Google's own flagship android phone is arguably one of the best smartphones on the planet.

But is it durable?

Does the new back glass scratch easier than fingernails on a chalkboard?

Or is the notch distracting?

The large would hold up to the test of time, So many questions and only one way to find out.

Let's get started out of the box.

The phone actually looks pretty impressive.

The dual textured glass feels unique.

It goes from the glossy, smooth glass of the top two amore Matt Velvet vibe on the body, which I'm a fan of much better than last year's thick coating of paint on the pixel to flipping and over reveals that notch.

It's much larger than I anticipated, which is something I've heard a lot from other reviewers, and I agree completely normally not just don't bother me, but this one is from a different realm.

The top speaker Grill is smaller this year.

Both stereo grill slots at the top and the bottom have been downsized.

Usually the slot is more aesthetic and has nothing to do with speaker size, But we'll dig deeper into that during the tear down to find out for sure.

Other than that, things look pretty similar to the pixel to excel from last year.

Let's start with the scratch test.

Using a set of most mineral picks, we can assess the hardness level of different materials.

Google has advertised garlic last five on the pixel three XO, which has been pretty standard across most flagships for a while now.

Smooth, hard scratch resistant tempered glass scratches at Level six with deeper grooves at a level seven.

My razor, which is about a 5.5 on most scale, won't be doing any damage up here.

We got the Texas sized notch covering some hardware.

The Speaker Grill is made from a metal mesh, a definite improvement over the white cloth on the original pixel.

One super cool thing that Pixel three has this year is dual front cameras, a normal camera for selfies and a wide angle camera that could take groupies.

You know that fit multiple people, which is super useful if you have friends or go outside.

But since we're all here watching nerd videos on YouTube, I got a feeling the groupie camera isn't gonna get used to hold Theo larger speaker Grille on the bottom is still made from metal and won't be falling out on its own.

Let's take a look at the unique dual tone glass on the back Now the company one plus has used frosted glass before, but the one plus was frosted on the underside of the glass.

Google has frosted the outer layer, which unfortunately looks like the frosting.

Scratch is much easier than regular glossy glass, and the scratches don't rub off.

For example, if there's a coin in your pocket or purse, your phone instantly turns into an aesthetic nightmare, trying something softer like a toothpick.

It does leave some marks on the back class, but the's do mostly wipe away almost completely, leaving no residue behind.

Plastic doesn't leave any marks, but keys do.

When people normally think of a pixel, they imagine one singular dot on a display screen.

But each individual pixels under screen actually has three different lights inside red, green and blue that light up alone or in groups to formulate all the different color combinations your eye can see, kind of like little teams of friends taking groupies together.

The sides of this phone sound different It's not the normal metal on metal sound we get with anodized aluminum, but it's also not the crappy plasticky paint stuff like we had on last year's Pixel two.

This is more of a glossy powder coating, like the one I applied to my metal off road wheelchair.

It feels much more durable.

You can see it shave off and smooth chunks instead of disintegrating into a plastic IV powder.

It feels good.

Google does say again that this paint is chip resistant but might absorb colors from the genes or leather.

But in my opinion, with the glossy, non porous surface, I really doubt that this year, at least with the black one, I'm a fan.

So far, the power button is made from plastic again.

The volume button is the same painted metal as the rest of the phone.

The bottom of the pixel three, while void of a headphone jack and expandable memory slot, has more of the same glossy paint.

Now I'm a feature guy.

Google does include wireless charging this year, which is cool, but the lack of Jack an SD slot still make me think twice about upgrading.

Switching to a phone that has less features isn't super appealing.

After contemplating the back glass a bit more, I thought it could just be that the cloudy glass was acting like a Level six.

Abrasive like the glass is literally sanding off bits of the middle.

I'm scratching it with kind of makes sense when we see what the cloudy surface does to my little three most pick.

But the level four leaves much more consistent scratches that don't wipe away.

Even with moisture.

They don't disappear either way, whether the cloudy glass is an abrasive or just weak, the marks from keys and coins are very permanent, so keep that in mind.

One way to keep your phone pristine is with the skin.

Like this matrix marble combo from D Brand.

It fully covers the soft glass and the corners of the phone, keeping scratches and chips at bay.

The textured matrix kind of feels like cloth and might just be my new favorite right after bulletproof banana.

Of course, I'll leave a link for you in the video description.

If you want to customize your own phone and thanks a D brand for sponsoring this durability test, the 12 megapixel rear camera is protected by glass along with the dual flash.

Both are covered with the smooth, non frosted glass, so they aren't going to accumulate permanent abrasions.

The fingerprint scanner is back here on the rear of the phone and is scratch hable with the damage inflicted.

It did have some issues registering my fingerprint, but once everything was said, it did end up recognizing my finger every time and unlocking, which is good.

The fingerprint scanner passes the scratch test, even if only barely.

Now it's time for the burn test.

Let's see how the pixels on this pixel three hold up to a little bit of heat.

Google is using a 14 40 p o led display.

This year it's 6.3 inches, but I feel like that football field sized notch needs to be deducted at some point.

Not just don't even normally bother me, but this guy's got a complete face, and it's just sitting there like judging me.

Either way, this guy's belly lasted 30 seconds before the pixel started turning white, but then completely recovered after the heat was removed, which is great news for me cause these screens are expensive.

The cool thing about de brand skins is that they're easy to remove and don't leave any residue as they come off.

So switching to a new skin or color is pretty simple.

Let's start that been test that picks a lineup has always had solid structure, and it looks like this new glass sandwich design is sticking with that same solid theme, with barely any flex when bin from the front and, more importantly, no glass separation on the back, meaning that the new I P 68 rating is still intact.

When bin from the back we get the same minor flex but no cracked glass or permanent damage.

The phone retains its shape with no kinks in the middle.

If the XL conserve I've been test the regular size pixel three should also be just fine.

Google has done a good job this time around.

Yeah, the back glass can be scratched, but overall, the Pixel three Excel passes my durability test and gets a thumbs up from me.

They definitely did a better job this year.

Check out DIY Brand.

If you want to protect your phone without the bulk of a case, link is in the description.

Would you buy this phone?

Let me know in the comments.