Pixel 5 vs Pixel 4a 5G vs Pixel 4a vs Pixel 4 XL Camera Comparison! By Sam Beckman

So, the pixel 5 and the Pixel 4a 5g are officially out and in the wild, and the biggest question on my lips, at least is are the cameras any better than last year's models, and perhaps even more than that are the cameras any better between the new 2020 phones, so the Pixel 4a, the 4a5g and the pixel 5. So today, those are the exact questions that I am hoping to answer, as I put those three phones up against last year's pixel, 4 XL in a side by side comparison, a couple of quick things to mention up the front here, the first being that all four phones feature the same 12.2 megapixel, f, 1.7, main sensor manufactured by Sony. So any differences in regard to image and video quality will essentially come down to software processing, which should be fascinating to compare across each device. The 4xl is the only phone of the lot that has a dedicated 16, megapixel, f 2.4 two times telephoto lens on the back. Google has ditched that lens with this year's models in favor of a 16, megapixel, f, 2.2, ultra-wide angle, lens on just the pixel 4 a5g and the pixel 5. , the regular Pixel 4a is the only model that just has one lens on the back of the phone.

So with that out of the way, let's jump over to the desk and get straight into the comparisons alright. So by now, if you've watched any of my camera comparisons, you know the drill we always start by taking a look at what I personally use my phones to take photos most of, and that is a portrait photo of a person and straight out of the gate. All phones to my eyes are looking like they're doing a very similar job in terms of edge detection. They've all done a very, very solid job. The only slight inaccuracies are.

If you look on the left side of my neck, the pixel 5, the 4a5g and the 4a. There is a slight amount of blurring there, where it's not quite fallen off correctly. There is a small amount of that evident with the Pixel 4 XL, but it's not quite as dramatic, and then aside from that, if you look in between the gap of my arm and my body there, each phone has brought that part of the background into focus. But this is a pretty common issue across all devices when taking a portrait photo because it pretty much assumes that that is part of the body and not part of the background, and it kind of makes sense. You can let them off for making this sort of mistake, but in terms of image processing, all phones look very punchy and crisp good colors.

I would say that the 4a is quite noticeably a little bluer compared to the warmer color tones of the rest of the devices here and pretty much. The only real, significant difference that I'm seeing between each of these devices here is how blurry the backgrounds are. The pixel 5 has the blurriest image followed by the Pixel 4 XL, then the 4a5g and the least blurry background amongst all of these images is the one taken on the Pixel 4a. So this is the default level of blur applied when taking photos using portrait mode, but that said, you can dive into the settings and change how blurry that background is yourself. So in my mind, this really isn't something to even consider, because you can just change it after the fact.

Alright, another round of portrait photos here and again, as with the previous example, we're seeing a pretty solid job in regard to edge detection. All four phones again have struggled with that gap in between my arm and my body on the right side of my body, but aside from that, there are really no real significant errors in regard to edge detection across each of these photos. Each photo is really nice and sharp as well, though I will say I am noticing, in this particular scenario, that the image taken on the pixel 5 looks even more popping compared to the other images. I think this is thanks to the new portrait lighting effect, which I do believe is coming to older pixel devices. So this might just be a difference that we see in these early days but later on down the road.

As the other pixel devices get updated, they might have a similar look to what we're seeing here with the image taken on the pixel 5. , all right now, moving to a really bright and harshly lit scenario where the sun is actually in the frame which does make it quite tricky for the phones to take nice photos, but just looking at all four images straight out of the gate. They are doing a relatively similar job in regard to you know, dynamic range and overall sharpness and clarity and how they've rendered the colors as well. Now, pixel phones have a tendency to really lift the shadows, even at the expense of bringing in some digital noise, and that is the case across each of these photos, but I will say the photo taken on the 4a 5g. It is quite a bit noisier in comparison to the other images, and here is the first scenario where we get to take a look at the ultra-wide lenses on the pixel 5 and the 4a5g.

