Google focuses a lot on developing the software for its cameras. But is there a visible evolution between generations of the Pixel line? To answer this question, Canaltech took the Google Pixel 7, 6 Pro and 6A to take pictures and compare.
Remembering that the Pixel 7 and 7 Pro have the same cameras and hardware, and from the 6 Pro to the 6 only the front camera changes – which is the same selfie as the Google Pixel 6A. That is, we have here a comparison between five cell phones, practically.
So let’s see if there’s any evolution in Google’s camera generations. In addition, it is possible to see if there is any difference between the intermediate model and the most powerful ones.
How was the comparison made?
This comparison aims to analyze whether Google offers any advances in cameras in the seventh generation of the Pixel line. Reviews focus more on the main camera, portrait mode, night mode and selfies. But some images were also made with the ultrawide camera.
I always made more than one click on each scenario, and I selected the one that I thought was the best. I’ve repeated a few slightly different scenarios for comparison purposes. But I didn’t use all the images in the gallery available here for everyone to analyze for themselves, as that would be redundant.
I reinforce, as always, that photography is a much more subjective analysis than a technical one. The idea here is to evaluate this second criterion, while some characteristics may be more pleasant for some people and less for others.
main camera
- Pixel 7: 50 MP, f/1.9 aperture;
- Pixel 6 Pro: 50 MP, f/1.9 aperture;
- Pixel 6A: 12.2 MP, f/1.7 aperture.
There’s not much to talk about the difference in textures or sharpness on the Google Pixel 7’s main cameras to its predecessors. I noticed two main differences between the three models: saturation, hotter in the 6 Pro and 6A models; and the contrast.
With regard to this second difference, it is a change in the way Google’s software handles HDR. That is, the dynamic range does not fail to register details in dark areas, but also respects when there are more “hard” shadows. That is, there is no artificial bleaching of these areas.
This results in photos that are closer to the real scene that our eyes see. So, it’s up to you, but I, personally, prefer these more realistic images than those that lighten dark areas a little and leave the photo a little gray.
ultrawide camera
- Pixel 7: 12 MP, f/2.2 aperture;
- Pixel 6 Pro: 12 MP, f/2.2 aperture;
- Pixel 6A: 12 MP, f/2.2 aperture.
The camera that offers a wider field of view is basically the same on all three Pixel models. And then, the differences are more for how the software and the image sensor of the processor deal with the information.
I didn’t see any significant differences in photos taken with the Pixel 7, 6 Pro or 6A with the ultrawide. Except for saturation, with warmer colors in the latter, and colder in the 6 Pro than in the 7, curiously — the opposite of what I noticed in the main camera.
portrait mode
Portrait mode photos do not have major differences between the three models, at least when analyzing the clippings. What I noticed most visibly is a small flaw in some scenarios on the Google Pixel 6A, which blurred part of my ear in one of the closest images.
Overall, however, the photos are almost always pretty similar. There are some color details, saturation and even contrast, but that’s up to personal taste.
The three achieve natural clipping. In other words, there is a soft blur on the edges of the object to give the feeling of a professional photo, in which the blurring of the background is caused by the distance between the objects, and not artificially by software.
night photos
I couldn’t notice any significant differences in the night mode photos. I took some with the main camera and others with the ultrawide, and the three devices seem to me to handle the image in a similar way, regardless of the changes in the sensors.
The ultrawide maintains a fixed focus, as you can see in the photo of the close-up dummy, taken with it. In the main, there seems to be only a small difference in saturation between the Pixel 6 Pro and the others. It maintains cooler colors, while the Pixel 7 and 6A bring warmer colors.
Frontal camera
- Pixel 7: 10.8 MP, f/2.2 aperture;
- Pixel 6 Pro: 11.1 MP, f/2.2 aperture;
- Pixel 6A: 8 MP, f/2.0 aperture.
The front camera is different in the three compared models. And that makes a small difference in the final results, too. The Pixel 7 has good textures and manages to be more faithful in colors in different environments.
The Pixel 6 Pro is very pleasing, especially in terms of sharpness. But it failed to accurately represent colors in the backlit selfie. The Pixel 6A is clearly inferior to the other two in every way.
Portrait mode in selfie is not as good as in the rear camera. You can see some “edges” in the Pixel 6 Pro and 6A, disguised in the Pixel 7 with a thin band of blur that ‘merges’ part of the object of the image with the background.
videos
Video recording has a limitation on the Pixel 6A: only Full HD with 30 frames per second on the front. So I recorded with this resolution on the three models to compare.
And the result is: good stabilization on all, with clearer voice capture on the Pixel 6 Pro. The Pixel 6A is a little lower on image quality.
OBS: I say that the 6 Pro video was recorded with the Pixel 7 Pro, but it was an error when recording. The device used is, in fact, the sixth-generation Pro.
Pixel 6A: câmera frontal Ful HD 30fps
Pixel 7: câmera frontal Ful HD 30fps
Pixel 6 Pro: câmera frontal Ful HD 30fps
Pixel 7 x 6 Pro x 6A: Have Google’s cameras evolved?
I managed to notice an evolution in the cameras from the Google Pixel 6 to the 7, yes. And I quote here some of them: more balanced saturation, smoother background blur transition to image object in portrait mode, more accurate colors. In night mode, everything is the same on all three models.
Interestingly, I found the capture of audio in video better on the Pixel 6 Pro than on the Pixel 7. But stabilization and image quality are very close in both, and only the sharpness is slightly lower on the Pixel 6A.
For social media, I think the three Pixels get pretty good photos. And photography depends a lot on the photographer’s ability to know how to use the equipment at hand and not just on the quality of the device.
Of course, a good smartphone for photos helps a lot, but it doesn’t save you if you don’t know how to frame and use the light to your advantage.
