Google Pixel 3 XL vs. Apple iPhone XS Max vs. Samsung Galaxy Note 9
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iPhone XS Max and the Galaxy Note 9 look much better than the Pixel 3 XL. The screen on the Pixel 3 XL is inferior to these phones, be it the brightness, color accuracy, or sunlight legibility. Even the quality of the stereo loudspeaker setup is better on the iPhone XS Max and the Galaxy Note 9. Samsung even features Dolby Audio as well as a 3.5mm headphone jack, which audio enthusiasts would value. In terms of imaging, all three phones are neck-to-neck in daylight conditions. Come low-light scenarios, the Pixel 3 XL falters, capturing fewer details and retaining a lot of noise. The 4K video recording on the phone is so bad that Apple and Samsung phones from even two years ago can put it to shame. There’s no 4K 60fps video recording on the Pixel 3 XL, which really shameful. The dual-camera setup at the front of Google’s newest phone puts every other phone in the world right now to shame, though, capturing plenty of details. It can also capture Portrait Mode images with background blur at the same time. Thanks to the Snapdragon 845 chipset and well-optimized software, the Pixel 3 XL is much smoother and faster than the Galaxy Note 9 and it matches the iPhone XS Max in terms of performance. Even though it has just 4GB of RAM, it can still keep its head high when compared to other phones in the market. While the iPhone XS Max and the Galaxy Note 9 are available in storage variants as high as 512GB, the Pixel 3 XL stops at just 128GB, and it even lacks a storage expansion slot, so the only way to increase storage space would be to buy additional Google One cloud storage plan. In terms of battery life, it lasts as much as the iPhone XS Max and the Galaxy Note 9. So, if you’re coming from the original Pixel series, the Pixel 3 XL might be a good upgrade, but if you’re upgrading from the Pixel 2 series, you must be really wanting that HDR capable screen and super selfies from the Pixel 3 XL. Otherwise, the iPhone XS Max and the Galaxy Note 9 appear to better phones when it comes to an all-around performance.