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The iPhone 18 Pro isn’t worth $1,200, and the Pixel 11 Pro proves it
Google’s offering just feels more at home for some reason.
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Joe Maring / Android Authority
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While the new iPhone Duo has received a lot of fanfare, the standard iPhone 18 Pro is going to be the one driving most of Apple’s sales. It doesn’t look much different from the iPhone 17 Pro on the outside, but Apple’s presentation was full of internal changes, from better battery performance to a new physically adjustable camera aperture.
All those features do seem tempting at first glance, but I’d still go with the Pixel 11 Pro any day — just because it’s a much better overall purchase than its Apple counterpart.
Which flagship makes more sense to you?
The price is indeed a factor
Everything in tech is getting more expensive by the day, and almost every price increase can be attributed to rising memory prices driven by AI. While we expect Pro variants to cost more than standard models anyway, modern hardware prices are getting ridiculously out of hand. The iPhone 18 Pro now starts at $1,200 for the same 256GB of storage, and its subsequent storage upgrade tiers are significantly more expensive, going all the way up to an eye-watering $2,400 for the 2TB variant — add another $100 for the bigger Pro Max sibling.
That is absolutely bonkers pricing for a smartphone, given we used to consider the $1,400 Galaxy Ultras steep not too long ago.
The Pixel 11 Pro, on the other hand, has eliminated the base 128GB storage this year, so the 256GB storage is available for the same $1,099 as last year, increasing the starting price by $100. The gap widens further when you move up the storage tiers, saving you upwards of $200 compared to the latest iPhone.
For someone already stretching their budget over $1,000 (which, by the way, is already pretty generous for a smartphone), the Pixel 11 Pro gets you a much better bang for the buck than the iPhone. And it isn’t like you’re getting a compromised phone either. In fact, it’s a lot better than the iPhone in several key areas.
The Pixel 11 Pro is just a better ‘smart’phone
Joe Maring / Android Authority
While iOS has evolved quite a lot in recent years, I still struggle with its idiosyncrasies. Like when moving files, I often have to step back and think of a workaround for its restrictions on which folders and files apps can access and which media type goes where. It takes several minutes to do a job that Android makes mindlessly easy.
It was true earlier, and it’s still true that Android offers better customization and more freedom to use your phone the way you want. I live on sideloaded apps — say the ones that are region-restricted — and that’s still something iOS doesn’t let you do, even though a few governments are pushing Apple to open up its walled garden. Heck, it still doesn’t let you set third-party apps as defaults for many categories, like the SMS app, which feels so restrictive, especially coming from Android.
Gemini already nailed regular conversational chatting and visual interactions long ago, something Apple is mimicking only now.
The metric to measure what makes a smartphone smart is AI, whether you like it or not. Apple has been desperately trying to deliver on its AI promise, along with a spruced-up Siri, and it’s only now showing results.
In the meantime, Gemini has grown leaps and bounds in the same period. It’s already in its agentic era and can take actions inside Workspace apps, which I rely on every day now. Gemini already nailed regular conversational chatting and visual interactions long ago, something Apple is mimicking only now. And I can see Google staying ahead of the curve going forward too, given how rapidly it’s innovating.
How can you forget the camera?
Shimul Sood / Android Authority
The variable aperture feature on the iPhone 18 Pros is indeed impressive, and that’s the kind of hardware-level control you expect from a Pro handset. Having said that, I am a tad more impressed by the direction Google is taking with its computational photography capabilities, which make everyday life challenges easier on its Pixel handsets. Add Me is a great example of that. Often, we want the photographer in the shot, so using AI to address that inconvenience is quite ingenious.
While my colleague Joe Maring isn’t quite amazed by the new Magic Capture feature on the Pixel 11 Pro, I actually find it quite handy. There are many instances when I want to cherish a moment through my own eyes rather than on a phone screen. But those memories must be captured too. Magic Capture gives me the best of both worlds by taking the photography load off of me.
It’s these kinds of little quality-of-life improvements that make me a fan of Google’s AI implementation that attends to my everyday inconveniences.
The Pixel 11 Pro is handier
Dhruv Bhutani / Android Authority
I mean it quite literally because the Pixel 11 Pro is noticeably lighter than the iPhone 18 Pro. And with my sensitive wrists, that little difference means a lot, especially when the handset is all decked up with accessories. That’s one difference you’ll notice every single time you pick up the phone or rest it on your pinky finger throughout the day.
Furthermore, whenever I’m using an iPhone, I’m often frustrated that I have to pick up the phone to unlock it with Face ID (even though I find it more convenient otherwise). With the Pixel, I have both a fingerprint sensor and a secure face unlock feature, letting me use either in whatever orientation the phone is in. As you can see, the flexibility that Android is known for extends to the hardware too. I may forget about a super-high-res telephoto camera on most days, but not things like this that make me appreciate my phone every time I use it.
I may forget about a super-high-res telephoto camera on most days, but not things like this that make me appreciate my phone every time I use it.
None of this implies that the iPhone 18 Pro is a terrible phone. It’s no doubt an excellent all-rounder and feels like a generational upgrade over its predecessor in an era when hardware upgrades are getting increasingly incremental. However, I’ll still score the Pixel 11 Pro a bit higher, just because it’s an overall better package for my needs. And it also saves me some cash to invest in quality cases and Qi2 accessories — who’s going to say no to that?
Google Pixel 11 ProExcellent cameras
7 years of Android updates
Built-in magnets with Qi 2.2
See price at Amazon
See price at Amazon
Apple iPhone 18 ProSee price at Amazon
See price at Amazon
Apple iPhone 18 Pro MaxSee price at Amazon
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AppleApple iPhoneApple iPhone 18GoogleGoogle PixelGoogle Pixel 11
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