Google Pixel 10 vs Nothing Phone (4a) Pro

Google Pixel 10

The headline upgrade: a 10.8MP 5x telephoto lens — first time on a base Pixel. Paired with a 48MP main and 13MP ultrawide. The Pro models still win on main-sensor size and 48MP telephoto + ultrawide, but the base Pixel 10 closes most of the practical gap for everyday shooting. Computational photography still dominates the experience.

• 48MP main + 13MP ultrawide + 10.8MP 5x telephoto — Digital Trends: 'The new 5x telephoto lens marks the first of its kind for the base Pixel, and it means that an $800 Google phone ostensibly delivers the same great Pixel experience as the flagship Pixel 10 Pro series.'
• Main camera downgrade caveat — SuperSaf: 'the main camera on the Pixel 10 downgraded from 50 megapixels last year to 48' and 'the ultrawide cameras had a massive downgrade.'
• Computational photography still leads at this price — The Tech Chap: 'I feel like Google Pixel is one of the best, if not the best camera phone in terms of image quality.'
• Camera Coach is the new flagship AI feature: 'tap the camera coach button in the top corner and it'll think for a moment, analyze your frame, and then give you some suggestions for like some scenes and then also give you some guidance as to how to shoot those scenes' — Dave2D.
• Color/processing critique vs Samsung at 700% zoom: 'the fence has completely lost its detail in the Pixel 10, whereas you can see the diamond pattern of the fencing on the Pixel 9' — Pixel 10's processing softens distant detail more than its predecessor.
• Video gap to iPhone widens — SuperSaf: 'It's got good hardware, fantastic software experiences, pretty good internals, and the camera system that can delight with photos, even if video surely still needs work.'
• Video boost is locked to the Pro tier — base Pixel 10 misses the cloud-enhanced 4K/8K processing reserved for paid models, a 'limitation imposed by Google to differentiate its phones' (a 6-month long-term reviewer).

Nothing Phone (4a) Pro

The headline value play: a 50MP Sony LYT-710 main with OIS, a true 50MP 3.5x periscope telephoto (80mm) with OIS, and an 8MP ultrawide — flagship-tier hardware Samsung and Apple don't put in phones at this price. Output is characterful and the telephoto is a genuine win, but reviewers consistently flag inconsistency, average low-light and a gimmicky 140x digital zoom.

• Triple rear system: 50MP Sony LYT-710 main (f/1.9, OIS), 8MP ultrawide, and a 50MP periscope telephoto with 3.5x optical zoom (80mm, f/2.9, OIS).
• Both the main and periscope-zoom cameras are 50MP and deliver strong results for this price range; the zoom in particular stands out from competitors and even allows for extreme digital zoom.
• Having a proper dedicated telephoto shooter is a genuine love, although the camera experience itself is a little bit inconsistent at times.
• It's not clinically the best camera, but the shots have a bit more soul to them.

Google Pixel 10

Tensor G5 — Google's first chip fabricated by TSMC on a 3nm node, designed for AI-first workloads. CPU is 30% faster than Pixel 9; GPU is *worse*. The chip is now the family's defining controversy: it benchmarks like a 2023 flagship against the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 and Apple A19 Pro, but real-world UI fluidity is fine for non-gaming workloads.

• Tensor G5 on TSMC 3nm with 12GB RAM (vs Samsung-fabricated G4 in the Pixel 9) — Linus Tech Tips: 'the Pixel 10 was able to increase its benchmarking speeds by 30% in single core performance and nearly 40% in multi-core performance.'
• GPU regression: 'in GPU performance, the Pixel 10 actually performs a little bit worse with it only achieving 93% of the score the Pixel 9 was able to get' — Linus Tech Tips.
• Flagship comparison gap: '87% of the single core performance, 65% of the multi-core performance, and only 55% of the GPU performance with the S25 Edge' — base Pixel 10 trailing the same-price Snapdragon flagship by wide margins.
• Sustained performance stress test: 'Pixel 10 hitting its peak performance with a 24% increase in score compared to the Pixel 9 series, but only a 5% increase in average performance overall' — thermal throttling kicks in fast.
• iPhone 17 head-to-head: 'the iPhone 17 is about a crazy 118% faster than the Pixel 10 in single core performance and about 107% faster in multi-core performance.'
• Daily usability verdict: 'Pixel UI is generally really fluid and the Tensor chip still holds up enough that day-to-day usage is wicked fast and smooth' — performance gap mostly invisible outside of gaming/benchmarks.

Nothing Phone (4a) Pro

The Snapdragon 7 Gen 4 with UFS 3.1 storage is a clear, tangible step up from the Phone (3a) generation — Nothing claims +27% CPU, +30% GPU and +65% AI. It's a perfectly capable everyday chip that feels noticeably quicker, but it's explicitly not a gaming powerhouse and warms up under sustained heavy load.

