Google Pixel 9 Review: The AI Phone to Beat?

Google's Pixel 9 is the latest iteration of Google's latest premium smartphone. It marks a significant departure from its predecessor, boasting a larger form factor and a sleek, all-flat aesthetic that catches the eye. From design changes to new AI capabilities, there's a lot to unpack here—what's good and not, and how this phone actually holds up in day-to-day use. So, does it live up to the hype? Is it the right phone for you? Let's find out.

Design: Larger and Flatter with Premium Feel

The Pixel 9 marks a significant departure from its predecessor. Gone is the compact form factor – we're now looking at a noticeably larger device, measuring 3mm taller and 1.2mm wider than the Pixel 8. It's also 11 grams heavier at 198 g.

The design language has shifted to an all-flat aesthetic. Two Gorilla Glass Victus 2 panels sandwich a flat aluminium frame. The camera bar, a Pixel signature, is also completely flat.

Our review unit is in this colour called Wintergreen, but you can also get it in Obsidian, Porcelain and Peony. All variants sport a glossy back, which, I'll warn you, is a fingerprint magnet.

The phone feels premium in hand, with tactile buttons and excellent haptics. It's IP68 rated for dust and water resistance, so you won't have to worry if you get caught in the rain.

One notable upgrade is the new ultrasonic fingerprint reader. It's significantly faster and more reliable than last year's optical sensor.

Display: Bright OLED Screen Impresses

The Pixel 9 features a 6.3-inch OLED display, branded "Actua" by Google. It's a step up from last year, offering a Full HD+ (2424 x 1080 Pixels) resolution, a 120Hz peak refresh rate, and a claimed peak brightness of 2,700 nits.

The display supports HDR10 and HDR10+ and is Widevine L1 certified for high-res streaming. The vibrant colours and the 120Hz refresh rate make scrolling and animations buttery smooth. Our testing found the screen to be consistently bright, even under sunlight.

Performance: Clean UI with AI Smarts 

Under the hood, we've got Google's new Tensor G4 chip. It's an 8-core processor, clocked slightly higher (3.1 GHz) than last year. It is paired with 12GB of LPDDR5X RAM, making day-to-day performance snappy and responsive.

The upgraded NPU (Neural Processing Unit) is the real star of the show. It powers many of the phone's AI features, especially the Gemini AI assistant.

One of the key AI features on the Pixel 9 series is Magic Editor, which removes distractions and even generates new scenery in photos. There’s also Call Notes which can create AI-generated summaries of your phone calls.

Overall, the Pixel experience remains clean and intuitive, and Google promises seven years of OS, Security updates and Pixel Drops, which is excellent. However, I don't think you'd use this phone for more than five years.

Battery: Decent Upgrade

The Pixel 9 has a 4,700mAh battery, a modest upgrade from the Pixel 8's 4,575mAh. In our testing, it consistently offered nearly six to seven hours of active usage.

Google claims this phone can be charged from 1% to 55% in 30 minutes, which is slower than what many competitors offer today.

It supports 27W wired charging, and wireless charging tops out at 12W with Qi-certified charging pads or 15W with Google's own Pixel Stand. The phone also supports reverse wireless charging.

Cameras: Upgraded System Shines

The Pixel 9's camera system includes a 50-megapixel (f/1.7) main sensor. There's a new 48-megapixel ultra-wide camera, and the selfie camera now supports autofocus.

The main camera delivers excellent results in daylight. Photos show great detail, natural sharpening, and Google’s signature high-contrast look. Colours are punchy without being oversaturated.

The new ultrawide camera is a significant upgrade. Compared to the Pixel 8, it captures sharper images with better dynamic range. It also handles macro shots, focusing as close as 15mm from the subject.

Low-light performance is solid, delivering bright, detailed shots in challenging conditions.

Portrait mode produces decent results, though the background blur can sometimes be a bit aggressive and can struggle with subject separation.

Video capabilities include 4K@60FPS recording on all cameras. Stabilisation is excellent, but we noticed some over-sharpening and high contrast in the footage.

Verdict

The Google Pixel 9 starts at Rs 79,999 with 256GB of storage, which puts it in direct competition with the iPhone 16. It has a similar price but its 120Hz display and potentially better video capabilities will give it an edge for some buyers.

The Pixel 9 is a solid evolution of Google's smartphone line. While it's not the compact powerhouse some fans might want, it offers significant improvements in display quality, battery life, and AI capabilities.

If you're deeply invested in the Google ecosystem and value clean software with long-term support, the Pixel 9 is an excellent choice. However, if you're coming from a Pixel 8, the improvements might not be substantial enough to justify an immediate upgrade.

For those on the fence, competitors like the Vivo X100 Pro and Samsung Galaxy S24 are worth considering, especially if video performance or zoom capabilities are priorities.

Ultimately, the Pixel 9 showcases Google's vision for the future of smartphones – where AI is deeply integrated into every aspect of the user experience. Whether that future appeals to you will largely determine if this is the right phone for you.