I have used a Pixel 9 Pro as a secondary phone next to my iPhone 16 Pro Max for almost a week now and here are some of my impressions.
Like
@psp123 wrote, this is surely a year of the Pixel.
The build quality is amazing and I love how the phone feels in my hand. Perfect weight distribution and I prefer the thicker bezel comparing to iPhone as it does not require the same aggressive palm rejection algorithms.
Display is the best of all Androids I have used. It is accurate and the calibration is excellent for photography. iPhone is still slightly superior here. I do notice some minor off-axis tint on the Pixel that I don't see on my iPhone (remains pure white no matter which angle I look at it). Also iOS seems to handle the calibration slightly better when doing different tasks. Games are more vibrant and punchy while photos and websites look "natural". On the Pixel, it seems the calibration is the same no matter what content the display is showing which means that games and entertainment looks a little duller. But overall, this is a display I can easily live with and it looks great.
Camera is a mixed bag. I still prefer iPhone (using regular RAW through a third party app) over Pixel in daylight or medium-low light. But for handheld shots in low light the Pixel is better. I can take better shots using the iPhone but that requires a tripod which is not really convenient at all times. In high resolution mode (50MP) the Pixel is superior in detail and overall quality. It is a great + to be able to shoot 50MP on all three lenses. Apple really needs to allow 48MP Regular RAW (not ProRAW) to compete with this. The only real issue I have with the Pixel camera is how it handles motion which is still much worse than iPhone. It is quite common that fast moving objects in low light looks very artificial (lost legs, heads or other disturbances). Also in some scenes I can see that the Pixel is messing with the photos using AI which can give very strange results. But overall I can use the Pixel for shots that cannot be taken using the iPhone. Also Pixel is superior on astrophotography which is something I really love. But then you need a tripod.
Software is also a mixed bag. Pixel undoubtedly has the best Android flavor for me. Stable, very clean design, no bloatware and overall it feels very mature. My main issue is notifications which are often delivered only when I unlock the phone (or wait hours). iPhone always deliver notifications instantly. It is sad that they still haven't solved these issues and this is probably the main issue that holds me back from using a Pixel as my main phone. It is also clear that Apple looks at their software as an eco system with many different kinds of products and they work seamlessly together. Google cannot match this and unfortunately I really appreciate that Apple takes care of the connection between all my devices so they work perfectly together (especially computer/phone/watch combo).
Battery life is unfortunately not as good as my iPhone - not even close. This is very strange as the Pixel has a bigger battery than 16 Pro Max and a smaller display that should use less power. I guess Tensor is not as efficient as Apples A18.
Performance is another area where the Pixel is quite far behind iPhone. Especially frame rate in games and heavy editing in Lightroom Mobile. Everything takes double the time of the iPhone and generates more heat than the iPhone.
Sound of the internal speakers is also superior on iPhone with a more rich sound. Especially voices sound much more natural on iPhone and more shouty on the Pixel.
I will keep my Pixel as my secondary phone/fun phone and use it a lot for photography. Hopefully in the future, Google can address some of the issues where iPhone is still superior. Then I am not sure which phone that will be my daily driver.
