Typically, you simply want a good friend to persuade you that you just’re proper. Over the previous weeks, I’ve had a number of associates who’re “lifelong” iPhone customers message me and ask about switching away from Apple.

They wish to break their biannual iPhone improve cycle and eschew the brand new iPhone X for the Google Pixel 2. One in every of my associates wrote me this:

“I am actually over Apple iPhones. I am type of into the Pixel 2, however that is solely on Verizon, proper? I do not like their limitless plans. I just like the iPhone X, however don’t need it.”

After receiving a handful of comparable messages, I made a decision to take this Pixel pining severely and share my experiences with each phones. This comparability is much less about proving which telephone is “higher,” and extra about why the Pixel 2 is a stable improve for somebody who’s all the time owned an iPhone.

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A lot cheaper

Let’s begin with value. A brand new 64GB Pixel 2 is $350, £370 or AU$500 cheaper than a 64GB iPhone X. The chart under compares the costs for the Pixel 2 and iPhone X. The Pixel 2’s value is precisely the identical as what a base level-iPhone used to value till the iPhone eight.

I ought to acknowledge that Google makes a bigger model of its telephone with the identical processor and digital camera known as the Pixel 2 XL. A 64GB model of the XL prices $849, £799 or AU$1,399. At launch the Pixel 2 XL suffered some screen issues which the Pixel 2 didn’t.

Apple additionally makes the iPhone 8 which has the identical processor and wide-angle digital camera because the iPhone X. A 64GB iPhone eight prices $699, £699, AU$1,079 which is extra in-line with the price of a Pixel 2.

However my iPhone associates weren’t within the Pixel 2 XL or the iPhone eight. For them, it is both the iPhone X or the Pixel 2.

Service help

There appears to be a little bit confusion over which US networks help the Pixel 2. You should purchase and finance an unlocked Pixel 2 from Google and apply it to AT&T, T-Mobile, Dash, Verizon and Google Mission Fi. Some third-party retailers like Best Buy promote and finance unlocked Pixel 2 telephones, too. And there is all the time Verizon which sells the handset to make use of solely on Verizon.

The iPhone X could be purchased and financed from Apple, third-party retailers and all main carriers.

Notch vs. brow

Each telephones are almost similar in measurement. The iPhone X is a hair slimmer and smaller however has an even bigger show — 5.eight inches in comparison with the Pixel 2’s 5 inches. The iPhone X is heftier, weighing 31 grams, 1.09 ounces greater than the Pixel 2.

The design of the Pixel 2 is per the best way telephones have regarded for the previous three to 5 years. On the entrance, there is a pronounced brow, chin and bezels. The corners are rounded and there is a rear fingerprint sensor. Regardless of this dated components, the telephone’s match and end make it look modern — particularly the small glass panel on the again that homes the digital camera.

I additionally love the plastic-clad aluminum texture of the Pixel 2’s decrease again. It is reassuring and cozy to carry. I carry this up as a result of I’ve an unstated nervousness holding the iPhone X. I am so afraid of dropping it. In a CNET drop take a look at, the iPhone X’s glass back cracked on the first drop. However once I maintain the Pixel 2, I do not really feel that very same unease.

The iPhone X is mainly all glass with a stainless-steel band that basically ties the telephone collectively. It appears like a prop from a futuristic sci-fi film or a chunk of jewellery. The display, except for “the notch,” covers the entrance and is framed by the tiniest of bezels. The one buttons on the telephone are alongside the perimeters.

In lieu of a house button, Apple added on-screen actions. Throughout my first few days with the telephone, I discovered these new gestures irritating, however now they’re like second nature. Apple changed the fingerprint sensor (beforehand constructed into the house button) with FaceID. The telephone unlocks as quickly as you have a look at the display. It really works like a appeal for me, however in the event you suppose you may miss unlocking your telephone with a fingerprint, the Pixel 2 is a greater match.

Audio system on each telephones are respectable and louder than the unique Pixel and the iPhone 7 and seven Plus. However neither telephone gives the big rich sound of, say, the Razer Phone.

