Why the cheapest Pixel 9 is my sleeper pick for best Google phone this year

The base variant of the Pixel series has always undercut the iPhone. For instance, the Pixel 7 was launched at $599, while the Pixel 8 saw a $100 price hike. Despite that, they were below the $799 of the iPhone 14 and iPhone 15, respectively. However, the cycle is breaking this year. The Google Pixel 9 has received another price hike, and it now directly competes with the iPhone at $799. But it’s also more tempting than ever because this is the closest a regular Pixel has been to the Pro variant.

Also: Everything announced at Made by Google 2024: Pixel 9 Pro, Fold, Gemini, Watch 3, and more

For years, the most significant difference between the base flagship Pixel and the Pixel Pro has been the size. This allowed the more expensive model to fit in a bigger screen, more battery capacity, and better cameras. There used to be at least three major reasons to spend $200 more on the Pro. In 2024, Google’s three flagship phone lineup puts the Pixel 9 Pro closer to the Pixel 9 than the Pixel 9 Pro XL. 

Another way of seeing it is that the Pixel 9 is more similar to the Pixel 9 Pro, especially considering the $200 price difference before. That’s why the Pixel 9 could be Google’s sleeper hit this year. The Google Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro feature the same body, but the differences are minimal (though meaningful).

On paper, both phones measure the same at 152.8 x 72.0 x 8.5mm, so you get the same battery capacity and screen size – two of the three significant differences covered. As for the third, the Pixel 9 sports the same main and ultrawide cameras as the Pixel 9 Pro. It’s essentially a Pixel 9 Pro without the telephoto camera and LTPO panel, which makes it more tempting.

Also: Google Pixel 9 Pro XL hands-on: I’m reminded of the iPhone, but in the best way

To elaborate, the Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro have 6.3-inch OLED screens. The more expensive Pro variant has an LTPO panel, which means the display can refresh between 1 and 120Hz, as opposed to 60-120Hz on the Pixel 9. The 1Hz refresh rate could offer better efficiency when using the Always on Display feature.

The Pixel 9 Pro also has a brighter display — up to 3,000 nits for peak brightness and 2,000 nits for HDR brightness. By contrast, the Pixel 9 is rated to hit 2,700 nits at peak brightness and 1,800 nits for HDR. The Pixel 9 Pro’s display is also sharper at 1280 x 2856 pixels than 1080 x 2424 pixels on the Pixel 9. 

Google is promising 24-hour plus battery life on both phones. The bigger and brighter display is great, but considering they pack the same 4,700mAh battery, the Pixel 9 could last you longer. 

Also: I tested the Google Pixel 9 Pro’s ‘Add Me’ feature and found it crazy clever

The Pixel 9 becomes a more convincing purchase when you look at the cameras. You get a 50MP Octa PD main camera with a 1/1.31″ image sensor and ƒ/1.68 aperture accompanied by a 48 MP Quad PD ultrawide camera with a 123-degree field of view that doubles as a macro shooter. The Pixel 9 Pro adds a 5x telephoto camera and a better ultrawide selfie shooter. If you know you don’t need those optics, the Pixel 9 offers a strong camera setup.

Both the Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro run Android 14 and are promised to receive seven years of software upgrades, security patches, and Pixel Drop features. They are also powered by the new Tensor G4 chipset. Unless a new AI feature in the future requires 16GB of RAM to run, the Pixel 9 will run everything. To increase the Pixel 9 Pro appeal, Google is bundling the Google One AI Premium plan till the end of October, which offers Gemini Advanced features for free for a year. 

Also: The best phones you can buy

As with every other AI feature, this is nice to have but not a deal-maker or breaker, especially when the company isn’t holding back the new AI smarts on the 12GB RAM-equipped Pixel 9. One of these features is Add Me, which will add you (the photo clicker) to the group photo. You’ll need to click a photo and exchange positions with someone else in the group, so you get a group photo, too, with them missing. You can merge the two photos to make a new image with everyone included using Add Me. 

The Google Pixel 9 is an excellent phone. It features the same screen size, processing power, main and ultrawide cameras, and battery capacity as the Pixel 9 Pro. The only physical differences are the absence of a matte finish and a telephoto lens. For $200 less than the Pixel 9 Pro, I think the Pixel 9 will be a hit despite the $100 price hike.