Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra vs. Google Pixel 8 Pro

The Pixel 8 Pro may be Google’s showcase of what an Android smartphone should be, but there’s a competing school of Android excellence led by the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra. The Galaxy isn’t exactly new – it’s been around for almost a year now – but for the next couple of months, until its replacement arrives, it will remain the most talented alternative to the Pixel this side of the OS divide. We’ll try to do a quick comparison to determine which of the two Android powerhouses is best for you.

For starters, you can compare the full spec sheets here or continue directly with our editor’s rating below.

Summary:

Size comparison

The new Pixel 8 Pro remains essentially the same size as its predecessor, meaning it’s slightly smaller than the final Galaxy. The S23 Ultra is less than a million taller and less than two million wider than the Pixel, but thanks to its boxier style, it’s a tangibly larger phone to use. It’s also heavier: the 21 g of weight that separates the two laptops is not negligible.

Beyond the measurable differences and perceivable nuances in handling, the two phones aren’t that different in principle. Both feature Gorilla Glass Victus 2 front and back, the rear panels are frosted, the frames are aluminum and treated with a glossy finish, and both devices should survive up to 30 minutes under 1.5m of water.

Some other operational peculiarities include the different types of fingerprint readers. The one on the Pixel 8 Pro is optical, and while slightly improved over the previous generation, it’s probably not as fast as the Galaxy’s ultrasonic unit. Plus, the Galaxy doesn’t need to point a light at your fingertip to read it, making it less annoying to use in the dark.

The Pixel 8 Pro is available in 3 colors, of which the Bay one that we had the opportunity to review is particularly attractive. The Galaxy can be purchased in 8 different colors, and even though half of them are only available directly from Samsung, we’d give the Galaxy the nod for spoiling consumers for choice.

Perhaps this is a good place to mention what is arguably the most distinguishing feature of the S23 Ultra compared to the Pixel (or, for that matter, any other high-end smartphone in existence): the S Pen. The always-with-you stylus is great for taking notes, unleashing your creativity or simply acting as a remote control for the camera – let’s say it’s worth taking up the space inside the Galaxy’s body.

View the comparison

One of the main Pixel developments this year is improved displays, and that of the Pixel 8 Pro, dubbed Super Actua, is particularly impressive. In our laboratory, we measured 954nits of manually available brightness: one of the highest readings we’ve gotten on an OLED display and better than that of the Galaxy S23 Ultra 831nits. In auto brightness mode with the phones under bright light, the Pixels 1,600 nits they’re even more impressive next to the Samsung ones 1,274 nits

The Pixel got it too Very adaptive in its refresh rate behavior, reporting 1 Hz in most cases when idling: the Galaxy should also do the same, but is not so transparent in communicating this to ordinary people.

Both models have excellent color calibration in case you’re doing color-critical work on your phone. Both support HDR10 and HDR10+, but not even Dolby Vision, sorry.

Battery life

The Pixel 8 Pro features a 5,050mAh battery—for practical purposes, the same capacity as the Galaxy S23 Pro’s power supply. With similarly sized displays (even high-resolution ones) and comparable chipsets, you’d think both phones would give you similar battery life.

In our tests, however, the Galaxy returned better numbers than the Pixel across the board.

Charging speed

The Pixel can’t quite redeem itself when it comes to charging speed either, with a rated power of 30W next to the Galaxy’s 45W. Now, that may not be as fast as you hope or expect, but it still allows the Samsung flagship to charge from zero to 100% in just under an hour, while the Pixel 8 Pro takes 1:23 hours. Even 68% in 30 minutes on the Galaxy seems much better than the Pixel’s 53%.

The Pixel manages to claim a small victory here, albeit a theoretical one, as it’s not something we were able to test. The 8 Pro is rated for wireless charging at up to 23W with the Google Pixel Stand, while the Galaxy maxes out at 15W with Samsung’s proprietary solutions. On the other hand, the Pixel will drop to 12W if you use generic charging pads (which stick to the extended power profile), and we believe the Galaxy will do the same.

Test the speakers

The Pixel 8 Pro and Galaxy S23 Ultra have similar speaker setups with a “main” unit on the bottom and a second speaker on top that doubles as an earpiece. Channels are assigned dynamically, so you’ll get the correct soundstage horizontally, regardless of orientation.

