Google Pixel 6a vs Apple iPhone XR
Here we compared two flagship smartphones: the 6.1-inch Google Pixel 6a (with Google Tensor) that was released on May 11, 2022, against the Apple iPhone XR, which is powered by Apple A12 Bionic and came out 45 months before. On this page, you will find tests, full specs, strengths, and weaknesses of each of the gadgets.
Key differences
Reasons to consider the Google Pixel 6a
- Comes with 1468 mAh larger battery capacity: 4410 vs 2942 mAh
- Better camera quality (According to DxOMark rating)
- 52% better performance in AnTuTu Benchmark (775K versus 510K)
- Modern USB Type-C port
- 32% higher pixel density (429 vs 326 PPI)
- Delivers 37% higher peak brightness (878 against 643 nits)
- Newer Bluetooth version (v5.2)
- Fingerprint scanner
- The phone is 3-years and 9-months newer
- Has 2x more RAM: 6GB versus 3GB
- Uses a faster type of memory: LPDDR5
- Has an ultra-wide angle camera lens
Reasons to consider the Apple iPhone XR
- Supports Qi wireless charging up to 10W
- Apple releases software updates and supports their phones a few years longer than Google
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Review
Display
Screen quality, color accuracy, brightness
Performance
CPU/GPU performance in apps and games
Battery
Battery life, charging type and speed
Camera
Photo and video recording quality
Connectivity
Networks, ports, data transmission
NanoReview score
Final comparison evaluation
Value for money
You can enter your local price of these phones (in USD or any other currency) and click on the "Calculate" button to see which one has a better value for money.
Tests and specifications
Comparison table of technical specifications and testsDisplay
| Type | OLED | IPS LCD |
| Size | 6.1 inches | 6.1 inches |
| Resolution | 1080 x 2400 pixels | 828 x 1792 pixels |
| Aspect ratio | 20:9 | 19.5:9 |
| PPI | 429 ppi | 326 ppi |
| Refresh rate | 60 Hz | 60 Hz |
| Max rated brightness | 500 nits | 625 nits |
| Max rated brightness in HDR | 800 nits | - |
| HDR support | Yes, HDR10+ | Yes, Dolby Vision |
| Screen protection | Corning Gorilla Glass 3 | Tempered glass |
| Screen-to-body ratio | 83% | 79% |
| Display features | - DCI-P3 - Always-On Display |
- |
| RGB color space | 96.9% | 100% |
| PWM | 240 Hz | Not detected |
| Response time | 3 ms | 32.8 ms |
| Contrast | ∞ Infinity | 1920:1 |
Peak brightness test (auto)
Design and build
| Height | 152.2 mm (5.99 inches) | 150.9 mm (5.94 inches) |
| Width | 71.8 mm (2.83 inches) | 75.7 mm (2.98 inches) |
| Thickness | 8.9 mm (0.35 inches) | 8.3 mm (0.33 inches) |
| Weight | 178 g (6.28 oz) | 194 g (6.84 oz) |
| Waterproof | IP67 | IP67 |
| Rear material | Plastic | Glass |
| Frame material | Metal | Metal |
| Colors | White, Black, Green | White, Black, Blue, Red, Orange, Yellow |
| Fingerprint scanner | Yes, in-display | No |
Screen-to-body ratio
Performance
| Chipset | Google Tensor | Apple A12 Bionic |
| Max. clock | 2800 MHz | 2490 MHz |
| CPU cores | 8 (2 + 2 + 4) | 6 (2 + 4) |
| Architecture | - 4 cores at 1.8 GHz: Cortex A55 - 2 cores at 2.25 GHz: Cortex A76 - 2 cores at 2.8 GHz: Cortex-X1 |
- 4 cores at 1.6 GHz: Tempest - 2 cores at 2.49 GHz: Vortex |
| L3 cache | 4 MB | - |
| Lithography process | 5 nanometers | 7 nanometers |
| Graphics | Mali-G78 MP20 | Apple A12 Bionic GPU |
| GPU clock | 848 MHz | 1100 MHz |
| FLOPS | ~2171 GFLOPS | ~560 GFLOPS |
Benchmarks
Geekbench 5 (Single-Core)
Geekbench 5 (Multi-Core)
AnTuTu Benchmark 9
| CPU | 208269 | 142301 |
| GPU | 305908 | 188718 |
| Memory | 110039 | 70367 |
| UX | 144068 | 104916 |
| Total score | 775868 | 510352 |
3DMark Wild Life Performance
| Stability | 55% | 69% |
| Graphics test | 37 FPS | 31 FPS |
| Graphics score | 6230 | 5235 |
| PCMark 3.0 score | 9715 | - |
Memory
| RAM size | 6 GB | 3 GB |
| Memory type | LPDDR5 | LPDDR4X |
| Memory clock | - | 2133 MHz |
| Channels | 2 | 2 |
| Storage size | 128 GB | 64, 128, 256 GB |
