iPhone 14 Pro vs. Google Pixel 7 Pro camera battle is unbelievably close - Digital Trends

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The iPhone 14 Pro and Google Pixel 7 Pro are — without a uncertainty — 2 of 2022’s astir susceptible smartphones. Each 1 has a striking design, an fantabulous display, snappy performance, and robust bundle features. But it’s the cameras that marque these phones really interesting.

Comparing iPhone and Pixel cameras is ever fascinating, and this year, that’s much existent than ever. The iPhone 14 Pro ushers successful large hardware upgrades, the Pixel 7 Pro focuses connected subtle refinements, and the extremity effect is simply a camera examination that’s brutal to the precise end.

iPhone 14 Pro vs. Pixel 7 Pro: camera specs

As with immoderate bully camera comparison, our archetypal measurement is to look astatine the specs we’re dealing with. On the iPhone 14 Pro, Apple provides a 48-megapixel main camera with an f/1.78 aperture and its sensor-shift stabilization tech. It’s joined by a 12MP ultrawide camera with a 120-degree field-of-view, on with a 12MP telephoto camera (capable of up to 3x optical zoom). Rounding things retired is simply a 12MP selfie camera with an f/1.9 aperture and autofocus.

Shifting to the Google Pixel 7 Pro, you’ll find a 50MP main camera with an f/1.85 aperture. There’s besides a 12MP ultrawide camera with a 125.8-degree FoV, a 48MP telephoto camera with up to 5x optical zoom, and a fixed absorption 10.8MP selfie camera with an f/2.2 aperture.

In summation to the camera hardware, the iPhone 14 Pro and Pixel 7 Pro besides bring antithetic approaches to bundle features for their respective camera setups. The iPhone 14 Pro supports Photographic Styles, truthful you tin easy power up the look of your photos connected the fly. It besides has Apple ProRAW for anyone looking to instrumentality their shots into a photograph exertion and play astir with them. The Pixel 7 Pro puts its accent connected AI-powered editing features. Magic Eraser allows you to rapidly fell photobombers, Camouflage removes unwanted pops of color, and the caller Photo Unblur instrumentality helps sharpen and refocus old, shaky pictures successful Google Photos.

iPhone 14 Pro vs. Pixel 7 Pro: main camera

Of course, specs and features are conscionable a tiny portion of the story. What truly matters is what photos from the iPhone 14 Pro and Pixel 7 Pro really look like. Starting with the main camera connected each phone, we person a challenging presumption of the mounting prima against the Manhattan skyline.

Photo of the Manhattan skyline astatine sunset, taken with the iPhone 14 Pro.

Photo of Manhattan astatine sunset, taken with the Pixel 7 Pro.

Looking straight astatine the sun, some the iPhone 14 Pro and Pixel 7 Pro show a greenish orb implicit the h2o and overexpose the sunlight (as you’d expect). But the iPhone 14 Pro does a overmuch amended occupation with the opposition levels. The shadiness from the seat is darker, the entity is bluer, and the prima has a heavy orangish hue to it. The Pixel 7 Pro’s photograph isn’t a atrocious changeable by immoderate means, but it looks noticeably much washed retired compared to the iPhone 14 Pro’s image.

Photo of a cat, taken with the iPhone 14 Pro.

Photo of a feline connected a couch, taken with the Pixel 7 Pro.

Heading indoors, the tables crook a small spot with the photograph of the feline laying connected the couch. The cat’s ears and look look washed retired successful the iPhone 14 Pro image, whereas the Pixel 7 Pro does a overmuch amended occupation of retaining the assorted colors successful her fur. The Pixel 7 Pro besides much efficaciously blurs the seat successful the background, portion the patterns connected it are much disposable (and frankincense distracting) successful the iPhone 14 Pro shot.

Photo of cocoa spot pancakes, taken with the iPhone 14 Pro.

Photo of cocoa spot pancakes, taken with the Pixel 7 Pro.

The adjacent photograph of the cocoa spot pancake (which was delicious) reveals an important quirk of the main camera connected some phones. Because of the ample representation sensors each 1 uses, getting excessively adjacent to a taxable often results successful fringing astir the edges — thing that’s contiguous successful some photos. If I had to prime a idiosyncratic preference, I’d spell with the iPhone 14 Pro’s image. The colors successful the Pixel 7 Pro’s changeable are a spot excessively chill for my liking, astir to the constituent wherever the powdered sweetener looks somewhat blue. The iPhone 14 Pro succeeds successful capturing the warmth of the pancake and the yellowy, creamy quality of the whipped cream.

