Customer Ratings & Reviews

Order was cancelled and I was not notified. Now if I want to re-order it will be $100 more. Very poor customer service experience

Never buy anything online from Best Buy, their packing is the worst. I would expect better for a phone delivery!

They did not take my previous phone, though it was working, but said we would have taken it if it were an iPhone

Geekbench score is same as iPhone 12, how come Google bring it to market in 2024

So the Pixel 9 continues the industry trend to market primarily on Artificial Intelligence features and capability. Google Gemini, Add Me, Screenshots, Pixel Studio, etc. I'm of the mind that AI things are interesting, and can be fun, but there is too much mud in the water as far as the morality of how these companies have obtained their datasets that kind of puts a damper on the whole thing for me, and this is the biggest issue in the Image generation side of the whole AI generative content thing. But my personal feelings on all that aside, the Pixel 9 is a solid new entry in the Pixel lineup, and this years entry feels far more like a flagship device than they have in years past. I love the matte finish on the frame, but wish they would have continued that with the back glass like they did on the pro models. The smooth back glass feels slippery, almost greasy, and that sucks because otherwise the phone looks amazing. and makes me feel like a skin, or case is almost mandatory to keep it from feeling like dropping it is an inevitability rather than a bad handling issue. Performance wise we aren't really looking at any major gains from last year, but we did get increased ram, mainly to handle those AI workloads on device. Add Me, in the camera, being probably the most interesting if you remember that it's there after the initial novelty wears off. This lets you, as the name suggests, add yourself to group photos in instances where you don't have someone outside the group to take the picture or have a reliable way to prop the device up and use a timer. It's also just interesting in that you can just use it to take pictures that can't exist, like a picture of yourself, hanging out with, yourself... Good fun nonsense. But I feel like this is less of an AI feature and more of an editing feature that's automated? Contrary to the popular opinion from what I have seen others saying, I happen to like the screenshots app. Keeping my screenshots out of my photo gallery, and separated out and indexed in a clean and easy to navigate way is nice, an added bonus being if your pulling up a screenshot to show someone, and they accidentally swipe or back out there's no chance of them seeing the nonsense photos you have taken as well, so that's a fringe benefit. If you know, you know. We get the same main cameras as the Pro this time minus the telephoto one, and that means not losing out on camera quality, though the pro still gets the better front facing camera, so if your big into the selfie game, you might still prefer that one. I myself don't tent to take pictures of myself, so no loss for me. Overall the camera quality is good, though the sometimes can look a little over processed to me, sometimes a little too sharp, but still good quality, and I don't think it will make your pictures look bad on your insta. For mobile gamers, sorry to say, your still getting left out. The latest Snapdragon in competing phones still puts this to shame, that isn't to say you can't game here, but your not going to be putting the settings on Max in every game you try, CoD Mobile runs well though, I myself do not game on my phone that often, I have plenty of other devices for that, and the few mobile games I do play, I tend to play on a tablet because my eyes suck and a smaller phone screen doesn't let me enjoy the experience as much as I'd like. Overall the Pixel 9 is a nice phone, I think the focus on AI is more of a detractor from the phones general premium feel and smooth operation. There's a lot to like here, it's been a joy to use, and coverage is generally pretty good in my area, but I've not had any signal quality issues, dropped calls, or other problems of note. So if your looking for a clean android experience with a solid camera and smooth performance with a longer software support cycle than most, the Pixel 9 is a pretty good choice.

