Google brought back the XL moniker for their devices at Made By Google 2024, but with a twist. The company announced their Pro model would be available in two sizes, the 6.3-inch display Google Pixel 9 Pro and the 6.8-inch phablet Pixel Pro XL. Google Pixel 9 Pro XL is, for all intents and purposes, the same device as its 6.3-inch sibling. But, there are some minor tweaks to account for the bigger display.
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A response to calls for a premium-pro device for smaller hands, pockets or purses, Google Pixel 9 Pro is almost identical in specs to the 6.8-inch phablet XL. Google’s very best imaging, display and chipset are all on board, but in the smaller frame.
Pixel Powered
Google Pixel 9 Pro XL runs the latest chipset from the company, Tensor G4. The new tech delivers boosts to performance and efficiency. The chipset also handles a great deal of on-device AI processing.
While Google Pixel 8 Pro could handle some tasks on-device, Google Pixel 9 Pro boasts a raft of AI assistant features that run in the box, which means you can avail of the best that AI bells even with no coverage. The device also features 16GB RAM to help out with its AI workload.
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Google Pixel 9 Pro XL is snappy and smooth at work and at play. Switching between tasks is instantaneous, and some of the transition animations of Android 14 look stunning in 120Hz motion. Pixel 9 Pro XL UI runs, looks and feels like the premium flagship it is.
The 1344×2992 pixel display looks super sharp crammed into the 6.8-inch device. Google Pixel 9 Pro XL can hit 3,000nits at its peak, and in practice, the device can handle the brightest days, showing legible text even in direct sunlight.
The huge dynamic range coupled with the brightness and colour. The SuperActua Display with 10-bit colour produces a vivid and deep image that makes photos and videos pop.
The 120Hz refresh rate gives an appreciable smoothness when scrolling, playing games or consuming compatible content. The LTPO tech of the display means the refresh rate can go from anywhere from 1Hz to 120Hz, keeping content at its native framerate, or saving power when it can.
Big Friendly Box
Google Pixel 9 Pro XL is of a ‘friendly box’ design. The device is flat on four sides but has gentle curves and bends to, literally and figuratively, take the edge off. Our Obsidian review model is the quietest of the four colours, but it’s far from boring.
Google Pixel 9 Pro XL wears the signature Google visor, but with an updated design. Instead of the wraparound visor of Pixel 7 and Pixel 8 series, we get a bold mask design. It’s eye-catching centrepiece detail that Google has allowed to do the heavy lifting on the visual intrigue front.
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The rear of Pixel 9 Pro XL is a matte, frosted glass. Only solitary ‘G’ logo in gloss sully the lightly frosted rear outside of the camera arrangement. The glossy aluminium frame offers a pleasing contrast with the frosted glass rear. The minimalist detailing outside the bold mask camera island really highlights the arrangement, and is in keeping with Google’s long-standing design language.
The build quality is similarly stellar. Google Pixel 9 Pro device is easy to manipulate in one hand, despite its phablet size, thanks to the frosted rear, straight edges, and slim 8.5mm-deep design. Pixel 9 Pro XL features the best display we have seen this year, which it shares with Google Pixel 9 Pro.
AI Gemini
Gemini is Google’s next-gen AI assistant. Designed to take natural language, image, video and audio cues, Gemini can do a bewildering array of tasks. Stuff like arrange an holiday, then arrange the invitations and produce image macros to hype it up with your friends.
The whole thing comes a fairly substantial tutorial to help you understand how to feed Gemini your requests. There are also a few suggestion prompts under each of the broad categories from which you launch your Gemini request.
XL Camera Performance
Google Pixel 9 Pro XL sports a triple camera lens setup. Images from the Pixel 9 Pro XL’s three lenses are consistently of high quality. The device nails the image first time an impressive amount of the time. The 50MP wide lens, which will be main sensor the average person will use, offers bright, detailed and well-contrasted images across a wide variety of scenes.
The ultrawide is also excellent and can snap sharp landscapes or perfect group portraits straight from the pocket. Google Pixel 9 Pro XL also carries a 5x optical zoom. The 5x zoom lens is paired with a 48MP sensor to make the most of it.
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Together, the 48MP sensor and a 5x optical zoom lens offer an impressive ‘Super Res’ hybrid zoom. In the right light, and with a steady hand, hybrid zoom images out past 20x can be ready for social media.
AI Image Editing and Enhancement
The Google Pixel 9 Pro boasts an array of AI-powered image enhancement and editing capabilities. Favorites from the Google Pixel 8 make a comeback, with many now executable on the device itself, offering a more polished experience. The object removal and replacement feature now detects edges with greater precision, and the filler integrates more seamlessly with the surrounding background.
The Google Pixel 9 Pro introduces a host of new features, including Add Me. This feature enables the photographer to pass the phone to another person in the photo, capture a second shot, and seamlessly merge both images to include everyone.
