The regular Pixel 9 is the Pixel model that most people should consider.
And not just because of its $800 price, which is considerably cheaper than the $1,000+ Pro models, but also because it's a darn good phone on its own. It has mostly the same design language as its Pixel Pro siblings, and it is powered by the same Tensor G4 chipset.
Even the rear cameras are the same as on the Pro models.
And compared to previous Pixels, this one feels more refined, and that is the good news. The not so good news is the slightly higher price. Two years ago, the Pixel 7 was priced at $600, and then last year, the Pixel 8 was $700, and now this new Pixel 9 now costs $800. This puts it in exactly the same spot as the iPhone 15 and the Galaxy S24, which are the toughest of competitions. Let's see if the Pixel 9 can live up to its new position in the market.
Google Pixel 9
7.2
PhoneArena Rating
7.1
Price Class Average
Battery Life
7.1
7.5
Photo Quality
7.4
6.9
Video Quality
6.1
6.1
Charging
5.3
6.3
Performance Peak
5.7
6.3
Performance Daily
6.9
6.8
Display Quality
8
7.9
Design
8
7.6
Wireless Charging
6.8
7.3
Biometrics
8
7.5
Audio
7
7.1
Software
10
8
Why the score?
This device scores 1.4% better than the average for this price class, which includes devices like the nubia Z70 Ultra, Motorola razr (2024) and OnePlus 12
Disclaimer: We use a new review rating system at PhoneArena, and you may notice the total score is now lower than you might be used to seeing. That, however, does not mean that the Pixel 9 Pro XL is a bad phone. Instead, it is the way our new system works. The idea is to look at the score in comparison to other phones in the same price class, and this new Pixel actually scores on par with rivals like the OnePlus 12.
This rating is based on detailed testing across twelve different categories, and you can also see the individual score for each category above. Learn more about our PhoneArena Review Score here.
We have a few exciting specs changes on the Pixel 9. The new ultrawide camera, now same as on the Pro models, is a highlight and a major step up from before. Then, you also have the new Tensor G4 chip and more RAM that enables new AI features.
Also, it comes with a bigger display than the previous Pixel 8 model and a slightly bigger battery too.
Pixel 9 Design and Display
The same Pixel spirit but with a fresh look
We love the new design with flat sides, and it is also more durable (Image by PhoneArena)
The whole Pixel 9 lineup comes in a brand new look, losing the pebble-like shape of previous generations in place for a more blocky one. The front and back panels, as well as the frame itself are flat, while the edges of the phone are curved.
In our opinion, Google has done a great job at preserving the overall unique Pixel look and what makes it stand out from the competition, which is saying something considering Samsung and Apple shape their phones rather similarly.
The flat frame has a matte finish to it, while the back panel is glossy and reflective, with aluminum and glass being the materials Google has used. There is also more durable Gorilla Glass Victus 2, making the standard Pixel as protected as the pricier Pro variants.
Size-wize, the Pixel 9 is a 6.3-inch phone, so a bit bigger than the 6.2-inch Pixel 8, and it is also a tiny bit thinner. The dimensions are 152.8 x 72.0 x 8.5 mm (the Pixel 9 Pro version has exactly the same size).
Pixel 9 unboxed (Image by PhoneArena)
The Pixel 9 unboxing experience is rather simple because there is not much in the box. We like that the box is made of recycled materials and that it is quite slim, but we regret that useful goodies like a charger, a screen protector and a case are missing. You only get a USB-C charging cable, the user manual and the SIM tool.
As for the hues, here are all of the Pixel 9 colors:
Obsidian
Porcelain
Wintergreen
Peony
We have a wider variety of colors with the Pixel 9 compared to last year, with one additional hue. This year the colors are also more vibrant, especially if you look at the Peony and Wintergreen variants. What's more, this year we have a beige (Porcelain) instead of a boring gray color.
This screen gets extra bright! (Image by PhoneArena)
As for the display, the Pixel 9 comes with a 6.3" OLED screen that Google calls "Actua" (and not "Super Actua" as on the Pros). Is it a good screen? We have run all of our lab tests, and you can see some significant improvements have been made.
