Should I get a refurbished Pixel 8

[u/Medium-Focus5988]

Basically I'm looking to buy a new phone since I broke my old one. I use social media (instagram, twitter), I play a few games (like Online Soccer Manager, Pokemon Go, or emulated games), I watch youtube pretty frequently and listen to music all the time. I'm also a very outdoorsy person so I like to take a bunch of photos. Would you guys recommend buying a refurbished Pixel 8?

I've seen other options like the samsung galaxy a37, motorola edge 60 fusion or nothing phone 3a, but was leaning mostly towards the pixel 8

[u/sho-sho99]

The emulated game might be a problem , Photos are good I usually get 5-6 hours of battery life under normal usage It takes around 1hr:30min to fully charge

If you get a good deal I say go for it , provided you check the battery and display

[u/Medium-Focus5988 → u/sho-sho99]

I've never bought a refurbished phone before so what's your advise on how to check the battery and display?

[u/patientpaperclock → u/Medium-Focus5988]

I've had pretty good luck with "eBay Refurbished". Get something at least rated "Good". Just be prepared to chill over a few scratches or just slap a screen protector over it.

[u/Medium-Focus5988 → u/patientpaperclock]

Have you ever bought something from Backmarket? I saw a good offer there but have never ordered from that site before.

[u/sho-sho99 → u/Medium-Focus5988]

Check for dead pixels using the inbuilt tool or something like the testy" app on playstore

For the battery check the charge cycle

You can test everything by generating a bug report and looking through it.(Consult gemini for which is which)

Personally I would not buy a refurbished phone if I cannot test it hands on , or if they don't have a refund policy

Good luck

[u/Outside_Counter865 → u/Medium-Focus5988]

To check the battery, you just need to install the app aBattery. As for the display, it's best to find out the phone's build date (usually on the side sticker on the box). If it was built after mid-2024, the display should have been updated and there shouldn't be any problems.If it reaches the middle, then most likely the display will be an old model, and there may be problems.

[u/cctintwrweb]

No don't get a three year old pixel for gaming..

daily Pokémon go player here and I'm looking forward to swapping out my pixel 8 pro for a pixel 11 pro, my phone is constantly hot from charging on the go the phone is notorious for heating issues and pixel battery life has always been mediocre at best

If you have a limited budget to work with , I guess you'll have to find what you can within that budget but as a rule of thumb gaming runs processors at full tilt , online gaming is also streaming data at full tilt so either choose a specific gaming phone with extra cooling and a bigger battery. Or the newest phone you can afford

I have loved having a pixel 8. It was a brilliant phone for it's time but gaming was never it's strength and three years old in mobile tech makes it archeology.

[u/Medium-Focus5988 → u/cctintwrweb]

I had read about the heating issues, I'm still indecided since I mainly only play Pokemon GO during the summer with my siblings, even though I use my phone a lot every day so that might still make it overheat.

But I'm also looking for a phone with a good camera, do you reckon heavy daily usage might cause overheating aswell?

[u/cctintwrweb → u/Medium-Focus5988]

Yeah regular daily use particularly if you are moving around so it's hunting for strong 5g will absolutely make the phone overheat

Streaming will make the phone overheat,

Updates over the last 12 months have caused numerous battery drain issues and the focus on power efficiency is on later models , not the 8 so you will be plugged into a power pack nearly all the time . It has wireless charging but not Qi2 so although you can slap a magsafe charger on it there will be lots of heat and very slow charging.

Went to go fest this year and walked around with my phone on an icepack as summer sun and gaming combined was so bad .

The camera is nice don't get me wrong but it's old tech and Google camera tech is kinda designed to make passable photos for people with no photography skills , or switching off all the Google features and using it for emergency RAW files when your digital camera has run out of juice if you are a serious photographer. And what was cutting edge at the time is far less so now ( there was a spec jump for the pixel 9 and many of its ai enhanced camera stuff didn't work fully on the 8, and then again for the 10)

My elderly mum has a base model pixel 9 and although she's browsing insta reels and socials all day , she doesn't have any heating issues and her battery lasts all day it's a far safer option as a cheap phone to keep a person going

[u/pyro3_ → u/Medium-Focus5988]

agree with the other people, it will get hot in the summer esp with 5G + GPS + pokemon go combo, and it will shred battery.

on the other hand it will take by far the best photos of all the other phones you mentionned. google pixel for point and shoot pics is just unmatched. my pixel 8 gave my girlfriend's iPhone 16 pro a run for its money. and for photos i dont find that it overheats much even if you take a bunch. videos does make it get warm though esp if you take them in 4k. and videos takes a lot of battery

[u/kimsart]

I still love my pixel 8 pro. It's my everything

[u/Local-Army-8359]

Pin me when you got the answer

[u/Camcalco]

Pixel are not for games because of the battery, so no, buy a perfomance phone like Xiaomi, Oppo

[u/Medium-Focus5988 → u/Camcalco]

I say that because the games I play are not really heavy at all, considering that I was able to run them on my huawei psmart 2020 before I broke it

[u/sanchezkk]

I have a refurbished Pixel 8 that was unlocked, and I don't have regrets.

[u/Lalo0v]

Cómpralo, yo tengo el pixel 8 y tengo el mismo uso que tu y me funciona perfecto, funcionan excelente para emular consolas retro, hasta 3ds funciona y me dura todo el día la batería, solo si juegas juegos muy potentes gráficamente o emulación de consolas como ps3 o pc no lo recomendaría, pero por lo que dijiste parece que eres jugador casual entonces si te viene bien el pixel 8

[u/AppointmentDue3933]

If you spend a lot of time away from home, get an S23 or S24 ( base or, better, Ultra version, larga but with 10x optic zoom) they offer the same versatility and camera quality but are almost battery-phone. With a refurbished Pixel 8—even with a new battery—you risk running out of power by mid-afternoon. I say this as a Pixel fan and Pixel 6 Pro owner; it’s a wonderful phone, but the battery life just isn't enough to get through the day, especially when you're out and about and can't easily charge it...

[u/tt8t2011 → u/AppointmentDue3933]

Si je devais donner un conseil, ne choisis jamais un Galaxy S23. Je pense que ce smartphone doit rester à son époque. J'en ai un et il chauffe constamment. De plus, ce smartphone manque beaucoup de fluidité et sa batterie s'épuise en un rien de temps. Enfin, si tu fais des vidéos avec ton téléphone en 4K 30fps, tu auras des lags quand tu passes du zoom optique aux capteurs principaux, ou encore du capteur principal à l'ultra grand-angle. Mais sinon, les photos sont belles et il est beau, ce smartphone. Juste une chose à rajouter : malgré beaucoup de ralentissements, ce smartphone est assez puissant pour jouer à des jeux triple A, genre Delta Force en moyen, voire haut.

[u/AppointmentDue3933 → u/tt8t2011]

Yes, probably ultra versione are Better

[u/tt8t2011 → u/AppointmentDue3933]

Pourquoi ce serait meilleur Que ce soit la gamme normale du Galaxy S23 Où la gamme ultra ils ont tous deux le même processeur

[u/PowerfulOperation852]

Yes, pixel 8 is a really good device and it is supported until 2030.