In our test, the Pixel earned a ‘Good’ score for volume, just below the Galaxy’s ‘Very Good’ score. When it comes to sound quality, we’d call it a tie, as both phones provide balanced output with little to complain about across the entire frequency range.

Performance

The S23 Ultra is powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, Galaxy edition – Qualcomm’s special delivery of its high-end chip for 2023 that features a higher clock rate on the CPU than most others are getting (and maybe other small changes that aren’t as marketable).

The Pixel 8 Pro, on the other hand, features the in-house designed third-generation Tensor G3 chipset, manufactured by Samsung.

Both phones can be equipped with up to 1TB of storage, but the Galaxy starts at a reasonable 256GB, while the base 128GB version of the Pixel is inadequate at this level. On the other hand, all Pixel 8 Pros have 12GB of RAM, while the base model S23 Ultra comes with 8GB, so it’s not easy to choose who to scold more zealously.

When it comes to benchmark scores, the Pixels never excel – in fact, they’re more like last year’s average performance level. This is reflected in the numbers we got on the 8 Pro, and when compared to the Galaxy, they are quite low.

Google
Pixel 8Pro

AnTuTu 10
1,151,243

Geekbench 6
1,766 single-core

Geekbench 6
4,492 multicores

Anecdotally, both phones work really well, but there’s a bit of an edge in the way the Pixel feels. There are also a bunch of Pixel-exclusive AI features, but these may or may not be available in all locations. Contrast that with the vast array of proprietary stuff that One UI offers, particularly on the S Pen-equipped S23 Ultra, but also stuff that all high-end GAlaiexes have like desktop DeX functionality, and you end up with a dilemma.

It doesn’t get any easier this year with Google’s promise of 7 years of software support on the Pixel 8 family – if you’re looking for longevity, 7 is better than 4+1. On the other hand, if you’re buying the top-of-the-line model, perhaps you have the means to upgrade it from time to time.

Camera comparison

Being at the top of each range, the Pixel 8 Pro and Galaxy S23 Ultra are inevitably some of the best cameraphones on the market, even if they take slightly different approaches. Starting from the hardware level, the Galaxy has four cameras on the back, the main one sporting a huge 200MP sensor, while the ultrawide and the two tele (3x and 10x) come with more modest imagers. The Pixel, on the other hand, makes do with three cameras, but boasts larger sensors on both the ultrawide and single (5x) telephoto lenses, potentially forming an equally capable (perhaps even superior) setup.

Photographic quality

The Galaxy’s output has made some questionable changes with recent updates – things looked different (and, in our opinion, better) when we reviewed it almost a year ago. With this in mind, it’s no wonder that we appreciate the Pixel’s detail rendition much more, particularly on the main camera, where the Galaxy’s extreme sharpness is rather offputting. The Pixel’s ultrawide also has superior definition of random little things.

Zooming in, the two capture similar levels of detail at 2x, but the Pixel’s 2x is noticeably more “zoomed in” than the Galaxy’s. The Samsung’s photos at this level are noisier and, again, quite unnatural when viewed at 1:1.

The two phones take different paths when zoomed in further, and the Galaxy’s 3x offers a wider frame than the Pixel’s 5x – trying to replicate the other phone’s zoom level will inevitably put it at a disadvantage, so we compared them at levels of native zooms. Both give you sharp, detailed photos, with the Galaxy maintaining a grittier texture alongside a noise-free Pixel. The Pixel’s 10x output from its large Quad Bayer-type sensor (on its otherwise 5x camera) compares well with the Galaxy’s dedicated 10x shooter: the Samsung has the upper hand in terms of sharpness, though it also remains a bit ‘ noisy.

When it comes to global properties, Samsung’s color science differs significantly from Google’s, and the Galaxy will tend to give you more colorful images with more impact in skies and greenery. The Pixel’s output is a little more subdued, but not exactly monotonous, just different. The dynamic range is great on both.

Daylight examples, Pixel 8 Pro: 0.5x • 1x • 2x • 5x • 10x

Daylight samples, Galaxy S23 Ultra: 0.6x • 1x • 2x • 3x • 10x

In the dark, the Galaxy’s ultrawide tends to outperform the Pixel’s in terms of sharpness, and the main camera has a bit of an edge too. At 2x, it’s mostly a breeze, with both phones handling decently. The Galaxy’s 3x remains louder than the Pixel’s 5x in the dark, and while each has its flaws, both return solid shots. At 10x zoom, darkness takes its toll on both phones, but again the results aren’t bad: the more noise but the more detail in the Galaxy’s photos is an expected trade-off.

