Last year the surprise reveal and subsequent launch of the Google Pixel and Pixel XL came at a fortuitous time. Samsung was reeling from what was the Note 7 fiasco and had taken its eye off the ball. This piece of bad luck allowed the pixels to become the best (too many) Android handsets available. However, now that the Galaxy S8 has been announced can the smaller Google device hold its own against Samsung’s latest? We’ve taken a look; you can view the details below.
Galaxy S8 vs. Google Pixel
Before you begin this voyage of discovery, let’s start by quantifying what you’re about to read. To start with the Pixel has been on sale since October 2016, and at that time was the most powerful Android handset available. As for the S8, it won’t go on general sale until next month, instead, if you want to be one of the first, you need to pre-order it. As for what you can expect from it, Samsung has seriously pushed the boat out this year. After all, it has a lot to make up for, as such, you shouldn’t expect the Galaxy S8 just to make up the numbers.
Design
True to form the Galaxy S8 is a gorgeous looking handset, just like its predecessor. However, this year Samsung has turned up the dial, to include dual-curved edges and an extended display with reduced top, bottom and side bezels. In truth, it is a smartphone made for the design-conscious if your device must look good, cast your eyes no further.
Gone is the home button. Instead, it has been embedded into the display, with the fingerprint sensor and an Iris scanner placed on the back. Its build quality is also worth talking about, made from both metal and glass this combination gently comes together. In comparison, last year’s Google Pixel is still a functional looking device. However, back when it was new, Samsung’s S7 Edge beat it in the looks stakes.
Having said that, it does come with a metal and glass body and its overall size is comparable to the Galaxy S8’s. However, its functional, yet bland design reminds us of a prototype not a device fighting for the top spot.
Display
When first looking at each device side-by-side, the first thing you will notice is the difference in displays. Samsung’s has what it calls an Infinity Display and comes with an aspect ratio of 18.5:9. This 5.8-inch Super AMOLED panel is longer and provides improved resolution compared to previous models at 1440 x 2960. Meaning it is capable of producing truly outstanding images, mainly in part to its inbuilt HDR technology.
In comparison, the Google Pixel display is smaller at 5-inches and offer a max resolution of 1080p. Now, although this is below what the S8 can provide, its, still no match. Could you notice the difference? Barely, however, we expect the S8’s level of detail is aimed at Virtual Reality headset users.
Size and Colors
Other than looks and display, one of the most important things to consider when purchasing a handset is its overall size. After all, what you don’t want is a device that is impossible to use in one hand. Here’s how they compare:
Coming in at 140.1 x72.2 x 7.3mm and weighing 155-grams the Galaxy S8 is longer, wider, heavier, but thinner than the Google Pixel. Its dimensions are 143.8 x 69.5 x 8.5mm, and it weighs 143-grams, which means there are both positives and negatives.
As for the choice of colors, the S8 comes in dark black, bright silver, and gray. While the Google Pixel has the usually named, quite black, very silver, and really blue so both similar in choice. It was said, by those at the S8 reveal, that the dark black Galaxy S8 will be the color of choice. As it is apparently absolutely gorgeous, something which can not be said about the pixel in any color.
Power
Which of these two smartphones has the most power, and as such the better performance?
Starting with the Galaxy S8, it’s packing Qualcomm’s latest chipset the Snapdragon 835. It promises performance increases of up to 35% compared to the previous chipset, that’s for both GPU and CPU. Meaning that the S8 should be a super fast handset, especially when you couple it with a respectable 4GB of RAM. Why only 4GB? We don;t know, however, Samsung is happy with it, which means combined with the chip performance is increased.
As for the Google Pixel, back in October, it launched with what was then the best Qualcomm chipset on the market. The Snapdragon 821, and it proved to be a hit, powering that device to perform spectacularly. However, even with its 4GB of RAM, it is still and older chip, which means the S8 and the Snapdragon 835 win.
Final Thoughts
It’s clear to see from the brief comparison we’ve undertaken, that the S8 is the superior handset. Something which considering the point Samsung has to prove this year to its customers and possibly new ones isn’t surprising. Unlike Apple which has seen falling sales, and rumors of the iPhone 8 leaking. Samsung has a different job to do in 2017, and that is to restore confidence in its brand. Something that isn’t possible to do overnight, it may take the S8, S8 Plus, Galaxy Note 8 and beyond to do that.