The CIE 1931 xy color gamut chart represents the set(area)of colors that a display can reproduce,with the sRGB colorspace(the highlighted triangle)serving as reference.The chart also provides a visual representation of a display's color accuracy. The small squares across the boundaries of the triangle are the reference points for the various colors, while the small dots are the actual measurements. Ideally, each dot should be positioned on top of its respective square. The 'x:CIE31' and 'y:CIE31' values in the table below the chart indicate the position of each measurement on the chart. 'Y' shows the luminance (in nits) of each measured color, while 'Target Y' is the desired luminance level for that color. Finally, 'ΔE 2000' is the Delta E value of the measured color. Delta E values of below 2 are ideal.
The Color accuracy chart gives an idea of how close a display's measured colors are to their referential values. The first line holds the measured (actual) colors, while the second line holds the reference (target) colors. The closer the actual colors are to the target ones, the better.
The Grayscale accuracy chart shows whether a display has a correct white balance(balance between red,green and blue)across different levels of grey(from dark to bright).The closer the Actual colors are to the Target ones,the better.
Google says peak brightness reaches 2700 nits vs. 2000 nits on last year’s model. We don't measure peak brightness (which is measured at just 5% of the screen being white, and all the rest black), but instead we measure the brightness on an all-white display. The Pixel 9 scores 1,970 nits in our testing, more than most other phones we have tested by a big margin. That means it will be much easier to use this phone outdoors, under the bright sun.
One slight niggle is that at night, the lowest brightness level is 1.8 nits, which is not quite as dim as 0.9 nits on the Galaxy S24. This might seem like a small difference, but night owls will notice it.
Pixel 9 Camera
Big upgrade: new ultra-wide camera
Two rear cameras borrowed from the Pro models, but still no telephoto lens (Image by PhoneArena)
Google Pixel 9
PhoneArena Camera Score
BEST 157
144
PhoneArena Photo Score
BEST 162
153
Main (wide)
BEST 85
84
Zoom
BEST 28
20
Ultra-wide
BEST 25
23
Selfie
BEST 30
26
PhoneArena Video Score
BEST 153
136
Main (wide)
BEST 80
76
Zoom
BEST 27
16
Ultra-wide
BEST 24
20
Selfie
BEST 28
24
Pixel 9 camera specs:
50 MP Octa PD wide camera, ƒ/1.68 aperture, 82° field of view, 1/1.31" image sensor size, Super Res Zoom up to 8x, Optical + electronic image stabilization on wide
48 MP Quad PD ultrawide camera with autofocus, ƒ/1.7 aperture, 123° field of view, 1/2.55" image sensor size
10.5 MP Dual PD selfie camera with autofocus, ƒ/2.2 aperture, 95° ultrawide field of view
The Pixel 9 features a brand new 48MP ultra-wide camera, which happens to be exactly the same one that the Pro models have. It is a big upgrade from the 12MP utlra-wide snapper on the Pixel 8. Unfortunately, you still don't have the Pro camera mode and you can only capture pixel-binned photos with 12MP resolution (the Pro models can capture full-resolution 50MP photos).
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Another camera upgrade that comes with the Pixel 9 is (finally) autofocus for the selfie camera. This is not the most game-changing update, but it is useful for keeping yourself in focus as you move around in the frame. The Pro models have a new super-wide selfie camera, but not this regular model, and this might be a factor for some people.
Pixel 9 Camera Sample Photos
The image quality is really quite similar to the Pixel 8 with some tweaks to the colors and the processing of images, but really minor ones.
In our PhoneArena Camera Score, our in-house extensive protocol that tests each camera, we found the Pixel 9 scoring a tiny bit higher than its predecessor, but that was mostly because of new features added such as (finally!) the ability to preview portrait mode photos.
Video quality is mostly similar between the Pixel 9 and Pixel 8, so don't expect major changes.
Sadly, the standard Pixel 9 once again does not support the Video Boost feature that comes with the Pixel Pro and Pro XL, which also means it does not get the new 8K upscaling function.
Pixel 9 Performance & Benchmarks
Laying the groundwork for on-device AI
This new Tensor G4 chip is better, but still not quite on par with Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 (Image by PhoneArena)
Google has included the new Tensor G4 chipset with the Pixel 9 series. On paper, it has 20% faster web browsing and 17% faster app launching, which doesn’t seem like the biggest improvement, but it is something.
Of course, we ran the usual benchmarks to compare its performance against peers and here is what we got.
The Pixel 9 is a slight step up from the Pixel 8, but it is clearly not as powerful neither for general tasks, nor for gaming as the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3-powered Galaxy S24 or the iPhone 15 series.
At least, we are happy that the Pixel 9 gets more RAM, which is crucial for AI tasks, as it jumps from 8GB on previous models, now to 12GB.
