For Singapore at least, it seemed like almost yesterday that Google released the Pixel 6 and the Pixel 6 Pro on our shores. Just months later, they announced the arrival of the Pixel 7 series.
The Pixel 7 builds on the firm foundations that the Pixel 6 established, with more polished hardware (literally, in the case of the 7 Pro) and software improvements.
Generation 2 Tensor
The next-gen Tensor looks to be a refinement of its predecessor, offering improved speed, efficiency and security. According to Google, these improvements help raise the bar for photo and video quality and in complex features like Super Res Zoom, which is effectively a 30x hybrid zoom. Night Sight processing is almost twice as fast as its predecessor and Realtone accuracy has improved, even when shooting with Night Sight. Face Unblur is sharper, and there’s a new Cinematic Blur feature a la iPhone. What’s cool is that stuff like Face Unblur works even for photos not taken by the Pixel phone.
Upgraded cameras
The camera upgrades seem subtle, but sound really promising. | Image: Google
They seem almost similar but the 7 Pro has an upgraded camera system: the telephoto camera goes further (5x vs 4x on the Pixel 6 Pro), the wide-angle camera is 40 per cent wider and has autofocus, which also enables macro focus as close as 3cm away from the subject. All cameras are able to shoot videos at 4K and 60 fps.
Battery life and other enhancements
The 7 Pro has a 5,000mAh battery while the regular Pixel 7 has a 4,355mAh cell, and battery life is expected to last over a day with an Extreme Battery Saver option that will stretch usage towards the 72-hour mark. Like the 6 series, the phone will learn your habits to improve battery efficiency.
You can now use Face Unlock for situations that don’t require absolute security, and Google guarantees at least five years of security updates so that you can really stretch out its use.
Green is king
The Hazel and gold colourway is pretty fetching. | Image: Google
Did I mention that the new green colours are particularly cool? The Lemongrass on the regular Pixel 7 and Hazel on the Pixel 7 Pro are arguably (no argument, really) the best colours of this year’s Pixel lineup. The other colours are Snow and Obsidian, which is a fancy of saying white and black.
While the iPhone 14 Pro has a dynamic island, the Google Pixel has an actual camera island. The housing, which was designed around glass in the Pixel 6 series, is now metal; aluminium on the Pixel 7 and steel on the Pixel 7 Pro. It doesn’t do anything functionally, but it does make the phones look a little more upmarket.
Prices start from $999 for the pixel 7 (128GB, 256GB goes for $1,129) and $1,299 for the Pixel 7 Pro (128GB, 256GB goes for $1,449). They’re available for pre-order on Google Store, Amazon SG, Courts Online, Challenger Online, Shopee, and can be bought in-store from 13 October onwards at Courts and Challenger.
In addition, any purchase of the Pixel 7 or Pixel 7 Pro will come with a coupon for $250 off your next purchase on Google Store and all partners. Additional partner offers can be found on their respective channels.