I had a Pixel 6 Pro for 3 years before getting the Pixel 9 so I’m familiar with the Pixel line and was ready for an update. I like the 6.3” size and feel this is the perfect size phone for me. The gorilla glass on the front and back along with the thin metal bezel give the phone a premium look and feel. Once you add a case to the mix it fits well in the hand and doesn’t feel oversized when holding it up to my face. Setup was extremely easy. All I had to do was transfer my sim card and it was a simple step by step process. I was up and running in just a couple of hours once the system finished transferring files and updating software. One of my favorite things about the Pixel line of phones is that the software runs so smoothly. There is no stuttering or lag when moving from one page or application to another. The phone itself works as you would expect. The microphone (there are three of them) delivers a good clear sound to folks on the other end of the conversation and the speaker works equally as well. Bluetooth is version 5.3 and the connection with all my devices works flawlessly. The phone is capable of Wi-Fi 7 so you can get a good, fast connection with your router if it supports the same protocol. The in-screen fingerprint scanner works well, and gives me less problems than my old 6 Pro. The OLED screen is wonderful and has plenty of brightness to handle bright sunny days. The battery is 4700 mAh and even with taking pictures, surfing the web, checking email, and making and receiving phone calls I never had an issue with longevity. The camera is probably one of the strongest features of the Pixel 9. With a 50 MP wide and 48 MP ultrawide camera on the back and a 10.5 MP selfie camera I’m not sure what more you could ask for. In those moments where you don’t have your dedicated digital camera you can take some seriously good pictures with this phone. And the software that allows you to remove or add items and people is nice when you need that little extra touch to make the picture perfect. They have incorporated some AI features into the phone and there is Gemini in Google Messages. You can chat with Gemini and ask questions to get feedback. I asked Gemini how I could become a millionaire and it told me there was no guarantee, but to increase my income, reduce expenses, educate myself, save and invest, consider entrepreneurship, be patient, and seek professional advice. While neat, time will tell how useful the feature really can be. While the phone is excellent and has a lot of strong qualities there is room for improvement. The ability to use Google Pay to use NFC for contactless payments is nice, especially when you forget your wallet, but not all checkouts have that capability. It would be nice if magnetic secure transmission (MST) was incorporated into the phone so it could be used at all payment terminals regardless of whether they support contactless payments or not. Another area is with screen sharing or mirroring. The Pixel 9 only does screen mirroring so if you plug in your USB-C to HDMI adapter it will work on your TV, but the phone screen will stay on as it mirrors on your TV. It would be nice if the phones screen turned off as you watched the video on the TV. Also, when wirelessly screen mirroring not all TV’s are compatible with the Pixel. None of my LG OLED TV’s can receive a signal from the Pixel 9. My older Pixel couldn’t do this either and I was hoping it would have been updated by now, but it hasn’t been. Overall, it’s a nice phone with some powerful features with some areas for improvement. It’s an easy recommendation, especially if you’re into taking and editing photos with your phone and you want a lag free Android experience.

I got this for my mom and she's in love with it. Before this, she had Pixel 7 and this is a nice upgrade for her. Although, she's not a tech savvy which is understandable but she likes to have updated technology. For the price, it's great. This phone takes the most amazing photos for a cell phone! Amazing, bright, crystal clear and colorful OLED display. Looks like an iPhone screen! It charges fast enough, but the battery lasts such a long time. Longer than her older Pixel 7 and requires a lot less energy to charge. I was impressed with the sound. Nice full sound from the speakers, even has some bass. We turned it on, plugged in the Sim card and scanned a code from the old phone and instantly it easily transferred everything from the old phone to the new one. Amazing piece of technology and the price for a brand new name brand phone is unbeatable. She is absolutely in love with it. The camera quality, battery life, and the software experience are all ideal. While the phone does sometimes get warm, every phone brand also gets warm after some usage. The 120hz screen also feels very smooth. Yes, in terms of hardware and benchmark results, it's not the highest, but in real life usage, the overall experience isn't noticeable at all and sometimes I feel like it's a marketing tactic from other brands. Yes it's not ideal for gaming, but there are other phone brands that specially make gaming phones. For all those higher features, I recommend getting the pro version. For someone like my mom, non-pro version gets the job done. It also has wireless charging but I don't think she will use that feature, and it gives the option to wirelessly charge other devices. This phone works better than other peoples PCs IMO. Well worth the investment. Also, it has a feature to use "normal" screen color shades or "vivid" color shades and its beautiful. Probably the best Android phone on the market. I definitely recommend this phone for people that want a decent phone for everyday browsing, streaming media, and a high quality camera.

