Tom's Guide

iPhone 16 Pro vs. Pixel 9 Pro: 5 ways the new iPhone could beat Google

By Richard Priday,

1 day ago

With the iPhone 16 Pro expected to be official in a week's time, and the Google Pixel 9 Pro already out, we can't help but wonder how these two pro phones might compare once we get our hands on them.

While we're currently working with rumors about the iPhone 16 Pro's capabilities, rather than known specs and data from testing like with the Pixel 9 Pro, it looks as if it could have several possible advantages over Google's latest flagship phone. We'll take you through those below so you can see why we're still excited for the new iPhone, as excellent as the latest Pixel is.

Apple Intelligence and Siri 2.0 could be smarter than Gemini

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Google's Gemini and associated AI features for the Pixel 9 series are a core part of the phone's appeal. But Apple's already announced Apple Intelligence , a similar set of features that the iPhone 16 will be heavily focused around.

Apple Intelligence will take on Google's AI directly with tools like Clean Up , Writing Tools and image generation, but Apple's got some ideas of its own too. That includes notification summaries , a smarter Siri that can do more for you on-device and optional ChatGPT integration. All of this will be achieved mainly on the iPhone rather than in the cloud, except for specific tasks that your phone will ask specific permission to do while connected to the internet.

Hopefully no price hike

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The smaller Pro iPhones have been sold at $999 since Apple first introduced them back with 2019's iPhone 11 Pro . While a price hike after five years would hardly be surprising, we're hoping Apple keeps the cost the same for at least another year.

First off, we don't want to spend more than we have to to get the ultimate iPhone. But in the context of this comparison, the Pixel 9 series increased in price across the board, although the Pixel 9 Pro, as a new model, was technically exempt from this. That currently makes the Pixel 9 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro the same price, and it would be a big minus for Apple to give the pricing advantage to Google. One source claims Apple may be upping the iPhone 16 Pro's price , but without further leakers backing it up, we're hoping this one's incorrect.

A new Capture button

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The Pixel 9 Pro, like many modern phones, offers just volume up/down and power buttons on its edges. iPhones meanwhile have retained the alert slider, and more recently the rebindable Action button, that we should see again on the iPhone 16 Pro. But a brand new button could be about to arrive.

A capacitive "Capture" button may be added to the bottom of the iPhone 16 Pro's right side rail. This is assumed to be a shutter button to help with quickly shooting photos or video, something rarely seen on smartphones these days. Yes, the Pixel 9 Pro has a quick Camera open shortcut via a double-tap of the power button, but that sounds a lot simpler than what the Capture Button could be capable of doing.

Blistering A18 performance

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Tensor chips aren't known for raw power, although the Tensor G4 inside the Pixel 9 Pro, along with its 12GB RAM, is as good as the Pixels have ever performed. But Apple's A series chips are known for being the best in smartphones, period. And the A18 Pro could be even mightier than before.

With increased performance and AI optimizations apparently on the cards, the A18 Pro is looking like it'll be a strong chipset, even if the iPhone 16 Pro doesn't get any additional RAM over the current 8GB found in the iPhone 15 Pro. Although even if it falls below expectations like some benchmarks have suggested , it'll probably still have no trouble crushing the Pixel 9 Pro on CPU and GPU tests.

Better battery life

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This year's Pixels are way better on battery life this year than in previous years, with the Pixel 9 Pro currently lasting over two and a half hours longer on the TG battery test compared to the iPhone 15 Pro . But the iPhone 16 Pro could turn Apple's fortunes around.

The iPhone 16 Pro is tipped to get a larger battery than ever before , one that's about 9% larger than the iPhone 15 Pro's cell. Combined with likely power efficiencies made to the phone's new chip, the Pixel 9 Pro may not hold the lead for long.