Technologies

Google Pixel 8 Pro vs. iPhone 15 Pro Max, Galaxy S23 Ultra: Top-End Phones Compared

The Pixel 8 Pro brings new media-editing software tricks, but how else does it compare to the top premium smartphones?

The Pixel 8 Pro is Google’s latest top-end phone, packing a new processor, a brighter display and better cameras than its predecessor. But it faces stiff competition from two other handsets that dominate the premium smartphone market: the iPhone 15 Pro Max and the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra. How do they really compare?

The Pixel 8 Pro runs on the new Tensor G3 chipset, the third generation in a line of silicon Google has designed to augment its on-device AI processing. Tensor chipsets don’t seem to be quite as much of a performance powerhouse in benchmarks like Geekbench as the A17 Pro chip in the iPhone 15 Pro Max or the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip in the Galaxy S23 Ultra. We’ll have to wait until we can fully test the Pixel 8 Pro to see how it performs compared with the others.

But the Tensor chipset does enable many of the Pixel family’s neat media-editing tricks, like Magic Eraser for taking elements out of photos, Audio Magic Eraser for diminishing background noise, and Best Take for combining the best bits of a burst of photos. These are the flashiest software advantages the Pixel 8 Pro holds over the competition (among others), even though Magic Eraser is technically available for other phones through the Google Photos app.

The other big advantage the Pixel 8 Pro holds is a guarantee of seven years of Android operating system and security updates. That’s far more than Samsung phones like the Galaxy S23 Ultra’s four years of OS updates and five years of security updates. And Apple is unclear about how long phones will be supported — the just-released iOS 17 update, for instance, leaves behind the iPhone 8 and iPhone X, both released in 2017, so five years of OS updates is the low-end estimate for a new iPhone.

The Pixel 8 Pro’s rear camera hardware includes a 50-megapixel main shooter, a 48-megapixel ultrawide and a 48-megapixel telephoto capable of 5x optical zoom. On paper, those cameras will likely produce sharper photos than the 12-megapixel ultrawide and 12-megapixel telephoto cameras on the iPhone 15 Pro Max, though we’ll have to test to compare it to Apple’s unique «tetraprism» technology in its zoom camera (the iPhone’s 48-megapixel main camera may be roughly comparable to the Pixel 8 Pro’s main shooter).

As far as rear cameras go, the Pixel 8 Pro might face the biggest challenge from the Galaxy S23 Ultra, which has a 200-megapixel main camera. While it has only a 12-megapixel ultrawide camera, Samsung’s top-of-the-line phone has two telephoto cameras: a 10-megapixel 3x optical zoom and a 10-megapixel 10x optical zoom, which is capable of up to 100x digital zoom. But with the phone’s starting cost of $1,200, those souped-up camera specs make sense considering the Pixel 8 Pro’s $1,000 starting price and the iPhone 15 Pro Max’s $1,100 price tag.

All three phones have pretty similar selfie cameras: the Pixel 8 Pro has a 10.5-megapixel selfie shooter, while the iPhone 15 Pro Max and the Galaxy S23 Ultra both have 12-megapixel front-facing cameras.

Regarding design, the three phones have very different looks. The Pixel 8 Pro retains its predecessor’s wide horizontal camera block spanning the width of the phone. A metallic stripe wraps around the phone’s three rear cameras, with a flash and new temperature sensor on the right side (for checking food and, pending FDA approval, your own skin). The rest of the phone’s rear cover is a matte glass, and its sides are rounded.

The iPhone 15 Pro Max has its predecessor’s flat sides and square camera block, with lenses that are larger and stick out farther than those of previous iPhones. The Galaxy S23 Ultra is the physically largest of the bunch, though its design has tended toward minimalism, with just the five cameras popping out of the undecorated back cover (i.e. no big camera block), as well as rounded sides.

The Pixel 8 Pro’s 6.7-inch OLED display (3,120×1,440 pixels) is the same size as its predecessor’s, but it’s brighter, maxing out at 2,400 nits with a 1 to 120Hz refresh rate. It has a slightly sharper resolution than the iPhone 15 Pro Max’s 6.7-inch OLED (2,796x 1,290-pixel) screen, and it’s on par with the Galaxy S23 Ultra’s 6.8-inch AMOLED (3,088×1,440-pixel) display (both Apple’s and Samsung’s phones have 120Hz adaptive refresh rates).

The phones are also pretty similar in terms of other hardware specs. The Pixel 8 Pro comes with 12GB of RAM and 128GB to 1TB of storage. Apple never specifies the amount of memory in its phones, though GSMArena says the iPhone 15 Pro Max has 8GB, and the phone comes with 256GB, 512GB or 1TB of storage. The Galaxy S23 Ultra starts with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, but it can also be configured for 12GB of RAM and 256GB, 512GB or 1TB of storage. None of the three has a slot for expandable storage, so you’ll have to store your extra files in the cloud or hook up an external SSD.

