Google commemorated the first anniversary of its #TeamPixel initiative earlier this week, thanking all people who opted to participate in its social media project meant to promote the imaging capabilities of its Android-powered Pixel devices. The Mountain View, California-based company opted to share some new images taken by Pixel and Pixel XL owners to celebrate the first year of the global effort, some of which can be seen in the gallery below. Google stated that everyone who joined #TeamPixel helped make the world a more vivid and creative place, encouraging those who have yet to participate in the initiative to do so. Google Social Media Manager Crystal Akins also said that the Pixel team is currently preparing “some surprises” related to #TeamPixel, adding that more details on that front are to be revealed in the coming months and possibly hinting at some reward program or a competition that the firm may be organizing in the near future.
High-end mobile photography was one of the main selling points of the original Pixel and Pixel XL, with Google previously delivering what some industry watchers and critics deemed was the best smartphone camera in the industry. The company seemingly managed to maintain that momentum this year, with the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL supposedly boasting the most capable handset cameras ever created, at least according to DxOMark. The Alphabet-owned tech giant surprised some analysts by opting against adopting a dual-camera setup for the Pixel 2 series and once again deciding to commercialize a single-lens system, thus going against the latest trends in the industry. That move apparently still didn’t inhibit the Pixel 2 lineup‘s ability to compete with other flagships on the photography front, though it remains to be seen how the new devices will perform in real-world scenarios.
The most notable imaging improvement introduced with the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL is the inclusion of optical image stabilization (OIS) which now coexists alongside electronic image stabilization (EIS) and supports both the rear and front-facing cameras of the two devices. In terms of specs, the back panels of the newly announced smartphones accommodate 12.2-megapixel sensors with a pixel size of 1.4µm mounted behind f/1.8 lenses, whereas their top bezels feature 8-megapixel modules. The Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL are presently available for pre-orders and will start shipping to consumers on October 19th.
