5 phones to buy instead of the Pixel 10

By John McCann Published August 27, 2025

I’ve been testing the new Google Pixel 10 for almost a week now. It’s an accomplished entry-level flagship phone which delivers Android in its purest form.

As you’ll find out in my Pixel 10 review in the coming days, for Pixel fans, it continues Google’s track record of giving you everything you’d expect, with seamless operation.

However, as good as the Pixel 10 is, it doesn’t exactly wow, so I’d understand if you’re considering whether it’s the right phone for you.

With that in mind, here are five of the best phones to consider instead of the Google Pixel 10.

Perhaps the Pixel 10’s biggest Android rival, the Samsung Galaxy S25 made a splash at the start of the year when it arrived brimming with ‘Galaxy AI’ features and the firm’s new Now Brief and Now Bar.

You get a beautiful OLED screen, excellent performance, capable cameras, premium design, and surprisingly good battery life – but then that’s pretty much what the Pixel 10 offers as well.

What sets the S25 apart is you get all this in a package which weighs just 162g, that’s 38g lighter than the Pixel 10. The Galaxy S25 is thinner, shorter and narrower too, making it a joy to use one-handed, and easy to slip into the pocket of the skinniest of jeans.

If you prefer Samsung’s way of doing things – be that the compact size or the OneUI interface – the Galaxy S25 could be the better bet. Plus, with the One UI 8 update expected to land before the end of the year, it’s also in line for a refreshing feature boost.

The Pixel 10 and Google Pixel 10 Pro look pretty much identical and, bar a few extra grams, they’re the same size and weight.

So what’s the difference? Well, if you’re looking for the all of Google’s latest features, the base Pixel 10 misses out on a few which Google has blessed solely to its Pro siblings.

For the Pixel 10 Pro, peak screen brightness is increased to 3,300 nits (vs 3,000 on the Pixel 10), RAM is boosted to 16GB, the selfie camera is a powerful 42MP, and there are a range of upgrades to the rear camera setup, including the 100x Pro Res Zoom.

Plus, for those of you who need more storage there are 512GB and 1TB options (the Pixel 10 tops out at 256GB), and if you’re feeling particularly flush the even pricier Pixel 10 Pro XL offers up a bigger 6.8-inch display, faster 25W wireless Qi2.2 charging and an improved bottom speaker.

In short, if you’re after Google’s very best, the Pixel 10 isn’t going to cut it – you’ll need to go Pro.

Google wasn’t afraid to take shots at Apple during its Pixel 10 series launch event, and the ongoing rivalry between the two is no secret.

Yet, making the switch from iPhone to Android (or vice versa) is always a concern for those of us who have been using the same platform for years.

Google has gone to great lengths to say how easy it is to switch from iPhone to Pixel, but if you’d rather stick with Apple’s ecosystem – or fancy making the jump from Android – the iPhone 16 is the entry-level flagship on the Cupertino, California side of the fence.

And there’s plenty on offer with the iPhone 16, from stunning colors and a reliable battery life, to the excellent Camera Control key and the impressive Action button – plus, it’s about to be rejuvenated with the arrival of iOS 26, which is set to make it feel like a new phone all over again.

However, the arrival of the iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Air are likely just a few weeks away, so there could be a far more tempting rival from Apple very soon.

As you will have probably gathered by now, the Pixel 10 offers a lot, but doesn’t exactly reinvent the smartphone wheel when it comes to design.

Nothing, on the other hand, has been tearing up the smartphone design rulebook for the past few years, delivering devices which genuinely standout from the crowd. If you’re tired of the same slabs of metal and glass year after year, the Nothing Phone 3 will be a phone you’ll want to check out.

Its novel semi-transparent look, combined with a small rear-facing dot matrix display offers a fun take on phone aesthetics. There’s also a great camera and excellent battery life to be found, but where the Phone 3 falls down is in performance. There is plenty of power, but just not quite as much as the other phones on this list.

Plus, if you’re keen on getting to grip with a wide array of AI tools, the Pixel and Galaxy devices offer more in this department.

The OnePlus 13 is priced similarly to the Pixel 10, Galaxy S25 and iPhone 16, yet its spec sheet is closer to that of the Pro versions of the Pixel and iPhone.

It packs in a sizable 6.82-inch display, Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset, a triple 50MP rear camera setup and huge 6,000mAh battery (bigger even than the power pack in the Pixel 10 Pro XL).

Like the Nothing phone above, AI features here aren’t as strong as Google’s or Samsung’s, and the sheer size isn’t great for those looking for something that’s easy to use one-handed – but for a lot of people, these will be minor niggles.

As we said in our review at the start of the year, “the OnePlus 13 is right up there with the Google Pixel 9 Pro as being an unequivocal recommendation.”

High praise indeed, and if you’re after a big-screened flagship smartphone which doesn’t break the bank, the OnePlus 13 fits the bill.