I Tested the Pixel 10 Pro and It's a Master Class on What an Android Phone Should Be

I’ve spent a lot of time with the Pixel 10 Pro XL, taking photos in Paris and testing it at home in Edinburgh. In short, there’s a lot I really like about it. From the slick design and vibrant display to the generally solid cameras, the Pixel 10 Pro and 10 Pro XL tick a lot of the boxes I’d expect from any top-end phone in 2025. 

It’s powerful enough for most things you’d throw at it, and it packs in a host of new AI skills. But it’s not the most powerful, nor does it have the best camera on a phone. So while it doesn’t excel in any specific area, it’s best thought of as a superb jack of all trades offering a great everyday experience in a stylish package. 

But if you’re expecting a totally new generation of Google Pixel devices with the 10 Pro, then prepare to be disappointed. The Pixel 10 Pro is absolutely an evolution of its predecessor rather than a complete overhaul. There are no major upgrades here; instead, almost every element of the phone, from the processor and software to the camera and battery, has been updated, resulting in a phone that feels fresh but familiar. 

Certainly, those of you carrying last year’s Pixel 9 phones — or even the Pixel 8 series — don’t need to consider upgrading here. But those of you on older Android phones will certainly see the benefits in performance, camera quality and the new AI skills. 

Indeed, the 10 Pro’s AI prowess is one of the main selling points of the phone, with a variety of new tools for image creation and productivity on board — all of which I’ll come to later. Some tools are better than others, while some (like the new Magic Cue) I found little use for in my testing time. While other AI tools like Gemini Live and Circle to Search are also available on other recent Android phones, I can’t pat the Pixel on the back for these. 

But I like the Pixel 10 Pro XL. It’s easy to use, swift enough for everything I want from it, and its camera is great for quick shots when you’re out with your friends and family. It’s not as powerful on benchmark tests as Samsung’s Galaxy S25 Ultra, but I prefer the Pixel’s overall experience. The big question mark right now is how it will shape up against the iPhone 17 Pro. Certainly, if you’re on the fence about which to buy, then it’s worth waiting to see how these two flagships compare. 

But if you’re already in the Android ecosystem and not considering switching platforms, then the 10 Pro or 10 Pro XL is well worth considering. The Pixel 10 Pro with 128GB of storage costs $999 (£999, AU$1,699), while the 10 Pro XL starts at $1,199 (£1,199, AU$1,999) with 256GB of storage. Both are on sale now. While it might seem that the XL’s starting price is $100 higher than last year’s model, Google eliminated the lower 128GB storage option. While you’re paying more for the bigger screen, you’re also getting double the storage.

Watch this: The Pixel 10 Pro XL Does Everything You Need and More

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Pixel 10 Pro vs. 10 Pro XL: What’s the difference?

To be honest, there’s very little difference between the 10 Pro and 10 Pro XL. They look almost identical, except for the XL model being slightly bigger. The XL model incorporates a 6.8-inch display into its larger frame, giving a bit more space to play games or watch videos than the standard 6.3-inch 10 Pro. The extra size also allows for a marginally heftier battery (5,200mAh versus 4,870mAh), while the XL also offers slightly faster 45-watt wired charging. The XL also packs larger speakers that should be louder than the smaller Pro.

Otherwise, the core specs are basically the same. Both models share the same Tensor G5 chip and have 16GB of RAM. The camera hardware on the back and front is identical. The choice between the two comes down to whether you prefer big-screen phones for more immersive gaming or something more pocket-friendly.

Pixel 10 Pro XL: Solid cameras with AI additions

Both Pro models share the same rear camera setup, which includes a 50-megapixel main camera with an f/1.68 aperture, a 48-megapixel ultrawide camera and a 48-megapixel telephoto camera with 5x optical zoom. I took hundreds of photos with the Pixel 10 Pro XL in Paris, and I was really pleased with how it captured the exposure and colors on a bright sunny day. 