Quick charging vs. headphones

The Pixel 2 comes with a quick charger that may add 7 hours of battery life after 15 minutes of charging. The iPhone X helps quick charging, however would not include the cable or wall charger you may have to make it work. It’s important to purchase a USB-C to Lighting cable ($25, £25, AU$35) and a 29-watt charger ($49, £49, AU$69).

The iPhone X is able to wi-fi charging with a conductive charging mat (additionally not included). The Pixel 2 would not help this, however with that 15-minute top-off talked about above, I do not suppose you may miss it.

Under is what comes within the field for an iPhone X and Pixel 2:

Neither telephone has a headphone jack, however each include an adapter so you may nonetheless plug in your wired headphones. The iPhone X additionally comes bundled with lightning-connected earbuds whereas the Pixel 2 would not include any. If you do not have an outdated pair you should utilize, you may have to spend more cash.

Apple additionally sells wi-fi earbuds known as AirPods ($159, £159, AU$229), whereas Google gives its personal wi-fi headphones known as Google Buds ($159, £159, AU$249).

So what is the takeaway right here? No matter telephone you go along with, you may have to embrace dongle life. However…

Android Oreo is sweet

The most important change it’s worthwhile to think about just isn’t the bodily telephones themselves, however how you are going to change operating systems — particularly to Android. For seasoned iPhone homeowners, older variations of Android had a status of being chaotic and fewer safe. Early Android, relying on the telephone, may very well be a dumpster fireplace filled with bugs, belated updates and bloatware apps from carriers and producers.

However that has modified with Android Oreo. It runs simply as effectively on the Pixel 2 as iOS 11 does on the iPhone X.

You may also miss Apple-centric options corresponding to iMessage and FaceTime — particularly when you have family and friends who use them closely.

However aside from abandoning the blue bubbles, Android Oreo and iOS 11 are effectively matched in each method on the subject of options, safety and ease of use.

Since Google makes each the and software program, like Apple, the corporate is sweet about sending common updates to Android.

iPhone X has Apple Pay and Siri, whereas the Pixel 2 has Android Pay and Google Assistant, the latter of which might run on an iPhone, too. When you’re an Apple Music subscriber the service is available on Android.

If in case you have a whole lot of apps or video games you got on iOS, you may have to repurchase them on Android. This is not as massive a deal because it was a number of years in the past since most apps are “free” with in-app purchases.

Switching from one to the opposite will inevitably imply a small studying curve. However Android Oreo will doubtless shock most iOS customers with its stability and have set. 

For extra about switching from iOS to Android, try our how-to article with tips and tricks.

Google just lately introduced the first developer version of Android P, its subsequent main replace. Apple will doubtless launch its first developer model of the following iOS on the Worldwide Developer Convention (WWDC) this June. 

The very best cameras

The Pixel 2 has a single rear digital camera in comparison with the dual-rear cameras on the iPhone X. Each telephones are able to capturing implausible images and movies. But, to my eye, the Pixel 2 takes better photos than the iPhone X.

I want how Pixel 2 footage have extra element and sharpness because of the way it processes photos with AI. That does not imply the iPhone X is a slouch. It is higher at zoomed images as a result of its second digital camera has a telephoto lens and permits for 2X optical zoom. Zooming on the Pixel 2 is not all the time fairly, however it’s better than other digital zooms.

Each telephones have Portrait Mode, which provides footage a synthetic shallow depth of discipline mimicking images taken with a DSLR digital camera and a quick lens.

The iPhone X creates this impact higher. Portraits have a gradual transition between the topic and the background which appears extra like a DSLR portrait. Apple additionally enables you to adjust lighting effects after the fact to make a portrait photograph actually pop.

The Pixel 2 separates the background and foreground with a laser-like precision. This may generally look a bit synthetic or Photoshop-ish. However there’s something dramatic concerning the outcomes, too.

Additionally, the iPhone X takes amazing Portrait Mode photos of fish.

The front-facing digital camera on every telephone additionally has Portrait Mode, too. Right here, the Pixel 2 bests what the iPhone X can produce in each method. Pixel 2 selfie portraits are simply nearly as good as what its rear digital camera can produce. iPhone X selfie portraits sadly do not all the time nail the “background blur” impact.

As for video, the iPhone X is the king, and gives higher picture high quality and extra capturing choices. Then again, the Pixel 2’s video stabilization is the best around.