| Storage type | UFS 3.1 | NVMe |
| Memory card | No | No |
Software
| Operating system | Android 12 (Can be upgraded to Android 13) | iOS 12 (Can be upgraded to iOS 16.2) |
| ROM | Stock Android | - |
| OS size | 14.3 GB | 11.1 GB |
Battery
| Capacity | 4410 mAh | 2942 mAh |
| Charge power | 18 W | 15 W |
| Battery type | Li-Po | Li-Ion |
| Replaceable | No | No |
| Wireless charging | No | Yes, Qi (10 W) |
| Reverse charging | No | No |
| Fast charging | Yes (42% in 30 min) | Yes (50% in 30 min) |
| Full charging time | 1:51 hr | 1:43 hr |
| Web browsing | 11:03 hr | 11:16 hr |
| Watching video | 16:44 hr | 12:45 hr |
| Gaming | 06:15 hr | 05:10 hr |
| Standby | 91 hr | 123 hr |
General battery life
Camera
| Matrix | 12.2 megapixels | 12 megapixels |
| Image resolution | 4032 x 3024 | 4032 x 3024 |
| Zoom | Digital | Digital |
| Flash | Dual LED | Quad LED |
| Stabilization | Optical | Optical |
| 8K video recording | No | No |
| 4K video recording | Up to 60FPS | Up to 60FPS |
| 1080p video recording | Up to 60FPS | Up to 60FPS |
| Slow motion | 240 FPS (1080p) | 240 FPS (1080p) |
| Angle of widest lens | 114° | - |
| Lenses | 2 (12.2 MP + 12 MP) | 1 (12 MP) |
| Wide (main) lens | - 12.2 MP - Aperture: f/1.7 - Focal length: 27 mm - Pixel size: 1.4 micron - Sensor: 1/2.55", Sony IMX363 (Exmor-RS CMOS) - Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel) - Optical stabilization |
- 12 MP - Aperture: f/1.8 - Focal length: 26 mm - Pixel size: 1.4 micron - Sensor: 1/2.55", Apple iSight X (BSI CMOS) - Phase autofocus - Optical stabilization |
| Ultra-wide lens | - 12 MP - Aperture: f/2.2 - Focal length: 17 mm - Pixel size: 1.12 micron - Sensor: 1/2.9", Sony IMX386 (Exmor-RS CMOS) |
- |
| Camera features | - Bokeh mode - Pro mode |
- Bokeh mode - RAW support |
| Samples | Photo samples of Google Pixel 6a from DxOMark | - |
| Megapixels | 8 megapixels | 7 megapixels |
| Image resolution | 3840 x 2160 | 3088 x 2316 |
| Aperture | f/2.0 | f/2.2 |
| Focal length | 24 mm | 32 mm |
| Pixel size | 1.12 microns | - |
| Sensor type | Exmor-RS CMOS | CMOS |
| Sensor size | 1/2.8" | - |
| Video resolution | 1080p (Full HD) at 30 FPS | 1080p (Full HD) at 60 FPS |
DxOMark camera tests
Photo quality
Video quality
Generic camera score
Connectivity
| Wi-Fi standard | Wi-Fi 6E (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax) | Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac) |
| Wi-Fi features | - Dual Band - Wi-Fi MiMO - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display |
- Dual Band - Wi-Fi MiMO - Wi-Fi Hotspot |
| Bluetooth version | 5.2 | 5 |
| Bluetooth features | LE, A2DP | SPP, PBAP/PAB, PAN, OPP, MAP, LE, HSP, HID, HFP, HDP, GAP, GAVDP, DIP, AVRCP, A2DP |
| USB type | USB Type-C | No |
| USB version | 3.1 | 2 |
| USB features | - Charging - USB-Storage mode - OTG |
- Charging - OTG |
| GPS | GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS | GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo |
| NFC* | Yes | Yes |
| Infrared port | No | No |
| Number of SIM* | 1 | 1 |
| Type of SIM card | Nano | Nano |
| eSIM support* | Yes | Yes |
| Hybrid slot | No | No |
| LTE Cat* | 20 | 12 |
| 5G support | Yes | No |
Sound
| Speakers | Stereo | Stereo |
| Headphone audio jack | No | No |
| FM radio | No | No |
| Dolby Atmos | Yes | Yes |
Speakers test
Max. loudness
Other
| Category | Flagship | Flagship |
| Announced | May 2022 | September 2018 |
| Release date | June 2022 | October 2018 |
| SAR (head) | - | 0.99 W/kg |
| SAR (body) | - | 0.99 W/kg |
| Sensors | - Barometer - Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Fingerprint |
- Barometer - Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Face recognition sensor |
*Disclaimer! NFC, GSM network support, and some other specs can be different depending on the country.
Conclusion
After analyzing all the data, we think that the Google Pixel 6a is definitely a better buy.
Cast your vote
Total votes: 45