Pixel 9 Pro vs Galaxy S24: Can Google beat Samsung at the AI game?
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Intro
Google is slowly trying to become the third big player on the smartphone scene. This year, the company has decided to expand its portfolio and offer three flagship Pixel models, plus one foldable. This situation seems very similar to the three models Samsung is currently offering in its flagship portfolio, and it is also close to what Apple is doing.
This transformation also saw the Pixel 9 Pro shrink to the size of the vanilla Pixel 9 to open some space for the Pixel 9 Pro XL. Now, the Pixel 9 Pro is much closer to the Galaxy S24, than it's to the Plus or Ultra models from the Korean company.
That's why, today we're going to pit against each other the Pixel 9 Pro and the Galaxy S24 in a battle for the best Android phone.
That's why, today we're going to pit against each other the Pixel 9 Pro and the Galaxy S24 in a battle for the best Android phone.
Pixel 9 Pro vs Galaxy S24 main differences:
| Pixel 9 Pro | Galaxy S24 |
|---|---|
| Still larger despite Google shrinking the Pro to make room for the XL model | A more compact phone |
| Larger 6.3-inch display, 1-120Hz refresh rate | A smaller 6.2-inch screen, 1-120Hz refresh rate |
| Triple camera with the typical wide-ultrawide-telephoto combination | Similar triple camera system |
| Base memory configuration is 12GB RAM | 8GB of RAM onboard |
| Equal native storage (128GB), 256, 512, and 1TB options | 128GB of storage in here as well, no 1TB option |
| Larger 4,700mAh battery that will potentially deliver better battery life | A smaller 4,000mAh battery |
| 45W wired charging, 23W wireless | Slower 25W wired charging, wireless charging |
Table of Contents:
Design and Display Quality
Conformity
This year, the Pixel 9 Pro is smaller than its predecessor, and it's also radically different design-wise. It's the first big change since the Pixel 6 series introduced the Camera Bar, and now Google has moved toward a flatter design, and a more traditional camera bump.
Some might say that the Pixel 9 Pro looks strangely similar to an iPhone or a Galaxy S-series device, and we guess it's just how things are nowadays.
There are similarities in the flat sides, front and back, for sure. The thing that's different is the aforementioned camera bump. It's an evolution of the Camera Bar in the sense that it's still horizontal, but now it doesn't span across the whole body, and it doesn't look like an integral part of the frame. It's a more conventional camera bump with an oval shape protruding from the back.
The Galaxy S24 looks pretty similar from the front, with a similar aspect ratio, curves on the edges, a flat frame, and a flat display. The only design difference now seems to be the camera system.
The materials are also the usual suspects—aluminum and glass—on both phones. The Pixel 9 Pro comes with matte finish, a kind of frosted glass look and feel, but overall the materials are the same. The dimensions and weight are rather different, though. The Galaxy S24 is still the more compact phone by a couple of millimeters here and there, and it's also much lighter at 167 grams, while the Pixel 9 Pro comes at 199 grams.
Some might say that the Pixel 9 Pro looks strangely similar to an iPhone or a Galaxy S-series device, and we guess it's just how things are nowadays.
The Galaxy S24 looks pretty similar from the front, with a similar aspect ratio, curves on the edges, a flat frame, and a flat display. The only design difference now seems to be the camera system.
The materials are also the usual suspects—aluminum and glass—on both phones. The Pixel 9 Pro comes with matte finish, a kind of frosted glass look and feel, but overall the materials are the same. The dimensions and weight are rather different, though. The Galaxy S24 is still the more compact phone by a couple of millimeters here and there, and it's also much lighter at 167 grams, while the Pixel 9 Pro comes at 199 grams.
Now, as far as colors are concerned, the Galaxy S24 is available in:
- Marble Gray
- Cobalt Violet
- Onyx Black
- Amber Yellow
You can get the Pixel 9 Pro in the following colors:
- Obsidian
- Porcelain
- Hazel
- Rose Quartz
Moving to the displays, we now have a 6.3-inch panel on the Pixel 9 Pro, much closer to the 6.2-inch display of the Galaxy S24. Both of these OLED panels come with a FHD+ resolution and a similar aspect ratio, and both use LTPO panels with dynamic 1-120Hz refresh rates.