Low-light samples, Pixel 8 Pro: 0.5x • 1x • 2x • 5x • 10x

Low light samples, Galaxy S23 Ultra: 0.6x • 1x • 2x • 3x • 10x

Video recording

When it comes to video recording, both phones remain solid options. The Galaxy has an 8K30 capability on its main camera that the Pixel can’t match, but we still think that’s an overkill mode, so we don’t really think the Pixel is underequipped in this respect. On the other hand, the Galaxy can’t record at 24 fps, which the Pixel supports, and that might be more important for the right audience. Beyond that, both phones can capture in 4K at both 30fps and 60fps with all cameras.

Video quality in daylight is better than the Pixel’s ultrawide, while it’s more of a tie between the two main cameras at 1x. However, the Galaxy has a significant advantage when torturing the main cameras to capture at 2x.

This means the Pixel isn’t good for video between 1x and 5x telephoto zoom levels, though at least there things look good. The Galaxy adds good 3x video to the good 2x, so it’s shaping up to be the superior option for close-range zoomed video. The Samsung has the upper hand even at 10x, although it’s not exactly sharp there.

Crucially, the Pixel’s videos look great at its camera’s native focal lengths, which is nice if you can limit yourself to just those three zoom levels. The Galaxy, meanwhile, delivers solid results four native zoom levels, plus the intermediate 2x: it seems like the most versatile video camera, focal range-wise.

Screenshots, 4K video in daylight, Pixel 8 Pro: 0.5x • 1x • 2x • 5x • 10x

Screenshots, 4K video in daylight, Galaxy S23 Ultra: 0.6x • 1x • 2x • 3x • 10x

The balance of power remains mostly unchanged in the darkness. The Pixel’s ultrawide has the upper hand, while the main cameras are roughly comparable at 1x, with the Galaxy taking a win at 2x.

The Pixel’s 5x telephoto lens suffers from bad flare and astigmatism, while the Galaxy’s 3x output is full of noise, so neither is particularly great in the dark. You also shouldn’t expect too great results at 10x from either phone.

Screenshots, 4K video in low light, Pixel 8 Pro: 0.5x • 1x • 2x • 5x • 10x

Screenshots, 4K video in low light, Galaxy S23 Ultra: 0.6x • 1x • 2x • 3x • 10x

Both phones do very well at stabilizing footage on the ultrawide and main cameras, though they’re still a step behind the iPhone in more unstable conditions. The Galaxy has an advantage with its telephoto lenses (3x and 10x), both of which seem steadier to our eyes than the Pixel’s 5x (at both 5x and 10x).

Here’s a glimpse of how the Pixel 8 Pro’s main camera compares in image quality to that of the Galaxy S23 Ultra in our photo comparison tool.

And here’s how the video quality of the Pixel 8 Pro’s main camera compares to that of the Galaxy S23 Ultra in our video comparison tool.

Verdict

Whether you choose the Pixel 8 Pro or the Galaxy S23 Ultra, you’ll get a masterclass in Android goodness: It’s just Google’s version versus Samsung’s. In this sense, the two are very different: Google relies on a simple user interface supported by tons of AI features, while Samsung opts for a more direct and feature-rich approach.

When it comes to our test results, there is little to divide the two on many smartphone pillars. The displays are great, the speakers are great, the charging is so-so, but the Galaxy has the upper hand in battery life, so this might help in the decision making.

The biggest gap is in the camera department, and it’s not necessarily a dilemma that can be resolved objectively. For one thing, the Pixel look is very different from the Samsung look, and you can love one and hate the other. There are also some questionable processing choices that Samsung has made recently that don’t help its case.

Of course, the question of personal preference in terms of focal lengths is key, and we can’t decide that for you either. While the Pixel can more or less match the Galaxy at 10x, if you’re more of a 70mm guy, the Galaxy 3x will serve you better. In particular in videos the Pixel does not have a response equal to the Galaxy between 1x and 5x.

Ultimately, in our minds, this is decided based on two main factors: how much you prefer to zoom in, and whether you like OneUI, S Pen, and DeX more than Google’s Android. Oh, and also if Pixel is available in your region.