had to buy a cell phone

[LivingAlmostLarge]

My husband got me the nexus. I was happy with the Moto G or E. He just hands me a phone when mine breaks. I was just as happy with the Moto G. He bought me the same one he has now. It's all the same to me.

[Tabs]

lol I'm still tempted to go back and preorder, but my wife was already ready to kill me when she found out how much the phone was. She was ok with me upgrading but didn't know the phone was so much. She thought it was maybe half of that. haha

I still want one

Bad news, señor Gato. Most of the models are already sold out at this point. Well, technically, just all the XLs... I suppose you can still have a regular size so long as it's not Limited Edition Blue. Pretty impressive considering we're basically pining over HTC hardware.

You don't suppose señora Gato would be interested in an brief explanation in the two-year total cost of ownership, would she? Because, yes, you pay a lot in upfront cost for a phone, but after that, the Google Fi network is only $20 a month for the phone, and then $10 per gig for data.

If you're a data miser, your phone bill could be as low as $30 a month. $20 if you use no data at all (and stick with wifi at home or elsewhere).

Couple this with a 24 month break-down cost of the phone itself of $36 per month for the 128gb XL, or $27 per month for a regular sized 32gb version, and your total monthly bill should range anywhere from $47 to $66 per month.

Yes, it's still high by SA standards... but it's not ridiculously insane in the membrane for owning a piece of flagship technology with the best techs money can buy.... The ONLY top tier phone that Google supports, you know it will get the fastest updates (unlike that split BS with Verizon). The ONLY phone that Google is currently making available with unrestricted, unlimited cloud storage. Improved VR goggles FREE for pre-purchases only. Built-in Google Fi so you can "cut cord" with major carriers and their bloat, and have a nice Ting-like experience instead (except it's better than Ting). The first of its kind to push their newly re-badged Google Assistant. That's ... such an underwhelming name for something that's also capable of interacting with IoTs like turning on your lights, setting your thermostat, or really any other electrically-powered devices, to checking your security monitor feeds, etc... nevermind talking to you in a Turing-like manner.

So yeah, I admit I am tempted too. This is a new chapter in Google's push against the likes of Apple and Amazon, and they have everything it takes to rival and perhaps even beat them all. Makes me want to join this new evolutionary wonderland.

[GoodSteward]

Bad news, señor Gato. Most of the models are already sold out at this point. Well, technically, just all the XLs... I suppose you can still have a regular size so long as it's not Limited Edition Blue. Pretty impressive considering we're basically pining over HTC hardware.

You don't suppose señora Gato would be interested in an brief explanation in the two-year total cost of ownership, would she? Because, yes, you pay a lot in upfront cost for a phone, but after that, the Google Fi network is only $20 a month for the phone, and then $10 per gig for data.

If you're a data miser, your phone bill could be as low as $30 a month. $20 if you use no data at all (and stick with wifi at home or elsewhere).

Couple this with a 24 month break-down cost of the phone itself of $36 per month for the 128gb XL, or $27 per month for a regular sized 32gb version, and your total monthly bill should range anywhere from $47 to $66 per month.

Yes, it's still high by SA standards... but it's not ridiculously insane in the membrane for owning a piece of flagship technology with the best techs money can buy.... The ONLY top tier phone that Google supports, you know it will get the fastest updates (unlike that split BS with Verizon). The ONLY phone that Google is currently making available with unrestricted, unlimited cloud storage. Improved VR goggles FREE for pre-purchases only. Built-in Google Fi so you can "cut cord" with major carriers and their bloat, and have a nice Ting-like experience instead (except it's better than Ting). The first of its kind to push their newly re-badged Google Assistant. That's ... such an underwhelming name for something that's also capable of interacting with IoTs like turning on your lights, setting your thermostat, or really any other electrically-powered devices, to checking your security monitor feeds, etc... nevermind talking to you in a Turing-like manner.

So yeah, I admit I am tempted too. This is a new chapter in Google's push against the likes of Apple and Amazon, and they have everything it takes to rival and perhaps even beat them all. Makes me want to join this new evolutionary wonderland.

You are like the evil Tabs right now...

I just wanted the 5" version. I had a note 4 but get tired of the large phones. I don't enjoy stretching my fingers all the time to use it. I prefer the smaller one I can used singled handed. I get a lot of jokes about that too lol.

I will be getting one, but don't plan to jump in until they have a price break hopefully this holiday season.

[Tabs]

Haha yeah, I am sorry. I am being quite evil about this, especially on a financial forum.... What can I say, I love tech too.

Ok well, to balance out my malevolent karma, let's talk about some downsides of the Pixel. How about that?