There's a lot to like about the Google Pixel 9 and I have been a fan of the Pixel phones since the Pixel 5. There are moderate improvements in the Pixel 9. Physically the phone is slightly larger in every dimension than the Pixel 8 (by 1-2mm L/W/D) and slightly heavier (by 10g). This doesn't sound like much, but I found it to feel noticeably larger in my hand and pocket. Setup was very easy with the setup wizard and all my apps and setting transferred over effortlessly. With the Tensor 4 processor and 12GB of onboard RAM everything is smooth, smooth, smooth! I have some apps that on other phones seemed a bit laggy or glitchy, but on the Pixel 9 I don't notice anything of the sort. The screen is nice and bright and the adaptive brightness works surprisingly well. Of course, AI is the latest fad for all things electronic and the Google Gemini AI works well without being overbearing or obtrusive, but I have not used it to the full potential. As a photographer and specifically an astrophotographer who regularly shoots in low light situations, I think where the Pixel 9 differentiates itself is in the camera and in low light situations. Taking video in a moderately dim basement living space, there is a HUGE improvement in the clarity and colors of video. Think SD vs HD quality. I was honestly shocked by this improvement. Low light video is much sharper and far less grainy. I didn't have a chance to try the camera for night time photography, but I am excited to see how the camera performs for things like the Milky Way and northern lights with the long exposure feature. The only negative I would point to is the battery life does not seem as robust as compared to the Pixel 8, by about 20% over a 12 hour span.

The Pixel 9 is an excellent phone. Beautiful design and build quality. Great performance, battery life and a beautiful display! As a very long time iOS user, I had to try out the new Pixel 9. So far I have been very pleased with the overall experience. Setup took some time as I had to update software and apps. I also had to sign into absolutely everything which was very time consuming. First thing you are going to notice out of the box is the beautiful build quality. The Pixel is a very elegant feeling phone, and no, the camera bump isn't an issue. I actually like it and it hasn't been a problem. The display is excellent. At first, I was not impressed. I could tell the screen was running at 60fps and it was hard to look at. After digging into the settings, I realized I had to turn on 120hz mode. They say it will use more battery but it is worth it to me, 100%. Speaking of the battery, it is awesome. After 12 hours of normal use, full brightness and 120hz mode enabled, I am still at 65%. Another great feature that is very fun is the A.I. assistant, Gemini. I have had it creating photos for me, answering questions, chatting with me and more. It has been a blast and is so cool to have an A.I. built into my phone. The camera is great too. Takes pretty good pictures and has a cool "Add me" feature where you can basically edit yourself into a photo on the fly. Maybe a bit of a gimmick but a super cool feature. Overall, the Pixel 9 is a great phone and has been fun to use. I definitely recommend this or any phone in the Pixel 9 lineup.

Pathetic customer service at the counter, need more training.