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The Pixel 9 Pro provides an easy-to-follow guide to position the shot and explains the process, making it accessible even for those not particularly tech-savvy to utilise effectively.
Auto Frame and its Auto Portrait sub-option are two more AI functions worth praise. Auto Frame takes any photo in your gallery, then crops and rotates to frame the subject perfectly. It even gives you a selection to choose from, but the first option is usually on the money.
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Auto Portrait also crops and rotates, but can create a portrait bokeh effect around your subject to make the image pop that little bit more. Auto Portrait, like Auto Frame, offers a selection for the user to choose from.
Magic Editor can modify backgrounds or objects in any image from your gallery via generative AI using text prompts or images. AI Zoom Enhance allows you to zoom in and fill out some of the lost details.
Pixel Studio Generative AI
Pixel Studio is a natural language generative AI platform, included out of the box with Pixel 9 series. Like Gemini, Google has broken down various categories of image type and editing function to avoid overwhelming the user.
And, again, like Gemini, there is a wealth of templates baked in with the type of prompt used to induce the result from Pixel Studio’s AI. It’s streamlined and easy to use, and Google deserve credit for their onboarding with Pixel 9 series’ more advanced AI features.
Video Vaunt
The Google Pixel 9 Pro updates one of its key video features and introduces another. Audio Magic Eraser enhances the volume of user-selected sounds or removes distracting background noises in any video from your gallery. Pixel 9 Pro can also track sounds through a scene, then dynamically adjust its amplification or attenuation to ensure a consistent audio mix.
Video Boost leverages AI to enhance zoom captures and record detailed videos in low-light conditions. The Video Boost Zoom feature employs hybrid capture technology, allowing video shooting beyond the 5x optical zoom, up to 20x. The resulting video is impressive, even without a particularly steady hand.
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The results of AI-enhanced Night Sight are indeed impressive to behold, but it’s worth noting that they can take time for the AI to process the captured video clip.
Security and Storage
Google Pixel 9 Pro XL, and all Pixel 9 series devices, will receive seven years of security updates and feature drops. This gives peace of mind for those buying a premium device for the long haul.
The base model begins with 128GB of storage. Although many users rely on cloud storage for their photos and videos, the high-quality camera system of the Pixel 9 Pro may quickly fill up the 128GB model. You might be better a 256GB storage model, if that’s you. Especially if your friends and family insist on you taking all the photos when out and about because your Pixel 9 Pro XL takes the best pictures.
Big Battery
The 6.8-inch display Google Pixel 9 Pro XL features a larger 5,060mAh battery than the 6.3-inch Pro model. Google aimed to have both phones put in the same day-long shift, and seemed to have hit the mark.
Google Pixel 9 Pro has excellent stamina, getting the most from its large battery with some smart app management. Our average workday often left us with more than 25% battery in the evening. We went without the charger till bedtime on day two on quieter days.
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Pixel 9 Pro XL also features an Extreme Battery Saver mode that can keep the device running for up to 100 hours. This is an excellent option for music festivals or weekends away from civilisation.
Google Pixel 9 Pro can charge from 0-70% in just 30 minutes using a 45W Google USB-Charging Unit. This is about the only area when there is difference between the Pixel 9 Pro and the larger Pro XL model – the improved fast-charging performance of the larger model is a nice surprise given Google’s dedication to parity elsewhere.
Google Pixel 9 Pro features 21W wireless charging with the Google Pixel Stand, while Qi-compatible chargers can deliver power up to 12W.
Google Pixel 9 Pro XL Specifications
| Chipset: | Tensor G4 (4nm) Titan M2 security coprocessor – Octa-core (1×3.1 GHz Cortex-X4 & 3×2.6 GHz Cortex-A720 & 4×1.92 GHz Cortex-A520) |
| RAM: | 16GB |
| Storage: | 128GB (Reviewed)/256GB /512GB/1TB |
| Display: | 6.8-inch Super Actua Display, 20:9 aspect ratio, 1344×2992 LTPO OLED, 1-120Hz, 3,000 nits peak |
| Camera: | – 50 MP Octa PD wide camera – 48 MP Quad PD ultrawide camera with autofocus – 48 MP Quad PD telephoto camera, 5x optical zoom, Super Res Zoom up to 30x |
| Selfie Cam: | – 42 MP Dual PD selfie camera with autofocus |
| Security and OS Updates: | 7 years of OS, security, and Pixel Drop updates |
| Battery: | 5,060 mAh |
| Resistance: | IP68 dust and water resistant |
| Charging: | Up to 45W via Google USB-Charger; from 0-70% in 30 minutes |
| Dimensions: | 162.8 x 76.6 x 8.5mm |
| Weight: | 221 grams |
Pixel 9 Pro XL Pricing and Availability
Google Pixel 9 Pro XL is available in Ireland sim-free from €1,119.
