iPhone XR vs Pixel 3: Which phone has the best camera?

How does the iPhone XR's camera compare to the Google Pixel 3? On paper, there does not seem to be much that separates these two phones: both have 12-megapixel sensors, wide-angle lenses and a 4K video recording.

So it's time to see which of the categories is changing from portrait to landscape to low light.

IPhone XR vs. iPhone camera Pixel 3

	iPhone XR	Pixel 3
Rear camera	Simple 12 megapixel	Simple 12 megapixel
Wide angle lens	26mm f / 1.8	28mm f / 1.8
Optical image stabilization	Yes, rear camera	Yes, rear camera
Front camera type	TrueDepth 27mm f / 2.2	Double 28mm f / 1.8 and 19mm f / 2.2
Front camera resolution	7 megapixels	8 megapixels
Autofocus (rear camera)	Contrast phase	Two pixel phase detection
4K video	Yes (24/30/60 ips)	Yes (30 frames per second)
l & # 39; Audio	Stereo recording	Stereo recording
Extended dynamic video range	Yes, up to 30fps	No

Pixel 3 and 3XL share the same camera. The results are the same regardless of the size of the phone you use. And do not forget that the iPhone XR and iPhone XS and XS Max, more expensive, also share the same 12 megapixel wide angle camera. (It lacks the second telephoto XS phones on the back of the iPhone XR.)

There are some major differences in the way the iPhone XR takes pictures compared to the XS and XS Max. Therefore, if you have already read and viewed my previous Comparison between XS and Pixel 3there may be some surprises in store.

I've taken these comparison phones to capture the fall colors at the Andreotti Family Farms Pumpkin and the terrifying Terror Vault in San Francisco.

Read the full CNET reviews on iPhone XR and Pixel 3 right here.

Landscapes and HDR photos look great on both phones

Each phone uses its own version of HDR to increase the dynamic range of images. On pixel 3, you have two levels, HDR + or HDR + enhanced. HDR + is enabled by default, while enhanced HDR + can help increase the dynamic range even more, but takes longer to process. The iPhone XR uses Smart HDR, which is enabled by default. You can also turn it on or off from Settings> Camera.

The well-lit landscapes are fantastic on both phones. The colors are well saturated and the exposures sharp. I think the Pixel 3 offers a more contrasted touch compared to the photos, while the iPhone XR provides a slightly more even look across shadows and highlights when Smart HDR is turned on.

Overall, the shooting of the Pixel 3 seems more saturated and more intense than those of the iPhone XR when viewed images side by side on the screens of the phone. I am not a big fan of very saturated photos, but you may like this look, especially if you only browse images on the phone. When viewing on a computer screen, the colors of Pixel 3 are a little less punchy. The photos of the iPhone XR may even look a little more saturated by comparison in certain situations, for example in the sun. As always, your mileage may vary depending on the screen you are viewing.

Portrait mode is different on the iPhone XR

If you like taking pictures of people with this fuzzy background effect (bokeh), both phones do a great job. The subjects look very sharp, but the Pixel 3 produces a photo with a little more contrast, so it appears even sharper than that taken with the iPhone XR. Here is a side by side to show you what the portrait mode looks like on each one.

The portrait mode of the iPhone XR has a big limitation: it only works on humans in the default camera application. If you try to take a picture of pets or objects, the effect will not be generated. You will see a "No People Found" warning on the screen.

At Terror Vault, the iPhone XR was struggling to recognize the heavily-painted human faces of Halloween when shooting in portrait mode. I know, it's an extreme case, but it's important to note anyway.

On the other hand, the Pixel 3 can perform portrait mode on just about anything: dogs, cats, flowers and even toys are all possible subjects.

Previous Apple phones with portrait mode, like the iPhone XS, use both wide-angle and telephoto lenses to collect depth information and generate bokeh effect. But as the XR has only one back lens – like the Pixel 3 – it generates the effect of blur and depth entirely with the help of software algorithms.

Both phones have their limits. The iPhone XR tends to scramble your subject's hair a bit more than the Pixel 3, for example, but the Pixel 3 sometimes gets the background blur completely wrong, as in the iPhone. picture below.

As the goal of the iPhone XR is slightly wider than that of the Pixel 3, you get more background in your portraits. If you want to get the same field of view as Pixel 3, you have to physically get closer to your subject.

The purpose of the iPhone XR also means that the photos in portrait mode have a different appearance than those taken on other iPhones. Faces may look slightly distorted and longer than on the iPhone XS and Pixel 3, especially if the subjects are on the sides of the frame. To understand in more detail why faces look a bit distorted when photographed at different focal lengths, here is a good explanator about the distortion of perspective.

