Google Pixel phones need power and parity to fix a confusing product strategy in 2026

Google Pixel phones need power and parity to fix a confusing product strategy in 2026 Opinion The Google Pixel 10 Pro XL ranks amongst thebest camera phonesdue to its advanced three-lens setup.(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future) I want to see the Google Pixel 10 Pro's exclusive software tools come to the basic Pixel 11.(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future) Jamie Richards published Shift the strategy At the end of 2025, Google occupies a unique position in the smartphone industry - while Apple and Samsung duke it out over who can cram the fastest silicon or very best cameras into their latest flagship handsets, Google focuses on the user experience, meaningful upgrades, and versatility. More than anything else, the Google Pixel 10 is the software lover’s flagship phone. The tech giant’s latest flagship phone lineup comprises one standard model, the Pixel 10, a more powerful Pixel 10 Pro and enlarged Pixel 10 Pro XL , and foldable Pixel 10 Pro Fold . All four phones run a lightweight, near-stock version of Android that comes with a heaped helping of AI features. Google Pixel phones use Google Tensor chipsets, which aren’t as powerful as Apple’s A-series mobile chipsets or the Qualcomm Snapdragon chipsets found in Galaxy phones, so Google really leans on its software experience to give its phones value. For the most part, this has paid off pretty well. The Google Pixel 10 is our current pick for the best Android phone for everybody, meaning its user experience is friendly and useful to new and expert users alike. best camera phones due to its advanced three-lens setup. (Image credit: Philip Berne / Future) And on the high-end of the lineup, our four-and-a-half star Google Pixel 10 Pro XL review praises the phone’s software and AI experience as unintrusive and powerful, true to the nature of the Pixel lineup. But that software experience isn’t quite the same on the standard Google Pixel 10 - indeed, there are a handful of cool and interesting features that only the Pro models get (as our Google Pixel 10 review highlights), which I’ve always found to be an odd choice for a flagship lineup that leans so heavily on software. Specifically, the Google Pixel 10 Pro, Pixel 10 Pro XL, and Pixel 10 Pro Fold get new call screening and call log features that can check for spammers and take notes while you’re on the phone. Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. And Google locks away certain camera controls on the standard Pixel 10 for seemingly arbitrary reasons - despite having a 50MP main sensor, you can’t enable 50MP portrait shots or access advanced camera options to change things like your ISO sensitivity. You can do these things on a Pixel 10 Pro. This is despite the Google Pixel 10 lineup all sharing the same Google Tensor G5 chipset. Sure, the Pro models have 16GB of RAM compared to the standard model’s 12GB, but you can’t seriously tell me...

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