Google Pixel 7 was the best smartphone of 2022

Smartphones have reached a point of stagnation, and improvements are usually fairly small from year to year. There wasn’t much to get excited about in 2022, but the two devices really stood out. Google’s Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro were the best smartphones of 2022 for several reasons.

Google has always struggled with its smartphone efforts. Every Pixel device to date has usually had one major flaw somewhere It hurt the experience and, to be honest, usually kept this device from being considered the “best” smartphone of the year.

in 2021 Google’s Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro revealed a solid display, but signal strength issues, broken features in updates, and the continued excellence of Apple and Samsung’s flagship phones have kept Google from really shining. As much as I liked the Pixel 6 Pro last year, I would consider the iPhone 13 or Galaxy S21 series to be the best smartphones of the year.

In 2022, however, things felt drastically different. Finally, Google seems to be figuring out how to make a flagship smartphone. Our readers agree. In a recent survey, the Pixel 7 Pro showed a result It has collected 40% of the votes for “the best smartphone of 2022”.

The Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro were the best smartphones of 2022

Why are the Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro so great?

For me, there are a few key reasons why the Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro stand out this year, and it starts with their cost. The Pixel 7 starts at $599, which is significantly cheaper than comparable devices from Apple and Samsung. Since its debut, this value has made the Pixel 7 my top recommendation for almost anyone looking for a new phone. It’s just a good deal.

And that value continues on the Pixel 7 Pro. $899 is a great price point for a device that effectively competes with the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra and iPhone 14 Pro. You won’t get the same punch of raw horsepower on Google’s phone, but the experience is pretty similar overall for under $300 less. The only real problem with the Pro’s price point is that the standard Pixel 7 is much cheaper. When all you get extra on the Pro is a telephoto camera, macro shooting, a slightly faster display, and some extra RAM, it might be a little hard to justify the $300 upgrade.

But the Pixel 7’s excellent overall value only matters if the core functionality is good, and it’s this year.

With the Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro, Google has solved many of the problems of the previous generation. One of the biggest problems facing the Pixel 6 series was with signal strengthhowever, the cellular modem on the Pixel 7 has been vastly improved this time around, leading to better signal strength and speed.

Also, Google hasn’t had the same major issues with updates on the Pixel 7 as it did with the Pixel 6. reduced signal strength caused by updates and other major issues, the first few months of the Pixel 7 series have been pretty solid for the most part. There have been no major bugs, issues or complaints. from everyone users I reviewers Seems pretty happy with the Pixel 7 series. That’s not to say they’re perfect — there are always isolated issues that affect a few people — but overall, these are the first Google phones to be trouble-free in a long time.

And all this is on top of the usual benefits of using a Pixel phone. Great photos, fast software, and useful features like Call Screen finally get a chance to be what makes the Pixel phone great, rather than making you want to ignore its flaws.

Apple and Samsung kind of dropped the ball

What could really give Google a chance to take the spotlight with the Pixel 7 is the disappointment from its rivals in 2022.

If we look at the Android side first, it really hasn’t thats it At least in the US this year has been very interesting. OnePlus clearly has transferred most of his attention went to other markets and Samsung pretty much maintained the status quo.

The Galaxy S22 and S22+ were overall very solid devices, but aside from a slightly improved camera setup, there wasn’t anything particularly exciting or any real improvements over the last generation. The Galaxy S22 Ultra revived the Galaxy Note legacy, which was great to see, but overall the device didn’t break any new ground. And the tricky part was that they all had the same high price tags. The base Galaxy S22 costs $799, while the S22 Ultra series costs $1,199. Those prices are a little hard to swallow when you get 95% of the same features and quality as Google devices for $200-$300 less.

And on Apple’s side, the biggest confusion this year has been, at least in part, over the camera situation.

The company’s flagship iPhone 14 Pro switched to a new 48MP primary camera, which turned out to be a rough transition. Reviews of the iPhone 14 Pro have widely discussed how the camera isn’t as reliable or predictable as past iPhones in many cases, and often lags far behind the Pixel lineup and Samsung’s Galaxy S22 Ultra. In a blind test, user votes put the iPhone 14 Pro down on the list🇧🇷

At least it’s in the footage. The iPhone still dominates the smartphone market when it comes to video quality. Although Google has made some improvements there, Apple still leads by a wide margin.

But when considering the value proposition, it’s hard to complain about this gap. The iPhone 14 Pro starts at $999, while the comparably sized iPhone 14 Pro Max starts at $1,099, which is $200 more than Google’s Pixel 7 Pro. There are plenty of good reasons to buy an iPhone over a Pixel, but if you just want to buy a phone without having to deal with all the drama surrounding the Android vs. iPhone debate, it’s hard to argue here.

What can be improved on the Pixel 8?

How can Google do it again in 2023? It’s hard to say, really. Apple is sure to turn things around on the camera side with next year’s iPhone 15 series, and Samsung’s Galaxy S23 series will benefit greatly from Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. Google and its Tensor chips won’t be able to replicate the improvements. Qualcomm will present🇧🇷

But there are rumors that Google might be making some stuff camera improvements In the Pixel 8 series, as well as its making affordable flagship is slightly smallerWe don’t know much about 🇧🇷 Tensor G3, but we know Google’s strategy. Company doesn’t really care if you have the “best” chip in the game🇧🇷 It’s all about creating something that will serve the Pixel’s purpose of being useful. Raw horsepower probably won’t see any major improvements, but we may see better overall efficiency as we do in motion. Tensor to Tensor G2🇧🇷

Personally, I doubt that 2023 will see the Google Pixel phone as the “best” of the year, but 2022 has given Google its chance to shine. The Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro might be the best Pixel phones since the original, and they were the bright spot of an extraordinary year in smartphones.