Pixel 3 XL vs iPhone XS Max vs Galaxy Note 9 vs OnePlus 6: Flagship faceoff

Now that we have officially seen the Pixel 3 and 3 XL (stress on the word officially) it is time to pull out a quick comparison of the devices with some of its nearest competitors. Now for the purpose of this comparison, we shall be considering only the Pixel 3 XL which starts at Rs 83,000.

But first, a small glance first at what exactly the Pixel 3 XL is offering us. The phone has a 6.3-inch OLED display with a ginormous notch on the front that houses the earpiece and dual front-facing cameras, wherein one is an 8 MP wide camera sensor with f/2.3 aperture and another is a normal 8 MP sensor.

On the back, there is a single camera unit with a 12.2 MP  sensor with 1.4 µm pixels along with an f/1.8 aperture. The Pixel 3 XL retains the stereo speakers from the Pixel 2 XL and introduces wireless charging.

While this is good, the specs leave much to be desired. The flagship Snapdragon 845 chip powering the phone is underclocked by 200 MHz, RAM is limited to 4 GB (though we may not need more on the Pixel) and storage is limited to a miserly 64 GB and 128 GB option. There’s also no headphone jack or microSD expansion slot.

We have chosen the iPhone XS Max , Note 9 and the Galaxy S9 as competitors to the Pixel 3 XL due to similar pricing. The OnePlus 6 has also been thrown into the mix for the heck of it, and to demonstrate the incredible value that phone still offers.

Here’s how the devices stack up.

Based on the information in the spec sheet, we can draw the following inference.

Display

The big ol’ notch has massively downplayed the Pixel 3 XL’s hand in the display department. The last year’s Pixel 2 XL did not have the best track record with regards to the screen, however, we hope this year Google has made some improvements. Both the iPhone XS Max and the OnePlus 6 have notched displays (not as hideous as the Pixel 3 XL), so the crown has to go to the gorgeous Note 9 or the S9 Plus for their beautiful curved QHD+ Infinity AMOLED panel.

Performance

The Pixel 3 XL has an underclocked Snapdragon 845 chipset and the reason apparently is to conserve the battery of the device. The phone only has a 4 GB RAM variant and although the Pixel does offer the smoothest of Android experiences on any smartphone, the higher RAM versions on the OnePlus 6 and the Note 9 do give both the phones an edge. However, when it comes to raw processing power the iPhone XS Max and its A12 Bionic chipset absolutely wipe the floor with all other Android flagships. Until further testing is done, the iPhone XS Max is the winner here.

Camera

Looking at the presentation given by Google today, it would seem that the Pixel 3 XL would be retaining its crown as the best camera phone on the planet (tech2’s opinion). Google has gone with the same single camera setup it had on the Pixel 2 XL and since it’s a tried and tested winning formula, things should look good for the Pixel 3 XL. The Note 9 and the S9 Plus are no slouches either, but the OnePlus 6 understandably falls short of all these smartphones. In any case, a massive iPhone XS Max vs Pixel 3 XL camera shootout will be taking place soon and we shall let you know the winner then. For now, as per Google’s keynote, it would seem that the Pixel 3 XL is the winner.

Battery

Now here, Note 9 looks to be taking the crown with its massive 4,000 mAh battery, but we have to remember that the phone has a QHD display which uses more power. The iPhone XS Max and the Pixel 3 XL both have FHD+ displays and therefore should last longer. In terms of charging speeds, however, no one can compete right now with OnePlus 6’s dash charging feature. The jury is out on the battery part, but due to its bigger size, the Note 9 has the crown for now.

Conclusion

At this stage, it is too early to draw out any conclusions, but as of right now I feel that the Note 9 is offering the best value for money at its price range. The Note 9 has a stylus, a variable aperture lens, QHD+ screen, bigger battery, and more storage, and RAM, than the Pixel 3 XL at the same price. Is the camera going to be the deciding factor on the Google Pixel 3 XL? We shall see when the full review of the device comes out so stay tuned for that.