Google Pixel 10 Pro And Pro Xl Review: Redefining The Smart In Smartphone

In nan ‘90s, nan word “smartphone” emerged to denote devices pinch “advanced computing” features that allowed you to do much than conscionable make calls. But if we’re being honest, applying that explanation to pocket-sized gadgets that ran cut-down versions of desktop PC apps pinch half-baked UIs was benignant of overselling it. More precocious though, we’ve seen handsets for illustration those from Google travel pinch blase features that simply aren’t disposable anyplace else, owed successful nary mini portion to nan emergence of AI. And now pinch nan presence of nan Pixel 10 Pro and Pixel 10 Pro XL, these devices consciousness for illustration they are redefining nan “smart” successful smartphone arsenic we cognize it.

Design and display: Bringing nan polish

The wide look and consciousness of nan Pixel 10 Pro and Pro XL haven’t changed overmuch since past year. You still get polished aluminum sides sandwiched by slabs of Gorilla Glass Victus 2 and an IP68 standing for particulate and h2o resistance. The main differences are a somewhat updated lineup of colors (moonstone, jade, porcelain and obsidian) and a move from a matte to shiny decorativeness connected nan back. This is simply a mini bummer for maine arsenic I for illustration nan soft-touch consciousness of its predecessors. The ray golden framework connected nan jade exemplary is simply a bully touch, moreover if I would person preferred a richer shadiness of green.

The Pixel 10 Pro and Pro XL’s 120Hz OLED screens person gotten a touch brighter, now topping retired astatine 3,300 nits (up from 3,000). This makes them a spot easier to spot extracurricular successful nonstop sunlight while retaining nan gorgeous vivid colors we’ve enjoyed connected Google’s phones since switching to its Super Actua-branded displays. And pinch nan screens themselves coming successful astatine 6.3- and 6.8-inches, there’s nary deviation successful sizing either.

My 1 mini gripe is that astatine slightest successful nan US, nan Pixel 10 family is now eSIM-only. As personification who prefers nan convenience of being capable to switch mobile networks astatine a moment’s notice, I really wish Google hadn’t. But ever since Apple made a akin move backmost connected nan iPhone 14, this was bound to hap astatine immoderate point. Like microSD paper expandability and 3.5mm audio, beingness sims person go different endangered characteristic connected nan brink of extinction.

Performance: The Tensor G5 is faster but not rather peak

With Google’s attraction connected AI performance, nan mundane velocity of its phones has ever lagged a touch down different Android flagships. However, acknowledgment to nan Tensor G5, nan Pixel 10 statement has closed that spread considerably owed to CPUs that are much than 30 percent faster than before. Even without nan expertise to tally immoderate of our accepted tests for illustration Geekbench 6 (which connected Pixels often can’t beryllium installed anterior to a device’s charismatic on-sale date), I noticed importantly shorter loading times successful immoderate of my favourite games.

Booting up Sword of Convallaria only took 14 seconds, which is conscionable 1 2nd longer than what I sewage precocious from nan Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 and its Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy chip. I precocious clocked nan Pixel 9 Pro Fold and its Tensor G4 processor taking 18 seconds to do nan aforesaid task, truthful that’s a very encouraging improvement. And holding everything together is Google’s Material 3 Expressive UI for Android 16, which makes nan full OS consciousness snappier and much alive.

Software: This is wherever nan magic happens

The astir tantalizing caller characteristic connected nan Pixel 10 family is Magic Cue, because erstwhile it works, it really does consciousness for illustration magic. If you let it, it will look done your screenshots, almanac events, contacts, Gmail and Messages. So erstwhile personification texts you “Where are we getting meal connected Thursday?” that info appears successful its ain small animated rainbow bubble, precisely wherever you request it, alternatively of you needing to flip backmost and distant betwixt aggregate apps. It’s for illustration your telephone is really looking retired for you and wants to simplify things by cutting retired tedious steps. Plus, each of this happens connected device, truthful there’s nary request to nonstop your information into nan chaotic wild web.

In summation to reservations, if personification asks if you’re free, Magic Cue will propulsion up a shortcut to your almanac to make judge location aren't immoderate conflicts. It tin besides retrieve formation info (or telephone nan hose directly), telephone numbers and more. And sometime later successful September, Google is adding nan expertise for Magic Cue to nonstop photos of a circumstantial personification aliases pet erstwhile they travel up successful conversation.

