The Pixel 9 scores a slight upgrade over the Pixel 8, but surely has some kinks that will have to be ironed out.
The Pixel 9 is Google’s new super affordable phone, which not only boasts a new design, but also comes along with a new ultra-wide camera, an AI-centric chipset on board, and a multitude of AI goodies on deck.
Intriguingly, the Pixel 9 comes with the same camera as the Pixel 8 from a pure hardware perspective. What’s even more interesting is that the Pixel 9 Pro XL has the same main camera, which could hint that the image quality on the affordable Pixel wouldn’t be that far off from the top flagship in the series.
You will find the Pixel 9’s camera specs neatly summarized in the table below, followed by the results of the phone going through the paces of the PhoneArena Camera test.
SpecsGoogle Pixel 9 Google 8
Main camera 50MP, f/1.7, 1/1.31″ sensor, dual-pixel PDAF, OIS 50MP, f/1.7, 1/1.31″ sensor, dual-pixel PDAF, OIS
Telephoto camera – –
Ultra-wide camera 48MP, f/1.7, 1/2.55″, PDAF 12MP, f/2.2, 1/2.9″, AF
Front-facing camera 10.5MP, f/2.2, 1/3.1″, PDAF 10.5MP, f/2.2, 1/3.1″, PDAF
Overall, the main camera is the same, but the ultra-wide is entirely new. It quadruples the resolution and employs faster autofocus, a larger sensor, and a much faster aperture. That’s what we like to see, but these are just hardware changes, remains to see if Google has successfully tamed the Pixel 9’s new ultra-wide camera.
Google Pixel 9
PhoneArena Camera Score
BEST 157
144
PhoneArena Photo Score
BEST 162
153
Main (wide)
BEST 85
84
Zoom
BEST 28
20
Ultra-wide
BEST 25
23
Selfie
BEST 30
26
PhoneArena Video Score
BEST 153
136
Main (wide)
BEST 79
76
Zoom
BEST 27
16
Ultra-wide
BEST 23
20
Selfie
BEST 28
24
Pixel 9 Camera Score compared to its rivals
PhonePhoneArena Camera ScorePhoto ScoreVideo Score
Google Pixel 9 144.