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On a slightly more overcast Edinburgh however, I’m not quite as thrilled with the results.

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This shot of this chap having a little snooze is solid, with great details and exposure.

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This ultrawide shot of my friend filming has a decent exposure but the details when you zoom in are a little mushy. 

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It’s the same here, with a noticeable amount of oversharpening giving quite a crunchy look to the scene which I don’t love. 

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This portrait mode shot of my friend is spot on though, with a lovely natural bokeh.

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And this image of a dog is pin-sharp. Also it’s a photo of a lovely dog so I’m automatically going to think better of it. 

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But this guy carrying an Eevee plushie definitely looks overprocessed with oversharpened details that I’m not keen on. 

The 5x optical zoom remains an ideal sweet spot for me in terms of focal length, giving just enough zoom to help you find more creative compositions in whatever scene you’re in front of. Images are sharp and share the same spot-on handling of color and exposure as the main lens. 

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But if 5x zoom isn’t enough for you, the Pixel does let you take things much further. You can digitally zoom in to 10x, with the resulting image simply being slightly upscaled by the phone’s software. Shots look great at this length and continue to look decent up to 30x. Beyond this point, though, the AI takes over (Google calls it Pro Res Zoom) and goes beyond simply upscaling the details and actually uses generative AI to try and recreate what it thinks should be in the scene.

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The distance it can cover is amazing in all honesty. Take this scene taken with the main camera. There’s a statue on that building in this distance but at this zoom you can barely even see it. 

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At 10X zoom it’s a lot more visible.

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Then switching to 100x zoom and suddenly the statue is like we’re standing in front of it, with textures and blemishes being perfectly visible, despite being so far away. 

It’s honestly wild to me that the phone can do this. 

I took a variety of photos at 100x zoom and the difference between the original image and the AI version is significant. Most of the time it actually worked quite well, especially when I was just taking zoomed-in shots overlooking Paris as the Pro Res Zoom is optimized for static subjects like buildings and landscapes.

I was a bit amused however when I took a 100x shot of a plane going overhead and the AI recomposed it into an odd sort of bundle of sticks. But it does bring up an important question: if the phone is using generative AI to recreate details in a scene, is it really a photo that you’re taking? Google is certainly trying to get ahead of some of the moral issues here in that it says this AI tool will not be applied to faces “to prevent inaccurate representations.” 

Moving onto lowlight processing, the camera performs quite well in night time setings.

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Taken with the main camera this night time scene is bright and detailed with little image noise throughout. 

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Switching to the ultrawide camera there’s again a decent amount of detail throughout. 

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This shot is captured well enough, but I noticed there was again quite a lot of crunchy-looking details from the overzealous image processing.

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So I also shot this photo in raw and did my own editing in Adobe Lightroom. Apart from adjusting the exposure and colors, I was also less heavy-handed when it came to sharpening and clarity, and I think it’s a nicer-looking shot as a result. 

I’ve certainly taken plenty of shots with it that I really like, but I’ve also taken others where the processing goes too far. I’m not convinced that it’s the best camera for the most passionate of photographers among you — as a photographer myself, I prefer a more neutral look with less sharpening and contrast to apply my own edits over — but for capturing great-looking, quicker shots with little input from you, it’s superb. 

‘s Jeff Carlson, a talented photographer himself, put the phone up against the powerhouse Galaxy S25 Ultra and overall preferred the Pixel’s handling of exposure and color tone. How it fares against the upcoming iPhone 17 Pro remains to be seen.

Pixel 10 Pro XL: Familiar design

The Pixel 10 Pro’s design hasn’t really changed much since the Pixel 9 Pro and I think that’s fine. The last model looked great and these phones simply don’t need overhauling every year. The polished metal edges, frosted glass back and isolated camera bar continue to look and feel satisfyingly premium. It’s still got an IP68 waterproof rating to keep it safe if you take calls in the pouring rain. 

