Google Pixel 10 Pro and Pro XL
ZDNET’s key takeaways
- The newest Pixel flagships are priced the identical as final 12 months, however get significant upgrades throughout the board.
- The Professional XL mannequin, with its base storage of 256GB and quicker wired and wi-fi charging, is the very best Pixel cellphone proper now.
- You may simply should settle for a similar design and digital camera {hardware} as final 12 months.
extra shopping for selections
aug / 2025
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It is exhausting to imagine that we’re formally at 12 months 10 for the Google Pixel, however even only a look again on the previous three generations of the search big’s cellphone lineup paints a transparent image of its maturity and the place issues are headed.
Living proof, the Pixel 10 Professional sequence, consisting of the Pixel 10 Pro and Pixel 10 Pro XL, is, at first look, a protected improve. Their designs look practically similar to final 12 months’s fashions, you may battle to identify the variations in specs between the tenth and ninth generations, and so they’re priced squarely within the threshold of modern flagships.
Additionally: I compared the Pixel 10 Pro to every older Google flagship model – the biggest upgrades
However in addition they have a software suite that really advances the way in which we work together with our smartphones — or a minimum of, that was my takeaway after utilizing the telephones for the previous week. With the Pixel 10 sequence (normal mannequin included), I’ve by no means been extra satisfied that AI on telephones is right here to remain. It would not should be pressured, intrusive, or extreme; it simply must be clever sufficient to know its place.
Earlier than I dive into all of the AI insanity, there is a crucial subject that deserves simply as a lot consideration: eSIM. It is the primary hurdle each new Pixel 10 proprietor (within the US) will encounter — whether or not they’re switching from an older Pixel or leaping ship from an iPhone — and fortunately, it is one Google has made surprisingly painless.
To match the setup processes, I ported my bodily SIM from T-Cell onto the Pixel 10 Professional XL and my secondary eSIM from Mint Cell onto the Pixel 10 Professional. Each strategies took lower than 5 minutes and have been only some QR code scans away from working mobile connections.
Additionally: Google made a bold move with the Pixel 10, even if it’s not obvious yet. Here’s why
I would by no means had a extra burdenless interplay at my native provider store, however one thing did catch me off guard. At one level, the T-Cell affiliate congratulated me on switching to a Google Pixel 9 Professional XL. That is not a typo. With the Pixel 10 Professional sequence, the year-over-year distinction in {hardware} design is at an all-time low, and I do not blame Google for that — or the affiliate for mixing up the fashions.
The Pixel 10 Professional in Moonstone (left) and Pixel 10 Professional XL in Jade (proper).
Sabrina Ortiz/ZDNET
The contoured edges nonetheless greet your fingers with a heat embrace, the polished aluminum body exudes premium, and the digital camera bar continually reminds you the way critically Google takes its cell optics.
Enable me to chase my geekery with one of many few downsides of this 12 months’s Pixel design: the burden. At 232 grams, the Pixel 10 Professional XL is likely one of the heaviest telephones in the marketplace, beating my earlier each day driver, the Samsung Galaxy S25 Extremely (218 grams), and iPhone 16 Professional Max (227 grams). The cellphone is not essentially prime or bottom-heavy, both, which means you may really feel the sluggish build-up of wrist pressure regardless of the way you maintain the system up.
Additionally: Google Pixel 10 Pro XL vs. Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra: I tested both Androids, and it’s pretty darn close
Google tells me there are a number of the reason why its telephones weigh extra this 12 months, which I can solely nod in approval to. First, the Pixel 10 Professional sequence options upgraded prime and backside audio system, producing a change in loudness that I observed nearly instantly when enjoying my typical recipe movies by J. Kenji López-Alt within the kitchen.
The Pixel 10 Professional and Professional XL even have bigger 4,870 and 5,200mAh batteries, respectively, up from final 12 months’s 4,700 and 5,070mAh capacities. All through the weekend, I used to be ending my days with roughly 35% of battery remaining on the XL mannequin, a minor however nonetheless appreciated enchancment over its predecessor. The quicker 45W wired charging, unique to the XL, was one other welcome contact.
Maybe the largest new characteristic, and the one which may be simplest in convincing iPhone customers to modify over, is Pixelsnap, a system of in-body magnets that may pull in wi-fi energy on the Qi2 normal. Suppose MagSafe for Android. This allows the telephones to snap onto the hundreds of magnet-based equipment in the marketplace, from tripod stands to pockets instances to charging docks.
Additionally: The best Google Pixel 10 and Pixel 10 Pro cases of 2025
Google has absolutely embraced the know-how by providing a slew of display savers that seem if you’re charging its Pixel 10 phones. These embrace a full-scale climate show, a Google Photographs slideshow, good house controls, and a clock. As somebody who typically units their cellphone on a wi-fi charging stand bedside and on the workplace desk, the ambient characteristic is simple to understand.
The choice to proc the display saver when the Pixel 10 Professional is charging or charging and set upright is a pleasant contact. You may as well prohibit the characteristic to when the system is in wi-fi charging solely, as it could in any other case seem with even a wired connection.
Nonetheless, the display savers aren’t excellent. For one, the climate panel, particularly after I noticed it demoed on the Pixel 10 Professional Fold on the Made by Google occasion, can seem too conspicuous and show an extreme quantity of knowledge for what’s going to possible be one thing I take a look at each half an hour. And whereas the clock display saver may show the temperature, it would not present incoming notifications, making it really feel extra like a downgraded always-on show.
