[Google Pixel 2 XL Questions & Answers] evak2979:
I thought I'd put my thoughts on this as well.

I had the Note 8 for 4 months or so, and have recently switched over to the Pixel Xl 2.

As choices go, it was one of the hardest when it comes to choosing between phones. In the end, the Pixel XL 2 won me over on points, some of which were personal, some of which were facts.

Battery - (It's better on the Pixel XL 2, than the Note 8. It's a fact)

I am a heavy user (Spotify, chatting, a lot of syncing apps + a garmin vivosmartHr+). Unplugged at 7 AM, the Pixel's battery is at about 20% at around 23:30 (11:30 PM). To me, this is spectacular. Leaving work at 6 PM, it's almost always at 50-55%, and that is with me using it for streaming music as I work, chatting with my partner between job tasks, and using it on my lunch break. The Note 8 never gave me this sort of longevity. I almost always had to charge at around...2-3 PM, when the battery was at about 30% or such. The Note 8 never filled me with confidence that it could easily last me a day. Same thing with standby mode. The pixel simply does not leak batter in standby. My note 8 always did, even after factory resets, even after using it on a factory reset with no apps used (as a test)

Camera - (The image processing is better on the Pixel Xl 2, than the Note 8 (opinion). However the Note 8 offers a dual lens setup, which is more convenient for people interested in zoom photography. (Fact))

The Note 8 does have the better camera setup - two cameras are better than one, hardware wise. When it comes to the images that come out of the phones though there is no comparison. The Pixel's image processing is out of this world. My cat was my test subject, and I took pictures of my cat in normal-lit environments with both phones. Samsung's processing made his fur look muddy on zoom. The Pixel had preserved 90% of the texture, as well as realistic colors. Portrait mode is also better with the pixel. Given how I almost never use the telezoom lens, I decided to stay with the Pixel (personal preference), but the fact is that picture quality from the Pixel is better.

Updates/Software version - (The Pixel blows anything else out of the water. Fact)

I care for such things, and once more there is no comparison. the Pixel gets updated far more frequently.

Things that the Note 8 just does better:

- Screen (Note 8 wins, hands down. Fact)

Here is where the note 8 obliterates the pixel. The pixel does suffer from rainbow effect (my unit not to an extreme), it does have a bit of banding tough nowhere near as bad as the V30 or previous generation OLED panels. The black smearing/smudging (whatever you call it, the fact that blacks smudge when you scroll), is there. First I saw it on the Pixel I was like - is this for real? I got used to it by now, but for people who do care about such things - stay away. In comparison, the Note 8 screen is the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. Bright, colorful, my unit had absolutely ZERO banding. There was a light red tint around the edges (Which I am guessing is due to the curved display), but nowhere near enough to be distracting. The Note 8 wins here, hands down.

- Build quality (Note 8 feels better int he hand - This is my opinion)

Both phones are well built, but the Note 8 is a class of its own. I prefer heavier phones (the Pixel feels a bit too light for me). Holding the note felt like you were holding onto a ton of technology in the most compact of packages. IT was a pleasure to hold. Personally, I don't feel the same for the Pixel but yet again - this comes down to personal preference.

- Tech/Pen (Note 8 packs far more tech. Fact)

I never much used the pen, so I can't comment on that. I won't deny though that the ability to keep notes on the fly is amazing. The Note 8 gives you that out of the box, and is a much better working tool than the Pixel or any phone. Useful in meetings, presentations, etc. Iris scanner was also useful, but I found myself using the fingerprint reader more in the end.

So why did I choose the Pixel XL 2? Well, the bits that the Pixel XL 2 does better were more important to me as a user, that's all. Mainly battery life, software version and camera (remember - I almost never used telezoom lenses in my photography life, but I always loved bokeh photography as well as street photography).

You can't go wrong with either phone. What you can do is tailor the choice on what fits -you- best personally.