More improvements, more backsliding, more gimmicks… the Pixel trend doesn’t change with Google’s Pixel 9. I’m sticking with the Pixel brand and would recommend this phone to others. [ Good as usual ] Seven years of product support and software updates. The first Android phone to receive updates. Quick and easy access to quality product support from Google, directly on the phone (based on my experience). These alone have been reason enough for me to remain a loyal Pixel user since the very first generation. Great cameras for close wide shot photography (upgrading to the Pro model for the telephoto lens is very much worth considering). Clean Android experience with smooth performance. The Tensor 4 isn’t a benchmark chart-topper, but it did very well with the apps and games I threw at it. [ The improved ] The forward (selfie) camera has massively improved. It has a much higher resolution than the Pixel 8, and when taking pictures with both the Pixel 8 and Pixel 9 side by side in good lighting, I noticed a huge increase in captured detail. The display has significantly increased peak nit brightness. Compared side-by-side to the Pixel 8 in daylight, the increased brightness and vividness of color, while not huge, is noticeable. It’s hard to judge the battery within the time frame given to TIN reviewers because it usually takes a while for usage and standby times to improve to their ‘normal’ levels. However, the Pixel 9 seems to have better battery longevity from the start than the previous several (at least) generations. Video recorded with the main/rear camera has noticeably clearer detail compared to the Pixel 8. [ The truly new ] The satellite eSOS is a fantastic addition to the Pixel line which will undoubtedly save lives. I’m disappointed that Google is only offering it for free for two years (at least initially) rather than the full seven-year support period, which I imagine Google could have subsidized by offering users paid plans for non-emergency satellite texting services through the satellite carrier. But these are still early days and we still don’t know what to expect from this feature/service in the future. [ Backsliding ] The broadly-rounded display corners cut off too many pixels and too much content. When an app or game displays an ad, sometimes the ‘X’ button is half cut off by the rounded corner. Some app and game UI elements are also partially cut off. This extreme case of aesthetics trumping functionality and usability is the wrong direction for the Pixel line, in my opinion. Google is moving to replace the old assistant with Gemini. The problem is that my experience with Gemini has been a finicky mess. On more than one occasion when I asked it to broadcast a message, and after being prompted for the message, I said “alarms”, it canceled the broadcast and instead brought up the ‘alarm’ tab of the Clock app, which is not what I wanted. When I was setting a timer in the Clock app, it informed me that this is something I can ask the assistant to do, and provided me with a 'try now' button. Tapping on it told me that sorry, Gemini can't do that… despite this actually being a feature Gemini supports. It’s plain crazy that Gemini doesn’t support all the features the old Google Assistant does/did. Gemini isn’t always as easy to use as it should be. For example, if I summon Gemini when viewing an article in the native Chrome app, I have an ‘Ask about this screen’ option which provides context to my prompt; I can then ask Gemini to summarize the article. But, if I were viewing the same article instead from the news feed (swiped from the home screen), this option does not show, and I’d have to go through a fairly ridiculous number of steps to copy and paste the web address into the Gemini prompt. Even if these issues were resolved, an over-glorified auto-complete large language model black box prone to hallucination is not what I want from my phone’s assistant. Moving the SIM card tray next to the microphone at the bottom of the phone and changing the microphone to look almost exactly like the SIM tray ejection hole is an absurd design choice. There will be many people jamming a SIM tray ejector tool hard into that microphone hole–because of the visual ambiguity–and left wondering why the SIM tray isn’t popping out. What the heck, Google? [ The gimmicks ] The new photo editing feature ‘Add Me’ is just a mash-up of what ‘Best Take’ and ‘Magic Editor’ could already do; nothing innovative. With some care taken and mindfulness of limitations, it can produce useful results. The limitations of generative AI are still clear with Reimagine in Magic Editor, and the new Pixel Studio app. For better or worse, edited photos very much look edited. It will mess up the number of appendages on a generated animal. It will disfigure subjects it creates in bizarre ways. It will entirely ignore large portions of your prompts. And worst of all, Magic Editor will usually refuse to make edits of photos containing a person, and will often vaguely error out saying it “can’t complete this edit”. This stuff feels like it belongs in a child’s toy more than a serious product. It would be nice if Google put some focus on implementing some actually useful, serious features. When the heck are we going to get camera focus stacking, Google? I’ve been asking for this for many years. They continue to ignore simple ‘quality of life’ stuff that I and many others have asked for, like expanding the incredibly limited lock screen text. I can barely get in an ‘if found’ and ‘ICE’ (In Case of Emergency) phone numbers, with no room for anything else like a blood type or important medical information that an emergency responder would find useful. Unfortunately, gimmicks sell, so gimmicks we will get. Oh, and more subscription options (like Gemini Live)… while also increasing the price of the phone with each new generation.

