Pixel 9’s new dual exposure video is a simple game-changer

So yesterday all the Pixel 9, 9 Pro and 9 Pro XL videos were out there and I was a little nervous. After writing my first post-embargo article raving about how much I love the Pixel 9 Pro XL, I was a little worried that I would embarrass myself in front of other, more phone-focused reviewers who say they hate it for some reason.

To my relief, that didn’t happen, and it really feels like this year’s Pixels – while not perfect, of course – get a lot of things right that Google has gotten wrong in the past. You don’t have to look far to see those reviews, and in the coming weeks I’ll be writing quite a bit about this amazing phone. But I’ve noticed something missing from the reviews I’ve looked at so far, and that’s really one of the things I like most about these new phones from Google.

Video recording with dual exposure

I mentioned it in my previous post, but I’m so impressed with the basic improvements to the video camera this year. Sure, there are fancier additions in the Camera app and Google Photos that use AI and ML to reframe your photos, enhance your photos, add yourself to a photo, and generally transform a photo into all sorts of creations.

But what does the camera look like this year without all those extra features, extra settings and upload requirements? For me, the stills I get are as good as expected from a Pixel phone, with small improvements here and there; but the biggest leap forward this year is the quality of the video thanks to the new Dual exposure function that is active with every shot.

Thanks to Google’s AI/ML magic, the Pixel 9 Pro XL I used automatically captures high and low exposure video at the same time and uses both together in real time to create videos that require no skill from the person holding the camera to simply look amazing. Check out this video from a very dimly lit room with only accent lighting, where they simply turned on the video camera and recorded. Side note: Without YouTube’s compression, the video looks even better in real life.

Aim and record video

Let’s face it, without Joe our YouTube channel would be awful. I don’t know much about video, exposure, f-stop, bokeh or any of the rest. I can hold a conversation and understand the basics of it all, but I’ve never put in the time necessary to properly apply that knowledge to set up a shot, capture a scene perfectly, or get the lighting just right. Simply put, I appreciate the end result, but I lack the passion to properly apply that knowledge to make my videos look great.

Instead, as I do with photography, I just want the camera to figure out the best general settings and display the image on the screen as best as possible. This is why I have loved pixel photography over the years: I see something, point the camera at it, press the button, and generally get a great photo.

And with this year’s Pixel phones, I feel like the same is true for video. I mean, look at that video up there! That’s a dark room with harsh light from a projector and lots of dark, poorly lit areas, and the shot looks great. I can turn HDR on and make it even better, but I love the fact that I can just use the Pixel 9 Pro XL’s camera with no settings, hit the button, and capture the scene in a very engaging way.

Talk about the right use of AI! And of course, I know we can do night shots, cinematic pan, video boost, upscaling, super steady cam, voice enhancement, and more, but most of the time I need to grab my phone and take a video of something happening in real time. Now, when I do that with the Pixel 9 Pro XL, I’m much more confident that the end result will look amazing.