Yet another camera comparison (Thumbs up to the Pixel!)

[z28marols1]

So for my own curiosity I just headed down to the beach with several phones in hand and my trusty T5i and took several photos in an attempt to do my own comparison. I compared the iPhone 7 plus, Note 7, Pixel XL, V10 and T5i, all on fully automatic to take out bias in settings. While the T5i took the crown in every picture (duh), the others were quite close. The V10 disappointed me the most with most pictures feeling underexposed and with incorrect white balance. The iPhone usually had the closest color reproduction, although the Pixel beat it in 2 of the pictures I took. The Note 7 surprised me as well since I was so impressed with the camera initially and I found in this outing it over softened several shots, and even though I prefer slightly over saturated colors the Note 7 seemed to be a little over the top when compared directly to the Pixel. And then for the biggest surprise of all: Despite claims and reviews of the Pixel's camera I was still very skeptical of it. I mean, come on, with the previous camera attempts from Nexus phones to go off of, my bar was pretty low. Until I did this comparison. The only camera that beat the Pixels overall quality, indoor and out, was my DSLR. The colors were slightly more saturated than real life, but still rather accurate. In the attached pictures this is highlighted as the Pixel reproduced the buildings actual color and the Note actually fell flat on its face not only in terms of color accuracy, but in details like the power lines that ended up being broken lines compared to the fairly uninterrupted lines the Pixel was able to come up with as well as the fineness of the grass or the pavement in the foreground.

In conclusion this test showed me a couple of things. First, and possibly most importantly, since the Note 7 has been officially taken off the table those of you that are holding out on exchanging it for the Pixel due to concerns about the camera have little or nothing to fear. The Pixel's camera really does live up to the hype. Second, you can't go wrong with any of today's flagship phones for general photography. As always, for truly awesome shots that you want forever and maybe need that professional touch there still isn't a replacement for a true DSLR in a phone, yet, but damn the Pixel is getting it close!

Note 7 :
Pixel :

 

[z28marols1]

In this one the difference in detail is just astounding. The Note 7 does away with a lot of the footprints in the sand whereas the Pixel maintains that detail without feeling too sharp. The white balance is better with the Pixel as is color reproduction.

Note 7:
Pixel:

 

[mightyfacundo]

Panama City Beach? I think I bought towels at that store a couple years ago.

 

[z28marols1]

Close, I'm about an hour west of PCB in Destin.

 

[dmark44]

I was just going to ask if you were in Destin! I recognized that shop! I was there last year first time. All those pics look good overall!

 

[mop26921]

The difference in the detail of the grass and the sand is actually pretty surprising, much more noticeable than other comparisons I've seen. It seems like there's excessive "smoothing" or noise correction on the Samsung.

Don't happen to have a shootout between the pixel and the iphone 7?

 

[mightyfacundo]

Close, I'm about an hour west of PCB in Destin.

I have been to Destin many times. I was probably confused on where the shop was. Thanks. And very nice pics!

 

[billykac]

OP:
Thanks for this!

 

[z28marols1]

The difference in the detail of the grass and the sand is actually pretty surprising, much more noticeable than other comparisons I've seen. It seems like there's excessive "smoothing" or noise correction on the Samsung.

Don't happen to have a shootout between the pixel and the iphone 7?

I do!

On this one you can see the iPhone won on color accuracy, but details still go to the Pixel. The iPhone also seemed to generate a lot more noise in the gradients of blue in the sky.

iPhone 7 Plus:
Pixel XL:

And here is the iPhones shot of the one I posted earlier

 

[belodion]

The comparison here is interesting too, though not a thorough one:
http://allaboutwindowsphone.com/features/item/21787_PureView_vs_the_Pixel_the_808_.php

Sent from mTalk

 

[z28marols1]

I only did one low light shot for now, but this set follows the trend that the earlier shots have shown. The Note 7 is definitely softer to the point of losing detail, yet somehow manages to make the fur look over sharp and over processed. The Pixel keeps the detail as shown in the texture in the leather. The colors in real life are actually in between the two, if closer to the Pixel.

Note 7:
Pixel:

 

[ihbsbA]

I only did one low light shot for now, but this set follows the trend that the earlier shots have shown. The Note 7 is definitely softer to the point of losing detail, yet somehow manages to make the fur look over sharp and over processed. The Pixel keeps the detail as shown in the texture in the leather. The colors in real life are actually in between the two, if closer to the Pixel.

Note 7:View attachment 243370
Pixel: View attachment 243371

Links are broken....

 

[Jason Stroud1]

Close, I'm about an hour west of PCB in Destin.

Awesome, we just came back from Destin for our honeymoon

 

[jephanie]

The comparison here is interesting too, though not a thorough one:
PureView vs the Pixel: the 808, Lumia 950/1020 vs the Google Pixel

Sent from mTalk

I think the person who did this comparison and provided their ratings is either a paid hack for Nokia or is a complete moron. The Pixel results look better in better than half of the selected photos than any of the others.

 

[z28marols1]

Weird, I did them the same way as the others. I redid it to see if it would fix it...

 

[SteelGator]

I think the person who did this comparison and provided their ratings is either a paid hack for Nokia or is a complete moron. The Pixel results look better in better than half of the selected photos than any of the others.

I just read this and looked at the photos and I am not sure what the author was drinking. Pixel was clearly better in most of the shots, often by a wide margin.

 

[belodion]

I think the person who did this comparison and provided their ratings is either a paid hack for Nokia or is a complete moron. The Pixel results look better in better than half of the selected photos than any of the others.

Oh I never pay any attention to an author's conclusions and judgments, but it was interesting to see the pics. The Pixel camera has been much-hyped, and as a 1020 user I've been eager to know how it would compare with the latter in respect of croppability and artefacts. That brief comparison is the only one I've been able to find so far. With any new phone, I tend to use the 1020 as the standard by reference to which others can be judged, but in almost all online reviews, it is no longer considered....nor in fact very often are any of the other high-end Lumias.

 

[mop26921]

I do!

On this one you can see the iPhone won on color accuracy, but details still go to the Pixel. The iPhone also seemed to generate a lot more noise in the gradients of blue in the sky.

iPhone 7 Plus: View attachment 243356
Pixel XL: View attachment 243357

And here is the iPhones shot of the one I posted earlier
View attachment 243358

Thanks!

I can see what mean about color accuracy. If I didn't know better I'd say the pixel's photo is very slightly underexposed compared to the Iphone.
Still it's a great shot, especially considering the nexus phones

 

[Bankz111]

Google pixel: The best smartphone camera of all time. The phone basically smokes the Note7/S7 family in detail, dynamic range and color in almost every way and then some.

 

[cyanogenmod]

Google pixel: The best smartphone camera of all time. The phone basically smokes the Note7/S7 family in detail, dynamic range and color in almost every way and then some.

We can argue about that all day long and there won't be any good outcome. That is by far the most inaccurate thing I've heard today... do you have all the devices to test? Have you personally tried them out yourself? Have you watched several different detailed reviews? What makes you say something like that? Your love foe the Pixel? Perhaps you are fond of the Pixel and not other devices and may I ask why? Come on man... you can't just make statements like that and expect them to go unnoticed.