Similarly, Apple doesn’t disclose battery capacity on its phones, saying only that it gets up to 29 hours of video playback (in other words, it should last all day without needing to recharge). The Pixel 8 Pro has a 5,050mAh battery, while the Galaxy S23’s battery has a capacity of 5,000mAh.

In a first for Apple, the iPhone 15 Pro Max has a USB-C port instead of its Lightning connector and has 25 watts of wired charging as well as 15 watts of wireless charging. The Pixel 8 Pro has up to 30 watts of wired charging and 23 watts of wireless, while the Galaxy S23 Ultra has the fastest speed, with 45 watts of wired charging and 15 watts of wireless.

To see how else the Pixel 8 Pro stacks up against the iPhone 15 Pro Max and the Galaxy S23 Ultra, we’ve placed each phone into this side-by-side comparison chart:

Google Pixel 8 Pro vs. iPhone 15 Pro Max vs. Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra

	Google Pixel 8 Pro	Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max	Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
Display size, tech, resolution, refresh rate, brightness	6.7-inch OLED; 3,120×1,440 pixels; 1-120Hz adaptive refresh rate	6.7-inch OLED; 2,796×1,290 pixels; 120Hz adaptive refresh rate	6.8-inch AMOLED; 3,088×1,440 pixels; 120Hz adaptive refresh rate
Pixel density	489 ppi	460 ppi	500 ppi
Dimensions (inches)	6.4x3x0.3 inches	6.29×3.02×0.32 inches	6.43×3.07×0.35 inches
Dimensions (millimeters)	162.6×76.5×8.8 millimeters	159.9×76.7×8.25 millimeters	163.3x78x8.9 millimeters
Weight (grams, ounces)	213 g (7.5 oz)	221 g (7.81 oz)	234 g (8.25 oz)
Mobile software	Android 14	iOS 17	Android 13
Camera	50-megapixel (wide), 48-megapixel (ultrawide), 48-megapixel (telephoto)	48-megapixel (wide), 12-megapixel (ultrawide), 12-megapixel (5x telephoto)	200-megapixel (wide), 12-megapixel (ultrawide), 10-megapixel (3x telephoto), 10-megapixel (10x telephoto)
Front-facing camera	10.5 megapixels	12 megapixels	12 megapixels
Video capture	4K	4K	8K
Processor	Google Tensor G3	A17 Pro	Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy
RAM/storage	12GB RAM + 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, 1TB	256GB, 512GB, 1TB (RAM undisclosed)	8GB + 256GB; 12GB + 256GB; 12GB + 512GB; 12GB + 1TB
Expandable storage		None	None
Battery	5,050 mAh	Undisclosed; Apple says up to 29 hours of video playback (25 hours streamed)	5,000 mAh
Fingerprint sensor	Under display	None (Face ID)	Under display
Connector	USB-C	USB-C	USB-C
Headphone jack	None	None	None
Special features	5G (Sub 6 and mmWave); VPN by Google One; 7 years of OS, security and Feature Drop updates; front-facing camera has autofocus; 13W Qi wireless charging; 30W wired charging; USB-3.2 speeds via USB-C; IP68 dust and water resistance; Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on front and back	5G (Sub6, mmWave), Action Button, Always-On display, IP68 water resistant, MagSafe, Dynamic Island, 5x optical zoom (120mm equivalent), satellite connectivity, eSIM, thread networking technology	5G (Sub6, mmWave), IP68 water resistant, wireless PowerShare to charge other devices, integrated S Pen, 100x Space Zoom, 10x optical zoom, UWB for finding other devices, 45W wired charging
US price off-contract	$999 (128GB)	$1,199 (256GB)	$1,200 (256GB)
UK price	Converts to £825 (128GB)	£1,199 (256GB)	£1,249 (256GB)
Australia price	Converts to AU$1,575 (128GB)	AU$2,199 (256GB)	AU$1,949 (256GB)

Technologies

OpenAI, Microsoft and Anthropic Pony Up $23M to Teach Teachers About AI

Educators will learn about AI in a program created by the American Federation of Teachers.

The American Federation of Teachers is using $23 million in funds from three tech companies to launch a program to train educators on artificial intelligence.

On Tuesday, the country’s second-largest teachers’ union announced $12.5 million from Microsoft, $10 million in funding and technical resources from OpenAI and $500,000 from Anthropic will be used for a New York-based hub to teach AI. The AFT is working in partnership with the United Federation of Teachers, a union representing New York school workers.

The hub will be called the National Academy for AI Instruction, and according to OpenAI, will serve 400,000 educators to develop AI fluency by 2030 through workshops, online courses and hands-on training sessions. The plan, according to the company, is to start in New York and scale nationwide, including additional hubs elsewhere in the country. The effort will begin with a focus on K-12 educators.

(Disclosure: Ziff Davis, CNET’s parent company, in April filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.)

In a post on X, AFT President Randi Weingarten wrote, «This will be an innovative new training space where educators will learn not just about how A.I. works, but how to use it wisely, safely and ethically.It will be a place where tech developers and educators can talk with each other, not past each other.»