It really is such a nice lens to have, because in a pinch you can just punch out, get a unique angle, and I think that the ultra white images in this particular scenario look better than the images taken using the standard lenses on the Pixel 4a and the Pixel 4 XL. They might not be quite as sharp, and I definitely think that that is the case, but in terms of clarity and punchlines in terms of how the images have been processed, they still look fantastic. That said, funnily enough, I will say that the image taken on the 4a 5g is punchier compared to the one taken on the 5, which is slightly flatter. Look at that building and tree in particular, and it does look quite a bit brighter compared to the image taken on the pixel 5. So that might be a difference in how the software is processing each of these images.

At this point in time, who knows if that will change slightly down the road, but again right now, in this particular side by side, the image taken on the pixel 4 a5g is slightly punchier and, in my mind, a little more visually pleasing compared to the one taken on the pixel 5. And here's another interesting side by side where we're punching in to two times: digital zoom, on the 5 485 g and the 4a. But we've got the actual physical telephoto lens on the Pixel 4 XL, and I thought this would be a fascinating side-by-side comparison, because Google has done some really wild stuff with their digital zoom and being able to use the movement of your hand to capture more images and then make that a sharper image. And I think the proof of the pudding is in the eating here where in reality, I think all three images taken on the 5 4, a 5g and 4a hold up compared to the image taken on the 4xl, which has a dedicated telephoto lens. Now, taking a little more time to look at these photos, you can tell that the image taken on the 4xl doesn't look as over processed or as digitally sharpened, as the photos taken on the other three phones.

So they don't look quite as natural as the one taken on the 4xl. But again, Google is really doing some great work with their digital zoom features. So in regard to having a telephoto lens or an ultra-wide. Well, at this point in time it looks like it might have been the right decision to stick with the ultra-wide instead of the telephoto, if they can only have two lenses. That said, why can't we just have three, who knows: that's a story for another day, all right: here's another set of photos taken in a really well-lit scenario: we're not going to spend too long here because, as you can probably see, the photos, look almost identical to one another.

Each photo looks punchy and sharp, really well-rounded. In terms of colors again, I will say that I think I can see a slightly cooler palette on the Pixel 4a and the pixel 4 a5g, in comparison to the images taken on the 4xl and the pixel 5. But really the difference is only very, very minimal. You could just change it after the fact anyway. So again, each photo here is looking very similar again punching out to the ultra-wide lenses on the pixel 5 and the Pixel 4a 5g again so nice to have those ultra-wide lenses there.

I will say that there is slightly less flaring apparent in the image taken on the pixel 5 compared to the one taken on the 405 g, but again both look pretty similar in regard to image, clarity and dynamic range and sharpness, and all of that good stuff. Now, while we're looking at all of these side by side comparisons, if you like the idea of creating your own high quality and cinematic technology reviews similar to this one and the others on my channel, then I've actually created an in-depth course that covers that exact topic from planning and pre-production to getting your hands on free tech to review in the first place, to the entire filming process, including setting up a cinematic a-roll shot like this one or filming b-roll in a whole host of scenarios indoors and outdoors, as well as editing, VFX and we'll talk about how to optimize your videos for the YouTube algorithm. It's all in there. It's super in-depth. So if you haven't yet checked it out, make sure you do so using the first link down in the description below now.

Let's just take a look at one final example of using digital zoom versus having a telephoto lens. Here is the main sensor on each of these phones and then, as we punch into two times, you can see the differences here, and I can actually see that the image taken on the 4a is a little softer compared to the other images in this side-by-side comparison. That might have been a focus issue, not 100 sure, but I will say that the image taken on the 4xl does look slightly cleaner compared to the other three images and then on the three newer pixel devices. We can punch into a seven times digital zoom, and that's what we're at here, and I will say that the pixel 5 is doing the best job out of those three devices, but we're at eight times, digital zoom with the 4xl. But obviously we have that telephoto lens to work off, and so I would say that that is the best looking image out of the lot.

