Google Pixel 3 vs Galaxy S9 vs iPhone XS: Specs comparison

The Google Pixel 3 shapes up to be the phone for those uninspired by the excessive notch of the Pixel 3 XL - it has a traditional notchless design, more compact and easier to use body, and all the same hardware that can be found inside the larger Pixel 3 XL.
But is this enough to make the Pixel 3 a more appealing than the Galaxy S9 or the iPhone XS? Most likely no, but this doesn't mean the Pixel 3 won't directly compete with the smallest Galaxy and iPhone on the shelves as Google eyes a more prominent mainstream presence.
This means that those three would certainly be all viable options for would-be adopters, thus a specs comparison between all three wouldn't be out of the ordinary at all. Let's see how all three fare against one another.
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Google Pixel 3 | Samsung Galaxy S9 | Apple iPhone XS |
Design
Dimensions | ||
---|---|---|
5.73 x 2.69 x 0.31 inches 145.6 x 68.2 x 7.9 mm |
5.81 x 2.70 x 0.33 inches 147.7 x 68.7 x 8.5 mm |
5.65 x 2.79 x 0.30 inches 143.6 x 70.9 x 7.7 mm |
Weight | ||
5.22 oz (148.0 g) | 5.75 oz (163.0 g) | 6.24 oz (177.0 g) |
Materials | ||
Back: Glass (Corning Gorilla Glass 5) Frame: Aluminum | Back: Glass (Corning Gorilla Glass 5) Frame: Aluminum | Back: Glass Frame: Stainless steel |
Resistance | ||
Water, Dust; IP68 | Water, Dust; IP68 | Water, Dust; IP68 |
Biometrics | ||
Fingerprint (touch) | Iris scanner, 2D Face unlock, Fingerprint (touch) | 3D Face unlock |
Features | ||
Notification light | ||
Keys | ||
Right: Volume control, Lock/Unlock key | Left: Volume control, Other; Right: Lock/Unlock key | Left: Volume control, Other; Right: Lock/Unlock key |
Colors | ||
Black, Pink, White | Midnight black, Coral blue, Titanium gray, Lilac purple, Burgundy red, Sunrise gold, Ice blue | Gold, Silver, Space gray |
Display
Size | ||
---|---|---|
5.5-inch | 5.8-inch | 5.8-inch |
Resolution | ||
2160x1080px, 18:9 ratio, 442 PPI | 2960x1440px, 18.5:9 ratio, 568 PPI | 2436x1125px, 19.5:9 ratio, 459 PPI |
Technology | ||
P-OLED | Super AMOLED | OLED |
Screen-to-body | ||
77.36 % | 84.36 % | 82.64 % |
Peak brightness | ||
625 cd/m2 (nit) | ||
Features | ||
HDR support, Scratch-resistant glass (Corning Gorilla Glass 5), Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor | HDR support, Scratch-resistant glass (Corning Gorilla Glass 5), Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor | HDR support, Pressure-sensitive, Oleophobic coating, Scratch-resistant glass, Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor |
Hardware
System chip | ||
---|---|---|
Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 SDM845 (10 nm) | Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 SDM845 (10 nm) | Apple A12 Bionic APL1W81 (7 nm) |
Processor | ||
Octa-core 2500 MHz Kryo 385 | Octa-core 2800 MHz Kryo 385 | Hexa-core 2490 MHz Vortex and Tempest |
GPU | ||
Adreno 630 | Adreno 630 | Apple 4-core GPU |
RAM | ||
4GB (LPDDR4) | 4GB (LPDDR4) | 4GB (LPDDR4) |
Internal storage | ||
64GB | 64GB | 64GB |
Storage expansion | ||
not expandable | microSDXC up to 400 GB | not expandable |
OS | ||
Android (12, 11, 10, 9.0 Pie) | Android (10, 9.0 Pie, 8.0 Oreo), Samsung One UI | iOS (15.x, 14.x, 13.x, 12.x) |
Battery
Capacity | ||
---|---|---|
2915 mAh | 3000 mAh | 2659 mAh |
Type | ||
Li - Polymer | Li - Ion | Li - Ion |
Charging | ||
USB Power Delivery, Qi wireless charging | Qualcomm Quick Charge 2.0, Samsung Adaptive Fast Charging, Qi and Powermat wireless charging | USB Power Delivery, Qi wireless charging |
Charge speed | ||
Wired: 15.0W Wireless: 7.5W |
Camera
Rear | ||
---|---|---|
Single camera | Single camera | Dual camera |
Main camera | ||
12.2 MP (OIS, PDAF, CMOS image sensor) Aperture size: F1.8 Focal length: 28 mm Sensor size: 1/2.55" Pixel size: 1.4 μm | 12 MP (OIS, PDAF) Aperture size: F1.5/F2.4 Sensor size: 1/2.55" Pixel size: 1.4 μm | 12 MP (Sapphire crystal lens cover, OIS, PDAF, BSI sensor) Aperture size: F1.8 Focal length: 26 mm Sensor size: 1/2.55" Pixel size: 1.4 μm |
Second camera | ||
12 MP (Telephoto, Sapphire crystal lens cover, OIS, PDAF, BSI sensor) Optical zoom: 2.0x Aperture size: F2.4 Focal Length: 52 mm Sensor size: 1/3.4" Pixel size: 1 μm |
||
Flash | ||
Dual LED | LED | Quad LED |
Video recording | ||
3840x2160 (4K UHD) (30 fps), 1920x1080 (Full HD) (120 fps), 1280x720 (HD) (240 fps) OIS, EIS, Video calling, Video sharing | 3840x2160 (4K UHD) (60 fps), 1920x1080 (Full HD) (240 fps), 1280x720 (HD) (960 fps) HDR, Time-lapse video, Hyperlapse, Continuous autofocus, Object tracking, Picture-taking during video recording, Video calling, Video sharing | 3840x2160 (4K UHD) (60 fps), 1920x1080 (Full HD) (240 fps), 1280x720 (HD) OIS, Time-lapse video, Continuous autofocus, Picture-taking during video recording |
