In the marketplace for a brand new cellphone however struggling to decide on between Samsung’s Galaxy S22 and the Google Pixel 7? It’s simple to be tempted by Google’s newest, with its Tensor Gen 2 processor, beefy battery, attractive 6.3-inch AMOLED show, and top-notch cameras. But don’t low cost the older Galaxy S22, with its highly effective Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processor, compact, pocket-friendly profile, 120Hz show, and Samsung’s market-leading updates promise.

Confused? Let us take the onerous work out of selecting which cellphone to purchase as we evaluate the Google Pixel 7 to the Samsung Galaxy S22.

Specs

Design, show, and sturdiness

The Google Pixel 7 takes the already nice design of the Pixel 6 and refines it, with its Gorilla Glass Victus rear panel sporting a shiny end that may really feel slippery in hand and a easy aluminum chassis. Weighing in at 197 grams, it’s considerably heavier than the Samsung Galaxy S22 and feels weighty in hand, plus it’s not essentially the most pocket-friendly choice at 8.7mm thick. The under-display fingerprint sensor is shockingly inconsistent, although you should utilize Face Unlock, which is extra constant if a bit fiddly.

The Samsung Galaxy S22 boasts the identical rounded corners, flat show, and top-notch construct high quality as its predecessor — in reality, it’s nearly indistinguishable from the Galaxy S21. With uniformly skinny bezels, its pocket-friendly profile, and its compact kind issue, weighing in at simply 167 grams, make it a more sensible choice for one-handed use than the Pixel 7. The glass rear panel is roofed with Gorilla Glass Victus, and the three.5mm headphone jack and microSD card slot aren’t any extra throughout each units.

Onto the show: The Galaxy S22’s 6.1-inch dynamic AMOLED 2x show has a 2340 x 1080 pixel decision, is HDR10+ licensed, and packs an adaptive 120Hz refresh fee. Samsung states the refresh fee will solely drop to a minimal of 48Hz, however in our evaluate, we noticed it sit at a steady 24Hz when the cellphone was idle. This is likely one of the finest screens on an Android cellphone, with nice viewing angles and excellent visibility even in vivid daylight.

The Google Pixel 7’s 6.3-inch OLED show has a 2400 x 1080 pixel decision and HDR10+ certification, however whereas the display screen could also be barely bigger than the S22, its adaptive refresh fee solely goes to 90Hz. Though that’s a bit disappointing, any distinction in smoothness isn’t actually noticeable except you take pleasure in enjoying the most recent video games in your cellphone. That mentioned, the show’s refresh fee does drop as little as 10Hz, excellent news for battery life.

Both telephones are protected with Gorilla Glass Victus overlaying the rear panel and boast an IP68 ranking, so you’ll be able to safely submerge them in freshwater as much as round 10 ft for half-hour.

This spherical is near calling, however the Galaxy S22’s compact, slim profile, 120Hz refresh fee, and array of colours pips the Pixel 7 to the publish.

Winner: Samsung Galaxy S22

Performance, battery life, and charging

The Google Pixel 7 packs the most recent Tensor G2 processor, extra environment friendly and quicker than the bottom Tensor chip. In actuality, the cellphone is unlikely to wrestle with something you throw at it, from multitasking to the most recent video games. That’s backed up by 8GB of RAM and as much as 256GB of non-expandable storage. The Pixel 7 is quick and dependable to make use of, however we discovered that scrolling by apps wasn’t fairly as easy as on some extra highly effective telephones, just like the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4. We additionally skilled video games crashing pretty usually, with titles like Asphalt 9 failing to hook up with the server. The Pixel 7 will get heat to the contact across the digital camera sensor (and drains battery life fairly closely) after round half-hour of gaming, so in case you’re a cell gamer, it is probably not the perfect system for you.

The Samsung Galaxy S22 sports activities Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chip within the U.S. (the Exynos 2200 elsewhere), offering glorious efficiency whether or not multitasking or enjoying the most recent video games with settings maxed. The 8GB of RAM and as much as 256GB of storage are equivalent to the Pixel 7, however in our evaluate, we seen jitters and body fee drops after enjoying Call of Duty: Mobile for round 40 minutes at peak graphics settings. We additionally famous that the digital camera’s shutter button often turned unresponsive after taking a number of footage or high-res movies. Due to its compact profile, the S22 does get sizzling, which ultimately chokes efficiency.

These two telephones stand worlds aside in relation to battery life. The Pixel 7’s beefy 4,355mAh battery is much bigger than the comparatively small 3,700mAh battery on the Galaxy S22. In reality, the Galaxy S22 has one of many smallest batteries in a contemporary smartphone launched after 2021 (except the iPhone Mini line). With the S22’s modest battery, it’s best to barely count on to get previous someday of use — in our evaluate, we acquired round 4 to 5 hours of screen-on time.

