Google Pixel 10, Pixel 10 Pro & Pixel 10 Pro XL review: The smartest in the room, but...

Note: This article was first published on 9 September 2025.

When Google makes a move, the world sits and takes notes. Be it their breakneck speed towards useful AI for the masses, their search algorithms, or even their Pixel devices.

Now, the Pixel phones don’t quite make a splash in the same way Samsung or Apple does, nor do they always have big benchmark numbers to boast. Nonetheless, they set the consumer expectations for all new Android handsets to come, especially when it comes to Google showcasing its software magic and Gemini.

That’s precisely what we’re getting with the new Pixel 10 series devices, with three new variants: the base Pixel 10, the souped-up Pixel 10 Pro with higher pixel density, greater 1-120Hz refresh rate range, and higher peak brightness, capped off with the upsized Pixel 10 Pro XL that has an even bigger display and battery.

Tangible upgrades include the Google Tensor G5 chip, brighter displays, and the new Qi2 wireless compatibility with PixelSnap magnetic accessories. Specifically for the base Pixel 10 is an added lower-specced but still capable 10.8MP telephoto camera with 5x optical zoom, which its predecessor did not have.

New hardware is always welcome, but they are not the star of the new phones. The highlights of the Pixel 10 series are its (mostly) new AI smarts and features. Many well-loved ones are now invoked more seamlessly, and Google sprinkled a semi-agentic element to their inter-app AI compatibility, called Magic Cue. Don’t miss out on our full story for the details.

With all three Pixel 10 models not too far apart, we decided to review all three versions and compare them in this review. Will any of them stand out, entice existing Pixel users to step up or tempt new people into joining the Pixel gang? We find out.

First Encounters

The Pixel 10 series brings us flat sides that curve slightly around the edges with its iconic Camera Bar on the rear. Google used matte glass for the rear of the Pro models, and a glossy glass back for the base Pixel 10. Colours aside, it’s hard to tell apart from the previous Pixel 9 series by looking. That’s even if you have both generations side by side.

Go deeper into the phones, and you’ll also notice how the internals are oh-so-slightly different as well.

You get a peak brightness upgrade on Pixel 10 (now at 3,000 nits vs. the previous 2,700 nits), which goes even brighter on the Pro models (3,300 nits vs. the 3,000 nits). The OLED displays are fantastic with great colours, and the boosted brightness improves legibility under the sun.

Video content playback was smooth and rarely an issue, thanks to the phones’ 120Hz refresh rates. Web browsing was also expectedly fluid, as is gaming, although the latter’s 120Hz is game-dependent.

Then, there are also all-around small upgrades, like Bluetooth 6.0 for all models, Android 16 out of the box, and Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2 for front and back protection. We also like how it’s consistently IP68-rated against dust and water for added assurance of carefree usage. (Read more about what the rating means here.)

All three phones handle exactly as you’d expect. There was no lag or stuttering during our test. The phones generally ran cool even when playing intensive games or photo editing. This is despite the base Pixel 10 getting less RAM at 12GB, while the Pro models get 16GB. While the difference in RAM availability (once you cross double-digit territory) is hardly measurable in experience, we also believe the difference is further negated as all the phones use the latest LPDDR5X RAM technology. 

One thing to note is that all three phones are putting on the pounds. Pixel 10 tacked on an extra 6g (now at 204g) while the Pixel 10 Pro XL ballooned to 232g, up from the previous 221g.

During regular use, the slight weight gain doesn’t weigh me down, especially since the trade-offs are perks like brighter displays, larger batteries, and more. Personally, I found myself playing games on the Pro XL more often, while I preferred to use the Pixel 10 or the Pixel 10 Pro for normal day-to-day browsing, as they didn’t cause as much arm fatigue during a doomscrolling session. It’s clear that choosing between the XL and non-XL sizes relies more on needs than specs.

Putting the “smart” in smartphone

The biggest new feature is Magic Cue, and that’s the one that we were most excited for. The lure of effortlessly sending over information without having to dig through your personal information like a filing cabinet sounds fantastic on paper. For example, I don’t have to go and search through my email for my flight itinerary every time my parents ask me for details. Magic Cue is supposed to do that hard work and serve it up to my messaging app, without having to open the Gmail, search, and type it out.

