The Pixel XL rocks a top-of-the-line 12.3-megapixel camera that is arguably the best in mobile, along with a still-impressive Snapdragon 821 processor, 4GB of RAM and 3,450mAh battery. Those specs are still more than respectable and go toe-to-toe with the Galaxy S8 Plus.

Design wise, the Pixel XL loses the battle handily. The Galaxy S8 Plus blows it out of the water with its non-existent front bezels. Samsung has perfected the glass design, and the S8 Plus is its magnum opus.

So which phone is king?

The easy answer is both. You can’t go wrong with either of these phones, but if I had to choose one, I’d take the S8 Plus primarily due to its beautiful design. It’s a gorgeous phone, and on that fact alone wins the battle over the Pixel XL.

Galaxy S8 Plus gallery

Google Pixel XL gallery

Samsung - Galaxy S8 Plus Google - Pixel XL
Display Size 6.2-inch, 2960 x 1440 pixel display (531 ppi) 5.5-inch, 1440 x 2560 pixel display (534 ppi)
Resolution X 2960 1440
Resolution Y 1440 2560
Display Type Quad HD+ AMOLED QHD
Operating System Android 7.0 (at launch) Android 7.1 (at launch)
Processor Octa core (2.3GHz Quad + 1.7GHz Quad), 64 bit, 10 nm process Qualcomm Snapdragon 821
RAM 4GB 4GB
Storage
  • 64GB
  • 32GB
  • 128GB
External Storage Yes No
External Storage Specs
  • microSD up to 256GB
Main Camera (Back) 12MP 12.3MP
Secondary Camera (Front) 8MP 8MP
Bluetooth Bluetooth 5.0 Bluetooth 4.2
Battery 3500mAh 3450mAh
NFC Yes Yes
Connectivity
  • USB Type-C
  • 3.5mm Headphone jack
  • USB Type C
Sensors
  • Accelerometer
  • Ambient light
  • Barometer
  • Fingerprint
  • Geomagnetic
  • Gyroscope
  • Hall
  • Heart rate
  • Iris
  • Pressure
  • Proximity
  • Accelerometer / Gyrometer
  • Barometer
  • Fingerprint
  • Hall
  • Magnetometer
  • Proximity/ALS
GPS
  • BeiDou
  • Galileo
  • Glonass
  • GPS
  • Digital compass
  • GLONASS
  • GPS
Height 159.5 mm (6.28 inches) 154.72 mm (6.09 inches)
Width 73.4 mm (2.89 inches) 75.74 mm (2.98 inches)
Depth 8.1 mm (0.32 inches) 8.58 mm (0.34 inches)
Weight 173 g (6.10 oz) 168 g (5.93 oz)
Colors Midnight Black, Orchard Grey, Arctic Silver, Coral Blue, Maple Gold Black, Blue, Silver
Supported Audio Formats MP3, M4A, 3GA, AAC, OGG, OGA, WAV, WMA, AMR, AWB, FLAC, MID, MIDI, XMF, MXMF, IMY, RTTTL, RTX, OTA, DSF, DFF N/A
Supported Video Formats MP4, M4V, 3GP, 3G2, WMV, ASF, AVI, FLV, MKV, WEBM N/A