3 months with 2 phones: Sorry, Apple – here is exactly why I keep coming back to the Pixel

This one will certainly surprise some people, especially because it’s a relatively new Pixel feature, which isn’t even as popular as Google’s other AI tricks, and it’s the Pixel Studio app – that’s right, it’s an AI feature that deserves a whole app, which is how you know it’s kinda special.In a nutshell, Pixel Studio is a Pixel-exclusive app (exclusive to the Pixel 9 series) that uses prompts to generate different styles of images. And the reason why I think this is a game-changer is because it can be used to generate not just fun pictures.For example, using Pixel Studio with a sprinkle of imagination can make you a cool t-shirt patch, or a print design you can then apply to pretty much anything you can think of, and… I don’t know – sell it on eBay. Performers can create a poster for a gig, you can make a wedding invitation – you name it.

Meanwhile, the iPhone’s Image Playground alternative is nowhere near as good – generating cartoonish images that wouldn’t be applicable to most of the above-mentioned examples.

Now Playing – Apple killed Shazam for nothing?

I recently experienced another practical reason to have a Pixel in my pocket (which I didn’t), and this would be the popular “Now Playing” feature, which displays the name of any song playing around you on the lock screen – automatically.I was at the store when I heard an old song I didn’t know the name of, and I realized I didn’t have Shazam installed on my iPhone. So… the song was gone.

Ironically, Apple bought Shazam years ago, and for some reason, it’s totally missing out on the opportunity to make something useful out of it – like “Now Playing” on Pixel.

But it gets more interesting – I was able to use my impeccable humming to search for the song with the Google app on my iPhone. Sure, I was technically able to find the song with my iPhone… But only thanks to Google’s app and algorithm.

Magic Editor and Magic Eraser work like… Magic

Google’s more popular generative AI features. Magic Editor and Magic Eraser, are another reason I’d reach for my Pixel over my iPhone.It’s no secret Apple is falling behind in the generative AI area, and this is particularly evident when trying to remove objects from photos using my iPhone 15 Pro’s Clean Up feature compared to using the Magic Eraser and/or Magic Editor on my Pixel.

Magic Eraser is already better than Clean up in pretty much every single way, but Magic Editor is a feature Apple doesn’t even have an alternative to. You can think of the Magic Editor as Magic Eraser on steroids – it won’t only remove your background/subject, but replace it with anything you want, which is something I can’t do on an iPhone.

But Magic Editor also takes the object removal feature to a whole new level, since it can add detail back in the picture to make the imperfections from the removal process far less noticeable.

It’s a huge win for Pixel on this one.

Circle to Search is possibly the best software feature of 2024 (certainly my favorite one)

I’ve talked about this feature many times, but I won’t get tired of praising Circle to Search, which is my most used Pixel feature in years.I can hold down the home “button” on my Pixel and get options to translate anything on my screen (which I do daily), Google Search anything, search a song, and more. Meanwhile, my iPhone 13 can do… absolutely none of that.

But to add insult to injury, Apple has decided to make its Visual Intelligence feature (the equivalent to Circle to Search) exclusive to the iPhone 16 series, which means even my $1,200 iPhone 15 Pro Max will feel like a 5-year-old iPhone.

I pick up my Pixel to Circle to Search more than I pick up my iPhone to do just about anything else, which speaks for itself.

Folding design + real multitasking features

I’m combining two features into one here, as it makes a lot of sense to discuss the Pixel’s folding design alongside the multitasking capabilities of the Pixel 9 Pro Fold.It’s exactly what it sounds like – the Pixel 9 Pro Fold’s folding design and ability to run two “normal size” apps side-by-side put any of my iPhones to shame.

Don’t knock it before you try it – the ability to use two apps simultaneously can be super useful. In my use case, these would be the Amazon app and Chrome, YouTube and Chrome, the Calendar and the Calculator, etc.

Of course, the iPhone can’t run two apps simultaneously at all, which (with folding phones becoming more and more popular), is starting to make it look like a dumb phone.

But hey… the folding iPhone is allegedly coming in 2026, so what’s another two years to wait!

Gemini – not as good as Chat GPT but much better than Siri

Although I’m not the biggest Gemini user, I must give Google credit for both the “regular” Gemini – with typing, and Gemini Live, where you can converse with the chat robot.

Needless to say, Siri is nowhere near that level of sophistication even after the launch of Apple Intelligence, and I’d be surprised if Apple manages to catch up to Google in the near future.

For the record, I do think Chat GPT trumps both by a decent margin, and Apple does have a deal with Open AI, which already allows Chat GPT to run almost natively on iPhones with Apple Intelligence (via the Action or Capture button), and that’s certainly a nice option when Siri can’t give you the answer you need (which is almost always).

Generous software support and less bugs than iPhone on iOS 18 – another surprise win for Pixel given iPhone’s reputation

I already discussed this in a different story you can check out if you click on my name on top of this article, but as an ex-Pixel 6 Pro user, I’m rather shocked to say my Pixel 9 Pro Fold has been more reliable and more feature-rich than the iPhone 15 Pro Max, and especially compared to my iPhone 13 mini.My Pixel has quarterly Feature Drops, unlike my iPhone, which rarely gets new features; Google is far more generous with “giving away” new features to older devices; and Android 14/15 are pretty stable in my experience.Meanwhile, it’s my iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 13 mini, which show more bugs than usual.

Pixel is cheaper to buy after lunch – gives you better value (if you keep it long enough)

This one isn’t necessarily a “feature” of the Pixel, but it perfectly fits the practicality factor I’m going for in this story.

The Pixel’s poor resale value before (especially compared to the iPhone) is a definite disadvantage if you’re hoping to get more money when selling/trade-in-in your old Pixel. That’s a fact. However, this means that if you want to buy a Pixel phone after launch, it’s usually a decent amount cheaper to do so compared to buying an older iPhone – no matter how old both phones are.

If you know you want a Pixel phone, and you’re OK with buying either an older model, or a used/refurbished phone, Pixel is a gem, which can give you great value compared to the iPhone.

For example, buying a refurbished Pixel 7 Pro would be cheaper than buying a refurbished iPhone 14 Pro, and the former will give you a great deal of AI features found on the latest Pixel 9 series, while the iPhone 14 Pro will give you exactly zero Apple Intelligence features.

My Pixel is far from perfect, but it easily outshines my iPhone when it comes to software and AI – and it’s not even close

Bear in mind this is my experience of using the Pixel 9 Pro Fold and iPhone 13 mini / iPhone 15 Pro Max. In other words, if the Android phone in this “experiment” was different, the story would’ve been different too. Especially considering the Pixel is a foldable Android, which gives it some distinct advantages and disadvantages compared to the iPhone.However, even if I was using a Pixel 9 Pro, or a Galaxy S24+, I think the overall pattern is pretty clear – I prefer the way Android handles software and Artificial Intelligence right now, and it’s not even close.

On the other hand, the iPhone has some obvious strengths, which mostly revolve around its hardware and the “ecosystem”, which I might discuss in a future story.