The first major flagship announcement of 2020, Samsung's Galaxy S20 lineup, has some of the most impressive phone hardware we've seen to date. But does it have what it takes to top the Google Pixel 4, one of our favorite Android phones released last year? We're putting the Galaxy S20 and Galaxy S20+ side by side with the Google Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL to see how the competing Android flagships compare.

Price

Both the Galaxy S20 and Pixel 4 lines are considered flagships, and are priced accordingly. The least-expensive entry in the S20 family, simply called the Galaxy S20, costs $999.99 and has 128GB of storage. The S20+ starts at $1,199.99 and has more cameras, additional storage options, and multi-band 5G. 

Google's Pixel 4 sells for $799 while the Pixel 4 XL goes for $899, both with 64GB of storage—it's $100 extra to upgrade to 128GB.

Display

Both the Galaxy S20 and Pixel 4 have OLED displays. The 6.2-inch S20 and 6.7-inch S20+ share the same resolution (3,200 by 1,440 pixels). That means the S20's screen is a little denser, at 563 pixels per inch (ppi), but your eyes won't notice that the S20+ is "only" 525ppi. 

The Pixel 4's 5.7-inch 1080p display is the least dense (444ppi) of the handsets we're looking at here. The Pixel 4 XL is competitive with the S20, with a 6.3-inch display that's very close in resolution (3,040 by 1,440 pixels) and sharpness (537ppi). 

Cameras

With one exception, the Galaxy S20 and S20+ have identical camera setups. Both phones have a 12MP primary sensor with an f/1.9 aperture, a 64MP telephoto lens with an f/2.0 aperture, and a 12MP ultrawide lens with an f/2.2 aperture.  The front-facing camera comes in at 10MP with an f/2.2 aperture. The sole difference between the two is a time of flight (TOF) sensor for depth mapping on the S20+.

Both phones have 3x Hybrid Optic Zoom, as well as a feature called Space Zoom that offers up to 30x zoom by combining Hybrid Optic Zoom and AI zoom. The 64MP lens also supports pixel binning to create ulta-crisp 16MP shots. 

On the back of the Pixel 4 and 4XL you'll find a 16MP lens with an f/2.4 aperture and a 12.2MP lens with an f/1.7 aperture. Both lenses support optical and electronic image stabilization, as well as autofocus with dual-pixel phase detection. On the front of the phones you'll find a wide-angle 8MP lens with an f/2.2 aperture along with an NIR flood emitter, an NIR dot projector, and two NIR cameras. The NIR components are used for secure authentication and unlocking.

Google has historically had the upper hand when it comes to image processing, which is just as important as hardware when it comes to smartphone photography, but we're excited to put the new Galaxy S20s to the test in our lab and out in the field.

Battery

The Samsung Galaxy S20 has a 4,000mAh cell, while the S20+ comes in at 4,500mAh. Both phones support 25W charging as well as Fast Wireless Charging 2.0. 

The Pixel 4 has a 2,800mAh battery, while the Pixel 4 XL has a larger 3,700mAh cell. Both phones support fast charging at 18W and offer wireless charging. 

In addition to larger batteries than you'll find in the Pixel 4, Samsung has seriously upped its game with power management over the past few years. Samsung also has faster wired and wireless charging, so if you value battery life above all else, you'll probably be better off with a Galaxy S20.

Processor

The Samsung Galaxy S20 and S20+ ship with the brand-new Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 processor and 12GB of RAM. The Pixel 4 and 4 XL feature last year's Snapdragon 855 with 6GB of RAM. This means the Galaxy line will likely outpace the Pixels when it comes to performance.

Storage

The Galaxy S20 comes with 128GB of storage, while the S20+ comes with either 128GB or 512GB. Both have microSD card slots, with support for up to 1TB. The Pixels come with 64GB or 128GB of storage and no microSD expansion, making Samsung the more versatile choice.

Software

All the phones here ship with Android 10. Samsung's OneUI 2.0 adds some new camera features, improved use with one hand, and Bixby integration. It also has a handful of extraneous Samsung-branded productivity.

Google's Pixel UI features Live Caption, which captions video and other multimedia in real time, a Safety app that can identify if you've been in a car crash, and Smart Storage to automatically back up locally stored photos.

But the biggest software difference boils down to updates. With the Pixel 4, you're guaranteed fast OS updates for three years. There's no such guarantee with the Galaxy S20, so you'll be at the mercy of Samsung and wireless carriers as to when you'll see future updates. If software is the most important feature in a phone for you, go with a Pixel.

5G Compatibility

The Galaxy S20 and S20+ support 5G, but not the same types of 5G. The S20 supports sub-6GHz, a mid-band version of 5G that offers better building penetration and coverage than the other type of 5G, millimeter-wave. The Galaxy S20+, meanwhile, has a multi-band modems that support both sub-6GHz and faster, but shorter range, millimeter-wave. Verizon will release a special edition of the galaxy S20 in the coming months with multi-band 5G.

Simply put, the Pixels don't support 5G.

If you want a 5G phone sooner than later, get a Galaxy S20. And if you want to best 5G experience possible, get a Galaxy S20+. But keep in mind 5G is still in its infancy, and there's a very good chance you aren't yet covered by it.

The Verdict

The battle between the Galaxy S20 and Pixel 4 very much comes down to hardware vs. software. We haven't tested it yet, but it looks like the Galaxy S20 line has the Pixel family beat in nearly every regard when it comes to hardware. But there's no denying the Pixel line offers a superior software experience, especially for Android purists.

We'll have a full review of the new Galaxy S20 lineup in the coming weeks, so check back soon to see which phone reigns supreme.

Further Reading

• Report: Apple Designing In-House 5G iPhone Antenna Module
• Report: LG and Samsung Are Developing Portable Displays for Phones
• Motorola Razr vs. Samsung Galaxy Z Flip: Which Is the Finest Foldable Phone?
• Want to Buy a Galaxy Z Flip on Feb. 14? Try a Sprint Store
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