It may be over a year since the launch of the Samsung Galaxy S20 range, but choosing between the three S20 models on offer is still a challenge, never mind factoring in other top smartphones. But that’s reality, and if you’re not committed to Samsung, you might find yourself tempted by one of Google’s offerings instead, like the Google Pixel 4 XL. It’s a big phone with a lot of power and an absolutely stunning camera, backed up by Google’s peerless use of the Android operating system. Can the middle child of the S20 range, the Galaxy S20 Plus, take down Google’s monolith? We put them head to head to find out.
The Galaxy S20 Plus is a beautiful phone. Like its predecessors, the S20 Plus has a sleek glass build with rounded edges that softly curve into the body. It’s almost all display on the front, with just a single hole-punch for the selfie lens. The Pixel 4 XL has slimmed down previously large bezels, but retains a large forehead bezel for the selfie lens and face-sensing tech. You’d be hard-pressed to find someone who says the Pixel is the better-looking phone.
The S20 Plus has the edge over the Pixel 4 XL in pure screen size with a massive 6.7-inch display. The sharpness should be similar, though the Pixel holds a tiny edge in terms of pixels-per-inch. While the Pixel would previously have had an edge thanks to its 90Hz screen, Samsung has boosted its screen tech yet again and the super-smooth 120Hz refresh rate of the S20 Plus screen puts that advantage firmly to bed.
Well, what about durability then? It’s a bit more even here. Both phones have glass bodies, which makes them equally susceptible to cracks and scrapes, and both come with an IP68-rating for dust and water-resistance. You’ll want a protective case regardless.
The durability of each phone is similar, but Samsung’s flagship runs away with the rest of the round.
Winner: Samsung Galaxy S20 Plus
The Galaxy S20 Plus is equipped with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 processor. While the Pixel 4 XL’s Snapdragon 855 will still provide great performance, there’s no doubt that the Snapdragon 865 is the faster and more powerful of the two. That processor is joined by 12GB of RAM, twice the 6GB available on the Pixel 4 XL. Storage is similarly one-sided. The Pixel 4 XL tops out at 128GB of storage, with no microSD card slot. The S20 Plus also has 128GB as standard, but you can spring for 512GB of storage if you like, and either way, there’s support for microSD cards up to 1TB in size. That’s a lot of storage.
If the Pixel 4 XL has an Achilles’ heel, it’s the battery size — 3,700mAh is simply not enough, and it means the phone will only just make it through a workday with medium use. Power users will find it completely inadequate. The S20 Plus has a 4,500mAh capacity, and we didn’t encounter any issues with battery life during our review period. While the Pixel 4 has some exceptionally fast charging, a seriously disappointing battery life means the Galaxy S20 Plus runs away with this.
Winner: Samsung Galaxy S20 Plus
Samsung has made some serious strides where the S20 Plus’ camera is concerned. Samsung’s new flagship is equipped with an impressive main camera suite, with a 12-megapixel wide-angle lens, 64MP telephoto lens, 12MP ultra-wide-angle lens, and a time-of-flight depth-sensing lens. It’s impressive hardware, and it comes with some equally impressive software. The new Space Zoom allows a 30x hybrid zoom with A.I. stabilization, and there’s support for filming in 8K.
At first glance, it seems the Pixel 4 XL is completely outclassed, but it never pays to underestimate the Pixel range’s camera. The dual 12MP and 16MP telephoto lenses produce amazing images in a variety of lighting conditions, helped by Google’s impressive Night Sight software. It’ll even take good shots of the night sky with the new astrophotography mode. It’s an impressive camera, and that quality extends to the 8MP selfie camera around the front.
They’re both impressive, but the Pixel 4 XL has an edge in pure polish. While the S20 Plus produces consistently good images across the board, dodgy edge-detection and a less impressive Night mode put it behind the Pixel. The S20 Plus gets some serious points for the Single Take feature, which produces shareable GIFs, images, and clips from a single video — but overall, the Pixel 4 XL is stronger.