I recently picked up the new Pixel 9, and after spending a week with it, I’m ready to share my thoughts. First off, the new design of the Pixel 9 is sleek and modern, but it’s hard to ignore that it looks quite similar to a phone from another big-name manufacturer.... While it’s visually appealing, it doesn’t bring any groundbreaking design innovations to the table. On the plus side, Google’s integration of the rear cameras is a highlight. The camera setup on the Pixel 9 is clean and well-integrated, looking far better than some of the three or four-camera monstrosities you see on other phones. Personally I'd prefer if they would just pick a design and stick with it for a few years instead of changing it every year. In terms of hardware, the improvements are not as pronounced as you might expect. The Pixel 9’s performance isn’t a giant leap forward from the Pixel 8. I don't feel like you're going to see giant leaps in terms of performance at this point in the technology of cell phones. As far as performance differences between the 6, 7, 8, and 9, all of which I have owned, honestly most people aren't going to notice any difference. The real strength of the Pixel 9 lies in its new software features. Many of these new capabilities will probably make their way to the Pixel 8 and 7 through updates, so the hardware alone might not justify an immediate upgrade if you're coming from a current Pixel phone. But the Pixel's strong point has always been it's cameras and they are great as usual, as well as the simplicity of the software and the features they have and add with updates. Google claims that the Pixel 9 is twice as durable as the Pixel 8, which is certainly an impressive claim. However, I’m not about to test that claim, not on purpose—let’s just say I'll take their word for it. I can say that my Pixel 8 Pro, although I do have a dBrand Grip case on it, which isn't anywhere near an Otterbox or similar, and I don't have a screen protector, but I drop the thing all the time. On the ground, on concrete, bouncing out of my lap, out of my truck onto concrete, and everytime I cringe and think that did it... but it doesn't have a scratch on it and works fine. Could be the case, could be the phone, could be both. Just saying The phone continues to excel in the photo and video departments, which, as mentioned, has always been a strong suit for the Pixel line. The new “add me” feature for group photos is particularly impressive. It works quite well, making it easier to ensure that everyone in your group is included in the shot without having to retake multiple photos. Some of the new AI features are a bit hit or miss, though. For example, the “Reimagine” tool in photo editing can produce some great results, but it’s not always consistent. Sometimes it enhances your photos beautifully, while other times, it falls short. The Gemini AI, which handles various queries and responses, is programmed with Google’s preferred output rather than providing straightforward answers. I tested it by asking it to say something specific, and it was surprisingly sensitive to certain inputs, which made it feel a bit restrictive. While it's not a new feature to just the Pixel 9, one standout feature is the Audio Magic Eraser. I tested it with a video I took while driving on the interstate, with the windows down, music playing, and talking to my wife. The Magic Eraser did an excellent job of selectively removing background noise so that I could focus on specific sounds, whether speech or music. This feature worked impressively well. I do like the inclusion of the eSOS feature, which you can set up in the "Safety" app. It’s a handy tool for emergency situations and worth setting up for peace of mind. Just familiarize yourself with how to access it and use it. And don't rely on it solely. It uses satellites so you do have to have a pretty clear view of the sky with the phone to connect. And as far as I can tell, it looks like it's a message only service. So if that's the case and there's no calling feature, it won't be useful in some situations. Overall, the Pixel 9 is a solid phone with several impressive features, especially in the realm of photo and video capabilities. You can now also get the Pro version in the same, smaller size. Whether it justifies spending a couple of hundred dollars more for the Pro version depends on your specific needs and whether the additional features are worth the cost to you.

I had to change my review right away! Because I've never had any of Google phone before, I didn't know how to work it correctly. That was changing things, looking for missing apps, trying to figure out why they would make this phone this way with a horrible display. When I finally was able to do a review, I still was a little upset at how long it took me to get the phone because of the delivery company. I originally went into the review of this phone with low expectations because of the price of the phone. So when I got the phone, and was done using it and trying out as many features as possible, I was disappointed because of the display of the phone. So I hurried up and did my review, and didn't think much of it afterwards. So one day when talking to a friend of mine, the phone came up and I forgot he had one. So after talking to him, and him give me a whole bunch of pointers on what I could do, it changed my whole perception of the phone! The display on this phone is top-notch! Once I was able to turn the lighting of the screen all the way up, I was pleasantly amazed! The pictures on the pixel nine are really stunning! You would also be amazed at just playing videos from this phone and how nice it sounds! It is lacking a little bit in base, but that's to be expected given a circumstances of it just being a phone without large speakers. I was doing a little bit of experiment with the feature on the phone were you could come by multiple shots and make one picture. I thought that was really cool and it's something I would use frequently. I was taking pictures in the day and at night, and the shadows look great. This phone is definitely worth a buy!

Very slow wireless charging. My pixel 9 shows 10 hours to fully charge on 2 different QI certified chargers. Finally found an Anker QI charger that will only take 5 hours. Pics of text in low light are blurry. Digital zooming also results in blurry and unusable pics. Phone came preloaded with tons of Google apps, half that I didn't want. And many like Google TV cannot be uninstalled. I thought pixels were bloatware free, but this is not the case. Battery life is very good. And the screen is bright with good resolution. The on button is above the volume switches, which is annoying as I use the power button a ton and rarely the volume, but keep hitting volume buttons. Overall, this phone seems like a 5 year old flagship and not a 2024 version. Very disappointed

Google _ Pixel 9 128GB (Unlocked)-Obsidian works good.

Pixel is the cleanest and latest android phone. Good performance.

Great exterior design. The system is smooth. Satisfied. Love the photos.

I'm no tech expert but so far so good. 100% better than the pixel 6 I tried for not even an hour. Signal strength great. Bluetooth connection great ( android auto ) battery life is also great even with always on display. Darn good phone ! Obviously battery is still learning my phone usage but it still lasts me 2 days.

excellent device, pickup was also quick. Google has outdone itself.

Great phone, a good camera, and useful AI. Amazing display.