Google has carved out a considerable amount of the Pixel 9’s memory specifically for the on-device AI features. This also helps with the new Gemini Nano, which is now multimodal.
Multimodality means that Google's new AI assistant can handle complex tasks without sending your data to third-party AI companies. Gemini uses your phone's data to provide personalized assistance, like scheduling appointments, writing messages, and summarizing documents.
The storage options remain the same, which means you can pick from 128 GB and 256 GB variants.
The Pixel 9 comes with Android 14, which might be a bit disappointing for those expecting the latest, but with 7 years of major Android OS updates, security patches, and Pixel Feature Drop updates (new Pixel-specific features), you are all set for the future.
Android 15 should be arriving as an update over the next couple of months, so there is that.
Of course, it is only fitting that we also get some new AI features to boot. Most of the new AI features this year are around the camera. One is "Add Me," and it allows you to combine two group selfies into one so that everyone can be in the image. This feels like an extension of last year's "Best Take" feature, although even more impressive.
The most powerful one is "Reimagine", which allows you to change the way a picture looks. You can change the sky from a perfect blue to a cloudy one, or you can go even further and place a rocket in the skies behind you, or a cockroach in a photo of food, or a tank on the street. It's incredibly powerful, and a bit scary because there is no indication this is an AI altered photo except for the metadata (and that is not hard to get rid of).
You also have a few new apps such as Pixel Studio, which is an AI image generator offering a few styles, but with more limitations than the Reimagine feature.
You get a brand new Weather app, the first native one on a Pixel.
You have a new Screenshots app, which again uses AI to analyze all of your screenshots and make it easy to search something you have screenshotted long ago.
The Pixel 9 has a battery capacity of 4700 mAh, which is a small jump from the 4575 mAh battery on the Pixel 8. Google says the phone can last more than 24 hours on a single charge, or up to 100 hours with the Extreme Battery Saver mode turned on. In other words, it's a one-day battery phone.
We had to put this to the test, so we ran our three in-hourse battery test, and these are the results we got:
On our lightest web browsing test, the Pixel 9 scored a cool 17 hours and a half, nearly two hours more than the Pixel 8. It also beats the Galaxy S24 and iPhone 15 Pro by a good margin on this test, which is a great sign.
For our second test, we play the same YouTube playlist over a Wi-Fi connection and the Pixel 9 here finished with the score you see above.
Finally, we have a separate test for the gamers, and on that one the Pixel 9 scores really good, so it definitely helps having the Tensor G4 graphics running a bit cooler and also the fact that the performance is just not quite as high compared to Snapdragon-based flagships and iPhones.
Not the fastest charging phone around, but not the slowest either (Image by PhoneArena)
Charging speeds are the same as last year, maxing out at 27W, but since the Pixel 9 has a slightly bigger battery, we measured it charges a bit slower than the Pixel 8.
A 30 minute top-up, gives you 51% charge on the Pixel 9 and 55% on the Pixel 8, according to our testing. We measured it takes 1 hour and 39 minutes to fully charge the Pixel 9 from 1% to 100%, compared to 1 hour and 24 minutes for the Pixel 8.
The Pixel 9 supports a maximum wireless charging speed of 15 watts, but only if you use a Pixel Stand 2nd Gen. We have not been able to test wireless charging yet, as it seems that hte Pixel Stand Gen 2 is out of stock across most markets, but expect a full charge this way to take more than 2 hours and a half.
Should you buy the Pixel 9?
The Pixel 9 offers the best value for the money in the series (Image by PhoneArena)
The new $800 Pixel 9 feels refined in a way that previous Pixels did not.
We like the new design, we like that the phone is even better prepared for AI with 12GB of RAM, we also don't mind the faster Tensor G4 chip, and that ultrawide camera is better indeed.
Was all of that worth the price bump? And should you get the Pixel over a Galaxy or an iPhone?
While we wish the Pixel was a bit cheaper as in the past, we think it is the most advanced AI phone on the market at the time of its launch and best prepared for that future. If that's what you care for, it should be at the top of your wishlist.
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Victor, a seasoned mobile technology expert, has spent over a decade at PhoneArena, exploring the depths of mobile photography and reviewing hundreds of smartphones across Android and iOS ecosystems. His passion for technology, coupled with his extensive knowledge of smartphone cameras and battery life, has positioned him as a leading voice in the mobile tech industry.
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