Front | ||
8 MP (Dual-Camera, Wide Angle, Autofocus), Video capture: 1920x1080 (Full HD) | 8 MP (Autofocus, HDR), Video capture: 2560x1440 (QHD) (30 fps) | 7 MP (HDR), Video capture: 1920x1080 (Full HD) |
Connectivity & Features
Bluetooth | ||
---|---|---|
5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 |
WLAN | ||
802.11 a,b,g,n,ac,dual-band Wi-Fi Direct, Hotspot | 802.11 a,b,g,n,ac,dual-band MIMO, Wi-Fi Direct, Hotspot | 802.11 a,b,g,n,ac,dual-band MIMO, Wi-Fi Direct, Hotspot |
USB | ||
Type-C, USB 3.1 | Type-C, USB 3.1 | Lightning |
Hearing aid compatible | ||
M3/T3 | M3/T4 | |
Location | ||
GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, Galileo | GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, Galileo, BeiDou | GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, Galileo, Cell ID, Wi-Fi positioning |
Sensors | ||
Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Barometer | Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Hall (for flip covers), Barometer | Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Barometer |
Other | ||
NFC, VoIP, Tethering, Computer sync, OTA sync | NFC, ANT+ | NFC, UMA (Wi-Fi Calling) |
Multimedia
Headphones | ||
---|---|---|
No 3.5mm jack | 3.5mm jack | No 3.5mm jack |
Speakers | ||
Earpiece, Multiple speakers | Earpiece, Multiple speakers | Earpiece, Multiple speakers |
Features | ||
Album art cover, Background playback | 32-Bit DAC, aptX-HD | |
Screen mirroring | ||
Wireless screen share | Wireless screen share | Wireless screen share |
Radio | ||
FM | ||
Additional microphone(s) | ||
Noise cancellation | Noise cancellation | Noise cancellation, Video recording |
Cellular
4G (FDD) | ||
---|---|---|
Bands 1(2100), 2(1900), 3(1800), 4(AWS-1), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 12(700 a), 13(700 c), 17(700 b), 18(800 Lower), 19(800 Upper), 20(800 DD), 25(1900+), 26(850+), 28(700 APT), 29(700 d), 32(1500 L-band), 66(AWS-3), 71(600) | Bands 1(2100), 2(1900), 3(1800), 4(AWS-1), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 12(700 a), 13(700 c), 14(700 PS), 17(700 b), 18(800 Lower), 19(800 Upper), 20(800 DD), 25(1900+), 26(850+), 28(700 APT), 29(700 d), 30(2300 WCS), 66(AWS-3), 71(600) | Bands 1(2100), 2(1900), 3(1800), 4(AWS-1), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 12(700 a), 13(700 c), 14(700 PS), 17(700 b), 18(800 Lower), 19(800 Upper), 20(800 DD), 25(1900+), 26(850+), 29(700 d), 30(2300 WCS), 32(1500 L-band), 66(AWS-3), 71(600) |
4G (TDD) | ||
Bands 38(2600), 39(1900+), 40(2300), 41(2600+), 46 | Bands 38(2600), 39(1900+), 40(2300), 41(2600+), 46 | Bands 34(2000), 38(2600), 39(1900+), 40(2300), 41(2600+), 46 |
3G | ||
Bands 2(1900), 5(850) | Bands 5(850), 8(900), 4(1700/2100), 2(1900), 1(2100) | Bands 1(2100), 2(1900), 4(1700/2100), 5(850), 8(900) |
Data Speed | ||
LTE-A Pro Cat 16 (1000/150 Mbit/s), HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s, HSUPA, UMTS | LTE-A Pro Cat 18 (1200/150 Mbit/s), HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s, HSUPA | LTE-A Pro Cat 16 (1000/150 Mbit/s), HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s, HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s, UMTS |
Dual SIM | ||
Yes | Yes | |
SIM type | ||
Nano SIM, eSIM | Nano SIM | Nano SIM, eSIM |
HD Voice | ||
Yes | Yes | |
VoLTE | ||
Yes | Yes |
Regulatory Approval
FCC approval | ||
---|---|---|
Date approved: Aug 31, 2018 FCC ID value: A4RG013A | Date approved: Jan 11, 2018 FCC ID value: A3LSMG960U | Date approved: Sep 12, 2018 FCC ID value: BCG-E3218A |
Measured SAR | ||
Head: 1.34 W/kg Body: 1.34 W/kg Simultaneous Transmission: 1.59 W/kg Wireless Router: 1.34 W/kg |
Head: 0.35 W/kg Body: 0.96 W/kg Simultaneous Transmission: 1.59 W/kg Wireless Router: 0.95 W/kg |
Head: 0.90 W/kg Body: 0.99 W/kg Simultaneous Transmission: 1.53 W/kg Wireless Router: 0.99 W/kg |
Buyers information
MSRP | ||
---|---|---|
$ 799 | $ 720 | $ 999 |
In The Box | ||
Quick Switch Adapter, USB-C to USB-C cable, USB-C 18W Power adapter, Pixel USB-C earbuds, USB-C to 3.5mm headphone adapter, SIM tool, Quick Start Guide | EarPods with Lightning Connector, Lightning to USB Cable, USB Power Adapter, Documentation |
Availability
Officially announced | ||
---|---|---|
Oct 09, 2018 | Feb 25, 2018 | Sep 12, 2018 |
Expected Announcement | ||
Oct 09, 2018 |
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