The images taken on the 4a, 5g and 4a do have a digital zoom. Look to them. The 4xl photo looks fantastic almost as though it's not really a digital zoom photo, and it's only comparing that photo with the 5 that the pixel 5's image looks slightly like a digital zoom photo. But if it wasn't for that image taken on the 4xl, I would say it looks very, very clean and honestly almost as though it's not a digital zoom photo as well. So this is really where you're going to notice having a hardware telephoto lens, as opposed to just using digital zoom, exclusively right now, switching to some macro images, and this isn't using any sort of portrait mode or anything like that.

So it gives you a perfect idea of the natural depth of field and both that you can get when you get really nice and close to your subject now. The subject that I tapped to focus on with this photo was that little white flower in the middle there, and you can see with the image taken on the 4a. It did slightly misfolds, and I will say that is something that I noticed in a few other scenarios as well is that the 4a would hunt a little more in comparison to the other three phones that might be a result of having a slightly downgraded processor that it's not as fast to lock focus. Who knows? That's just a guess, but aside from that, really each of these photos are nearly identical, and it makes sense because they are all using the same image sensor. So really, there should be very minimal differences between each of these photos, and you can see that that is indeed the case in this particular side-by-side comparison and here's.

Another set of close-up photos this time taken indoors, and you can see we have the really bright well-lit background there through the window and the front of the apple is actually the darkest part of the room. So this gives you a perfect idea of how each phone handles HDR performance and really there isn't a lot to compare between these four images. The Pixel 4 XL's photo is slightly warmer compared to the other three. I think the pixel 5 is somewhere in the middle and the 4a 5g and the 4a are a little cooler in comparison. But again the difference is very minor, and now we switch to some selfie portrait images and all four phones in this particular scenario did struggle somewhat with edge detection.

The biggest culprit of the lot is the Pixel 4a, which you can see just looks really warp and odd. With that part of the background coming into focus next to my ear on the left there. On the other hand, the pixel 4 a5g sort of blurs my ear into the background. There, though, I think that looks better than the result that we have on the regular 4a, the pixel 5 managed to get that part of the image. Okay, as did the Pixel 4 XL, but each phone did struggle slightly with the top or top right of my hat.

You can see in different areas on each phone. There is part of the background coming into focus, alongside my face aside from that, the image processing is very similar across the board. Very little difference between these photos. But again, each phone has really struggled with the edge detection in this particular scenario, with that very detailed tree behind me there. So let's take a look at another set of selfie images.

You can see. We have a much better performance in regard to edge detection across each of these phones here. So that's good to see, even though we do still have quite a bit of detail behind me, there are some inconsistencies below my ear, particularly on the 5, the 485 g and the 4a. I can't really see any errors with the photo taken on the 4xl, but again a much better performance in regard to edge detection with this particular scenario, all right. So those are all the side by side.

Comparisons in daylight scenarios. Now we're going to flip the switch off head into the night and see how these phones perform side by side in less optimal lighting conditions. All right, so I'm just going to flick through each of these scenarios, and I will also show the ultra-wide night sight images taken on the pixel, 5 and Pixel 4a 5g, and it is so nice that we have the ability, straight out of the gate, to take ultra-wide images in low light scenarios. That said, the images taken using the ultrawide lenses in low light scenarios are more grainy, particularly with the images taken on the 4a 5g. That might be a result of the pixel 5 having slightly updated software at this point in time, and you will notice that the images taken using the ultrawide lenses are a little softer as well.

The images taken using the main sensors are very sharp and crisp and really, in my opinion, Google is the king when it comes too low light photos because of their night sight feature, but you will notice a slight dip off in regard to quality when you switch over to those ultra-wide lenses. So you can see we have a range of different sort of lighting conditions, some with a bit of streetlight ambience. So those where you're going to capture the cleanest results and some in really, really dark scenarios as well- and I will say again- you can notice quite a bit of a difference between the ultra-wide images taken using night sight on the 5 and the 4a5g. I will say that I am noticing, with the images taken on the pixel 5, it's doing a little better of a job in reducing those flares that are coming from streetlights, which can be an issue that occurs when you're taking night sight images, and I think the colors are a little more natural in comparison to the photos taken on the other three phones. But each phone is doing a very, very similar and very decent job.