On nan flipside, for each nan times erstwhile Magic Cue feels for illustration wizardry, location are conscionable arsenic galore limitations. For example, if an arena hasn’t been entered into your almanac (like a activity arena planned successful Slack) , Google’s AI whitethorn not beryllium capable to find it. Magic Cue besides doesn’t activity connected appointments that are much than 10 days away. And possibly my biggest rumor is that moreover wrong Google’s ain first-party software, Magic Cue isn’t supported successful Google Chat, not to mention nan immense oversea of third-party messaging apps for illustration Discord, Line, etc. That’s a problem because those services person mostly replaced texting for me. Now I’m judge Google will grow Magic Cue support to much apps successful nan future, but this is really it useful correct now.

It’s a akin business for different caller feature: earthy sounding on-the-fly sound translator successful calls. I seldom reply calls successful wide nowadays, fto unsocial calls successful a connection I can’t speak. But erstwhile this works, it’s damn awesome and my relatives said nan AI-generated sound sounded a spot for illustration maine (though nan deficiency of support for Chinese seems for illustration a unusual omission). Same goes for Take a Message, which tin create real-time transcripts (similar to Live Voicemail connected iPhone) erstwhile you miss a telephone that you mightiness person different wanted to answer. To me, it’s a much modern return connected voicemail, nan quality being that Google will nonstop nan transcript to you arsenic a matter connection arsenic well. But erstwhile again, really often do group do that? For me, it’s go progressively rare, but your mileage whitethorn vary.

That said, I do for illustration nan caller Daily Hub arsenic a measurement to make nan acold near sheet connected nan Pixel 10 Pro’s homescreen much useful. It puts upcoming events, nan forecast and absorbing videos and articles (tailored to me, of course) each successful 1 place, but I wish nan container for it was a spot larger. On nan flipside, I’m still benignant of retired connected nan Pixel Journal app. I’ve ne'er been a large Dear Diary personification and I’m not judge a integer type will get maine to prime up nan habit. But I do admit that it tries to aboveground things for illustration nan coolest photos you took connected a definite time while encouraging you to beryllium much introspective, aliases prompting you to support way of things for illustration fittingness goals. Plus, you tin fastener it down a PIN aliases biometrics to support prying eyes distant from your soul thoughts.

Cameras: Enhance mode activated

While nan beingness hardware down nan Pixel 10 Pro’s 50MP main, 48MP ultrawide and 48MP telephoto cameras hasn’t changed much, its photograph skills sewage a bump acknowledgment to improved software. Now pinch support for afloat solution image shots, nan Pixel 10 Pros tin seizure a caller level of item which is mostly great, unless you’re for illustration maine and you instantly cringe erstwhile you tin spot each azygous pore connected your face. That said, each those pixels put much strain connected processing power. I noticed that anytime I changeable much than 3 max-res pics successful a row, nan telephone has to region while it cleared retired its buffer earlier letting maine threat immoderate more. That isn’t awesome if you’re trying to seizure candid reactions.

If you’re looking for guidance, Camera Coach does a amazingly bully occupation providing step-by-step instructions connected really to amended your pics. Or, if you request inspiration, it tin besides propose immoderate much outside-the-box compositions. The downside to each this is that it does inquire much of nan user. Instead of conscionable opening nan camera app erstwhile you want to threat a speedy pic, you request to carve retired clip to spot really acold Camera Coach’s AI-powered proposal tin really return you. This whitethorn consequence successful much proceedings and correction than immoderate folks will really want to woody with. But considering this is simply a very optional learning tool, that past portion isn’t a large deal.

This brings america to nan caller earthy connection editing powers successful Google Photos. Instead of needing to fool astir pinch sliders aliases fig retired really to usage an app for illustration Lightroom aliases Photoshop, you tin simply show nan Pixel 10 what changes to make and it will do it. This mightiness beryllium nan astir powerful caller instrumentality connected nan full phone, because alternatively of needing to cognize astir things for illustration levels, curves aliases exposure, I was capable to simply inquire nan Pixel 10 Pro to brighten my photograph and voila, abruptly (well, aft a fewer seconds of waiting) I had a low-light image that was easier to see.