The Galaxy S24 is rated at 2600 nits of peak brightness, and we were able to measure 1,344 nits of real-world brightness. Google advertises the Pixel 9 Pro as capable of outputting 1,800 nits of brightness in HDR mode and up to 2,700 nits of total peak brightness, and we will test these figures shortly. Stay tined for the detailed display test results.
Performance and Software
"For Galaxy" should still win this fight, but not the war
The Galaxy S24 is a known variable in this equation. This phones comes equipped with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset, tuned specifically "for Galaxy." This means the clock speeds are a tad higher, offering a boost in performance in some cases, compared to a regular 8 Gen 3.
The Pixel 9 Pro features the in-house developed Tensor G4 processor, and even though it might not be as fast as the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, especially in synthetic benchmarks, Google has spent some time making sure it can tackle machine learning tasks, hence it might have a potential advantage when we talk about AI. According to Google, it's the first silicon able to tackle multi-modal machine learning tasks thanks to its dedicated TPU portion, able to process up to 48 tokens per second (AI machine learning operations).
Speaking of AI, the Galaxy S25 features the Galaxy AI Suite, a comprehensive set of AI tools, meant to make your life easier. And despite the efforts of other big names to offer something similar, Samsung's AI package seems the most polished at the moment.
The Pixel 9 Pro, however, comes with the aforementioned on-device AI prowess, and its powering Gemini Nano. Google has decided to up its game and offer a subscription service called Gemini Advances, which includes Gemini Live - a conversational multi-modal (able to take in text, speech, image, and other inputs) version of the large language model, and when you buy one of the Pro devices from the Pixel 9 lineup you get one year Google One AI for free, including the Gemini Advanced.
The Pixel 9 Pro features the in-house developed Tensor G4 processor, and even though it might not be as fast as the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, especially in synthetic benchmarks, Google has spent some time making sure it can tackle machine learning tasks, hence it might have a potential advantage when we talk about AI. According to Google, it's the first silicon able to tackle multi-modal machine learning tasks thanks to its dedicated TPU portion, able to process up to 48 tokens per second (AI machine learning operations).
Speaking of AI, the Galaxy S25 features the Galaxy AI Suite, a comprehensive set of AI tools, meant to make your life easier. And despite the efforts of other big names to offer something similar, Samsung's AI package seems the most polished at the moment.
The Pixel 9 Pro, however, comes with the aforementioned on-device AI prowess, and its powering Gemini Nano. Google has decided to up its game and offer a subscription service called Gemini Advances, which includes Gemini Live - a conversational multi-modal (able to take in text, speech, image, and other inputs) version of the large language model, and when you buy one of the Pro devices from the Pixel 9 lineup you get one year Google One AI for free, including the Gemini Advanced.
We're testing the Pixel 9 Pro as we type this and soon we'll get you a breakdown of every AI feature onboard, and whether or not you need this subscription.
Let's mention the RAM and storage situation real quick. The Galaxy S24 comes with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of base storage, while the Pixel 9 Pro starts at 12GB of RAM, and offers a quite flexible storage options - from the base 128GB, through 256GB and 512GB variants, all the way up to 1TB for the memory mongers out there. Stay tuned for synthetic benchmarks shortly.
Camera
Let the AI rule the game
Normally, this section is full of photo and video samples, and those are coming soon, for sure. For now, what we can do is mention the hardware involved. The Galaxy S24 features largely unchanged camera hardware, compared to its predecessor, namely a 12 MP ultra-wide camera and a 10MP 3X telephoto.
