Google’s rollout of its new Pixel smartphone is a game changer for the Android market.
The Pixel is likely to make owners of Samsung’s flagship model—the Galaxy S7 Edge—think twice. The 5-inch Pixel may be compact but it packs a punch with a super-powerful processor. Google also claims that the Pixel contains the best smartphone camera on the market. DxO Mark (a website that ranks image quality) gave the Pixel a score of 89, which indeed is the highest score its ever given to a smartphone camera.
The manufacturer of the Pixel and Pixel XL smartphones is HTC, a longtime maker of Android phones. The Pixel’s integration of Google Assistant may also be tempting for Samsung users. From Gmail to Google Maps to Google Docs, so much of what we already use will come naturally to Google’s voice-activated assistant. This may make Google Assistant a more improved competitor to Siri, but specifically for the Android market.
So how exactly does the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge and the Google Pixel and Pixel XL stack up? We did a comparison of the specs below:
Size
Pixel XL: 6.09 x 2.98 x 0.34 inches
Pixel: 5.66 x 2.74 x 0.34 inches
Samsung S7 Edge: 5.94 x 2.86 x 0.30 inches
If you’re looking for a device that’s the same size as your Samsung S7 Edge, then the Pixel XL may be the way to go. The larger Pixel is the largest of all three devices–but only slightly larger than the Samsung S7 Edge.
Screen
Pixel XL: 5.5 inches
Pixel: 5 inches
Samsung S7 Edge: 5.5 inches
The displays of the Samsung S7 Edge and Pixel XL are the same size; the Pixel is smaller at 5 inches.
Camera
Pixel XL: 12. 3 megapixels, 8 megapixels front-facing camera; Dual LED; F 2.0 aperture size
Pixel: 12. 3 megapixels, 8 megapixels front-facing camera; Dual LED; F 2.0 aperture size
Samsung S7 Edge: 12 megapixels, 5 megapixels front-facing camera; Dual LED; F 1.7 aperture size
The Pixel’s camera may give the Samsung a run for its money as far as image quality. The Pixel’s cameras wins out over Samsung in number of megapixels, but has a smaller aperture. Pixel is likely the better smartphone camera to have on hand during a safari or trip to the mountains. But the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge camera’s extra perks (such as face detection and smile detection) seems perfect for the Instagram and Facebook-minded.
Hardware
Pixel XL: Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 MSM8996 Pro
Pixel: Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 MSM8996 Pro
Samsung S7 Edge: Samsung Exynos 8 Octa 8890
Pixel XL: Quad-core, 2150 MHz, Kryo, 64-bit
Pixel: Quad-core, 2150 MHz, Kryo, 64-bit
Samsung S7 Edge: Octa-core, 2300 MHz, Exynos M1 and ARM Cortex-A53 , 64-bit
The Pixel’s Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 is a speedy number that rivals the S7 Edge, which still has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 in its USA and China versions. If you have a Samsung S7 Edge with an Exynos 8 system chip, it should be roughly the same.
Battery
Talk Time
Pixel XL: 32 hours
Pixel: 26 hours
Samsung S7 Edge: 27 hours
Stand-by Time
Pixel XL: 21.8 days
Pixel: 19 days
Samsung S7 Edge: 9 days, 10 hours
Wi-Fi Time/LTE
Pixel XL: 14 hours for both
Pixel: 13 hours for both
Samsung S7 Edge: 15 hours for LTE, 16 hours for wi-fi
As far as battery life, the Pixel is by far the stronger contender when it comes to standby time and talk time. Samsung S7 Edge’s battery lasts an hour longer than the Pixel XL on LTE and two hours longer than Pixel XL on wi-fi.
Correction: Samsung’s S7 Edge has a wider aperture than the Google Pixel and Pixel XL