I’m currently rocking a Samsung S7 with lineageOS and have been wanting to upgrade for a while. I would definitely go with grapheneOS but I’m unsure about purchasing a Pixel 9 for the following reasons:
Rumors say that the G5 chip will be worlds better
Charging is “only” 27 watt
Pixel 10 will have GPU virtualization
As for someone coming from a S7 that lasts for about 2.5 hours screen on time, the battery and charging speeds aren’t an issue. The chip is also more than fast enough for my needs. The only thing I don’t know about is GPU virtualization, is it really that big of a difference? I don’t have a crazy threat model fyi.
You really can’t go wrong with a Pixel 9. I admittedly have an 8 Pro not a 9 but it is the best phone I have ever used. GrapheneOS + 7 years of support is an absolute dream. From the reporting I’ve heard, the 9th generation Pixels are essentially significantly refined and all around fantastic devices.
My personal opinion is to reduce the amount of e-waste and ride your current phone for as long as you are comfortable with. My favorite part about this is when you hold off upgrading hardware so long, the newest phone feel that much more rewording.
So unless you’ve got some dire need or want, feel free to hold off. Plus if you wait for the 10 to release, you may see a reduction in price for 9 and get a better deal on the 9.
In principle I of course agree with reducing e-waste, but the S7 is thoroughly obsolete and has not received firmware/security updates in years. No one should be using it anymore, and those who are should upgrade as soon as possible.
Its like any phone. If your current phone is working, hardware wise then stick with. My previous phone lasted 7 years until the USB port started breaking up. Got my s10 at the start of 2020. My next phone is going to be a pixel phone, but i know there is going to be a new model each year, so my next pixel phone would be the pixel 17 which would be far more powerful than the pixel 10. I dono why they switch from calling them nexus to pixel, as nexus sounds far more cyberpunk and futuristic.
This is not good advice and will never be recommended here. It is imperative to keep devices up to date with full security and firmware updates.
As for the rebranding from Nexus to Pixel, Nexus devices weren’t manufactured by Google. It makes sense for Google to use new branding for devices which they manufacture themselves.
I was more talking about the hardware side. If the phone is working fine on stock rom but is out of date ie there are no more updates then what? Get a new phone? I know of running things like lineage but from experience, there is risk in regards to flashing a stock rom and bricking the phone. Isn’t it safer from a usability point of view to just stick with until then phone starts to physically break up such as charging port failing or battery not holding charge.
Yeah, it’s tough, and there isn’t really a good answer. Obviously, the ‘correct’ answer is to buy a new device, and luckily, Pixels with 7 years of security and firmware updates will hopefully mitigate this problem in the future. In cases where that isn’t possible, DivestOS was previously recommended for harm reduction, but unfortunately, that project recently ended. It also wasn’t a perfect solution by any measure, and a ‘best effort’ for security is all that’s possible when devices stop receiving firmware updates. Only the OEM can update the firmware, which is why the official support period is important even when running an alternative OS like GrapheneOS.
The remaining alternative OSes with wide hardware support like LineageOS also aren’t known for their security practices, so they can’t really be recommended in the same way DivestOS was. I would probably install something like LineageOS only if it was a more recent Android version than the OEM provided. It would be a minor improvement over the stock OS at best, but the risk of bricking an EOL device seems pretty unimportant to me. Again, prioritise getting a new device; the Pixel 8a can be had for a very reasonable price and comes out to like 4-5 bucks a month for its support period.
This is fair, and all threat model dependent. I personally wouldn’t mind riding out of date firmware < 1 year to wait for a new phone, but this should not be taken as actionable and everyone should asses what they are comfortable with. Default advice should always be to not use end of life devices and use a new one given the opportunity.
Hate that unfortunately it isnt always possible. I was gald to see that pixels keep getting a longer update period, that’s why i dont think waiting is worth it. It can still go a long time. Also considering that the brand new line is always overpriced and you can get a pixel 9 for a reasonable price now.
A few years ago i had to switch my pixel 4a phones whom i loved the size of for the pixel 7. I am still happy with this phone and see no reason to change any time soon.
I agree, the only two reasons I even get tempted to switch from the 7 is for the better fingerprint sensor that would presumably give me better success rates with my screen protector, and the higher storage capacities, I’m a bit of a local data hoarder and having as much as i can on one device is super convenient.
I’d just get the best variant of the 9 that you can now and then wait at least 4/5 years before upgrading it.
Nexus had a brand association with being a developer’s phone. Pixels don’t have that association and their marketing is far more targeted at the regular Android user.
This is why I love OpenWRT. I’m still rocking a very old router and it gets the job done. My only recent upgrade was getting a dedicated Ubiquiti AP (also running OpenWRT) for WiFi 6. I’ll likely run this for another 5 years.
I won’t derail further, but in principle when shopping for new hardware, always check if you can received continued updates, either first party or third party like GrapheneOS. Two phones of identical face value might end up being more expensive if one of them is unsupported after a short time and a new device is needed.
It’s just the reality of the industry at the moment. Maybe in the future they’ll design phones in a way that they won’t need constant firmware updates to be secure but I’m not holding my breath.
ALSO on the topic of big deals (and saving money), i’d recommend waiting around half a year before buying the newest release. And prefferably not straight from Google store.
I’ve bought my Pixel 8a for ~600$ just as it was released in my country on Google store but now it can be bought for ~425$ new from other websites.
I guess i did receive the voucher for free, overpriced google ear buds and a overpriced glass case but honestly i didn’t really desired them.
If finances are a concern, then either waiting half a year for a good discount in a different shop or buying older version might be better.
If you intend to put Graphene on it, then only the a models (ideally a few months after release when they get price cuts) are worth the money, imho. Regardless of income bracket, you’re just throwing money away buying the flagship line.
After reading all the responses to my question I decided that I’m gonna buy a Pixel 9. Rumors of new tech are always gonna be rumors but no matter what the Pixel 10 might get, be it Gorilla Glass Armor, new battery tech or the tensor G5, it’s still a massive upgrade as my S7 is partially falling apart after the 7 years I’ve had it.
Thanks to everyone who engaged, I wish you all a happy new year!
Happy new year to you. Also, early November to late January is usually the best time to buy IT due to Christmas and stores wanting to make for new tech after various technology shows like ces.
