iPhone 7 vs. Google Pixel

Our phones have become so ingrained into our lives that many of us consider them to be extra organs. In 2017, it’s impossible to do business without an always-connected, pocket-sized device with us at all times. Today we’re going to take a look at two of the best smartphones money can buy, and see which one comes out on top.

Specs

In terms of specs, the Google Pixel seems to fare better than Apple’s flagship-du-jour. With double the RAM, a PPI (pixels per inch) of 441 to the iPhone’s 326, and Qualcomm’s latest and greatest mobile processor, the Pixel knows how to nicely fill out a spec sheet.

 

	iPhone 7	Google Pixel
Screen Size	1.    7″	5″
Screen Resolution	750×1334 pixels	1080×1920 pixels
Processor	Apple A10 Fusion	Qualcomm Snapdragon 821
RAM	2GB	4GB
Rear Camera	12 megapixel	12.3 megapixel

Design

When you spend so much time with your phone, you need to look and feel good. Both Google and Apple are leaders in consumer tech design, so neither of these phones disappoint.

The Google Pixel is sleek and modern, with a metal body and a two-tone glass panel on the rear. It looks like a professional and stylish device, though it also looks very familiar. Critics have pointed out that the Google Pixel’s design is very heavily influenced by the past three generations of iPhone, though without quite the level of polish that we’ve come to expect.

The Google Pixel is thin and light, though still slightly thicker and heavier than the iPhone. The front of the device is unremarkable; bezels are thin but not impressively so, it has kept its headphone jack, but I feel like that’s only worth mentioning because of what phone it’s being compared to.

Apple, as always, does not disappoint. The iPhone 7 looks like it belongs in a Swedish modern art gallery. It has an aluminium unibody shell, and is a lot thinner and lighter than we had expected from a device made almost entirely out of metal and glass.

The iPhone’s face has been improved upon compared to previous generations as well, with thinner bezels and a less ostentatious home button than we’ve seen in previous years’ iterations. The most controversial aspect of its design is the glaring omission of a headphone jack, which means that no matter how expensive your audio equipment is, none of it will work unless it has Bluetooth connectivity.

Battery Life

When it comes to phones of this size, battery life is never really stellar. The Google Pixel and iPhone 7 have 2770mAh and 1960mAh batteries, respectively. We didn’t put the phones through any strenuous ordeals, and chose to just use them as we would normally would, with brightness generally at around 50% except for when in direct sunlight, which is when we cranked up the screen to 100%.

The iPhone 7, under normal use (i.e. messaging, dealing with emails, making a few calls, periodic social media use and web browsing) will need to be charged at the end of the work day, clocking in at around 15%, and probably won’t survive after work drinks with colleagues off of a single charge.

The Google Pixel is marginally better, averaging around 30-35% at the end of the work day. This one will probably survive a few post-workday drinks (depending on your power settings and screen brightness), though will definitely still need to be charged at bedtime.

Performance

To be quite honest, there isn’t a lot to say here. We know that both of these phones are powerhouses, and that they perform well. I’m not a big believer in benchmark results, as I don’t feel like they accurately reflect real-life performance.

Throughout my time with both phones, I used them to make calls, snap pictures, send messages, respond to emails, use social media, and all the other things that I think the vast majority of us use our phones for. Neither phone experienced any major stuttering while I was using them; and they both performed very well in multitasking situations. I call this one a tie.

Final Impressions

While each phone has their unique pros and cons, I don’t feel like either one really outshined the other. Both of these devices are spectacular, meaning the only real considerations here are OS preference, and price.