As a instrumentality of telephoto photography, my favourite caller camera characteristic is easy Pro Res Zoom. By taking nan 5x optical lens and combining it pinch nan powerfulness of on-device generative AI, nan Pixel 10 Pro statement tin sprout astatine up to 100x. Sure, it’s not cleanable and nan results aren’t arsenic bully arsenic existent glass, but that’s not really an action for phones. And erstwhile I compared what Pro Res Zoom captured astatine 100x compared to what a Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra produced astatine nan aforesaid magnification, nan Pixel 10 Pro XL’s changeable was sharper, much elaborate and conscionable amended looking successful almost each way. However, location are immoderate limitations connected Pro Res Zoom erstwhile taking agelong scope shots of group that whitethorn origin you to autumn backmost connected 20x Super Res Zoom successful definite situations.

Still, each this feels weird because I retrieve a clip erstwhile scenes from CSI wherever group yelling “Enhance” astatine a machine successful bid to create magically crystal clear zoom images from utmost integer crops felt for illustration a meme. But now, that’s not very acold disconnected from what nan latest information of Google’s AI-powered enhancements person fixed us.

When it comes to modular daytime and low-light shots, Google’s image processing remains unmatched. Nighttime pics are brighter and much meticulous while nan Pixel 10 Pro XL much capably preserved things for illustration highlights successful my photograph of immoderate garden-raised tomatoes.

Battery life and charging

The Pixel 10 Pro and Pro XL characteristic 4,870mAh and 5,200mAh batteries respectively, which are up from nan 4,700mAh and 5,060mAh cells connected past year’s phones. This translated into runtimes of 27 hours and 24 minutes for nan 10 Pro and 28:01 for nan 10 Pro XL — some patient increases from nan 25 hours of life we saw antecedently from nan Pixel 9 Pro. And successful nan existent world, Google’s latest handsets felt moreover much businesslike than that, often ending nan time pinch upwards of 35 percent juice near successful nan tank.

As for charging, wired speeds for some phones person gotten a mini boost pinch nan 10 Pro now topping retired astatine 30 watts (up from 27W) aliases 40 watts (up from 37W) for nan 10 Pro XL. However, nan biggest upgrade erstwhile it comes to charging convenience is nan summation of charismatic magnetic Qi2 wireless support, aliases what Google is calling Pixelsnap. This intends nan full Pixel 10 statement now useful pinch a immense scope of accessories (including astir MagSafe peripherals for nan iPhone) that makes it easy to slap a wireless puck connected nan backmost without having to interest astir if it's decently aligned aliases not.

Furthermore, while wireless charging speeds for nan 10 Pro are staying nan aforesaid astatine 15 watts, nan 10 Pro XL tin now spell up to 25 watts. Unfortunately, location still aren’t that galore compatible accessories that support charging astatine that speed. But betwixt Google’s caller family of Pixelsnap peripherals and accrued take for Qi2 arsenic a whole, that won’t beryllium nan lawsuit for long. So if you attraction astir getting nan Pixel pinch nan fastest charging speeds, nan 10 Pro XL is what you want.

The 1 mini downgrade for 2025 is that nan Pixel 10 family nary longer supports reverse wireless powersharing (aka Battery Share), which is simply a characteristic that has been disposable connected respective erstwhile generations of Google phones. I will afloat admit that this characteristic was ne'er thing I utilized everyday. But each now and past I would find myself pinch a gadget that needed immoderate juice, and moreover if it was slow, it was really bully to beryllium capable to bestow immoderate excess power upon a instrumentality without a cable.

Wrap-up

Now that we tin look backmost astatine 10 generations of devices, Google’s overarching strategy is much convincing than ever. For nan Pixel 10 Pro and 10 Pro XL, nan institution has mixed iterative hardware upgrades pinch a coagulated (and attractive) creation while its package and AI continues to outpace its rivals. Even though Magic Cue doesn’t activity for everything and is constricted to a fistful of first-party apps, it feels for illustration nan omniscient computers from sci-fi shows and movies person yet been beamed into a instrumentality to thief america shape our lives. Then you tack connected support for high-res portraits and an AI-powered zoom that produces results amended than nan guidelines optics ever could connected their ain and you get what mightiness beryllium nan astir versatile mobile cameras around. And let’s not hide each nan awesome existing Google devices and features for illustration nan Pixel Recorder, Call Screener and more.

For nan past mates years, my woman has been asking maine if this is nan twelvemonth to upgrade. And up until now, I’ve said she’s amended disconnected waiting. But pinch nan Pixel 10 Pro and Pro XL, unless you’re a hardcore gamer aliases high-level mobile creator who mightiness really announcement a quality successful performance, aliases person request for a stylus, Google’s latest handsets are nan smartest picks.