Photo of a downed histrion by a lake, taken with the iPhone 14 Pro.

Photo of a downed histrion by a lake, taken with the Pixel 7 Pro.

We’ll spell backmost extracurricular for this adjacent representation to cheque retired a downed histrion resting successful a calm lake. At archetypal glance, some photos look very similar; determination are bully colors and crisp details crossed the board. But the Pixel 7 Pro handles the sunlight connected the histrion bark best. It looks excessively agleam and aggravated successful the iPhone 14 Pro’s image, portion the Pixel 7 Pro handles it overmuch much gracefully.

Looking done the dozens of photos I’ve taken with the iPhone 14 Pro and Pixel 7 Pro, this is simply a taxable that keeps happening. Sometimes, the iPhone 14 Pro churns retired a nicer-looking shot. But different times, the Pixel 7 Pro comes retired connected top. I’ve been incredibly happy taking photos with some phones, and there’s not 1 that intelligibly stands retired arsenic an overwhelming victor implicit the other.

Call it a cop-out if you want, but I person to telephone this 1 a draw.

Winner: Tie

iPhone 14 Pro vs. Pixel 7 Pro: ultrawide camera

We person the ultrawide cameras next, and for the archetypal shot, we person a gorgeous presumption of the Williamsburg Bridge. These photos were taken astatine astir 6:20 p.m. — conscionable minutes earlier sunset.

Photo of a bridge, taken with the iPhone 14 Pro.

Photo of a span successful Brooklyn, taken with the Pixel 7 Pro.

It’s instantly evident that some phones took precise antithetic approaches to this scene. The iPhone 14 Pro retains galore of the shadows underneath the span and astir its ceramic basal successful the water. Comparatively, the Pixel 7 Pro’s HDR processing removed these shadows truthful you tin much easy spot the details successful the bridge’s framework.

It besides makes the entity bluer than it appeared successful idiosyncratic portion the iPhone 14 Pro gives it a much accurate, darker tone. I afloat expect a batch of radical volition beryllium much drawn to the Pixel 7 Pro’s photo, but personally, I similar the extent and play the shadows and opposition adhd to the iPhone 14 Pro image.

Photo of a gangly building, taken with the iPhone 14 Pro.

Photo of a skyscraper successful Brooklyn, taken with the Pixel 7 Pro.

Our adjacent ultrawide photograph shows america a gathering adjacent the North 5th Street Pier. The Pixel 7 Pro does a amended occupation handling the sunlight connected the factual of the walkway, but its wider tract of presumption gives the gathering a slightly wrapped appearance. I besides don’t deliberation it captured the entity arsenic well. The iPhone 14 Pro captured the varying shades of bluish successful betwixt the 2 buildings, portion the Pixel 7 Pro gave it the same, muted tone.

Ultimately, I’m calling different gully with this one. I deliberation the iPhone 14 Pro’s ultrawide camera produces amended colors with much contrast. However, this is truly a substance of idiosyncratic sensation — and the versatility of the Pixel 7 Pro’s somewhat wider FoV shouldn’t beryllium ignored.

Winner: Tie

iPhone 14 Pro vs. Pixel 7 Pro: zoom cameras

The iPhone 14 Pro and Pixel 7 Pro whitethorn person tied for the archetypal 2 rounds, but the Pixel 7 Pro easy dominates erstwhile we displacement to the phones’ zooming capabilities. The iPhone 14 Pro has dedicated zoom buttons for 2x and 3x, with a maximum zoom scope of 15x. The Pixel 7 Pro has zoom shortcuts for 2x and 5x, positive it tin spell each the mode to 30x.

We’ll commencement with the iPhone 14 Pro’s zoom. The 2x changeable looks precise good, with crisp details successful the h2o and a beauteous practice of the Manhattan skyline. The 3x representation gets america person to the buildings successful the distance, and the details successful them are overmuch amended than successful the 2x photo. At 15x, however, the iPhone 14 Pro drops the ball. While convenient to person the option, the Empire State Building ends up looking similar it was stripped from a watercolor coating — displaying soft, mushy details that conscionable aren’t pleasant to look at.

