It's been a grueling wait (6 weeks) since ordering the phone. The process overall has not improved.
So far for initial testing the included USB C to A adapter works well for the card reader. That may save me bringing a laptop for photo uploads.
Now I hope there's no issues like the Nexus 5X SOC.
Its made by LG, so yeah maybe 50/50 for longevity.
+Meng Shen Lim pixel2 (HTC) though my Nexus 5 has been good