Why did I get this phone?

I used to use Samsung phones, but switched to Pixels when the Pixel 8 came out. Despite the Pixel 10 CPU (and especially the GPU) being slower than those in Samsungs, they are plenty fast enough for everything I do; but I do not play video games. 

The reason is the software

Google controls Android and Pixel phones get the latest and greatest operating system updates before any other platform. I have had Android 16 for a long time, even on my Pixel 9. The Samsung Galaxy S25 ships with Android 15. I get the latest security patches as soon as they are available, and these updates will continue for seven years. New Google apps are being released at a rapid rate, and many of them only work on Pixels.

I have drunk the Google Kool Ade. I have a Pixel Watch 3 and will probably update to the new version. I also have the Pixel ear Buds 2. The Google ecosystem is highly integrated and aside from occasional bugs, the Google devices are designed to work well together. 

Apple devices are integrated too and work well together, but you have no choice about drinking the Apple Kool Ade. But their ecosystem is closed. I cannot get an apple watch because it will not operate without an Apple Phone. I am weriting this on a Mac Studio, and most of the upcoming Tacoma updates are designed to make my Mac interact better with their devices—useless to me.

The Pixel ecosystem is open. I can use a Samsung watch and Samsung ear buds with my Pixel phone. 

Google does install most of their apps on their phones. I am not forced to have Facebook or Firefox, but can do so if I wish. And I can uninstall them too. I can also uninstall most unnecessary (for the Google AI integrations) Google apps like Google One, Google Wallet, and Google News. Google TV can just be disabled.

And finally there is the unannoying seamless AI integration throughout the system. I am still learning how to use all of these and will extend this blog when I have more to say. Android Authority says that Google will soon integrate AI scam detection into apps such as What's App. This can only be a plus.

Installation and setup

The installation process is much the same as it was on my Pixel 9 Pro XL. It did not suggest connecting the two phones with a USB-C cable (as the 9 Pro did), but it works. I have a lot (too many) of apps installed, and the process did not let me select the ones I really wanted to keep. It took about an hour.

But why can't the install process also copy all the app registrations and bluetooth pairings? I had to repair every Bluetooth device and log into every app.

Some initial bummers

Of course I use Bitwarden to store all my passwords, but the Pixel 10 broke it! All app authentication requests are presented as reverse URLs

com.dragonflow.android.orbi
rather than
orbi.com. 

This prevents Bitwarden from recognizing the login. I had to manually open Bitwarden, search for orbi, copy the password, and manually paste it into the login. My Pixel 9 did not do this. The change is due to Android 16 QPR1, which is shipped in the Pixel 10 Pro XL. Bitwarden has disappointed me by not fixing their app to find the real URL in the vault and presenting it to me.

The second issue is battery life. The Pixel 10 Pro XL is much worse than my Pixel 9 Pro XL despite a bigger battery and a more efficient 3-nm Tensor chip. I do not have the screen on the highest resolution either. My Pixel 9 lasted all day and night so I could recharge it after breakfast. My Pixel 10 goes into battery-saving mode overnight. Now I must leave it on the charger all night. I do have the always on lock screen enabled, but this is supposed to just use a few % of the battery.

However, I now have a nice Iniu Qi2 battery pack that securely attaches magnetically to the back of the Pixel 10 Pro XL. It can reacharge the phone almost fully twice. This feature will also solve another bummer: After 200 full charges, Google will stop allowing the battery to be fully charged to extend battery life.

Play Store updates

For the first time unlike any of my past Android phones, my apps are actually automatically updated by the Play Store App. These updates are also not available from Settings->Software updates, as are Google Play system updates.

Using the Pixel 10 Pro XL

The Camera

Last year I went on a Cruise around New Zealand, anding up in Sydney Australia. I lugged my excellent Panasonic G9 M2 camera. But it has no ability to do panoramic shots, which I really like to immerse me fully into a location. Here is a shot I took on my Pixel 9 Pro XL (click on it to see the full-size original):

I am soon going on a river cruise. and I have decided to leave my heavy camera at home and will use my new Pixel 10 Pro XL instead. 

I went to a fundraiser for our local classical music organization yesterday and took this picture of our First Violinist:

But I noticed the blue reflection in her glasses and asked the phone to remove the blue reflection from her glasses, which it did (but also removed the glasses) so I amended my instruction to add "but keep the glasses" and got the following:

I could (and did) edit this further, but you get the idea. . .

My sister sent me an album of old family pictures (1902–1922), and for the first time, I could see some of my relatives:

That's my Grandfather on left next to Grandmother, and Great-Grandfather on right next my Great-Grandmother. My Mom  is at top center and her sister on her Mother's lap. This picture was under a very reflective plastic sheet I dared not remove. I asked Google to AI enhance it, and wow!:

My Grandfather's face is a bit off, but otherwise, this is really good. Gemini was unable to modify my Grandfather's hairline.

I started over and got a better result:

Note Mother's hair and grandfather's hairline are better.

Google support

Aside from their seven-year software updates promise, Google has the best support I have seen. Samsung's support was awful. Not only do you get a live person by chat or by phone in just a few minutes, but Google actually follows up on issues. And it is free.

Apple is touted for its wonderful support. I have paid for it on my Mac Studio, but thus far Apple support has been clueless.

As a phone

I actually do not like phone calls, but just had a bad experience. Apple called me back. on a support request, but when I answered, Apple said press 1 to continue. But there was no keypad. I struggled to open the phone app (which I thought would be open when I answered the phone), but by the time I got the keypad, Apple had hung up.