I think the most obvious negative against it is the hardware design. At a distance, most people will probably mistaken it for an iPhone 6 or something. Because that's what it looks like; a previous gen iPhone. Does that mean there's anything wrong with the phone? No, but they were certainly out to imitate, not innovate.

The vaunted unrestricted, unlimited cloud storage is something that geeks will fawn over, but I don't think the average user will in fact care about it that much, or even notice. That's because Google Drive already offers the first 15 gbs free for unrestricted use. After that, you can either pay a little bit per month for more premium space, or you can use their Google Photo, which will also give you unlimited storage, albeit it with some "compression optimization", although unless you are a crazy person that insists all video be saved in 4k, I mean seriously, that's not going to be a big deal.

VR Goggles, yeah, they're offering it for free for prepurchase, but if you really want one later on, it's not terribly expensive. I would also urge everyone to take a step back and consider the current state of VR in the first place. I mean, what would you use this for really? Mobile gaming? I don't know any titles for it. YouTube? Not everyone records in 360, and even those who do, it's kind of gimmicky. For example, I like to see videos of foreign locales in 360 I guess, but... that's about it. Sure, I'll take it for free, but I wouldn't actually pay money for it. I just don't see where VR in general is going, certainly not in the mobile space.

Google Fi can potentially be an amazing deal, but for extremely heavy data users, this can still end up being rather expensive, especially if you are someone who consumes video on a regular basis. In which case, perhaps you are better served elsewhere, like T-mobile itself. I admit I do like the prospect of Fi, but I do find it a bit paradoxical that they are trying to target the high end crowd with a high end phone, but with a not-so-high end cellular plan.

Google Assistants, the upgraded version of Ok Google Now, has been around for years, and it has never gain any traction. I would say that perhaps it has never hit that sweet spot between hardware and software that finally captured the mass market's imagination. To me, the key has always been having a dedicated always-on voice command chip as a part of the phone, such as ones found in the Moto X, and now in LG's flagship V20... yes LG. But NO, not PIXEL! Let me double check the spec sheet.... Yeah, I could be wrong, but as far as I can tell, no dedicated audio chip. That means, it is still not removing the voice command barrier like the way Alexa and LG v20 is doing. Perhaps you can argue over its design decision in favor of security or whatever, but remember, it's the Alexa model of doing things that's selling right now, not Google Assistant's. For a flagship phone with flagship features, I would much rather they incorporated this feature so at least users can have a choice between which mode they prefer.

IoT isn't something that all but tech geeks would enjoy. I mean even I wouldn't buy Nest's $250 thermostat or $100 smoke alarm. How about light bulbs that costs $15 to $50 when you can just flip on a light switch for much less? It's way over the top for commodity devices that should be kept simple and reliable.

While I'm here, no SD card slot and no removeable battery. One of them will tell you that you're tied to cloud storage, but the other ensures that you'll never be able to keep using this phone for as many years as it may otherwise be capable of. Early reviews also indicate that the battery life is only mediocre.

Even if you are OK with all this, there is just one last thing that I can't get quite over; that Google is charging top dollars for basically nothing new under the sun. Yes, this is one of the best tech money can buy... but is there anything truly innovative that's worth that premium sum? At least the LG v20 has a built in DAC for audiophiles, as well as a always-on OLED shortcut strip, dual cameras, and even removeable batteries! At least they are trying to give you your money's worth.

See, this is why I mentioned in my previous post that this is an Evolutionary wonderland, not a Revolutionary wonderland. For those who are serious about the Pixel, the most reasonable response is to simply wait for the hype to die down, and wait for an eventual price cut a year from now. Don't worry, you won't be missing anything exciting really.

How about that, GoodSteward. Does that make you feel any better?

Edit: Ok, I just read he re-ordered it. I guess the answer is no.

[Magnificence]

the high quality DAC of the v20 would be really interesting, but the phone is such a big brick again, like most of these new smartphones...

[Eagle]

my wifes phone stopped charging, something wrong with the charge port on the phone so she's been eyeballin iphones and settled on a 6s plus for $650 + $58 tax from our carrier. i figured i need one too and started poking around on ebay, just snagged the same exact phone for $515, wish i had her look there too.

My wife's phone broke earlier this year. We've bought a couple refurbished iPhones on Amazon with great results. My iPhone 6 I bought from Apple when they first came out. Was a nice upgrade from my 4s. Paid cash for them all too.

[Eagle]

It is very nice to have all of your technology - phone, tablet, laptop, desktop, MP3 player all function seamlessly together because they are all made by the same company and running on interconnected operating systems. I have an iPhone and iMac. DW has an iPhone and iPad. DD has an iPhone, iPod, and MacBook Air. They all play together very nicely.

+1
Yes our 2 iPhones, 2 Macbooks, and iPad work well together.