The back of the phone is now compatible with Qi2.2 magnetic accessories — Google calls this PixelSnap, but it’s basically the same as Apple’s MagSafe — so expect various cases, wallets and charging pads to be available. 

The 10 Pro XL’s 6.8-inch display is bright and vibrant, being more than capable of being legible under the bright Paris sun and under the slightly less bright Edinburgh sun. Don’t want a big display? Then get the standard Pixel 10 Pro with its 6.3-inch screen — there’s almost no difference other than the screen size. 

Pixel 10 Pro XL: A lot of AI

You’ll find existing AI tools like Gemini Advanced, Gemini Live and Circle to Search onboard. Gemini Live now allows you to share your screen to be able to ask questions about what you’re looking at, either on screen or through the camera. Sometimes it works, other times it’s weirdly inaccurate. 

While my app drawer was open, I asked it, “Which is the PUBG Mobile app?” Gemini acknowledged that it could see it, but then inaccurately told me its location and described it as “a desert scene with a vehicle,” when it’s actually a person in a helmet against a bright blue sky. It was a total failure.

I asked it about several apps (including the calculator) and it got some element wrong every time — either the app icon’s location within the screen or the description of the icon itself. However, when I opened the camera, showed it a SanDisk SSD and asked, “What is this?” it gave me a perfect answer. I would continue to fact-check your AI results. 

There’s also a new voice recording tool that creates AI soundtracks to play over the top of your recordings, and I have to say that I think it’s pretty pointless. I’ve never felt I needed a “rainy-day blues” vibe playing over a random voice memo I’ve made to myself, and I really don’t see what benefit it’s supposed to bring. It feels like AI for the sake of AI.

Then there’s Pixel Studio, which launched on the Pixel 9 range. It has been supercharged, providing significantly higher-quality images, more visual styles to choose from and an overall better understanding of your prompts. 

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It’ll also generate pictures of people — including well-known faces like Taylor Swift or Queen Elizabeth II — as well as include accurate text within the image, two things it certainly couldn’t do before. 

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I love the new styles, including the adorable claymation look, a stained glass style and a traditional Japanese ukiyo-e style that looks amazing. It’s great fun playing around with the tool, and while for many it might just be a fun novelty, it could also be a genuinely useful tool to help play with ideas for creative projects. 

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The AI extends deeper into the phone, with a new built-in translator for phone calls — which we found worked well translating between English and Spanish on the Pixel 10 — and tools like Magic Cue designed to automatically surface relevant information from you during a conversation so you don’t have to go searching for it yourself. 

We had mixed success with Magic Cue, with it sometimes surfacing helpful information and sometimes doing nothing at all. I say “we” — I’m relying on information from my colleagues testing additional models, as I didn’t really get much use out of it at all. My problem is that it only uses information across a few Google services like Gmail, Google’s Messages app, Google Calendar, and Keep Notes, and all of my conversations tend to happen in WhatsApp and a bit in Instagram. Currently, no third-party services work with Magic Cue. So, unless you live deeply in Google’s world, you may find Magic Cue of limited use. 

There are various AI tools baked into the camera, including Auto Best Take and Camera Coach, which uses AI to analyse the scene in front of you and give you guided prompts on how to take a better photo. If you’re taking a portrait, it may suggest switching to portrait mode and putting more of the person in the frame. It is a bit slow and clunky, having to follow the various steps, so it won’t be much use when you want to simply capture a moment. But I can see it being a fun tool to play around with.

Pixel 10 Pro XL: Android 16 and Tensor G5 performance

The phone runs on pure Android 16, and it’s just as intuitive and easy to use as its predecessor. Its slick, streamlined approach makes it great for both Android experts and newbies alike. The new Material 3 Expressive interface makes various tweaks to the icons, layouts and animations, but it’s broadly the same as before. Google says the 10 Pro will receive seven years of software and security support, so it should be safe to use until at least 2032. As long as you look after it. 