Unfortunately, that’s not quite how it worked during testing. I got my family member to text me a variety of questions: “Where are you going for dinner tonight?”, “Are you free for dinner tonight?”, “What time is your flight on 1 September?” and many more intrusive ones.

Magic Cue couldn’t give responses for any of them despite having the relevant Google Calendar entries, emails, and bookings. In their place was a flaccid “Check Calendar” button instead of a location or time.

As the screenshots in this section show, we did our best to give it all the tools it need to cue us magically. It’s a little unfortunate, but since Google is backing this feature, we think Magic Cue will only get better over time when the phone is used more. 

Supposedly, the feature is able to pull data from first-party sources like Gmail, Calendar, Notes, Messages and more, but we’re also eagerly awaiting the day when Google allows for third-party app integrations. That’s double the work Google needs to put into Magic Cue.

Fortunately, Voice Translate is much better, helping to translate foreign language speakers into your preferred one.

I tested this out by making a call to a multilingual Japanese speaker (N2-certified) to converse with me, and I’m happy to report that the translation went quite well. However, theres a mild lag when the translation kicks in. 

Google said the feature works with English, Spanish, German, Japanese, Italian, French, Portuguese, Swedish, Russian, Indonesian, and Hindi. Chinese is conspicuously missing from this list. Hopefully, it’ll get added in soon, along with more Asian languages, like Korean.

We were also really looking forward to the built-in Ask Photos feature that we saw during the livestream, where you can ask your phone to edit images for you via text prompts. It’s not currently available unless you’re in the U.S., so we couldn’t test it either.

However, Gemini Live works well with camera and screen sharing. It first debuted a few months back on Samsung devices, too.

Gemini Live consistently picked out details from the scene, and was able to consult the Internet when asked about the ingredients for a herbal throat lozenge.

Additionally, there’s also Camera Coach, Google’s new camera assist feature that aims to help you take better photos with Pixel phones.

All you need to do is tap on the camera button with a sparkle motif (top right of the native camera app). When pointing the camera at your subject, the phone will give you additional shooting guidance. The coaching ranges from angles, to lighting, and even pose changes if your subject is a human. 

It’s been a few generations of AI-powered Pixel, and Google has chosen well on the ones that require greater investment. We continue to have high hopes for Google’s new AI features.

Imaging Performance

The base Pixel 10 had its camera array see a detailed refresh. It has three shooters now, featuring a new 48MP main camera, a 10.8MP telephoto lens with 5x optical zoom (for the first time), and a 13MP ultrawide camera.

The cameras for the Pixel 10 Pro and Pixel 10 Pro XL seem identical to the cameras on the Pixel 9 Pro devices, so there’s little need to discuss them.

With three phones to test, let’s quickly review sample images to gather our thoughts for the series.

Pixel 10 imaging samples

The Pixel 10’s cameras are excellent, with accurate colours and plenty of detail.

The telephoto camera supports 5x optical zoom, which is surprising since most base models only have a 3x optical zoom (like the Samsung Galaxy S25), or don’t even have a telephoto lens (like the iPhone 16). 

Google really levelled up the base model nicely, at least for the photography department.

Pixel 10 Pro imaging samples

The Pixel 10 Pro and 10 Pro XL’s cameras are identical, and the images out of these Pro models look very similar to the base Pixel 10’s. Clearly, the Pixel’s software is doing a lot of the heavy lifting.

We tested out the new 100x Super Pro Res Zoom, and while it works fine to avoid blurry images, the AI models falter when there is text involved. 

Check out the 100x zoom photos and you’ll notice that the text of the label next to the bottle of Knob Creek is blending together, and the “proof” in “100 proof” is now gibberish.

Pixel 10 Pro XL imaging samples

Night Sight works perfectly on all three models, with dark scenes brightened up while bright signboards are generally well-exposed and not blown out.

Putting it plainly, the base Pixel 10 exceeded our expectations, while Pro and Pro XL matched them. The AI tuning is aggressive, but that’s pretty much par for the course with Android phones these days.

Benchmark Performance

The phones are equipped with Google’s latest Tensor G5 system on chip (SoC), which is built by TSMC on a 3nm process. Although we expect a performance boost relative to the Tensor G4, based on our past experiences with Google’s advancements, it’s unlikely that it can rival the lead in the field of mobile processors - Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite.

