GoKawiilGoogle is promising “incredible camera upgrades” with its new $1,099 Pixel 11 Pro, but with a rumored iPhone 18 Pro likely debuting on Wednesday, I wanted to see how the phone’s photography shapes up against the iPhone 17 Pro.
Google touts a few enhancements that could make a difference, including better dynamic range on its wide camera and 30% higher light sensitivity on its zoom sensor. And those boosts could improve photos, even if the 11 Pro’s camera hardware is largely similar to last year’s 10 Pro — featuring a 50-megapixel wide lens, a 48-megapixel ultrawide and a 48-megapixel telephoto with a 5x optical zoom.
Apple’s iPhone 17 Pro also has a mighty camera system even after a year on the market, with 48-megapixel wide, ultrawide and telephoto cameras. The telephoto camera has a 4x optical zoom that can achieve an 8x magnification with Apple’s software.
Google Pixel 11 Pro’s camera system includes a 50-megapixel wide lens, a 48-megapixel ultrawide and a 48-megapixel telephoto with a 5x optical zoom. Andrew Lanxon/CNET
The two phones also offer their own versions of color profiles to help you add your creative style to the photos rather than relying on the default looks. However, for this comparison, I resorted to default processing across the lenses. Google tends to brighten the shadows, whereas Apple leans toward a more natural tone.
I took both phones around Delhi to see how they perform in a variety of environments, including a few beautiful monuments in Lodhi Garden that provided plenty of well-lit and shadowy areas to see how Apple and Google’s best phone cameras show these places off. While phone photography can vary in all kinds of environments and is subjective, here’s how I felt each phone performed in capturing fine details and colors.
Google Pixel 11 Pro Apple iPhone 17 Pro Main 50-megapixel; 1/1.3-inch sensor with OIS; 25mm 48-megapixel;1/1.28-inch sensor with OIS, 24mm Telephoto 48-megapixel; 1/1.95-inch sensor with 5x optical zoom and OIS, 120mm 48-megapixel; 1/2.55-inch sensor with 4x optical zoom and OIS, 100mm Ultrawide 48-megapixel; 123-degree field-of-view 48-megapixel; 120-degree field-of-view
Main camera
Left: Pixel 11 Pro image. Right: iPhone 17 Pro image.
In overcast conditions, Apple’s colors look more accurate to the scene, but the Pixel 11 Pro better exposed the overall frame. It delivered a better dynamic range, and if you look at the leaves on the trees, you’ll find that Google was able to capture more details in the shadows. The iPhone 17 Pro Max shot looks less lively in comparison.
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