It’s powered by Google’s latest Tensor G5 processor backed up by 16GB of RAM. Google’s homemade chips aren’t known for their raw power, and certainly, the 10 Pro is not a high performer. On benchmark tests, it’s more in line with last year’s phones, falling significantly behind 2025’s phones like the Galaxy S25 and even the iPhone 16E. 

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Does that matter? Well, in a sense, it does, given the price, but benchmarks really don’t tell the full story. In day-to-day use, I honestly don’t think the vast majority of you would ever notice it lacking in any way. It feels extremely smooth to use, image editing is quick and responsive and playing demanding 3D games like Genshin Impact or PUBG was no problem, even when I ramped the settings up to the max. 

The only time it’s felt slow is when I tried to take multiple 50-megapixel images in quick succession; the shutter button becomes inactive for a few seconds while it processes the shots you’ve taken. Burst firing high-res shots is arguably a pretty niche use, though, and I imagine that most people using the phone will have no cause for complaint.

Pixel 10 Pro XL: Battery life and fast charging

I’ve put the phone through our demanding video streaming battery drain tests, and I’d say it did… fine. It’s in line with the OnePlus 13, while phones like the Galaxy S25 Plus and iPhone 16 Pro both performed better.

It’s a very demanding test, though, and in everyday use, I’ve found it decent enough. As long as I can make it into the evening without desperately hunting for a charger to see me to bedtime, I’m happy, and in this sense, the Pixel 10 Pro XL’s battery succeeds. Almost all phones demand a full recharge every night, and that’s no different here.

What is different, though, is the implementation of Qi2 technology, the latest version of the wireless charging standard that promises faster charging times when used with a compatible charger. In this case, the XL model supports Qi2.2, which means it should recharge at 25-watt speeds. Wired charging is faster, too, with the 10 Pro supporting 30-watt charging and the 10 Pro XL taking it further to 45 watts. With that, you should go from empty to around 70% full in about 30 minutes, which is great if you do need a quick power boost in the evening. 

I say “should” as I tried charging it using my 140-watt Apple charger I use with my MacBook, and it reached only 37% from empty in 30 minutes. It’s possible there are some compatibility issues at play here, but it’s worth keeping in mind that fast charging doesn’t always work at the speeds claimed. Results could also vary if using a different USB-PD charging adapter and cable that supports 45-watt speeds or faster.

Pixel 10 Pro XL: Is it a phone you should buy?

The Pixel 10 Pro and Pro XL are true jacks of all trades phones. While they don’t stand out in any major way, they also don’t fall down for any significant reasons. Every element, from the hardware to the software, has been updated for this generation, and they deliver a great everyday experience as a result.

The camera setup takes superb — if sometimes a little over-processed — images, the new AI tools and updated Pixel Studio manage to be both useful and entertaining, and the phone’s design remains as slick as when it debuted on the 9 Series. 

Throw in the faster charging speeds and the long software support, and the 10 Pro and 10 Pro XL are definitely great Android phones to consider. 

How we test phones

Every phone ‘s reviews team tests is used in the real world. We test a phone’s features, play games and take photos. We examine the display to see if it’s bright, sharp and vibrant. We analyze the design and build to see how it is to hold and whether it has an IP rating for water resistance. We push the processor’s performance to the extremes using standardized benchmark tools like GeekBench and 3DMark, along with our own anecdotal observations navigating the interface, recording high-resolution videos and playing graphically intense games at high refresh rates.

All the cameras are tested in a variety of conditions, from bright sunlight to dark indoor scenes. We try out special features like night mode and portrait mode and compare our findings against similarly priced competing phones. We also check out the battery life by using it daily and running a series of battery drain tests.

We consider additional useful features like support for 5G, satellite connectivity, fingerprint and face sensors, stylus support, fast charging speeds and foldable displays, among others, that can be useful. We balance all of this against the price to give you the verdict on whether that phone, whatever its price, actually represents good value. While these tests may not always be reflected in ‘s initial review, we conduct follow-up and long-term testing in most circumstances.