Google Pixel 2 Vs The Competition

On October 4th, Google announced the next iteration of its Android smartphones, the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL. Smaller of the two siblings, the Pixel 2 has a tight integration with Google Assistant. With the Google Pixel 2 arriving in India on November 1st, let’s take a look at how it stacks up against the competition.

Google Pixel 2

The Google Pixel 2 has a 5 inch 1920 x 1080 px OLED display with Corning Gorilla Glass 5 on top for protection. Powering the device is a 2700 mAh battery and it runs Android 8.0 Oreo out of the box. As is with with every Google phone, the new Pixel 2 will be first in line to receive Android P update in 2018. Under the hood, the device has typical 2017 flagship specifications. It has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset, 2.4GHz octa core processor, Adreno 540, 4GB RAM and 64GB/128GB onboard storage. The fingerprint sensor sits at the back of the device but, this time around the “glass window” is smaller. The two-tone colour of the phone is also reminiscent of the original Pixel from 2016. Google claims that the fingerprint sensor is the fastest on a smartphone. The Pixel 2 is water resistant as well.

On the camera front, Google has decided to go for a single camera setup similar to last year’s Pixel phones. The rear-facing camera is a 12.2 MP sensor with an f/1.8 aperture and 1.4 micron pixel size. On the front is an 8MP camera with an f/2.4 aperture. Google has introduced new features in the camera department like the addition of AR. The Pixel 2 XL uses both OIS and EIS simultaneously for better clarity and stable images and videos. The portrait mode works on both rear and font facing cameras, just like the new iPhones.

Samsung Galaxy S8

The Samsung Galaxy S8 has a 5.8” 2960×1440 px Super AMOLED display with a 570ppi. Powering the device is a 3000 mAh battery and it runs Android 7.1 Nougat out of the box. Under the hood, both the smartphone has Exynos 8895 chipset, 64GB onboard storage options which is expandable up to 256GB via microSD card and 4GB RAM. The Galaxy S8 is also water and dust resistant. The Galaxy S8 has a glass  black which means it is wireless charging compatible. The smartphone has an awkwardly placed fingerprint sensor right next to the camera.

For cameras, both phones get a main Dual Pixel 12MP OIS (F1.7), Front: 8MP AF (F1.7). While the battery on the Galaxy S8 is 3000 man, the S8plus has a 3500 mAh battery. Both support fast charging and wireless charging as well.

Apple iPhone 8

The Apple iPhone 8 has a 4.7 inch 1334 x 750 px IPS LCD True Tone display. Under the hood, the iPhone 8 has the A11 Bionic chipset with a hexacore processor and the new Apple GPU. Because of the glass back, the iPhone 8 is now wireless charging capable. The iPhone 8 runs iOS 11 and the battery of the iPhone 8 is identical to the iPhone 7. The iPhone 8 is available in two storage variants, 64GB and 256GB.

On the camera front, there’s a 12-megapixel sensor on the iPhone 8 that is larger, faster and has optical image stabilisation. The iPhone 8 Plus also has new 12 MP sensors. The main camera is equipped with a wide angle lens and has an f/1.8 aperture while the secondary telephoto lens has an f/2.8 aperture. The dual cameras on the iPhone 8 Plus also have a new “Portrait Lighting” feature to adjust the lighting for portrait shots.