GSMArena Team, 04 September 2025

Google Pixel 10 review

6. Alternatives, pros and cons, verdict

Competition

If you are eyeing the Google Pixel 10, you are probably in the market for a compact flagship. In that case, your options are quite limited, especially if you are based in the US. That gives the Pixel 10 an advantage, as there aren't many natural competitors. However, even the limited options out there may actually be worth your time and money.

Pixel 10 Pro vs. Pixel 10

At the time of writing this review, the Pixel 10's price in the US is $799 and €899 in Europe.

The most obvious direct rival across all markets is the Samsung Galaxy S25, which, despite not offering any obvious camera upgrades, seems like the better option when it comes to stills and videos. Samsung's competitor is also faster to charge, slower to discharge, and offers better speakers and performance. Additionally, the S25 undercuts the Pixel 10 by almost $100 in the US and by at least €250 in Europe.

Samsung Galaxy S25 • Apple iPhone 16 • Xiaomi 15

Moving on to the next direct rival - the regular iPhone 16. It's slightly more expensive in Europe, but it costs the same in the US. Of course, the iPhone 16 might be considered an alternative only if you are willing to jump ship to a new smartphone ecosystem. If this is your case, you will be rewarded with superior battery life, better raw performance, a much better camera experience, despite the lack of a dedicated zoom camera, and nicer speakers. The 60Hz display and the absence of a dedicated zoom camera are a bit of a letdown, though.

A more exotic option would be the vanilla Xiaomi 15. It's better than the Pixel 10 in pretty much every way imaginable, and it's about €100-150 cheaper than the Pixel 10.

Google Pixel 10 Pro • Google Pixel 9 • Google Pixel 9 Pro

However, if you are dead-set on Pixels because you love the Pixel experience, especially the software side, you have two alternative options. One would be to spend an additional $200/€150 on the Pixel 10 Pro, which offers a similar user experience but features considerably better camera hardware. Or just go for the Pixel 9 Pro, with roughly the same price tag as the vanilla Pixel 10 and still get a better camera performance.

Pixel 10 pro vs. Pixel 10

Alternatively, you can save a few bucks and settle for last year's Pixel 9, which is arguably a better phone in most regards, and it's also cheaper, priced at around €550. Sure, it's missing a dedicated telephoto camera, but as we already established, the trade-off for a worse main and ultrawide cameras on the Pixel 10 isn't worth it. The Pixel 9 not only had a better camera system but also longer battery life. And with Google's extended software support, the Pixel 9 will remain relevant for years to come.

Verdict

On paper, the Pixel 10 was a nice upgrade over its predecessor with the new chipset, faster charging, larger battery, more versatile camera hardware with a 5x telephoto unit and brighter display. However, our tests and subjective experience show quite the opposite.

Somehow, Google managed to downgrade the Pixel 9 in most regards, except maybe speaker quality and display. Maybe Google was too focused on the software and completely forgot about the hardware? We can only speculate, but the fact of the matter is, the Pixel 10 drifts even further from its competitors and fails to impress in either aspect. We had high hopes for the 5x telephoto camera at least, but its performance is unimpressive and doesn't justify the downgrade in the main and ultrawide cameras.

Pros

Excellent ergonomics and standout design.
One of the brightest OLED panels in town.
Great software experience, Android 16, 7 major OS upgrades.
"Pixelsnap" uses built-in magnets for wireless charging alignment and works with Magsafe too.