Since we have three phones to compare, we’ll do two sets of benchmark graphs for greater clarity. To find out more about the tests we conduct and what they relate to, we’ve jotted them down here.

• The first compares the Pixel 10 devices against the Pixel 9 series. This tells us the generational uplift one gets.
• In the second comparison, the Pixel 10 series is pitted against modern flagship equivalents from other brands.

The Tensor G5 definitely provides a bit more power compared to the Pixel 9 series’ Tensor G4, but the SoC still can’t match up to the competition, offering fairly poor returns in synthetic performance despite sharing the same grade as the Ultra and Pro phones of the world.

While the benchmark numbers don’t look great, fortunately, the Pixel 10 series has proven itself to run smoothly during everyday usage, which is excellent if you’re not chasing numbers.

Battery Life

Our battery benchmark uses PCMark for Android’s Work 3.0 Battery Life, with results shown in minutes. This controlled benchmark simulates real-world usage, such as web and social media browsing, video and photo editing, parsing data with various file formats, writing, and more. 

First set of charts are comparing against older Pixels, while the second compares to its rivals.

The Pixel 10 devices has mediocre uptime, seeing a mere ~7.3% greater uptime (on average) against phones with twice the raw power for CPU and GPU. It’s still a mild increase from its previous Pixel 9 series, so it get a passing grade.

Charging received bigger upgrades, with top speeds bumped up across the board. The Pixel 10 and Pixel 10 Pro now get 30W wired, while the Pixel 10 Pro XL gets a boost to 45W wired charging.

All three phones support Qi2 wireless charging, with the Pixel 10 and Pixel 10 Pro getting 15W while the Pixel 10 Pro XL gets Qi2 25W wireless charging speeds (Qi2.2).

Conclusion

Google might not have the flashiest hardware updates, but there’s no denying that it put painstaking effort into elevating software features on the Pixel 10 series.

Despite AI gimmicks like Veo 3’s AI video generation, Google’s general usability upgrades improve user experiences. It goes beyond the perks you see on other Android brands with cookie-cutter parts. Some areas, like Magic Cue, are still a work-in-progress, but the time-tested fundamentals like photography features (e.g. Camera Coach) are ready right out of the box.

Even if Pixels never get ultra-fast processors, we’re pleased with such attention to the phones’ software. What it lacks in raw power, Google makes up for it by translating that power into perks that uplift its users’ experience. By now, it’s probably clear that the average Pixel user or fan is the type who isn’t fussed about specs and prefers being well-served by smart shortcuts, tools, and experiences done right (or at least will come to pass when the features mature).

Choosing the right Pixel ultimately comes down to a preferred size and camera functionality, with trade-offs in battery uptime. Here’s our quick recommendation:-

• Pixel 10: If you need the most cost-effective model of the lot. It is reasonably sized and has the longest battery life among the three.
• Pixel 10 Pro: If you need to step up to the best camera kit offered by Google. Display quality upgrades and more RAM are nice side perks, too.
• Pixel 10 Pro XL: You need a large screen, which also lends well to heavy media consumption and gaming. Comes with even faster wired and wireless charging rates than the other two models.

It also helps that Pixel prices barely changed. The Pixel 10, Pixel 10 Pro and Pixel 10 Pro XL all start at the same price and storage as the Pixel 9 series equivalents. Here then is our detailed breakdown on how we’re rating all three devices:-

Don’t get us wrong, though: it’s still pricey (especially for the storage tier offered), but at least you’re paying for an Android so optimised, with great build quality and useful software perks. It’s likely the smartest device in the room, but it relies on a smarter owner to make full use of it.

Now, please bring Ask Photos to Singapore, Google. 

• The Pixel 10 starts at S$1,199 (128GB) in four colours (Frost, Indigo, Lemongrass, Obsidian).
• The Pixel 10 Pro starts at S$1,459 (128GB) in Jade, Moonstone, Obsidian, and Porcelain.
• The Pixel 10 Pro XL starts at S$1,739 (256GB) in Jade, Moonstone, Obsidian, and Porcelain.

All three models are available on Google Store, Amazon SG, Shopee, Lazada, Best Denki, COURTS, Harvey Norman, Singtel, and Metapod.

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