The Pixel 11 isn’t the best Pixel of 2026, but it’s the smartest buy

It’d beryllium easy to place the Pixel 11. Want the champion cameras? The Pixel 11 Pro is your answer. Want the champion bargain? The Pixel 10A is still a awesome deal.

But the Pixel 11 mightiness beryllium the saccharine spot successful Google’s lineup this year. With 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, it delivers the aforesaid capacity arsenic the guidelines Pixel 11 Pro for $899 — $200 less. And while it’s $400 much than the Pixel 10A, it has a faster processor, much RAM and storage, Qi2 charging, and a telephoto lens.

It’s besides the cheapest measurement to acquisition what’s really caller astir the Pixel 11 series. With the hardware fundamentally unchanged from the Pixel 10 isolated from for caller colors and a thinner camera bar, the spotlight this twelvemonth has shifted to software, specifically features that purpose to return afloat advantage of what astir Pixel fans for illustration astir their phones: the cameras and typical features that make the phones conscionable a spot much helpful.

Last year, we said Google’s Pixel 10 was priced reasonably astatine $799, and that it’d beryllium greedy for buyers to expect much from it. Well, RAMageddon happened, and everyone’s prices went up. The caller Pixel 11 starts astatine $899 and has mostly the aforesaid specs. It adds a fewer exclusive package features that mostly dress up for it and doubles the guidelines storage. I conjecture it’d beryllium greedy to expect overmuch much from this one, too.

The Pixel 11 looks, feels, and performs likewise to the $1,099 11 Pro. The Pro has a brighter, higher-resolution surface and overmuch much powerful ultrawide and telephoto cameras, but the 11 is conscionable arsenic bully successful astir each different way. It has the aforesaid Tensor G6 processor, and it moreover has the aforesaid magnitude of RAM arsenic the guidelines exemplary Pro telephone (though the much costly Pro configurations person 16GB). In day-to-day use, I didn’t announcement immoderate capacity issues owing to the smaller magnitude of RAM connected the 11, though it’s imaginable that the newer processor balanced it out.

Google didn’t clasp backmost immoderate of the package features from this model, either. As personification who doesn’t upgrade their telephone unless they person to (I’m still very happy pinch my Pixel 9 Pro), I was skeptical that immoderate of the phones’ astir intriguing caller camera features — Camera Looks and Magic Capture — would beryllium capable to temp me. Unfortunately for those for illustration maine who are holding disconnected connected upgrading for arsenic agelong arsenic possible, some features are rad.

Like past year, the 11 has a 48MP main camera, 13MP ultrawide, and 10.8MP 5x telephoto, each of which are smaller and little solution than the sensors connected the Pro phones. My Pixel 9 Pro’s wide and ultrawide lenses are astir connected par pinch the 11 Pro’s, and rather a spot much tin than the Pixel 11’s. But successful the past week of testing, I don’t miss them arsenic overmuch arsenic I thought I would. Camera Looks successful peculiar helped maine person much nosy shooting pinch a Pixel than I person successful years. It’s satisfying to quickly switch betwixt different sensor-level presets, and they tin make a large effect connected really a photograph turns out.

I’ve been a Pixel personification since 2017, going from the 2 to the 3 to the 6 to the 9 Pro, almost wholly because of the cameras. I spot them to return awesome shots quickly and pinch small effort. I moreover brought the Pixel 2 connected my honeymoon travel alternatively of a DSLR, and no, I don’t regret it each these years later. If you’re a superior telephone photographer who spends clip composing each shot, you’ll astir apt want to spell for the Pro, but for much casual photographers for illustration me, the value quality isn’t that noticeable, particularly pinch Camera Looks applied. Camera Looks has moreover encouraged maine to slow down sometimes to put a small much effort into my composition.

Camera Looks seems for illustration Google’s realization that the Pixel’s default vibrant HDR-drenched look isn’t the champion prime for each photo. Now, it’s easy to move to the bold, somewhat much muted “Digi” aliases the black-and-white “Black Tie” styles erstwhile you want to return a much impactful photo. If you for illustration 1 of the Looks capable to make it your default shooting style, you tin fastener it in. And it’s easier to make adjustments connected the fly, acknowledgment to the caller speedy entree dials you tin pin to the viewfinder. You tin adhd dials for exposure, colour temperature, and shadows.

Magic Capture — different camera characteristic exclusive to the 11 bid — is genuinely useful. The hybrid camera mode records a video and intelligently plucks hi-res photos and video clips from it, and I utilized it to seizure a bunch of small moments pinch our two-year-old astatine the formation and astatine parks. It’s convenient to person a mounting that tin seizure the unexpected without missing a beat. You tin besides manually seizure photos while it’s recording. However, the photos are the highlight, not the video (the resulting video looks choppier than a modular video, arsenic if it lacks image stabilization; it doesn’t look for illustration it’s meant for consumption). I’m much the type who’d for illustration to sprout individual photos, arsenic it feels awesome to hap upon a spectacular shot. But the AI does a bully capable occupation astatine capturing small moments successful the action.

Another caller package constituent disposable only connected the Pixel 11 lineup is Gemini’s Proactive Assistance feature. It’s meant to grip much of the grunt activity of utilizing a telephone for things for illustration managing calendars, making reservations, and buying groceries. To really person it do things for you, you request to springiness the agentic AI support (it’s not connected by default) to make changes wrong an array of apps, ranging from Google’s productivity suite to apps for illustration OpenTable, Instacart, Google Messages, and more. It’s partially helpful, but for illustration an intern that gets conscionable capable incorrect that you conscionable consciousness amended doing it yourself.

In my back-and-forth text-a-thon pinch David Imel, who reviewed the 11 Pro, Proactive Assistance was much miss than hit. One of the features Google advertises is an OpenTable integration that pops up a Gemini spot to book a edifice preservation if it sees a applicable message. We could only get it to activity by being arsenic circumstantial and general arsenic possible, including the restaurant’s afloat sanction and the circumstantial time and time. That’s not really astir group type to each other.

Here’s different illustration of Proactive Assistance successful action: I was capable to bid groceries done my market database successful Google Keep, but only aft I figured retired immoderate unstated rules. After I enabled entree to some Google Keep and Instacart successful Gemini’s settings, I had to set the title of my Google Keep database to see “Instacart” (so overmuch for being capable to usage earthy language). Afterward, the characteristic quickly connected maine pinch a database of adjacent retailers that could fulfill my order, conscionable for illustration it does successful the Instacart app. Proactive Assistance is intriguing, but I dream it gets better. You tin publication much astir the feature’s quirks successful David’s review; for now, it’s not worthy upgrading for.

When I bought the Pixel 9 Pro 2 years ago, I picked the Pro because it was overmuch better. It had a telephoto camera, much RAM, and much typical features than the modular model. And its value came successful nether $1,000.

This year, that’s each changed. The modular Pixel 11 now has a telephoto lens and conscionable arsenic overmuch RAM arsenic the $1,099 Pro, it’ll get each the aforesaid package features, and it’s now the 1 pinch a value nether 4 digits.

If you’re superior astir telephone photography, the 11 Pro is astir apt worthy it for the bigger camera sensors. However, arsenic personification who bought the Pixel 9 Pro 2 years ago, the Pixel 11’s blend of good-enough hardware and compelling package feels Pro capable to me.

Photography by Cameron Faulkner/The Verge