Both phones also allow you to change the intensity of the bokeh. On the iPhone XR, drag the simulated f-stop to increase or decrease the effect. With the iOS 12.1 update, you can preview the depth effect before taking the picture or adjusting it afterwards (some Samsung phones have been doing this for years.)

Pixel 3 allows you to adjust the blur only after shooting and uses a slider all in one without f-stop. But you can also change the focus point in this setting and add a blur in the foreground.

Pixel 3 gives you more flexibility selfie

You can do more with selfies on the Pixel 3 than on the iPhone XR. This is explained by the fact that there are two lenses at the front of the Pixel 3: a 97-degree wide-angle field of view and a normal 75-degree field of view. You can get a lot more background or additional people in your photos just by using the larger lens.

You will get a slight distortion when using the widest lens. As a result, your arm may look long while you hold your phone to take a selfie or the faces on the rim of the frame may look slightly distorted.

I love more the selfies of the iPhone XR than those of the Pixel 3, because the details of the shadows and highlights even a little more and the white balance is warmer. That being said, I showed a range of selfies to different people, and many preferred those of Pixel 3 because they seemed sharper and more contrasted.

The Pixel 3 also features two levels of facial retouch that will smooth imperfections and imperfections. Without filters, I think the selfies of Pixel 3 may seem a little too hard with unflattering details. I prefer to choose the normal level which is activated by default. In other words, I do not disable this softening. You can also activate the effect up to the highest level called Soft.

Some people have also reported that the iPhone XR and XS applied an artificial smoothing effect to selfies. Apple has since addressed this in iOS 12.1.

Super Res Zoom on the pixel 3 is the digital zoom on steroids

Neither one nor the other phone has optical zoom, so they rely on the digital zoom to get closer to your subjects. The Pixel 3 uses the Super Res Zoom, which combines multiple photos for a better look. It starts at 1.2X or more.

The results speak for themselves, especially when you compare them to the standard digital zoom of the iPhone. In the image below taken with a 5X zoom on both phones (the maximum range of the iPhone), you can see how the Pixel 3 still retains some detail and is less aesthetically pleasing than the. iPhone XR.

The weak light is the strong point of Pixel 3

When the brightness level is low, the Pixel 3 offers the advantage of producing photos with less noise and more sharpness than those of the iPhone XR.

That said, I think the pixel saturates the red channel a bit too much, so the images are really bright and a little excessive.

For flash photos, phones are pretty close. The flash of Pixel 3 illuminates the scene with a slightly more natural illumination, but the iPhone XR does a good job here too.

Google's Night Sight feature promises better, better still photos without a flash, but it was not available at the time of writing this comparison. From what we've seen up to now with tests with a modified APK, the results are incredibly impressive. See the results here.

The video is better on the iPhone XR, hands down

Both phones record in 4K, but only the iPhone XR can reach 60 frames per second. Pixel 3 is stuck at 30 frames per second, which means you do not have that much flexibility if you want to slow down the video after the fact.

With good lighting, the video is nice on both devices. However, the video image of the iPhone XR is sharper and the exposure is more fluid, especially when the light changes. The colors also seem more real than life. See the video on this page for examples.

Video stabilization works well at the same time, but I think that the fusion stabilization system (Google's name for its combination of optical and electronic stabilization) may seem hyper-realistic. You may also notice a slight jello effect when the camera moves a lot.

For slow motion, both movies are shot at 240 frames per second. But the Pixel 3 can only shoot in 720p at this rate, while the iPhone is in 1080p HD quality, a bonus.

This is not bad news for Pixel 3, as it can track moving subjects in still images or video. This is a useful feature to have; I just keep forgetting that it was an option.

The recording of the iPhone XR is richer and full than that of the Pixel Track, even though they both record in stereo.

In low light, the results are as different as night and day. The image of Pixel 3 is noisy and messy. It is also difficult to focus on your subject with a very dim light, even if you press it to focus. On the iPhone XR, a feature called low-light auto FPS automatically lowers the frame rate from 30 to 24 frames per second. As a result, the picture is sharper, the highlights and shadows are much better preserved than the Pixel 3 and the subjects are sharper.

Does the Pixel 3 or the iPhone XR have the best camera?

Both phones have incredibly capable single-lens cameras. If I do not compare the photos, I would be happy with one or the other. I also like different features on both phones: Smart HDR on iPhone XR and Super Res Zoom on Pixel 3, for example. So for me, the ultimate would be a hybrid of Pixel 3 for still images and iPhone XR for video.

Seeing that this will never happen, the most versatile model for still images is Pixel 3, as it has clear advantages in terms of low light and zoom. But for video, I would like the iPhone XR as it produces an excellent result in all conditions.