In regard to these low light photos, there are some slight improvements and upgrades that we're seeing with the images taken on the pixel 5, but at this point in time, they're very, very minor, but one fairly dramatic upgrade that we have over the other three devices when it comes to the pixel 5 is that we are able to take portrait images using night sight as well. Now I believe that this feature will be coming to other pixel devices in the future, but at this point in time, putting these photos up side by side. You can see how big of a difference it makes to be able to use night sight in conjunction with portrait mode. Now it's not perfect. There are still some softening and noise issues apparent, but it is leaps and bounds better than the other images taken on the other phones that aren't using night side all right.

So those are all the image comparisons out of the way, it's now time to jump into some video comparisons, starting with a vlog style test using each of the rear cameras on these phones. So here we go with the main sensor on the back of the pixel 5, and it's a beautiful bright sunny day today. So should be a fascinating test for each of these cameras and smartphones to see how they go with dynamic range and flaring, and things like that. But the three main things that I'm always looking out for in these tests are, firstly, image quality, so, as I just said, dynamic range also, what are the colors look like and also image sharpness as well? Secondly, audio quality is a big one. How does the microphones on each of these phones? How do they capture audio, and how does it sound playing back the videos and, thirdly, image stabilization, so just holding the phone with my arm stretched out in my hand, does this look nice and smooth, or is it all shaky and Jacky? So those are the main things that we're looking out for in these video comparisons.

Now, switching straight over to the ultra-wide lens on the back of the pixel 5. , I think it's really helpful to do this test straight after the main sensor test on the pixel 5, so that you can compare when switching between these two lenses. How does the image quality change? Is the dynamic range any worse or any better? Is the image stabilization improved or is it worse and obviously audio quality as well so nice that we now have ultra-wide lenses on some pixel devices? So will be fascinating to see how this video quality stacks up to the quality of the video taken on the main sensor on the pixel 5 in particular, now switching to the main sensor on the back of the Pixel 4a 5g, and I am particularly interested to see how the videos taken on this phone compared to those taken on the pixel 5, because the two lenses on the back of the 485g are the exact same as the two lenses on the back of the pixel 5. They were also released at the same time. They share the same processor.

So in my mind, the video quality should be almost indistinguishable between the two phones. But that's why we do these comparisons to see whether that actually is the case and again straight over to the ultra-wide lens. On the back of the pixel 4 a5g same lens as the one on the pixel 5 so effectively should be pretty much. The exact same. Video quality, but let your eyes and your ears do the talking.

What does the image quality look like? How does the audio sound to your ears, and what's the image stabilization look like as well, when we're using this particular lens on the back of the Pixel 4a 5g, now switching to the main sensor on the back of the regular Pixel 4a? This is the one and only lens that we have on the back of this phone. So if versatility is something that's important to you, then this might not be the phone for you. But if you don't care about ultra-wide lenses or telephoto lenses, then this might be the perfect phone for you, and it'll be fascinating to compare how this video quality taken on the main sensor on the back of this phone, compares to the video quality taken on all the other phones that we're comparing in this video and finally, switching over to the main sensor on the back of the Pixel 4 XL. So last year's flagship from Google and, interestingly enough, it's the exact same sensor that we have on this year's lineup of phones. So it'll be fascinating to see how the image processing has changed, if at all, whether the microphones are better, which hopefully, they are, but also image stabilization as well.

The three pillars that we're always comparing when we're doing these video tests. But again it's going to be so interesting to see whether the video quality has improved greatly over last year's flagship, which is what we're filming on right now. So let me know your thoughts down in the comments below, so this is a very tight side-by-side comparison and it kind of makes sense because again they're all using the same sensor, so it makes sense that they all look very similar. I think the biggest difference is in regard to audio, so the audio captured on the pixel 5, with both lenses sounds different compared to the audio captured on the other three phones. It sounds almost as though there's been an EQ applied, with lots of treble being added into the mix compared to the more natural sounding EQ of the audio captured on the other.

