The new Pixel 11 isn't enough to make me give up my Pixel 9 Pro - here's why

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I've been using my Pixel 9 Pro since it was first released in August 2024. In tech terms, that may as well be a century. Given that Google releases a new Pixel phone every year, it makes sense to skip a version.

However, this time around, I'm skipping two versions .

You might think I'm crazy. After all, using an old phone when you write about technology seems to be a contradiction in terms, right?

Although I might tend to agree with that sentiment, there are lines to be drawn, and when crossing that line can be rather expensive, you have to give it plenty of thought… which I have.

Here are my conclusions (aka reasons I won't be buying a Pixel 11).

Quite honestly, I was certain that, by now, my Pixel 9 Pro would have conked out or at least started to show signs of its age. However, what I've found is that my current Pixel phone has shown zero signs of slowing down, aging, or getting even slightly unstable.

To date, the Pixel 9 Pro has been the best phone I've ever used… by far. In the two years I've owned the device, I haven't had a single problem (other than a few software issues -- one of which I'll be writing about soon). My Pixel 9 Pro still runs as if I just bought it yesterday, and I still have plenty of room in storage.

Also: I replaced my Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra with the Pixel 10 Pro XL for a week - and can't go back

It's been a champ, and why would I want to risk getting rid of that for an unproven device? Who knows if lightning will strike twice? Of all the Pixel phones I've had (and I've been using them since the very first one was released), the 9 has been, hands down, the top banana, and I'm not about to toss that peel on the ground only to slip and fall on it with a Pixel 11 in my hand.

The Pixel 9 Pro runs like a flagship phone (because it was one when it was released). The upgrade from the Pixel 9 to the Pixel 10 in the CPU/GPU category was not nearly as big a jump as one would have expected. You can see benchmarks that Nano Review performed that clearly show the upgrade from the 9 to the 10 wasn't exactly a deal-maker.

Just read this Reddit thread, where plenty of users bemoan the evolution of the Pixel chips used in the various releases (hint: it doesn't paint a very positive picture).