Longer battery vs. sooner processor

The iPhone X’s A11 chip blows away the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor within the Pixel 2. In precise use although, it is onerous to inform the distinction. Neither telephone feels slower than the opposite.

In our looped video battery checks, the Pixel 2 lasted 13 hours and 28 in comparison with the iPhone X lasting solely 11 hours and 45 minutes. That is not an enormous distinction. In actual life, I by no means had hassle with both telephone getting via a full day of use with out charging.

The extras

The Pixel 2 comes with a connector to switch media and recordsdata out of your outdated iPhone to your new Google telephone. Additionally in the event you run out of area to your images and movies, know that you just get limitless Google cloud storage together with your buy of the Pixel 2.

The telephone can be used with a DayDream View headset ($149, £99, AU$149). The headset is roofed in fabric and has a tiny Black Mirror-style distant. You may entry VR content material from YouTube, Netflix, the New York Times (my favourite) and extra. Although it is enjoyable to make use of, I ended up utilizing the DayDream View as a lot as my gradual cooker — rather a lot for the primary few weeks, however hardly in any respect ever since.

Lastly, the Pixel 2 helps ARCore apps and options Google Lens software program that may overlay details about the world round you utilizing the digital camera and Images app.

The iPhone helps iOS AR apps and has FaceID, which permits for animoji messages. Aside from that although, it is fairly scant on integrating with AR and VR platforms.

AppleCare for the iPhone X prices $200 and supplies protection for two years from date of buy from any type of harm. Google’s “Most popular Care” prices $129, however lacks the comfort an precise Apple Retailer supplies. Whereas there is not a Google Retailer with a Google Genius Bar for quick restore turnarounds, there’s a round the clock stay buyer help system in place, which Pixel customers can entry in Settings.

Different telephones exist, however…

iPhone eight

Despite the fact that my associates are torn between a Pixel 2 and an iPhone X, it is value acknowledging that an iPhone 8 and Pixel 2 are a greater match-up with reference to cost and design. The iPhone eight has a cultured tackle the identical reiterative design utilized by the iPhone 7, 6S and 6.

The insides of the iPhone eight are just about similar to these of the iPhone X. In our battery checks, the iPhone 8 lasted an hour longer than the iPhone X when taking part in a looped-video at half brightness. Each telephones have the identical wide-angle digital camera, however the iPhone X additionally has a second rear digital camera and FaceID.

Pixel 2 XL

The Pixel 2 XL has a bigger display at 6 inches in comparison with the Pixel 2’s 5-inch show. The bezels on the two XL are notably thinner, giving it a extra fashionable feel and look than its little brother the Pixel 2. On the within, all the pieces is identical the besides the battery. The two XL has a three,520-mAh battery whereas the Pixel 2 has a smaller 2,700-mAh one.

Galaxy S9

It is also value mentioning that Samsung latest telephones, the Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus, at the moment are out. Each telephones have a variable-aperture camera promising sharper pictures with on a regular basis use. However the Pixel 2 nonetheless shot higher images in preliminary checks. CNET has extensive coverage of the new phones, however none of my iPhone-owning associates who needed a Pixel 2 had been all in favour of it.

The Pixel 2 and its inventory model of Android have a easy and clear mojo that appeals to an iPhone consumer greater than Samsung’s “add all the pieces” strategy. 

6 months away

Have in mind we’re on the midway level between Apple and Google’s final telephone launches and their subsequent ones. Apple usually releases a brand new iPhone in September whereas Google has launched each of generations of the Pixel in October. However 6 months could be a lengthy wait to improve your telephone. In the end this comes right down to you.

Finest Android telephone for iPhone lovers

The Pixel 2 is essentially the most iPhone-like telephone I’ve seen on Android. It is a stable alternative for somebody used to dwelling the Apple life. Upgrading to the Pixel 2 signifies that you may get monetary savings, get the perfect telephone digital camera for images and have a tool that does not wanted to be coddled. Plus, Android Oreo packs a degree of match and end that may certainly shock essentially the most religious iOS consumer.

When you resolve to change, all it’s worthwhile to do which shade Pixel 2 you need.