Three phones see if you can pick up on it, I'm just going to do a really quick cut now from each phone just to see if we can get a little more clarity on what's happening here. So here we go with the main sensor on the back of the pixel 5. , now switching to the main sensor on the back of the Pixel 4a 5g, now switching to the main sensor on the back of the regular Pixel 4a and finally, switching over to the main sensor on the back of the pixel 4xl yeah, and even as I look at the waveforms, I can also tell that the audio captured on the pixel 5 is louder in comparison to the audio captured on the other three phones. But what's your preference in regard to how each phone is processing the audio? Let me know down in the comments below in terms of image, quality and stabilization. I would say all four phones are doing a very similar job.

Even the Pixel 4 XL looks pretty similar, perhaps a little over sharpened in comparison to the other three phones, but again all doing a pretty decent job in regard to dynamic range and color, reproduction and so forth. Now one thing to note is that at this point in time the pixel 5 is the only device of the lot that allows us to record at 4k at up to 60 frames a second, the first time we've been able to do such a thing on a pixel device, though I will say when I was doing this comparison every time I stopped the recording after doing a test with the pixel 5 using 4k 60, the camera app crashed and the video wasn't saved, so I actually had to revert to 4k 30, and I wasn't able to use 4k 60. Now. Obviously that is a software bug, because just last week I was able to record using 4k60, so I'm not too sure what's happened there in the last week, perhaps the camera app was updated, and I didn't realize, but I'm guessing, Google will hopefully address this in the very near future. All right.

Let's now do a similar, vlog style test, though this time with the front-facing cameras alrighty, so now, switching over to the front-facing camera for video on the front of the pixel 5, and not only do I want to compare just the general image and audio quality between the different devices, but I also want to compare how this video looks in comparison to the video that we captured on the pixel 5, but using the rear cameras. Now, unfortunately, with all of these devices we're still stuck at a maximum resolution of 1080p. So that is a shame. But aside from that things, to look out for as always image, quality, listen to the audio quality. And what does the image stabilization look like as well all right now over to the front-facing camera on the front of the Pixel 4a 5g? And how does it look in comparison to what we just saw and what we just heard from the video taken on the pixel 5? And how does it compare to what we're about to see with the video taken on the Pixel 4a? So here is the Pixel 4a and on paper at least these first three phones in particular, should really be indistinguishable from one another in regard to image and audio quality.

But that's why we put them back to back on a large monitor on a large screen so that we can really pixel peep and listen intently to see whether that is actually the case and finally, lucky last the Pixel 4 XL, the only phone of the bunch that doesn't have a hole punch, I'm looking at a pretty thick bezel at the top here, but I kind of got used to it and that's for another video anyway. But my guess is this is where we should see a little more of a change in regard to image and audio quality compared to the first three devices that we've looked at. But maybe it doesn't change at all. Maybe it sounds and looks very similar, so that will be a fascinating determining factor to whether or not the Pixel 4 XL is still a viable phone for purchase in 2020 and beyond. Now another really close comparison here, very little differences between the four phones and, I think, really between the four XL and the other three devices.

There isn't actually a lot of difference, as I predicted in the test. In fact, I would say that it looks to my eyes, like it's slightly sharper than the other videos, though that might be because of some sharpening that's been added during the post-processing of the video, but also to my ears. I actually really prefer the audio that's been captured on the 4xl in comparison to the other three devices. It had a much more rich and fuller sound to it, and it was also louder in comparison to the other recordings as well. I would say the pixel 5 and the 4a were not quite as nice, but they were pretty good as well, and then I did notice quite a dip off in regard to audio quality, with the test captured on the 4a 5g.

I'm not sure, if my hand was slightly covering the microphone perhaps, but it was in the same position compared to the other three recordings. So again, I did notice a noticeable drop off, and that is particularly interesting to me, but look in regard to color and dynamic range and image stabilization. I don't think we're seeing a lot of improvement over last year's lineup of pixel devices. Now one thing that I have not included in today's particular comparison are the new stabilization features that come with the pixel 5. So what you just watched was the standard stabilization, because I wanted it to match the other three devices, but we also get three other modes this year with the pixel 5, we have locked, active and cinematic pan.