The Pixel 9 Pro comes with a similar triple camera setup, with one 50MP main camera, a 48MP ultrawide camera, and a 48MP telephoto with 5x optical zoom capabilities. The main camera features Octa PD focus and a 1/1.31" image sensor under an ƒ/1.68 aperture lens, while the ultrawide comes with an aperture of ƒ/1.7 and 123-degree field of view. On paper these sensors and lenses look superior to what the Galaxy S24 has onboard but you know how it is nowadays, post-processing is king.
Stay tuned for side-by-side samples shortly in order to sprinkle some real-life results on top of all those specs.
The Pixel 9 Pro comes with a similar triple camera setup, with one 50MP main camera, a 48MP ultrawide camera, and a 48MP telephoto with 5x optical zoom capabilities. The main camera features Octa PD focus and a 1/1.31" image sensor under an ƒ/1.68 aperture lens, while the ultrawide comes with an aperture of ƒ/1.7 and 123-degree field of view. On paper these sensors and lenses look superior to what the Galaxy S24 has onboard but you know how it is nowadays, post-processing is king.
Stay tuned for side-by-side samples shortly in order to sprinkle some real-life results on top of all those specs.
Battery Life and Charging
Advantage Pixel, potentially
There's a potential advantage for the Pixel 9 Pro, when it comes to battery life. Despite the smaller size and the downsized battery (the predecessor launched with a 5,050mAh cell inside), Google still found space to cram in a 4,700mAh battery.
The Galaxy S24, on the other hand, comes with a 4,000 mAh battery, so the Pixel has a potential advantage here. As always, stay tuned for our battery tests (they are running as we type this).
When it comes to charging, both of these phones aren't breaking any speed records. The Galaxy S24 comes with a rather uninspiring 25W wired charging support, and Google offers a slightly more powerful 45W of wired charging support, citing 0-55% in 30 minutes.
The Galaxy S24, on the other hand, comes with a 4,000 mAh battery, so the Pixel has a potential advantage here. As always, stay tuned for our battery tests (they are running as we type this).
Specs Comparison
Here's a quick specs comparison for the number nerds out there. You can check out our full Pixel 9 Pro vs Galaxy S24 specs comparison on PhoneArena.
| Specs | Pixel 9 Pro | Galaxy S24 |
|---|---|---|
| Dimensions | 152.8 x 72 x 8.5 mm | 147 x 70.6 x 7.6 mm |
| Weight | 199g | 167g |
| Screen | 6.3-inch OLED 1-120Hz LTPO | 6.2-inch Super AMOLED 1-120Hz LTPO |
| Processor | Google Tensor G4 (3nm) | Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 (for Galaxy) |
| RAM, Storage and Price | 12/128GB for $999 | 8/128GB for $799 |
| Cameras | 50MP main 48MP ultra-wide 48MP telephoto, 5x optical 42MP front | 50MP main 12MP ultra-wide 10MP telephoto, 3x zoom 12MP front |
| Battery Size | 4,700 mAh | 4,000 mAh |
| Charging Speeds | 45W wired wireless support | 25W wired wireless support |
Which one should you buy?
Normally, the newer model has an intrinsic advantage over the older one. We still don't have the whole picture, and parts of the Pixel 9 Pro puzzle are still missing (tests and benchmarks are coming shortly). Nevertheless, Google has an upper hand when it comes to software updates and distribution, and the potential to offer better AI features.
On the other hand, the Pixel 9 Pro costs $200 more than the Galaxy S24, with the latter enjoying additional trade-in and promo deals. Both phones offer a similar form factor, size and camera features, and both have long seven-year software support. In the battery department the Pixel 9 Pro may have an advantage (stay tuned for our battery tests), but on the other hand the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy still has the upper hand over the new Tensor G4.
On the other hand, the Pixel 9 Pro costs $200 more than the Galaxy S24, with the latter enjoying additional trade-in and promo deals. Both phones offer a similar form factor, size and camera features, and both have long seven-year software support. In the battery department the Pixel 9 Pro may have an advantage (stay tuned for our battery tests), but on the other hand the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy still has the upper hand over the new Tensor G4.
Once the Pixel 9 Pro review is out, we will update this comparison with all the numbers needed and give a final verdict.
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