Most of the phones today take decent photos to publish on Instagram or share with friends and family on a message thread. But the best cameras are on smartphones which generally cost $ 1,000 or more. Fortunately, Google has proven with the Pixel 9a that you can always take beautiful snaps and pay less than $ 500. The telephone images seem great and capture a lot of details and textures. And the secret sauce of Google algorithm to capture beautiful and natural complexions in portraits is fully displayed here.
But something curious happened this year. Apple replaced its cheapest phone with the iPhone 16th. In doing so, he tried to remove part of the affordable photographic attention from the pixel. The iPhone 16th takes beautiful photos, even with one camera less than the pixel. Apple is well known to push the limits of telephone photography with the iPhone, but this is generally linked to its iPhone Pro Line, which starts with a big one. And while $ 599 is the lowest price for which Apple sells a new phone, the iPhone 16th is missing this ideal point of $ 500 from Pixel 9A.
So that raises the question: does a more expensive phone take better photos?
To find out, I took the iPhone 16th and the 9a pixel around San Francisco and put them through a camera test. Several hundred photos later, I was surprised by the results, but I ended up with a being my favorite.
Look at this: Camera comparison: We move the 9a pixel against the iPhone 16th
Specifications of the IPhone 16th and Pixel 9a camera
| Camera | Resolution | Appetite | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pixel 9a wide | 48MP | F / 1.7 | Ois |
| Pixel 9a Ultrawide | 13mp | F / 2.2 | Take 12MP photos |
| Pixel 9a Selfie | 13mp | F / 2.2 | Fixed focus |
| iPhone 16th wide | 48MP | F / 1.6 | Ois |
| iPhone 16th selfie | 12MP | F / 1.9 | Autofocus |
The iPhone 16th (left) has a rear camera and costs $ 599 while the Pixel 9a has two rear cameras and costs $ 499.
From the start, it is not exactly a level playground. The Pixel 9a has three cameras: a large, ultrairs and selfie. The iPhone 16th has only two: a large and selfie. The main camera of each phone has a 48 megapixel sensor and includes four pixels together to create a “super” pixel which captures more light. It also means that the photos have less image noise and therefore need less noise reduction, which can otherwise leave your photos resembling a blurred and soft disorder.
The two phones do not have a dedicated telephoto lens and use a sensor crop to obtain a 2X magnification which, in my tests, seems quite good.
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Pixel 9a main camera, macro.
The Pixel 9a has a “macro mode” and can focus on the subjects that are in close -up. Interestingly, it does not use its ultra-related camera for macro of plans as many other phones do. Unfortunately, the iPhone 16th does not have macro mode unlike the rest of its iPhone 16 brothers and sisters. However, I noticed that the main camera can take close plans with the subject (maybe not radically close as a dedicated macro mode allows it).
iPhone 16th vs pixel 9a: photos
Take a look at some of my favorite photos of the two phones.
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Main camera of the iPhone 16th.
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Main camera of the iPhone 16th, night mode.
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Main camera of the iPhone 16th.
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Pixel 9a ultraid camera.
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Main camera Pixel 9a to 2x.
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Pixel 9a main camera, macro.
iPhone 16th vs pixel 9a: photo comparisons
In general, I noticed that the Pixel 9a really pushes the dynamic range of its images. The phone captures more details in the shade, but also clarified them aggressively, as in the photos below of Maisie le Cat. The image of the iPhone 16th in Maisie does not have as much details and texture in its fur. Somewhere between the photo of the pixel and the image of the iPhone is the way the cat has really looked in real life.
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On the left is the photo of the Pixel 9a on Maisie le Cat. And on the right, it is an image of the iPhone 16th of it.
I also find that the pixel takes images with a cooler color temperature, while the photos of the iPhone have more contrast, especially outside. Take a look at the photos below of a brick building here in the mission in San Francisco. Notice the bricks on each photo.
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On the left is the photo of the Pixel 9a and on the right, the image of the iPhone 16th.
In terms of portrait mode, neither the pixel nor the iPhone have dedicated telephoto lens. And remember, the iPhone 16th has only one rear camera, so it is based only on AI and automatic learning to determine the depth of a scene and create this artistic background out of start.
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On the left, the photo of the Portrait mode of Pixel 9a and on the right is that of the iPhone 16th.
The first thing I notice with the photos of the portrait mode below of Faith Chihil of Cnet is the difference between the iPhone and the Pixel, the textures in the yellow sweater and the green chair. The “cutting” (from installation to focus) seems natural, with the exception of the green chair on the photo of the iPhone. And Faith’s complexion seems most faithful to life in the Pixel 9a image. The photo of the iPhone 16th makes its skin muddy and mute.
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On the left is the photo of the Pixel 9a and on the right, the image of the iPhone 16th.
Something else I have noticed is that the portrait mode of the iPhone 16th only works on humans; On the iPhone 16 and 16 pro, animals are automatically recognized as portraits. So, if you want clichés of dramatic appearance with artistically blurred backgrounds of Fido or Mr. Cupcakes, then the pixel is the way to follow. Sorry for another cat photo, but see the Snap portrait mode below the cat.
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Pixel 9A portrait mode.
The two phones take images in night mode (Google calls them night view photos). In the photos below of a LEGO SET space shuttle in a very dark room, none of the images is great. The photo of the iPhone 16th has the least image noise, but the contrast is heavy. I prefer the photo of Pixel 9a.
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On the left is the photo of the Pixel 9a and on the right, the image of the iPhone 16th.
I also took images of a dusk residential block where the reverbs really give the photo of the iphone night mode. The image of the iPhone is brighter. But notice the details in the telephone wires at the top of the images below. The iPhone captures them in the form of continuous lines, while the image of the Pixel 9a makes them compose with tiny unleashing line segments.
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On the left is the photo of the Pixel 9a and on the right, the image of the iPhone 16th.
iPhone 16th vs pixel 9a: Which one would I choose?
It is a difficult choice, but what phone would I choose only on his cameras?
Overall, the two phones have their shortcomings in terms of photography. I don’t think most people choose an affordable phone only depending on the camera performance. Rest assured that if you get one or the other phone, you can take decent snaps with certain images limiting to the search for area.
The iPhone 16th is more expensive, does not have an ultra -id lens and, although the photos it takes is decent, I think that the pixel 9A cameras are ideal for a phone of $ 500 and would probably opt for it.