The announcement was not met with unanimous praise. On a post on the UFT’s Facebook page, commenters were not happy. «AI use has been proven to reduce brain activity but sure, why not,» one commenter wrote.

Another wrote, «This is absolutely a horrible decision by the Union. It is undermining our work and also doesn’t take in consideration the ramifications of AI in education.»

Technologies

The HBO Max Name Change Is Here. Here’s What to Know

The streaming service is getting a rebrand. Again.

Summer is usually a time for blockbusters, but Warner Bros. Discovery is giving us more than Superman this year. Max brought back its former name, HBO Max, on Wednesday, according to a press release.

The company first announced the change to the streaming service during its Upfront presentation in May, and judging by this meme it shared, the media giant has a sense of humor about it.

The streaming service was originally rebranded as Max in May of 2023 when it merged content from HBO Max and Discovery brands. During the past two years, we’ve seen the logo change from purple to blue and then black, along with the name flip. What’s the reasoning behind the revamp this time around?

«The powerful growth we have seen in our global streaming service is built around the quality of our programming,» said Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav, according to a May press release. «Today, we are bringing back HBO, the brand that represents the highest quality in media, to further accelerate that growth in the years ahead.»

Your home screen will change to reflect the streamer’s updated name and logo, but it’s unclear whether HBO Max’s library will change. The platform is home to content for HBO, Max Originals, Warner Bros., the DC universe, HGTV, B/R Sports, Adult Swim and more.

During the event, J.B. Perrette, CEO of streaming, explained how the move aligns with the platform’s programming. «We will continue to focus on what makes us unique — not everything for everyone in a household, but something distinct and great for adults and families,» he said. «It’s really notsubjective, not even controversial — our programming just hits different.»

Technologies

Prime Day Deal: The AirFly Pro Is 25% Off Right Now. Here’s Why I Never Fly Without It

Today’s Prime Day deal drops the AirFly Pro Bluetooth dongle to just $41, making it even easier to ditch those awful airline earbuds.

Amazon Prime Day deal: Right now you can grab the Twelve South AirFly Pro for $41 at Amazon, one of the lowest prices I’ve seen all year. That’s 25% off its usual $55 and an easy yes if you’ve ever been annoyed by those crackly in-flight headphones. The Prime Day sale ends on July 11, but that doesn’t mean it’ll stay in stock, so don’t wait.

If you fly often, you already know the routine. You settle into your seat, start messing with the in-flight entertainment screen, then remember that your AirPods won’t connect. That means reaching for the airline’s wired headphones that feel flimsy, let in every engine roar and make everything sound muffled. Just the worst.

This is one of the most frustrating parts of flying, especially on long trips when decent audio can make all the difference. Between the engine noise, crying babies and that one guy snoring in 14C, you need a better option. The good news is there’s a simple device that fixes the problem completely and makes flying feel a lot more like streaming at home.

The AirFly Pro has become a must-pack item in my travel bag. It’s a simple Bluetooth dongle that lets you connect your wireless earbuds (like my AirPods Pro) directly to the airplane’s entertainment system, no adapters or wired workarounds required. Since I started using it, I’ve stopped dreading in-flight audio and finally get to enjoy movies the way they were meant to be heard. If you fly often, this little gadget could completely change how you travel.

The AirFly Pro lets me enjoy in-flight entertainment

The AirFly Pro from Twelve South is a minimally designed dongle that lets me connect to the 3.5mm headphone jack in my airplane seat to listen to in-flight entertainment on my noise-canceling earbuds. All I have to do is pair the AirFly Pro with whichever Bluetooth headphones I’m using, like my AirPods Pro, plug the AirFly Pro into the display in front of me, and I’m all set. I don’t even need to use my phone to connect the two devices.

There are four versions of the AirFly: the AirFly SE, which sells for $35 on Amazon and connects to just one set of headphones, the AirFly Pro at $41, the Pro V2 at $60, which is the newest version of the AirFly Pro, and the Pro Deluxe at $70, which comes with an international headphone adapter and a suede travel case.

Hey, did you know? CNET Deals texts are free, easy and save you money.

I use the AirFly Pro, which has been a game-changer for me on flights. I’ve never had to worry about battery life since the AirFly Pro lasts for more than 25 hours and can fully charge in 3 hours. I can also pair two separate pairs of headphones to a single AirFly Pro, in case I’m with someone else on a flight and want to watch the same movie or show. And if that’s not enough, the AirFly Pro also doubles as an audio transmitter, so I can turn any speaker with a headphone jack, like my old car stereo, into a Bluetooth speaker.

The AirFly Pro makes a great gift for any traveler

The AirFly Pro is the perfect present to give to someone who’s planning to travel this year. Besides my Anker MagSafe battery pack, the AirFly Pro really has become my most treasured travel accessory when I fly, which is why I consider it to be one of those can’t-go-wrong gifts. For more travel gear, here are our favorite tech essentials to travel with and our favorite travel pillows.