Google Pixel 7 Pro review

introduction

Following the return of last year’s Pixels to the flagship scene, 2022 brings more than one evolutionary update to Google’s range of phones. The Pixel 7 and 7 Pro come with the usual chipset upgrade, a camera tweak here or there, and a refined design, plus a handful of software innovations.

Of course, our eyes are drawn to the Pro more than vanilla, so we’re starting our review journey with that. One of the two key differences this year, looking at the spec sheet, is the new telephoto lens, which swaps the larger sensor size for a greater zoom range – which doesn’t immediately strike us as an entirely positive development, although the 5x zoom is appreciated.

The other new bit is the chipset. The bespoke Tensor G2 comes with a few new CPU cores and a new GPU, as well as who knows exactly how many improvements under the hood, but is still manufactured in a 5nm process, when the competitors are at 4nm.

Physically, the phone is the same as last year, but also different. The camera strip on the back is still here and just as prominent, only now it’s part of the aluminum frame and not a separate piece of glass like last year.

And that’s pretty much what’s changed for the Pixel Pro 2022. Here are some of the important numbers before we get started.

Google Pixel 7 Pro specs at a glance:

• Body: 162.9×76.6×8.9mm, 212g; Glass front (Gorilla Glass Victus), glass back (Gorilla Glass Victus), aluminum frame; IP68 dust / water resistant (up to 1.5m for 30 minutes).
• Screen: 6.7 “LTPO AMOLED, 120Hz, HDR10 +, 1000 nits (HBM), 1500 nits (peak), resolution 1440x3120px, format 19.5: 9, 512ppi; Display always on.
• Chipset: Google Tensor G2 (5 nm): Octa-core (2×2.85 GHz Cortex-X1 and 2×2.35 GHz Cortex-A78 and 4×1.80 GHz Cortex-A55); Mali-G710 MC10.
• Memory: 128GB 8GB RAM, 256GB 8GB RAM, 128GB 12GB RAM, 256GB 12GB RAM, 512GB 12GB RAM; UFS 3.1.
• Operating system / software: Android 13.
• Rear camera: Wide (main): 50 MP, f / 1.9, 25 mm, 1 / 1.31 “, 1.2µm, multidirectional PDAF, laser AF, OIS; Ultra wide angle: 12 MP, f / 2.2, 126˚, 1 / 2.9 “, 1.25µm, AF; Telephoto lens: 48 MP, f / 3.5, 120 mm, 1 / 2.55 “, 0.7µm, multidirectional PDAF, OIS, 5x optical zoom.
• Front camera: 10.8 MP, f / 2.2, 21 mm (ultrawide), 1 / 3.1 “, 1.22 µm.
• Video capture: Rear camera: 4K at 30/60 fps, 1080p at 30/60/120/240 fps; gyroscope-EIS, OIS, 10-bit HDR; Front camera: 4K at 30/60 fps, 1080p at 30/60 fps.
• Battery: 5000 mAh; 23W Fast Charging, 23W Fast Wireless Charging, Reverse Wireless Charging, USB Power Delivery 3.0.
• Various: Fingerprint reader (under display, optical); NFC; stereo speakers; Ultra broadband (UWB) support.

Unboxing of Google Pixel 7 Pro

The unboxing experience has remained the same as last year, when the charger disappeared. Inside the white cardboard box, you find a USB-C cable and a USB-AC adapter to transfer data from your old phone (maybe an iPhone?).

It’s only at this point that our Obsidian review unit was truly flawless, but we’ll cover that on the next page.