• Backed by OS optimisations and a custom CPU scheduler, the chipset delivers 27% better CPU, 30% better GPU and 65% better AI performance than the Nothing Phone (3a); storage is 147% faster in reads and 380% faster in writes.
• Snapdragon 7 Gen 4 is a perfectly acceptable chip across the board, and the upgrade to UFS 3.1 makes this feel noticeably quicker compared to the Nothing Phone (3a) and prior.
• The CPU performance difference between the 4a Pro and the vanilla 4a is not massive, but it is still very much notable.
• Available in 8GB+128GB, 8GB+256GB and 12GB+256GB configurations, all running near-stock AOSP-style Nothing OS.
• Like most phones in this segment, it shows some basic heat build-up during really extensive tasks like gaming or 4K editing in high-end software, though it stays responsive while gaming.

Google Pixel 10

4,970 mAh (8% larger than Pixel 9), 30W wired charging (~55% in 30 min), 15W Pixelsnap Qi2 magnetic wireless. Real-world endurance lands at 15-16 hours of mixed use per the Pixel 10 hands-on testers, slightly *worse* than the Pixel 9 in lab tests according to Linus Tech Tips — Google traded battery efficiency for the larger Tensor G5 die area.

• 4,970 mAh battery (+270 mAh vs Pixel 9), 30W wired, 15W Qi2 wireless (Pixelsnap magnetic) — TechCrunch confirms full Qi2 spec on base Pixel 10.
• Real-world endurance per Pixel 10 user at a week of testing: 'Google claims 30 hours of use on a single charge, but I got more like 15 to 16 hours of use with mixed usage patterns every day for the week.'
• Lab regression vs Pixel 9: 'the Pixel 10 was able to get 17 and 12 hours of battery life, which sounds like plenty, but is actually an hour and a half less than last year's phone.'
• Charging speed: 'Using Google's 30W wired charger, you can expect to hit around 55% in half an hour, which is a noticeable step up from previous generations' (Stuff). Behind 80W+ Chinese flagships but matches iPhone.
• iPhone 17 efficiency lesson: 'even though the iPhone 17 packs a smaller 3,692 mAh battery compared to the Pixel 10's 4,970 mAh unit, it is clearly more power efficient.' Pixel 10 drained 88% vs iPhone 17's 83% across a 6-hour drain test.
• Battery health programmatically dialed back after 200 cycles — Google's policy throttles charge voltage starting at 200 cycles to maintain 80% capacity through 1,000 cycles, vs Samsung S25 Ultra's 2,000-cycle endurance to the same threshold.

Nothing Phone (4a) Pro

The ~5,080mAh cell reliably gets through a day and endurance improved across all of GSMArena's tests versus the 3a Pro — but it's only an 80mAh bump over last year and looks small next to 6,000–7,000mAh budget rivals. 50W wired charging is the trade-off win; there is no wireless charging at all.

• Endurance has improved across the board in all tests compared to last year's Nothing Phone (3a) Pro; with a 68W USB-PD charger the phone peaked at around 42W.
• The review unit gets through a day without problems, but it'll certainly be into the red and close to done after about 15 hours of use; the OnePlus 15R has a much meatier battery to last longer.
• It's only an 80mAh increase over last year — small fry next to budget rivals like the Poco M8 Pro, which uses silicon-carbon tech to reach 6,500mAh.
• 50W wired charging is very respectable at this price — besting anything Google, Apple or Samsung offers below £500.
• Because the processor isn't power-hungry and the battery is large for the chip, real-world battery life is excellent.

Google Pixel 10

Ships with Android 16 + Material 3 Expressive, seven years of OS + security updates running through 2032, plus quarterly Pixel feature drops. Galaxy AI feature parity with the Pro: Camera Coach, Magic Cue, Add Me, Circle to Search, Gemini Nano on-device, Voice Translate. The Tensor G5's value proposition lives or dies on these features rather than raw performance.

• Seven years of OS + security updates through 2032 — MacRumors confirms standard policy across the entire Pixel 10 lineup.
• Pixel feature drops every quarter — 'Google releases a Pixel Drop' that backports new features to existing devices. The Pixel 10 Pro has gained AirDrop support, automatic notification organization, and bold caller imagery since launch (6-month later review).
• Marques Brownlee's AI verdict: 'the AI stuff that the Pixel has been doing compared to something like the iPhone, which is just another iPhone, it's actually been very useful.'
• Gemini Live with images, files, and YouTube — Google Blog: 'Gemini Live with images, files and YouTube videos is rolling out on the Samsung Galaxy S24 and S25 series' and the Pixel 10 family ships with these features by default.
• Material 3 Expressive design language: 'questionable design choices' that take getting used to per a 6-month long-term reviewer — bigger icons, wider fonts, less info density.
• Add Me feature: 'you might be out and you want to take a photo with your friend, but there's no one to take the photo with you, but you can use Add Me to add yourself into a photo' — practical AI feature with daily-driver utility per iJustine.

Nothing Phone (4a) Pro

Nothing OS 4.1 on Android 16 is the universal favourite: near-stock AOSP functionality with a distinctive monochrome visual identity, almost no bloatware, and AI that's present but not forced. The one hard reservation is update length — only 3 years of OS upgrades against 6 years of security patches.

