Google Pixel 7 Pro vs iPhone 14 Pro Max: main differences to expect

Intro

Google has gotten serious about its phone business and after a big reset in the flagship space last year with the Pixel 6 family, it is coming back even stronger this year with the Pixel 7 Pro. But how good is it and does it have that special something to make loyal iPhone users consider switching?

In this comparison, we pit two big and bad phones: the Pixel 7 Pro vs the iPhone 14 Pro Max. Both of them come with the largest screens available in the flagship space and both have the biggest battery sizes, plus having an extra large phone like these two means that the processor inside can run at its best and highest performance without overheating.

With this in mind, let’s waste no time, and start exploring the Pixel 7 Pro vs iPhone 14 Pro Max differences!

Design and Display Quality

Big phones, no-compromise screen quality

The first thing you need to know about these phones is that they are big and quite heavy. Some people will love this, but it may not be everyone’s cup of tea (in that case, look for the Pixel 7 or the non-Max iPhone versions).

Made out of glass and metal, the Pixel uses an aluminum frame, while the iPhone is expected to stick with stainless steel which gives the sides a glossy sheen. Stainless steel is a more premium, but it is also a heavier material.

Display Quality

While we expect both phones to stick with a 6.7-inch screen size and both should support 120Hz dynamic refresh rate, we expect the iPhone to adopt a slightly different aspect ratio. While the Pixel sticks with a 19.5:9 ratio, the iPhone will have a slightly taller and narrower 20:9 display, according to rumors. This subtle change might make it a bit less wide and easier to grip with one hand.

As for the actual screen quality, we expect more information to appear soon, so stay tuned for that.

We will also be performing our typical display measurements once we get these phones, and these measurements give you the exact scientific data on the screen calibration and color accuracy.

Biometrics

The Pixel 7 Pro sticks with an in-display fingerprint scanner, and we have our fingers crossed it will be faster than the one on its predecessor which had some very noticeable issues. The preceding model also did not have any form of face recognition, and we do expect the new Pixel 7 Pro to finally add that feature.

The iPhone 14 Pro Max, on the other hand, relies solely on 3D face recognition aka Face ID, and with a 2022 update to iOS, Face ID can also work with masks, fixing the one major complaint that most users had about it.

Performance and Software

Google Tensor Gen2 vs Apple A16 Bionic

Google says it started working on its first Tensor chip nearly 3 years before the release of the Pixel 6, and the Pixel 7 Pro brings a more refined, second-gen version of the processor. Tensor gen2 is expected to deliver improvements all across power and efficiency, but most importantly it keeps a focus on super fast machine learning (ML) performance.

Apple’s A16 Bionic chip on the other hand has a high bar to clear, as the previous A15 Bionic is still the fastest mobile chip available, even in 2022.

But the real difference between the Pixel 7 Pro and the iPhone 14 Pro Max might not be at all about the performance. It may just be about the software and the ecosystem. Those used to iOS will probably not want to switch to Android, and vice versa. After all, both platforms try to convince you to stay with a bunch of features, but especially the Apple ecosystem which has the Apple Watch, tight integration via AirDrop and AirPlay with other iDevices, then AirPods, AirTags, and it all just works together seamlessly . Google is on track to build something similar, but it’s not quite there yet.

In terms of software, the Pixel 7 Pro will be among the very first to launch with the newest Android 13 version. Google traditionally provides 3 years of major software updates, while Apple has a longer software support of around 5 to 6 years typically.

Camera

A battle of algorithms

You cannot mistake the camera systems on these phones: the iPhone with the kind of stove-top look, and the Pixel with its camera bar, they just look so unique!

But despite the different styling, the camera hardware is quite similar: a 1X wide camera, a 0.5X ultra-wide camera, and then a telephoto lens at 3X zoom on the iPhone and 4X zoom on the Pixel. Dig deeper in the specs and you will find both sport larger-than-usual camera sensors compared to the rest of the industry, but most importantly they both have the software to make it all come to life.

We expect a continued focus on photo and video quality, plus a few new tricks from the same playbook on both phones, but no specifics just yet! We’d have to wait and see.

One thing on our wishlist is 4K120 video recording for high quality slow motion footage, that would be really epic!

Audio Quality and Haptics

Neither of this phones will have a 3.5mm headphone jack, and honestly, it’s clear that the jack is gone for good on mainstream flagships, so it is what it is.

Last year, the iPhone 13 made a big leap in audio quality with loudspeakers that were just BANGING, they got loud, the had bass and depth, doing audio better than most phones. We hope Apple brings this up a notch in the 14 Pro Max. The last year Pixel also had very good audio quality, but not quite on par with the iPhone, so it has more catching up to do in this department.

Battery Life and Charging

iOS remains the decisive factor for battery life

Apple is traditionally using smaller battery sizes in its iPhones, at least compared to Android rivals, but since iOS seems to be way more efficient with power management, it not only makes up, it actually outshines the Android competition. At least that was the case in the iPhone 13 Pro Max, one of the longest lasting phones we had ever used!

For the iPhone 14 Pro Max, we expect a battery size of around 4,300-4,400mAh, compared to a 5,000mAh capacity on the Pixel 7 Pro. But just make sure to not mistake these battery capacity numbers for battery life! We are yet to test that once we get a hold of the phones.

Both the Pixel and the iPhone will also support wireless charging, but it’s the iPhone that stands out with its MagSafe fancy magnetic charging where it snaps tightly to compatible chargers.

Specs Comparison

And in case all of that text wasn’t enough, here is a quick look at the specs highlights for the Pixel 7 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max side by side:

We will be updating this table with details as the phones come closer to their launch.

Summary and Final Verdict

At the end of the day, the Pixel 7 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max are evolutionary devices.

We should also not forget about the price difference: the Pixel is expected to start at a way more palatable $900, while the iPhone this year is rumored to get a price hike and start at $1,200.

Anyway, which of these two would you pick? And what do you think are the strengths and weaknesses of each one?