Yearly smartphone upgrades are often iterative in nature. If you have last year’s phone, you probably don’t need the new one. As a phone reviewer, I switch between phones on a weekly basis, using two or three different devices at any given time. When you do that, it’s clear that there are only minor differences between the “old” flagships and the shiny new ones. To find out just how much changed between the Google Pixel 9 and Pixel 10 series, I used the Pixel 9 Pro XL and Pixel 10 Pro side-by-side for two weeks.
Aside from confirming I prefer smaller phone screens, the experience taught me quite a bit about the Pixel 10 series. The hardware upgrades are minor, yes. However, Google made upgrades in all the right places to make the Pixel 10 Pro feel like a complete package. It has a larger battery, a brighter display, an upgraded Tensor G5 chipset, Qi2 magnets, and plenty of software upgrades. That might not be enough to convince Pixel 9 owners to upgrade, but if you have an older Pixel or another Android phone model? The Pixel 10 Pro is as compelling an upgrade as ever.
The minimal hardware upgrades stack up
It’s not a major overhaul, but these are truly nice changes
The hardware upgrades on the Google Pixel 10 Pro aren’t anything major, but they also aren’t insignificant. It’s powered by the Tensor G5, which is fabricated by TSMC using its industry-leading 3nm process node. In the past, Pixel chips were manufactured by Samsung Foundry.
This means that the Tensor G5’s CPU is 34% faster on average, while the NPU — used for on-device AI processing — is up to 60% faster compared to Tensor G4. Plus, the Pixel 10 Pro and Pixel 10 Pro XL both come with 16GB of memory as standard. Even Samsung’s latest Galaxy S26 Ultra only ships with 16GB RAM if you pay for the most expensive 1TB variant.
Notably, the base-model Pixel 10 Pro only includes 128GB storage, which is unfortunate. In the time since Google launched the Pixel 10 Pro, Apple and Samsung made 256GB standard on their new flagship launches. The powerful NPU and extra memory will help the Pixel 10 Pro last a while, and that’s appreciated. Make no mistake — the Tensor G5 still isn’t capable of matching the best chips from Apple and Qualcomm in synthetic benchmarks.
The other hardware upgrade worth mentioning is the 3,300-nit peak brightness of the Pixel 10 Pro, which is a slight uptick compared to the Pixel 9 Pro’s 3,000-nit peak brightness. This makes the newer model easier to see in direct sunlight where visibility can be challenging. I also have to give credit to the last-gen model where it’s due. The Pixel 10 Pro supports Bluetooth 6, but the Pixel 9 Pro has a physical SIM tray. The Pixel 10, Pixel 10 Pro, and Pixel 10 Pro XL are all eSIM-only in the U.S., but I still prefer the versatility of SIM cards.
Battery life and charging are much improved
Higher capacity, Qi2 magnets, faster speeds? Check, check, and check.
I’m glad to see Google bump the Pixel 10 Pro hardware with the Tensor G5, but let’s be honest, it will probably be indistinguishable in daily use from the Pixel 9 Pro and Tensor G4. The one upgrade that’ll truly elevate your daily Pixel experience affects battery and charging speeds. Both the Pixel 10 Pro and Pixel 10 Pro XL have higher capacity batteries, now reaching 4,870mAh and 5,200mAh, respectively. I get true all-day battery from my Pixel 10 Pro without having to worry about recharging before bedtime.
The bigger deal here isn’t the capacity increase, it’s the faster charging speeds. The bigger Pixel 10 Pro XL can hit 39W wired charging speeds, and that means you can charge from 0% to 70% in just a half hour. The smaller Pixel 10 Pro is no slouch either, supporting 29W wired speeds, and a half-hour charge gets your phone up to 55% battery.
Of course, the game-changer is magnetic Qi2 charging support. The entire Pixel 10 series sports inbuilt magnets for connection with MagSafe chargers and accessories, and the upgrade brings along faster speeds, too. You can charge at up to 15W with the Pixel 10 Pro or 25W with the Pixel 10 Pro XL and the right Qi2 charger. Google is calling it “Pixelsnap,” and to me, it’s the one reason Pixel 9 Pro users may be tempted by the Pixel 10 Pro.
Android 16 and Pixel software exclusives move the needle
If you care about Google AI and camera tools, you’ll love the Pixel 10 Pro
Software is a tricky category for Pixels. On one hand, the exclusive Android 16 experience and Pixel-only features are a reason to choose a Pixel phone over the competition. On the other hand, many of these updates and tools make their way to older Pixel phones by way of new Android releases or Pixel Drops. I updated my Pixel 9 Pro XL to Android 16 and played around with Material 3 Expressive styling before starting this test, and it breathed new life into my year-old phone.
You might not feel pressured to upgrade to the Pixel 10 Pro for software reasons as a result. One of the new features, 100x Pro Res Zoom, is genuinely bad. It overrelies on generative AI, contorting the scene and adding too much smoothness to images while ruining any lifelike feel they once had. But there are a few Pixel 10 exclusives I truly love, like Magic Cue and Camera Coach. The former surfaces relevant information automatically when you need it, and the latter gives you photography tips to improve the quality of your photo without making generative AI changes.
The Google Pixel 10 series is more future-proofed than ever
But if you have a Pixel 9 phone, you probably don’t need to upgrade today
It’s extremely hard, if not impossible, to recommend someone spend $1,000+ on a new phone just a single year after paying roughly that price for their current phone. As such, Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 9 Pro XL users can rest assured their day-to-day experience won’t be that much different than using a newer Pixel 10 Pro or Pixel 10 Pro XL. If you’re coming from an older model, it’s much easier to justify. And even if you see a great deal on a Pixel 9 series phone, it’s worth it to go ahead and grab a Pixel 10 model.
The reason? A pinnacle of Pixel phones is their long-term software support, which guarantees seven years of full Android OS upgrades. To use a device that long, you need hardware that can stand the test of time. The Google Pixel 10 Pro can do that, thanks to its AI-first processor, extra memory, and excellent battery and charging hardware.
- SoC
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Tensor G5
- Display
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6.3″ Super Actua display
- RAM
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16 GB
- Brand
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Google
- Storage
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128 GB, 256 GB, 512 GB, 1 TB
- Battery
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4870 or
The Pixel 10 Pro is Google’s highest-end flagship smartphone. It features an improved rear camera system, the Tensor G5 chip, seven years of software updates, and a 6.3″ Super Actua display.
