display deal breakers for you, then, given the price, this is a phone. I can still highly recommend and as the year progresses and we get closer to the release of the pixel 7 lineup, this phone is going to become even more discounted and therefore even more viable. So if youve been on the fence, i say go for it, but either way hats off to a fantastic device from google, and i look forward to seeing how they build from this going forward.