By comparison, the Google Pixel 7 Pro is simply a wholly antithetic beast. I really deliberation the iPhone 14 Pro produced a amended photograph astatine the 2x level. The buildings successful the Pixel 7 Pro’s photos aren’t astir arsenic sharp, and the Empire State Building has an unnatural, pinkish hue to it.

But determination beyond the 2x zoom, and the Google Pixel 7 Pro wins each azygous time. The 5x optical zoom makes a noticeable quality compared to the iPhone 14 Pro’s 3x zoom. Not lone bash you get overmuch person to your subject, but the buildings look rather a spot sharper successful the Pixel’s photo. The quality is adjacent starker astatine 15x. The Google Pixel 7 Pro really produces a sharable photograph astatine this region — retaining bully colors and a astonishing magnitude of detail. Going up to 30x puts you successful watercolor territory, but you’re besides going acold beyond what the iPhone 14 Pro is susceptible of.

Winner: Google Pixel 7 Pro

iPhone 14 Pro vs. Pixel 7 Pro: nighttime mode

Night mode is simply a hallmark diagnostic for some the iPhone 14 Pro and Pixel 7 Pro, though successful our testing, there’s a intelligibly defined winner.

A photograph of a histrion successful the dark, taken with the iPhone 14 Pro.

A photograph of a histrion successful the dark, taken with the Google Pixel 7 Pro.

Starting with the representation of the tree, the iPhone 14 Pro’s representation stands retired much with a brighter histrion trunk and overmuch greener leaves. Dig a spot deeper into the photo, though, and you’ll find that those leaves are blurry, soft, and lacking intelligibly defined details. The Pixel 7 Pro does a overmuch amended occupation here, keeping the leaves amazingly sharp, adjacent with the deficiency of surrounding light.

iphone 14 pro vs google pixel 7 camera trial examination nighttime mode 2

A photograph of a acheronian entity and pond, taken with the Pixel 7 Pro.

The adjacent photograph of the pond shows america the aforesaid thing. The writer successful beforehand of the pond is brighter successful the Pixel 7 Pro’s image, there’s far less sound successful the water, and you get importantly much item successful the trees successful the background.

I surely wouldn’t telephone the iPhone 14 Pro a atrocious performer successful lowlight scenarios, but compared to the Pixel 7 Pro, it conscionable can’t hang.

Winner: Google Pixel 7 Pro

iPhone 14 Pro vs. Pixel 7 Pro: representation mode

Moving implicit to representation mode, we spot the expected aforesaid differences successful colour and opposition that we saw with the main camera comparison. But taking a person look astatine however some phones handled borderline detection for the representation shots, we find a wide winner.

Portrait mode photograph of a scarecrow, taken with the iPhone 14 Pro.

Portrait mode photograph of a scarecrow, taken with the Pixel 7 Pro.

This photograph of a scarecrow is incredibly pugnacious — flaunting tiny strands of cloth and straw each implicit its body. Both phones conflict with the hat, but the iPhone 14 Pro does a slightly better job. The Pixel 7 Pro besides incorrectly blurs the close arm, whereas the iPhone 14 Pro keeps it much successful focus.

Looking beyond borderline detection, the scarecrow looks overmuch amended successful the iPhone 14 Pro photo, showing overmuch amended details than the somewhat blotchy, brushed details produced by the Pixel 7 Pro.

Portrait mode photograph of a dog, taken with the iPhone 14 Pro.

Photo of a canine successful representation mode, taken with the Pixel 7 Pro.

The representation photograph of my canine Damon isn’t rather arsenic challenging, though determination are inactive immoderate discrepancies betwixt each shot. Both phones bash a bully occupation of blurring the inheritance here, though the Pixel 7 Pro keeps much of Damon’s backmost and rear legs successful focus. The iPhone 14 Pro decides to blur them more, and portion the blurring effect is wide and done well, I similar however the Pixel 7 Pro handled itself.

However, things instrumentality a crisp crook successful respect to the colors and item of the photos. In the iPhone 14 Pro’s picture, Damon looks similar helium does successful existent life. His fur has a airy tan colour with a somewhat darker face, and he’s being lit up by the day sun. In the Pixel 7 Pro’s photo, helium looks totally different. All of his fur is darker than it should beryllium (especially by his face), you can’t spot the brightness of the prima connected his chest, and each of his fur looks artificially sharpened. Again, I deliberation this is wherever we spot a stark quality betwixt however Google and Apple grip representation processing and HDR. The Pixel 7 Pro’s representation whitethorn entreaty to the oculus much and beryllium much visually striking, but it’s not typical of existent beingness — and not the photograph I prefer.

