Google Pixel 9 Pro XL

The Pixel 9 Pro XL is worth buying for its cameras, clean software and long update support, not for raw speed.

Main advantages:

• Natural, consistent daytime photos and excellent selfies
• Sharp, bright 120Hz LTPO OLED screen
• Stock Android with no bloatware and updates until 2031
• Official PTA units run the global software, with working 5G
• Premium build, strong stereo speakers and wireless charging

Main compromises:

• Tensor G4 throttles and falls well behind rivals in gaming
• Battery life trails the competition, with idle drain
• Night photos and video are less convincing than its daylight shots

Alternatives: phones such as the Realme GT 8 sell in a similar range in Pakistan and beat it on performance, battery and charging speed, but run Chinese-region software. The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra at Rs. 434,999 is stronger for zoom, video and battery.

Verdict: a good buy for photo lovers and long-term owners; gamers and heavy users should look elsewhere.

Official specs: a 6.8-inch LTPO OLED at 1344 x 2992 pixels (about 486 ppi), 120Hz, HDR10+, up to 2000 nits in high-brightness mode and 3000 nits peak, protected by Gorilla Glass Victus 2.

Real-world use: the screen shows deep blacks and punchy, accurate colours, and the coating makes swiping feel very smooth. HDR video looks excellent, and GSMArena found it the brightest display it had tested at the time. Scrolling at 120Hz feels just as smooth in daily use as on phones with higher refresh rates, since most apps run at 120Hz anyway.

Limitations:

• Opinions differ on brightness: some rivals with brighter panels look more vivid side by side.
• At 221 g with rounded corners, it feels big and heavy in the hand.

Official specs: Google Tensor G4 (4 nm) with an octa-core CPU (one 3.1 GHz Cortex-X4 core), Mali-G715 MC7 graphics and 16GB RAM.

Real-world use: everyday tasks, apps and multitasking feel smooth thanks to the clean software and generous RAM. Heavy work is another story: its AnTuTu score sits around 1.6 million, about half of Snapdragon 8 Elite rivals, and a CapCut export took 45 seconds against 30 seconds on the Realme GT 8.

Gaming and heat: the phone throttles heavily under sustained load and warms up, which also drains the battery faster. It plays games fine casually, but it is not a good pick for serious gamers.

Limitation: at this price, performance is the weakest part of the package.

Official specs:

• Main: 50 MP, f/1.7, OIS
• Telephoto: 48 MP periscope, 5x optical zoom, OIS
• Ultrawide: 48 MP, f/1.7, 123-degree view
• Video: 4K at up to 60fps on rear and front cameras

Daylight: the main camera keeps colours natural with a slightly cool tone, handles strong sunlight and glare very well and takes excellent close-ups. Opinions differ on consistency: some shots get extra saturation or sharpening.

Low light: night photos are brightened a lot, which helps in very dark scenes but can make shadows look flat. Light balance under warm event lighting is good, and the 48 MP ultrawide is cleaner at night than in daylight, where its edges look soft.

Zoom and portraits: the 5x lens holds detail, but the preview gets shaky at 10x and beyond. Skin tones in portraits are natural, yet edge detection is hit or miss and there is no dedicated 5x portrait mode.

Selfies and video: selfies are excellent, with natural skin texture and contrast. Selfie video looks softened and over-contrasted, there is no bokeh video mode, and GSMArena found video quality short of the best flagships. The camera app also takes time to learn, with slide-to-zoom that can miss the exact lens you want.

Official specs: a 5060 mAh battery with 37W wired charging (70% in 30 minutes), 23W wireless with the Pixel Stand, 12W with Qi chargers, and reverse wireless charging.

Real-world use: GSMArena found this the longest-lasting Pixel at the time, but still behind competing flagships. The phone drains noticeably even when sitting idle, and drain rises when it heats up under load. Rivals with much larger batteries last clearly longer.

Charging: wired charging is reasonable rather than fast for the class, but wireless charging is a plus that many similarly priced Chinese phones lack.

The Pixel 9 Pro XL runs stock Android from Google, launched on Android 14, with seven major Android upgrades and updates until 2031. There is no bloatware, and official PTA units come with the global software rather than a Chinese-region build.

AI features: Gemini, Add Me, object eraser and photo unblur are built in and useful. Zoom Enhance is closer to a gimmick, and Video Boost takes a long time to process.

Useful extras:

• 5G works on Pakistani networks where your carrier offers it.
• USB 3.2 lets you mirror the phone to a TV or monitor by cable.
• NFC payments through Google Wallet, Wi-Fi 7 and a built-in thermometer sensor.

Limitations: there is no IR blaster, and the power and volume buttons sit in an unusual order that takes time to get used to.