• Nothing OS sticks close to a clean, near-stock Android (AOSP) experience in functionality, but stands out with its distinctive visual identity.
• After a week the phone is 'absolutely brilliant'; software is where Nothing phones shine, even if the camera 'window' at the top of the display is basically a pseudo-iPhone look.
• Software is where Nothing phones absolutely shine — the clearest reason to pick this over rivals.
• There's a smattering of AI here, but it's not shoved down your throat — and the software is basically the same clean setup as the regular Nothing Phone (4a).
• Unlike Samsung's Galaxy AI which is in your face from day one, Nothing's AI stays out of the way — an impressive, restrained package overall.

Google Pixel 10

Satin-finished metal frame with matte texture, glossy glass rear, IP68, in-display ultrasonic fingerprint reader (faster than Pixel 9). New colors include Indigo blue and Frost. Camera bar signature design carried over with subtle refinements. Dimensions nearly identical to Pixel 9 — 0.1mm thicker for the slightly larger battery.

• Satin-finished metal frame: 'satin-finished metal edges with a soft matte texture that feels great in the hand' — Stuff Pixel 10 review.
• Dimensional carryover from Pixel 9: 'The 10 has almost the exact same dimensions as last year's base Pixel, apart from being 0.1 mm thicker for a slightly larger battery' — Pixel 9 cases won't fit.
• Faster ultrasonic fingerprint reader: 'this Pixel 10 actually does have an ultrasonic fingerprint reader now, and it's faster than Pixel 9, but just a slight beat behind the other ultrasonic flagships now' — Marques Brownlee.
• Class 3 face unlock: works for banking apps, sole base-Pixel feature matching the Pro and Pixel 9a per a long-term reviewer.
• Vivid color options stand out — 'My review unit came in a bold, vivid blue that stands out brilliantly against the endless sea of black, grey and muted tones most phones seem stuck with' per Stuff.

Nothing Phone (4a) Pro

The defining change this generation: a metal unibody that ditches the transparent back for a minimal lower half and a distinctive rectangular camera island, topped by a slimmed-down Glyph Matrix. Reviewers overwhelmingly call it the slimmest, most premium Nothing ever — but the redesign is genuinely polarising, and the IP65 rating is one notch below the flagship norm.

• A $499 phone that looks and feels higher-end than last year's flagship Phone 3, helped in large part by the new metal design.
• An upgraded metal unibody ditches the iconic transparent back for a more minimal look in the bottom half, while a new rectangular camera island in Nothing's distinctive style helps it stand out.
• It's the slimmest Nothing phone ever and just feels more pro and more premium in the hand.
• The Glyph Matrix uses 137 mini-LEDs that are 57% larger and twice as bright as the Phone 3's interface — and the silver version is the best-looking, while the black metal can look almost plasti-dipped.

Google Pixel 10

$799 starting price (128GB), routinely discounted to $600-700 within a few months per MKBHD. Versus the iPhone 16 ($799) and Galaxy S25 ($799), the Pixel 10 wins on AI features, software longevity, and Pixelsnap magnetic charging; loses on raw chipset speed and video. Dave2D and Android Authority both flag it as the smarter buy than the $999 Pixel 10 Pro for most users.

• $799 base price (128GB) per MacRumors launch coverage — same as iPhone 16, Galaxy S25 base, undercutting the Pixel 10 Pro by $200.
• Dave2D's flagship-killer endorsement: 'At $799, it's out to compete with the likes of the base iPhone and the base Galaxy S, which means the flagship killer territory that's premium enough to almost feel like the best of the best.'
• Android Authority one-month verdict: 'The Pixel 10 has grown on me in a way that makes me think it's the phone most people should buy instead of the Pro.'
• Discount cadence per Marques Brownlee: 'the Pixel will be way cheaper' if you wait — MSRP routinely drops to $600-700 within months of launch, narrowing the value gap further.
• Linus Tech Tips' final verdict: 'that does seem to be the best bang for the buck out of this family starting at more like $800' — pricing aligns with where the value math actually lands.
• vs Galaxy S26 comparison per Phandroid: 'the Galaxy S26 is the more expensive device going for around 900 bucks, while the Pixel 10 can be usually found for around $800, and even lower with trade-in deals' — Pixel 10 undercuts Samsung's same-tier offering.

Nothing Phone (4a) Pro

At $499 it directly undercuts the experience-per-dollar of the same-priced Pixel 10a and iPhone 17e, and several reviewers would take it over the 10a without hesitation. The closest internal threat is its own cheaper sibling, the standard Phone (4a), which shares the same cameras for $150 less.

• From the design to the software and cameras, this is a phone that should absolutely not be slept on — at the price of a Pixel 10a, 'I'd take this 10 out of 10 times over a 10a.'
• Vibes and great value for under $500 — a balanced all-rounder.
• Against its immediate rivals the Pixel 10a and iPhone 17e it looks impressive: a larger, brighter, faster display, more cameras, and Nothing's unique design including the Glyph Matrix.
• A premium balanced package with polished software and really good cameras — recommended, even if it's not perfect on the IP rating or front-camera 4K.
• The biggest problem for the 4a Pro is its own little brother — the standard 4a costs much less and gets the exact same cameras.