Pixel 9 is great — but it has a problem

Google did a lot of things right with the Pixel 9 line. The hardware is attractive, the chip is brisk, even the giant camera bump has a certain something about it, you know? It’s a worthy Android flagship in every way. Also — and I don’t want to be dramatic here — it feels a bit like a harbinger of doom.

The Pixel 9’s AI photography features, particularly the “Reimagine” tool that lets you change photos with a single command, feel like a large, and worrying, step toward a world where we won’t be able to trust photos of almost any kind. These aren’t photos generated by AI using too many fingers and a bunch of other cues; these just look like photos. If photos! But they’re not real. And we’re not ready for what that means.

Finally, it’s time for a quickie round in which we discuss JBL’s recent headphone case and its even bigger screen, the never-ending disaster that is the recent Sonos app, and Amazon’s deeply strange decision to cancel a major feature of its digital photo frame.

If you want to learn more about what we cover in this episode, here are some links to get you started, starting with the Pixel 9:

And also about everything related to streaming:

And in the blitz round: