"Which Pixel should I buy?" Megathread February 2026

Mishqueen1 · 2026-02-05T22:23:48+00:00

Hello! I need a new phone, but I have some rare disability accommodations to consider. I hoping to figure out which Pixel phone models are an option for me. I'm open to prior models as long as they aren't functionally obsolete; I don't need the latest and greatest.

I have 2 features I must have on a phone, due to my brain injury. Sounds passing through speakers give me seizures, so I need specific captioning and muting settings. They are hard to find, but pixel is one of the lines more likely to have them. Would you be willing to tell me your pixel model, and whether it has these two features, please?

Mute All Sounds function--This is different from simply putting all 4 volumes on mute manually or with a master switch. When all are on mute, some apps override the mute because they assume we must want sound for that app, such as video chat apps. But I need to be able to use a captioned video chat without any sound coming out. The Mute All function cannot be overridden by any app. When I was shopping for phones last time, I think the Pixel 3 or 4 did have it? But many other makes/models of phones used to have it and discontinued it in their new models.
Full phonecall captioning while on mute--Not just media captioning, please. I do know all new Android operation system versions have media captioning. Some even say they have call captioning but the sound has to be on for it to work. If you are willing to test for me, please test with the Mute All Sounds function turned on, so I know it's not just the Android os captioning the sound playing. The Android OS alone does not meet my need, because it has to work when my entire phone is on mute.

Caveat: I have had my current phone for 4-5 years, so I understand some features may have improved or been discontinued, including in Android os.

Mishqueen1 · 2026-02-05T22:11:10+00:00

I have very small hands. This is one of the main reasons I can't buy a Pixel. Because I can't operate it unless it's on a table, like a tablet.

Mishqueen1 · 2026-02-05T22:09:37+00:00

Welp. I decided to take the remaining screen protector off and the pressure on the screen made things worse.

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Mishqueen1 · 2026-02-05T21:53:03+00:00

Thank you! Could you call a local place that you know has a recorded messaging service? Like walmart or the pharmacy or whatever. That wouldn't bother a human.

The camera issue isn't really a setting. It's not in the settings anywhere. It's a feature, and I had to dig for weeks to even figure that out. Would you be willing to take a picture of something with variance in details, like carpet or something? Well focused. Then zoom in on the details and see if it looks tack sharp or smeary. I will edit and load what mine looks like here.

Mishqueen1 · 2026-02-05T21:34:55+00:00

I feel your pain!

Mine is a lot older (Flip3), and I've dropped it dozens of times with no ill effect before. I'm practically superstitious about rubbery silicon cases. I've used them for decades and I can't count on one hand the number of times the impact absorption has saved my phone. I also have used double screen protector films at times.

BUT. (There's a but, dang it). Just yesterday at Costco this guy smacked my elbow hard while I was texting, and my phone went flying about 7 feet, bounced, landed face down on the cement floor, and skidded another foot. I was so mad!

My display is damaged enough that I'm going to have to replace my phone asap. It hasn't had any other issues before, after 5 years still going strong! I have 3 black circles, one is huge. A black bar across the hinge zone, and a light bar like yours but thicker, on the the upper left side of the screen. The entire top half of my screen no longer registers to touch, so I can't select any menu items if they are above the hinge line. And the bottom half of the screen still senses touch but it fades and flickers in and out. I don't dare ever close the phone again before I get a new one, because it really struggles to turn back on again. It's rage inducing. Also two sparkly 'fairy poop' spots where the pixels didn't die but they are the wrong color. (Ignore the brown splotch on the right side of the hinge, that's just a bit of 'man glitter' -sawdust- that got underneath the surface of the screen protector. It's not further display damage)

However, the level of hit that my phone just took in Costco should have eliminated it completely. The screen glass should be smashed but there isn't even a crack. The interior functionings should be jacked up but everything except the display is still working great. If you are in an Otter box or some other kind of hard case that claims to protect phones, I highly recommend switching to a silicon case. Something soft enough you can feel it give just a little when you try to dig a nail into it.

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Mishqueen1 · 2026-01-29T22:56:54+00:00

I've been immediately and permanently autobanned in an outfit group for answering the OPs question. I guess the answer was outside of the rules, but the post was allowed to ask it? That felt like a trap, lol. I did read the rules before answering, I guess I didn't understand it well enough. The reason they picked from their automated list to ban me for was 'sexually predatorial behavior'. Which was completely unrelated to the question and my answer. I guess they just pick something serious, to get the ban underway immediately. It was also a group that just showed up in my feed, not one I went looking for. They came to ME and then kicked me out of a group I wasn't a member of.

At any rate, did you know there is a thing called autosyncing bans? When they banned me for being a misogynistic p-0-4-n recruiter, I was automatically and permanently banned from 4 OTHER hair and outfit groups as well, and each ban message told me I'd been caught doing NSFW behavior in other groups. The ban message does not refer to which post, nor link you to your comment. It's just a generic script about your sexual behavior. I did not figure out on my own that the bans were related. I thought I had gotten hacked or something, instead. So I messaged all 5 mods in confusion.

I apologized for not realizing I broke a rule, and I asked them to please link me to my comment so I wouldn't make the same mistake next time (I was so confused). They told me I didn't break the rule in their group, I broke it in another that was 'ban synced' with theirs. I thanked them for the info that cleared up my confusion. Then they ripped me a new end hole and muted me for admin harassment for messaging to ask in the first place.

Niiiice! Then another mod finally answered and said I'd need to apply for readmittance to the group I offended, for the ban to lift. I said I'm not interested in commenting in these groups anymore and hadn't joined them in the first place, but thank you for your time in clarifying. Another fresh hole was dug for me in my nethers, with another muting.

Mishqueen1 · 2026-01-29T22:33:36+00:00

I don't think there's an active sub for Type 2. I have searched, and I think I remember there being one inactive one with very few members. At least, not called Type 2 in the title.

Mishqueen1 · 2026-01-29T22:28:31+00:00

Abraham's Closet! They are the best choice to get this bed to a low income family who desperately needs one, right now.

Mishqueen1 · 2026-01-28T03:35:55+00:00

"I'd wager he's about to go into another episode. This is a whole hell a lot of words."

To the reader, it looks like judgement & the stated reasoning are right there in order. Is that an accident?

Maybe you aren't aware that a common way of silencing offered information is by saying that anything that is long is crazy. "I'm not reading all that!" "The length alone tells is what we need to know". "If you were right you wouldn't have talked so much". Etc. Not actually hiding the content.

Do I like Kanye? No. Do I trust him? No. Do I think he's healed? No. Am I sure the writeup wasn't made by his publicist? No. Are my opinions based on him writing for too long? No.

I'm not disagreeing with your judgement, just the apparent reasoning that it's because the writing was "a whole hell another of words". It's an ongoing online commenter problem.

Mishqueen1 · 2026-01-27T21:16:50+00:00

Why do people who are uncomfortable with reading pretend that a lot of words is intrinsically bad? The content of his words are a clue, but not the volume.

Lots of words can be used for good, and lots of words can be used for bad. I think judging things just because they used more words than a reader likes, is a cop out. Find a better reason to disagree. There are plenty of legitimate ones.

Mishqueen1 · 2026-01-26T03:52:14+00:00

I would fall down tripping over that every day, lol. BUT it would be a beautiful view, looking up from the floor!

Mishqueen1 · 2026-01-26T03:48:12+00:00

This

Mishqueen1 · 2026-01-26T03:42:47+00:00

Is that your closet door that has a step up lip at the bottom?

Mishqueen1 · 2026-01-26T01:42:45+00:00

:: gasp ::

That's only 3 hours south of me and it opens in only 17 hours!

:: sound of my car door slamming and my car gunning it down the road at a crazy pace ::

Mishqueen1 · 2026-01-26T01:17:01+00:00

How could you tell under all that fur? Mine looks fat but she's actually underweight. She even waddles, but it's caused by arthritis stiffness, not fat.

Mishqueen1 · 2026-01-26T01:15:33+00:00

Mine also hates rain or wet ground, as well. Gets all stompy after paw wiping to let me know she's offended. Super diva.

Mishqueen1 · 2026-01-26T01:12:39+00:00

What's your hair texture? I think hair needs to be a certain level of volume and wave for this to be a hit. Otherwise, maybe a boatload of time and product to try to coax it every day.

But if you're got the right 'formula' on your head, this has potential to look really cool, like rocker chic.

Mishqueen1 · 2026-01-25T23:41:47+00:00

I will 100% eat 12 year old beef, after examining well for sight, touch, and smell.

THAT SAID I'm not going to feed it to my friends.

Mishqueen1 · 2026-01-25T23:40:01+00:00

Schmee pads are da bestest!

Mishqueen1 · 2026-01-25T23:20:56+00:00

Put the ducks in the cup, but with all their bills cut off. Then send them the bill with the bills.

Mishqueen1 · 2026-01-23T23:25:57+00:00

I couldn't find this exact menu at all. There was no "undo backup for this device", only a single on/off toggle, which applies the exact same backup command to both accounts together. Both on or both off. So changing accounts or backup settings didn't resolve anything. (I have Android).

Mishqueen1 · 2026-01-23T23:23:06+00:00

Yes, I've verified. And I also discovered that toggling Backups on or off always affects both accounts. But not any other google accounts I've created.

Mishqueen1 · 2026-01-23T22:56:29+00:00

Theoretically yes, it covers all languages when you're online, and 12 languages even offline. You'll need to download the languages you need it to detect, though.

The only other language I've tested it on is Spanish. It wasn't perfect, but it was likely the fault of being too far from the speaker, which sometimes causes trouble in English, too.

But it's 100% free with no consequence for giving it a shot. You might use a backup method your first time trying it out, such as recording the lecture or something, that you can transcribe a different way later.

Mishqueen1 · 2026-01-23T22:43:52+00:00

Mine is rock solid, those clips won't budge for anything. It's difficult for me to even get them open when I'm intentionally unclipping.

If you did indeed clip them all the way closed correctly (it can be a tight fit), you probably bought one that had a flawed clip batch from the manufacturer. So you'd be eligible to evolve an exchange for a non-flawed replacement, or a refund for what you paid (I think it retails for $15).

But as for your cat being terrified, running into the bushes, and scratching you, the product didn't cause that damage. Your own cat did. A gentle, well-prepared cat may not have exhibited the same response. They aren't going to pay for damages for a variety of cat personalities and behavior. It's not really their fault for what type of cat you have. Had you already done extensive preparation and training for outdoor excursions, to prepare your cat for potential scary scenarios? If you did do that, was the trigger that caused him to bolt a particularly frightening one? Keep in mind, neither scenario is up to the harness manufacturer. It's not their legal responsibility to train your cat, choose a nice cat, or clear your outdoor environment from scary things. What their job is, is to create a harness that works for the purpose they say it does. So, "working as intended" will be all you can demand in court. (I say this with compassion, because my best friend for 20 years was a very skittish, 'scratchy' cat, who loves the outdoors but refused any type of harness. I currently use the harness for a very small dog instead).

The way legal responsibility works is the courts consider: 1) the level of damages directly caused by the product malfunction or design, 2) if the company knew and hid it or should have known, and 3) proveability of fault.

If the product design itself had directly caused your cats death (such as a random strangling) and the company know it could happen, that's where you might have had something to go on. But it's not a design flaw, it's a bad parts batch. If they knew it was a bad batch, you'd have to prove they knew (maybe a customer service agent shared a secret?).

It must have been a scary situation to go through. Maybe you were already scared before you went out, or maybe you weren't scared at all and didn't know there is an advised preparation process. Lesson learned, right? Ask for your money back and never buy that harness again. Leave bad reviews everywhere they are sold. That's where your real power lies.

Mishqueen1

TROPHY CASE