Now I'm going to be continuing to use the pixel 5 over the next little while and I will be putting together a full review sometime in the next month- and I will be including these three new stabilization modes in that full review, so make sure that you subscribe. So you don't miss it when that video goes live. But I wanted to include one more video test in today's video comparing the use of two times: digital zoom when shooting videos on the three new pixel devices in comparison to using the two times telephoto lens on last year's pixel 4xl. So let's take a look at the results. So here is the pixel 5 using the two times digital zoom really interested to see how the image quality holds up, because this is, as I said, only a digital zoom.

There is no hardware or telephoto lens involved all right now over to the Pixel 4a 5g, again we're just on the two times: digital zoom mode. So let's see how this stacks up compared to the other phones and now just the regular Pixel 4a again just using digital zoom to achieve this field of view, and now, let's switch over to the Pixel 4 XL, which should see an improvement given the fact that we're using an actual telephoto two times lens. So finally, here is the Pixel 4 XL, last year's flagship from Google, which is the only phone of the lot that has a physical two times, telephoto lens. So whilst the 5 and the 4a5 g have ultra-wide lenses, the regular 4a has no secondary lens. The 4xl does have a telephoto lens, so we should be seeing an improvement in regard to how sharp our image is, because we're not using any sort of digital zoom, but again, we'll have to compare these on the computer to really be able to understand whether this lens has any sort of benefit.

And the answer, in my mind, is yes: there is a benefit to having a telephoto lens, and that is in video mode. In photography. You can kind of get away with emulating having a telephoto lens through the digital zoom features and google, as we've seen, is one of the best at computational photography. But when it comes to video, you really can't fake having a physical two times. Telephoto lens.

You do also get a little of a glimpse at that digital audio zoom feature that google has just introduced with the pixel 5. You can tell there is a bit of a difference in regard to the audio quality, and I actually don't like the sound of the audio captured in comparison to the much more natural recordings taken on the 4a5g, the 4a and the 4xl, I'm even picking up on a little of hissing, because there's so much high end in that audio recording, captured on the pixel 5 and, in fact my favorite audio. Recording of the lot here is the one captured on the Pixel 4 XL. So anyway, those are all the comparisons done and dusted. It's now time to head back to the studio, to share my final thoughts.

Okay. So what are your thoughts on the comparisons? Let me know your thoughts down in the comments below, and I'll give you mine in a moment. But while you do so, I just want to make one quick comment on the processing times and how they differ between each phone. So, despite the newer pixel phones, not having flagship processors or the pixel neural core, like last year's pixel, 4 lineups, most people really won't notice. The speed difference in regard to image processing time for every phone, including the 4xl, there's still a couple of seconds that you have to wait.

If you jump straight into the photos app after taking an image where the image has to load, and then it processes and shows you the final result now that said, it is a little noticeably slower on the regular 4a in comparison to the other phones, and I think that's a result of having the least powerful chipset. But again, I really don't think that most people will be able to tell the difference. Aside from that, as you can see, each of the newer pixel phones, photos and videos look fairly similar in comparison to last year's pixel, 4 lineups and last year's images and videos looked fairly similar to the previous year's pixel 3 lineups. That's not to say it's a bad thing, necessarily it's probably more a testament to how damn well impressive, Google's processing was a few years back and how it was really in a league of its own back then, but I think, with next year's lineup. We really want to start seeing some bigger upgrades in particular to the image sensor being used, but that's it for this video.

If you enjoyed it, then a sub would be super appreciated. I've got plenty more camera comparisons in the pipeline for the next few weeks, which should be fascinating so make sure you turn on notifications as well, so you don't miss out on when those videos go live. But aside from that, thank you all very much for watching, and I will catch you later. You.

Source : Sam Beckman