Additionally: I’m a longtime iPhone user, but Google just sold me on the Pixel 10 with these features
One of many looming questions going into my Pixel 10 Professional testing was how important an improve the brand new Tensor G5 chipset brings. Since Google took the matter of processing energy and silicon into its personal palms, the model has at all times performed second fiddle to Qualcomm’s Snapdragon fashions. Based mostly on benchmarks, that also holds true, with the Tensor G5 performing worse than the Snapdragon 8 Elite discovered on competing flagship phones.
Magic Cue naturally sifts by means of your numerous Google providers to seek out related data and context.
Sabrina Ortiz/ZDNET
However from a extra sensible outlook, I’ve discovered the Tensor G5 nonetheless succesful sufficient to function beneath intense workloads, from enhancing HDR, 60fps movies to gaming to working Android Auto navigation whereas on a name. The in-house processor, which includes a modified structure that dynamically shifts between full and sub fashions, is actually realized within the numerous new AI options on the Pixel 10 Professional sequence.
I am speaking quicker compute instances throughout Pixel Screenshots, Recorder transcriptions and translations, and different native AI duties that will sometimes take seconds longer. That saved time provides up, of us.
Additionally: 7 AI features I’d like to see the iPhone 17 embrace from Google, OpenAI, and others
A standout AI characteristic for me is Magic Cue, which, when it really works most frequently, sifts by means of your Gmail, Calendar, and different Google providers to populate related data and context when and the place it is sensible. I lately booked the unsuitable return flight for a piece journey, and through my name with United, Magic Cue displayed my flight and account data on the cellphone app display, decreasing the friction of me parsing by means of my Gmail and the varied affirmation messages that sometimes include reserving flights.
It is this seamless, intuitive integration of AI that retains catching me off guard – in one of the simplest ways. That carries by means of to the cameras, a well-recognized meeting of 50MP vast, 48MP ultrawide, and 48MP telephoto sensors. Essentially the most notable change with the Pixel 10 Professional digital camera is the Tensor G5 chip’s enhanced picture sign processing (ISP) and the slew of AI tips that it handles.
Digital camera Coach guides your shot, from the framing to the digital camera mode, to seize topics successfully.
Sabrina Ortiz/ZDNET
I took a whole bunch of images over the previous week with the Pixel 10 Professional XL, 9 Professional XL, and Galaxy S25 Ultra, and I discovered the previous to ship the perfect mixture of colours, shadows, and highlights. The improved picture stabilization on the principle lens additionally helps protect element with fast-moving topics and low-lit pictures.
Additionally: Pixel just zoomed ahead of iPhone in the camera photography race
The place the Pixel 10 Professional digital camera really shines this 12 months is in far-distance capturing, because of a brand new Professional Res Zoom that makes use of generative AI to right noise and distortion. It is a sensitive topic, I do know, however the output, even at 100X zoom, is what clients who favor idealism over realism and comfort over labor have been ready for. The distinction between the Pixel Professional Res Zoom and Samsung’s House Zoom leans closely in Google’s favor.
The AI-enhanced zoom on the Pixel 10 Professional sequence is not flawless — at instances, it overcorrects and makes individuals appear like sci-fi characters. However when it really works, which is at a 95% success fee for me, it is genuinely spectacular.
Camera Coach is the opposite large new AI characteristic throughout the digital camera app, and I discovered the on-screen directions straightforward to observe, clear to grasp, and versatile sufficient to seize numerous photographs of the identical topic. The place it falls quick is in capturing transferring objects like impatient youngsters or rushing autos, as going by means of the guidelines and tips requires time and fixed focus. As long as you are leaving the digital camera app with one useful takeaway every time you utilize the characteristic, I would think about {that a} win for Google.
ZDNET’s shopping for recommendation
There’s nonetheless loads to unpack with the Pixel 10 Pro series, however my first week with the units has proven me what residing with AI superphones seems like. For longtime Pixel customers eyeing an improve, each fashions are a no brainer — showcasing Google’s finest {hardware} so far and an Android 16 expertise that feels tastefully acquainted, delightfully playful, and genuinely helpful.
The Pixel 10 Pro is the way in which to go for customers preferring a extra ergonomic and cozy cell expertise. If cell leisure and quick charging are excessive in your precedence record, think about the Pixel 10 Pro XL. The bigger mannequin prices $100 greater than final 12 months, nevertheless it additionally begins with 256GB of storage (versus 128GB), so the $1,199 could also be simpler to justify.
As at all times, think about the varied trade-in offers and promotions out of your carriers and big-box retailers. There is a good probability you may rating a few hundred {dollars} off with minimal effort.
ZDNET’s evaluate workforce spends upwards of a 12 months testing the ins and outs of each main cellphone launch, evaluating the day-to-day efficiency, digital camera high quality, battery life and endurance, and particular options. This is a breakdown of each issue we think about earlier than we make suggestions:
- Design and ergonomics: How good a cellphone appears and feels performs a giant function in lots of customers’ shopping for journeys, so we think about these facets closely when testing.
- Efficiency: A number of components have an effect on a cellphone’s efficiency, together with LTE/5G sign, battery life, and background duties. Due to this fact, we sometimes start our evaluations with a completely charged handset, all background duties closed, and as secure a cell connection as doable.
- Digital camera high quality: ZDNET exams cellphone cameras by capturing a whole bunch of images and movies of varied topics and in numerous lighting situations. We additionally examine the output to that of older fashions.
- Battery life and charging: It is also necessary for us to judge how lengthy telephones final beneath mild, reasonable, and heavy utilization, how lengthy they take to recharge, and the way they do it (wired, wi-fi, or each).
- Particular options: These options distinguish examined units from a bustling smartphone market and hopefully carry added worth to customers, not the other.
- Pricing and availability: Past finances concerns, we additionally notice if a cellphone is accessible within the US or solely internationally.
For a extra in depth breakdown, try our complete phone testing methodology page.
