The last few Pixel phones have been a major step up from almost everything we've seen from Google in the past. The Pixel 7 and the Pixel 7 Pro, in particular, are pretty darn good inside and out. Not only do they pack powerful internals that can compete with the best phones on the market, but they also deliver a solid Android experience.

It's also tough to ignore the pile of Pixel-exclusive features that add to the overall experience. I am talking about the Pixel gems that I didn't know I would miss until I ditched the Pixel 7 for the OnePlus 11 and, more recently, the Galaxy S23. I don't expect to go back to the Pixel 7 anytime soon, but I miss the small things — the features that either go unnoticed or we promptly forget about them until they're not there anymore. Out of all the subtle features the Pixel has, these are the ones I miss the most.

Quick Tap: A handy shortcut

Knock-knock. Who's there? It's Quick Tap! This particular feature has been a part of Pixel phones for quite some time now, and it's easily one of its coolest and one of my most used.

Quick Tap is a shortcut that lets you choose one of the many potential actions that can be executed when you double-tap the back of your Pixel phone. I've set it to take a screenshot on my Pixel 7, but you can use it to launch Google Assistant, play/pause media, open a particular application on your phone, and more. You can also set the strength of your taps if you worry about accidentally triggering the action.

I've been using this particular feature for a long time, and from my experience, it works as advertised every single time. I find it way easier to grab screenshots like this instead of pressing the volume down and power button, which are on the same side, together.

Smart Selection: Select text and images from the recent apps screen

I didn't know I needed this feature until I used it for the first time. Smart Selection automatically highlights and lets me interact with text and images on the recent apps screen, helping me pick up links, text, and even images from another application directly from the app switcher screen. So if I'm taking a note in Google Keep and I want to add a link to a website I was browsing earlier in Chrome, I can simply select the recent apps overview screen and tap on the copy link button or long-press on an image or text to grab it without switching the app.

This particular feature has been around for a while now, and I miss it on my Galaxy S23. It was supposed to work on non-Pixel phones too, but I don't think I've seen it on any other device.

Recorder app: Live transcription whenever you need it

Google's magical voice recorder application has received heaps of praise, and it remains one of my favorite apps on the Pixel 7. Its transcription feature, in particular, is what surprises me every time. Not only can the app transcribe a pre-recorded voice note, but it can also do live transcription as you're recording a voice.

The transcription feature, in particular, works very well across all the apps that can use i. I use it all the time to dictate emails and text message replies, and I miss being able to rely on the Pixel 7's excellent voice dictation feature to get through some of these tasks. Samsung's Galaxy S23 doesn't even come with a pre-installed voice recorder application, let alone the transcription feature.

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Photo Unblur: One of the best Pixel features ever?

In my opinion, Google's Photo Unblur is one of the best features to have ever graced a Pixel device. It's proven to work amazingly on the Pixel 7, and I use it more often than I'd like to admit to fix blurry images I capture on my phone.

Unlike the Face Unblur feature introduced with the Pixel 6 series, Photo Unblur can improve the whole image, not just faces. I tend to fill my gallery with blurry images of my dog daily, and this feature helps me fix a lot of those shots. You can also import photos captured on other phones to your Pixel 7 to treat the images, but I'd rather use the same phone to avoid dealing with the import process.

You won't know what you've got until it's gone

I can think of a lot of other Pixel-exclusive features that I miss using on other Android phones. I am sure there are more that I am currently missing on this list, but it goes to show how the Pixel phones have a lot of tucked-away treasures that come together to improve your overall user experience.

You may not appreciate a lot of these features on a daily basis, but there are times when you'll wish you had a Pixel phone to take care of something that the iPhones and Galaxies of the world can't help you with.

Does this sound appealing to you? If you're looking to buy a Pixel 7 or the Pixel 7 Pro for yourself then be sure to stop by our collection of the best Pixel 7 deals or hit the links below to find the best prices online.

  • Google Pixel 7
    Brand
    Google
    SoC
    Google Tensor G2
    Display
    6.3-inch OLED, 90Hz refresh rate, up to 1,400 nits peak brightness
    RAM
    8GB LPDDR5
    Storage
    128GB / 256GB UFS 3.1 storage
    Battery
    4,355mAh

    The Google Pixel 7 is a refinement of the already excellent Pixel 6, making for a very polished phone with a great camera. 

  • Follow
    Followed
    Brand
    Google
    SoC
    Google Tensor G2
    Display
    6.7-inch QHD+ AMOLED, 120Hz, HDR 10+, 1500nits
    RAM
    8GB, 12GB
    Storage
    128GB, 256GB
    Battery
    5,000mAh

    The Pixel 7 Pro is Google's best phone ever, with a refined, premium design and Google's second-generation silicon — plus awesome cameras, as usual.