The Galaxy S20 Plus ships with Android 10, covered by Samsung’s One UI 2.0 software. It’s a good manufacturer’s skin, with plenty of customization elements and additional features. It’s down to personal choice whether you prefer this or the Pixel-specific Android 10 software on the Pixel 4 XL — but honestly, we feel you can get used to and enjoy using both of them.
Both the Pixel 4 XL and Samsung S20 Plus can now update to Android 11, although Samsung owners have had to wait a little longer for the latest upgrade. Generally speaking, Samsung’s upgrade history isn’t the best, and it probably won’t be supported for as long as the Pixel 4 XL either. The Pixel 4 XL wins here.
The Galaxy S20 Plus has no shortage of special features, and includes Samsung’s virtual assistant, Bixby, support for the DeX desktop mode, and — probably most importantly — 5G support. That last point future-proofs the S20 Plus to a significant degree, and means you can rest assured your phone will be able to handle the latest mobile network as it continues to roll out across the world.
The Pixel 4 XL has a similarly broad array of special features, most of which are powered by the exceptional Google Assistant — the Recorder app and Call Screen rest among these. There’s also the motion-powered Motion Sense. These special features are very impressive, and would normally tip the balance in the Pixel’s favor — only, the Pixel 4 XL doesn’t support 5G. We’re leaving this as a draw.
The Samsung Galaxy S20 Plus is currently available on Amazon, with prices starting from $625 for the 128GB model. The Pixel 4 XL is also available on Amazon, with prices starting from $580 for the 64GB model.
The Google Pixel 4 XL is a strong contender, with an exceptional camera, sleek software, and powerful specs, but it has some weaknesses, and those weaknesses are areas where the Samsung Galaxy S20 Plus really shines. With an absolutely stunning bezel-less design and a huge battery, the Galaxy S20 Plus is hard to beat. Add the Snapdragon 865 processor, a versatile quad-lens camera, and the full 5G experience, and it’s easy to see why the Samsung Galaxy S20 Plus is the victor in this particular battle.
Of course, that doesn’t mean the Pixel 4 XL isn’t worth buying. Quite the opposite — if you love the Pixel’s Android experience and incredible camera, and you aren’t too worried about the odd design or the smaller battery, then it’s definitely worth considering. But if you’re not a Pixel die-hard or simply find yourself away from chargers for a longer period of time, you should buy the Samsung Galaxy S20 Plus.
Merely days after the iPhone Duo hit the shelves, images of broken screens on the phone started popping up across social media. Until now, it’s been unclear what’s causing the line of defective pixels that appears vertically along the crease, as well as horizontally, on the phone’s inner display.
Apple has finally acknowledged the issue, which has shown up on iPhone Duo units owned by customers as well as demo units in stores. In a statement shared with Bloomberg, Apple says that not all iPhone Duo units are affected and that those that are tend to show the display fault early on. The company added that users who experience problems with their iPhone Duo display should contact AppleCare for a replacement.
Not long ago, Apple treated independent repair like an act of outright hostility. The Cupertino giant locked down parts with serial-number pairing, while repair tools remained firmly out of reach of anyone outside its authorized repair network. More importantly, the company waged a legal and lobbying battle against right-to-repair legislation.
I've covered enough of these fights over the years to know what a shift looks like. That's why what happened in October 2026 genuinely caught me off guard. The day the iPhone Duo went on sale, what may be the most mechanically complex iPhone to date, Apple pulled off a surprising about-face. It published teardown-style repair manuals for a handful of major components.
Apple's first foldable phone is now on shelves, in short supply, but with an unreal amount of buzz around it. After all, it's the first foldable iPhone, and there's plenty that this phone gets right. But there's also a lot that is either broken or underwhelming. What's peculiar is the dialogue around this phone, and how it has completely overshadowed every other attempt at making a phone with a similar form factor.
I've spent some time with the iPhone Duo, and I've used the Galaxy Z Fold 8 for almost three months now. In my opinion, Samsung deserves more credit. When the Galaxy Z Fold 8 arrived earlier this year, it was celebrated in some circles and ridiculed in others for supposedly copying what Apple would eventually deliver with the iPhone Duo. The dialogue was pretty odd, for multiple reasons. Samsung has been making foldable phones for years, so claiming that it copied a product Apple hadn't even launched was simply absurd.