Question Opinions please - Samsung or Pixel?

[ShaggyKids]

HI there,

Anyone have hands on experience opinions between Samsung and Pixel? I've often thought of trying a Pixel but since phones are so expensive I can't just pick up a Pixel to try it out. I'm a died in the wool Samsung fan who gave up Samsung awhile back for financial reasons for a much less costly Motorola. It's an ok phone but I really miss Samsung's camera quality (pics) and screen quality. Can anyone comment with a camera/screen comparison between the two?

I also see Pixel isn't a whole lot cheaper than Samsung, I imagined a much less costly phone in the Pixel. I'm currently considering the Samsung S25 Ultra. Thanks!

Deb

 

[rvbfan]

I tagged @mustang7757 he owns both.
He'd be a good one to ask.

 

[B. Diddy]

Keep in mind that the Pixel 9a is also very capable but much cheaper option, along the lines of Samsung's Galaxy A line, but I think a better deal: https://www.phonearena.com/reviews/google-pixel-9a-vs-pixel-9_id6788

 

[mustang7757]

Pixels
*Best camera for me
*Updates before other manufacturers

*Not great modems for connectivity although I don't have issues in my user case.

Samsung
*Hardware is top notch
*Camera hit or miss but zoom is good and videos, then you have pro mode .

* Updates are getting better but we see with time.

* Modem are best out there for connectivity

* Better battery life
* More features


*Both are great in everyday tasks, open and close apps.

*Storage Samsung
* Resale value or trade-in/Samsung

*Apps to use cross platform or Web/Google

 

[mustang7757]

If you get a budget phone from Samsung or Google, Google without hesitation

 

[ShaggyKids]

Pixels

*Not great modems for connectivity although I don't have issues in my user case.

Samsung

* Modem are best out there for connectivity

* Better battery life
* More features
*Storage Samsung and * Resale value or trade-in/Samsung

Perfect! This is great info for me. I'm hoping modem also = hotspot because a hotspot is all I have to get Internet out here in the country. Thank you!

 

[Alice- Bennett]

For me, pixel is better than samsung!

 

[Bkdodger1]

I enjoy both and never had any reception issues with my Pixel. You can't go wrong with the Samsung phone

 

[Rukbat]

Perfect! This is great info for me. I'm hoping modem also = hotspot because a hotspot is all I have to get Internet out here in the country. Thank you!

Modem = cellphone (voice/SMS/data), but I haven't found a dead spot yet with a Pixel 8. (And the camera is a lot better than Samsung.)

 

[VidJunky]

Since cost is a factor for many of us, would you consider the S24U? It still has 6 years~6 OS updates left and has a few extra features the S25 took away. And if your not huge into AI the stuff they added wouldn't be missed since most of what they added was AI features. I was a little surprised no one else mentioned this.

You didn't say what Pixel you might consider but I bet there's a YouTube video out there comparing which ever two you were considering since they compare everything to both of these brands even much older stuff to brand new devices.

IDK, just my 2 cents. Well for as long as we have pennies to share.

 

[frosty]

OneUI on samsung is pretty good in my experience and has had a lot more features than the newest pixel back when I had samsung. So saying that pixel has the newest software isn't the full story.. I'd say samsung is better for that.. newer pixels may be supported longer too, so that's worth mentioning.

With connectivity, if you use eduroam... that won't work on the pixel or motorola phones. Any other phone works last time I talked with support desk (and based on testing several android phones). Pixel seems to disconnect from wifi more frequently also for some reason.

Also "better battery life" might depend on the processor. I've heard multiple reports that samsung phones with exynos have a worse battery life.

Also if you care about unlocking the bootloader, snapdragon phones with galaxy s10 or newer are practically impossible to unlock, at least with north american snapdragon samsung phones. exynos is much easier to to unlock. Pixels are easiest to unlock apparently, if you paid off the phone.

 

[edubfromktown]

Pixels
*Best camera for me
*Updates before other manufacturers

*Not great modems for connectivity although I don't have issues in my user case.

Samsung
*Hardware is top notch
*Camera hit or miss but zoom is good and videos, then you have pro mode .

* Updates are getting better but we see with time.

* Modem are best out there for connectivity

* Better battery life
* More features


*Both are great in everyday tasks, open and close apps.

*Storage Samsung
* Resale value or trade-in/Samsung

*Apps to use cross platform or Web/Google

100% agree.

I'll add:

I've used Galaxy S23+, S24+ and now S25 Ultra (daily driver), OnePlus (8T was the last) and also Pixel phones.

All three are excellent options however when it comes to OneUI features and software extras, Samsung is the top dog. I'd also say OnePlus' OxygenOS is also quite good, along with superiority over Pixel in terms of quality hardware bits.

The most important for me is sort of boring lol

Knox Secure Folder is far ahead of Pixel's Private Space which has the severe limitation of only working with Pixel launcher. I've used Nova launcher for a long time so that I can easily switch between Android mobile platforms and maintain the same UI experience. Lack of compatibility with other launchers made Pixel Private Space less of a viable option for my needs.

The Samsung extras Camera Assistant, Good Guard, Good Lock, NotiStar and Wonderland all have some nice enhancements as well.

 

[Joshua Luther1]

I’m in the same boat. I have used Pixels and Samsung. My last phone of each were the S23U and Pixel 7 Pro. I enjoyed both. Both had great software but Samsung obviously has the better hardware by far. If the Pixel were priced more on the affordable side, I’d likely get the Pixel 10 Pro xl this year. But with it being in the same price range and Samsung, it’s hard to pay the same for less software features. Plus, you can make One UI look like a Pixel.

I’m on an iPhone 15PM for another 4 months until I can switch phones on Verizon. It’s been a good phone and I’m glad I gave it 1 1/2 years but I’m ready to switch back. I’ll likely wait until the S26 is released but there could be a possibility that Samsung will move their S phones to Exynos chips. The Flip 7 has an exynos. Marques touched on this in his first impression video today that it might be a possibility.

My biggest complaint is the cell signal strength on my iPhone 15PM. Inside of my house, it will frequently drop cell signal and it will cause me to miss calls and texts. Even though I have WiFi calling on. If Samsung has better modems in them than Google Pixels, then that’s another reason why I’m better off switching to Samsung.