This problem (+ the fact that it still hasn't been fixed) and the pricing of recent big-brand models makes me consider buying from Chinese manufacturers suchs a Xiaomi, OnePlus etc
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I hope. Cause I just bought a OnePlus 3 after being really disappointed by the Pixel phone. Like who made google think they could charge iphone money for a nexus -- $750 plus tax so over $800 to get something with 64G of space?
The OnePlus has been out since June and while there are sporadic reports of fires (just like there are sporadic reports of iphone fires), there's nothing like the wave of reports of Samsung phones catching fire.
I was on the market for a new device couple weeks ago and after an extensive search I went with the lg.
My personal solution was to put down the extra $80 (price difference at the time) and get an HTC10. Better camera, better sound, SD card, aptx, beautiful full metal construction, almost-stock android.
-awesome camera. I already have remarked with the 6P that having a reliable camera that is always in your pocket is really a big plus and something I do not want to give up.
- performances & industrial design : Google spent a lot of efforts on the Pixels & 7.1 and it shows. Each micro stutter on a device annoys me since I spend a lot of time polishing how my apps run (I am an android engineer focusing on UI and perfs).
I am probably biased but the Pixels look like good purchases to me.
Other than that, I would have avoided Samsung anyway, even before the fires. The real life perfs of their devices has always been atrocious and they have a tendency to ruin the OS with tons of random unneeded features.
The Moto G is usually the device recommended for the best bang for your bucks. Ironically, it is now a chinese device as well. You won't have to deal with any crazyness like the onePlus invites though.
-my company will probably buy me a Pixel, so I don't really know whether I would buy one.
Off the top of my head, my issues with the 6P / things the Pixel can potentially do better : -Just a bit too big. I love the size of that screen, but I often mistype and I think it might be related to its size. Even the biggest Pixel is a bit smaller, so I am curious to see if it sits in the right spot for me.
-Performances are unimpressive. Previous generations of Android devices showed each time a big leap in real world performances. Not that much with the 6P. It does not perform that badly but there are numerous micro hiccups. It looks like performances have plateaued in its generation. I am not sure how the pixel performs in that area (I am waiting for some real reviews for that) but it looks like some things like touch latency seems to have improved a lot with this phone. I am not sure how much of this will transfer to the 6P when it gets 7.1 though.
-Better industrial design with the pixel.
-Again, I think that a really good camera in your pocket is pretty important. The 6P is already pretty good in that regard. It is a bit slow to compose these HDR+ shots though. From the DxoMark test (https://www.dxomark.com/Mobiles/Pixel-smartphone-camera-revi...), it looks like the pixel solves this. On top of that, unlimited storage in original quality is also something I really appreciate.
So, is the pixel a better device ? it surely looks that way. Is it worth buying over the 6P (or even a Moto G) ? I don't know. It really depends on what you want, what you can afford (and are ready to spend) and how costly the device is in your region (especially with carrier subsidies).