Combine the colour and item differences with the amended borderline detection successful the archetypal photo, and the iPhone 14 Pro gets its archetypal win.

Winner: iPhone 14 Pro

iPhone 14 Pro vs. Pixel 7 Pro: macro photos

Both the iPhone 14 Pro and Pixel 7 Pro enactment a macro mode utilizing their ultrawide cameras. Get either telephone adjacent capable to a subject, and it uses the ultrawide sensor to nutrient an up-close macro image.

Macro photograph of soil connected a beach, taken with the iPhone 14 Pro.

Macro photograph of sand, taken with the Pixel 7 Pro.

Our archetypal macro photograph shows america idiosyncratic grains of soil connected a Brooklyn beach. As has go expected, the colors betwixt the phones are a spot different; the iPhone 14 Pro prefers a cooler representation here, portion the Pixel 7 Pro warms things up. Both shots look truly good, but if you zoom successful closely, you’ll spot somewhat much sharpness successful the soil with the iPhone 14 Pro photo.

Macro photograph of greenish leaves, taken with the iPhone 14 Pro.

Macro photograph of a plant, taken with the Pixel 7 Pro.

It’s a akin effect successful the 2nd macro photograph of the greenish plant. At a glance, it’s hard to beryllium disappointed with either image. Zoom in, however, and you’ll find a spot much item is captured by the iPhone 14 Pro.

This is different adjacent one, but successful the end, the iPhone 14 Pro gets the win.

Winner: iPhone 14 Pro

iPhone 14 Pro vs. Pixel 7 Pro: selfie camera

To wrapper things up, we person a speedy selfie to look astatine the front-facing camera connected some phones. In short, this is yet different country wherever the iPhone 14 Pro shows its superiority.

Selfie of Joe Maring, taken with the iPhone 14 Pro.

Selfie of Joe Maring, taken with the Pixel 7 Pro.

The biggest happening that jumps retired to maine is the deficiency of sharpness successful the Pixel 7 Pro’s image. The details successful my tegument are overmuch excessively soft, and the cloth of my garment looks astir pixelated (especially connected the collar). You get much better details successful the iPhone 14 Pro’s selfie, and I similar however it handled the colour of my skin. I don’t often instrumentality selfies, but erstwhile I bash find myself successful the temper for one, I’ll gladly scope for the iPhone 14 Pro implicit the Pixel 7 Pro.

Winner: iPhone 14 Pro

You can’t spell incorrect with either phone

After 7 rounds, the iPhone 14 Pro won three, the Google Pixel 7 Pro won two, and the phones tied successful the remaining 2 rounds. While that technically gives a triumph to the iPhone 14 Pro, this examination comes down to tiny details and idiosyncratic preference.

With the main and ultrawide cameras, it’s a toss-up betwixt which telephone you’ll similar more. I personally similar the colors that I get retired of the iPhone 14 Pro, arsenic they’re much existent to beingness and aren’t acrophobic to amusement shadows and opposition wherever necessary. The Pixel 7 Pro regularly delivers brighter shots with dense HDR processing. You whitethorn similar that benignant of photograph implicit the iPhone 14 Pro — and that’s perfectly fine. Technically, some phones are excellent.

Beyond your ain sensation successful photos, you should besides deliberation astir what you privation to usage your smartphone camera for. If you’re an avid selfie taker, emotion representation mode, and privation the champion macro images possible, the iPhone 14 Pro is amended suited for you. But if you privation an unthinkable camera for zooming and taking photos successful the dark, the Pixel 7 Pro has an unmistakable dominance successful those areas.

This isn’t a examination successful which 1 smartphone is overwhelmingly amended than the different — the iPhone 14 Pro and Pixel 7 Pro are some excessively bully for that. We’ve reached a constituent wherever flagship camera systems are arsenic bully arsenic they’ve ever been — whether that telephone is from Apple, Google, Samsung, oregon idiosyncratic else. Call it boring if you want, but I deliberation it’s beauteous incredible.