The Pixel 7’s battery, in distinction, gave us round six to seven hours of screen-on time. With onerous utilization, count on a day of battery life, whereas average utilization could push this to 2. The Pixel 7 helps USB Power Delivery 3.0, with as much as 30W wired charging. According to claims, it expenses to 50% in half-hour. However, a full cost from empty takes nearly two hours. Compare that to the Galaxy S22, which reaches 60% battery in half-hour and a full cost in round an hour.

It’s price noting right here that in our evaluate, we expressed issues in regards to the Galaxy S22’s idle battery loss. This was nearly 10% to fifteen% inside a few hours, even with the adaptive refresh fee enabled. Though updates have improved this, it’s nonetheless a difficulty.

Both telephones additionally help wi-fi charging — 21W for the Pixel 7 and 15W for the Galaxy S22 — and reverse wi-fi charging on your earbuds and equipment.

We’re calling this spherical a tie, as which cellphone you favor actually will depend on your wants. If you’re into cell gaming, the Galaxy S22 could also be a wiser alternative than the Pixel 7, regardless of the overheating and body fee drops we skilled. Likewise, if glorious battery life is non-negotiable, the Pixel 7 is likely to be a more sensible choice for you, although you’ll must cope with slower charging speeds.

Winner: Tie

Cameras

When it involves cameras, the Google Pixel 7 has one of many best cameras on a smartphone. Google’s digital camera expertise has been glorious for some time, and also you’re getting the acquainted 50-megapixel essential with optical picture stabilization (OIS) and laser autofocus, plus a 12MP wide-angle lens. The lenses get a lift from the Tensor G2 for improved picture processing. There’s additionally a 10MP selfie digital camera, which might lack element and doesn’t all the time get pores and skin tone proper.

In distinction, the Galaxy S22 has a triple-camera setup with its 50MP essential, 12MP ultrawide, and 10MP telephoto with 3x optical zoom. On the entrance, the 10MP selfie digital camera takes acceptable pictures, although it tends to spice up saturation and lighten pores and skin tone an excessive amount of.

Both telephones produce unimaginable images in all types of lighting circumstances, with the Pixel 7, particularly, producing sharp, vibrant images and Night Sight mode bringing out loads of element. The Galaxy S22’s essential digital camera takes crisp pictures full of particulars and spectacular colours that seem near actual shades, whereas the telephoto lens does a formidable job of capturing portrait pictures. Night mode help for the S22’s three rear cameras additionally offers glorious outcomes, even in very darkish environments. The Pixel 7 helps 4K video seize at as much as 60 fps, whereas the Galaxy S22 helps as much as 8K decision at as much as 24 fps.

Google’s packed in an array of instruments to alter up your photographs, together with Photo Unblur (although our outcomes with this had been fairly disappointing) and Cinematic Mode, which blurs out the background of images.

Samsung’s options embody Single Take, Super Slow-Mo, and Director’s View, which helps you to seize a scene from the back and front utilizing any of the three rear cameras.

We’re giving this spherical to the Google Pixel 7, because it’s onerous to discover a higher digital camera on a smartphone proper now.

Winner: Google Pixel 7

Software and updates

Both the Pixel 7 and Galaxy S22 run Android 13, although the Pixel 7 is the primary system to run Google’s newest working system out of the field. Samsung skins Android 13 with One UI 5, which is intuitive and straightforward to make use of, although some customers desire Google’s inventory Android expertise.

Google guarantees as much as 5 years of safety updates and three years of main Android updates for the Pixel 7. On the desk from Samsung are 4 years of OS updates and 5 years of safety updates.

While each telephones are, due to this fact, a stable, future-proof alternative, Samsung simply pips Google to the prize with that extra yr of OS updates.

Winner: Samsung Galaxy S22

Special options

The Samsung Galaxy S22 runs One UI 5, supporting dynamic theming with preset colour choices based mostly in your wallpaper, plus options like textual content recognition within the gallery app, a number of consumer profiles, and widget stacking. Samsung Pay is available for on-line funds, and the app can now retailer film tickets, automobile keys, and driver’s licenses (although availability could differ). The Pixel 7 packs Google Assistant and might counsel related emoji if you’re voice texting. You additionally get entry to Google Pay for on-line funds. Neither cellphone has a 3.5mm headphone jack or microSD card slot, each of which have been faraway from most flagships these days.

This spherical’s a tie, as it’s going to probably come down as to if you’re crew Google or crew Samsung.

Winner: Tie

Price and availability

Overall winner: Samsung Galaxy S22

Though there’s loads to suggest the Pixel 7, the Galaxy S22 continues to be a transparent winner general. With its highly effective Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chip, beneficiant updates promise, slim profile, and 120Hz refresh fee show —  to not point out the big selection of colours to select from — it’s our choose of the 2 telephones. That’s to not say that the Pixel 7 isn’t additionally an amazing purchase. If you’re not into cell gaming and also you’re searching for the perfect digital camera round, plus all-day battery life, the Pixel 7 is a superb choose.

Editors’ Recommendations