DxOMark Pixel 4 Camera Review: Great but not the best

Google's Pixel line has generally been regarded as offering the best camera phones on the planet and the Pixel 4 was expected to continue that trend. According to DxOMark, though, the new flagship, while a great shooter, isn't quite the best in the world. But then again, the Pixel 3 was never at the top of DxOMark's leaderboard either, and we all know how good it was.

The Pixel 4 was extensively tested by DxOMark and posted an overall score of 112. That's on par with last year's Mate 20 Pro (112), the OnePlus 7 Pro (114), and the Samsung Galaxy S10+ (113), while being worse than the class-leading Huawei Mate 30 Pro (121) and the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 5G (117).

In the still photo category, it earned a score of 117. That's quite worse than the Mate 30 Pro (131) and Samsung Galaxy Note 10 5G (126) but in the same ballpark as the OnePlus 7 Pro (122) and Mate 20 Pro (120). Notable weaknesses included loss of details in most shooting conditions and depth estimation artifacts in portrait shots.

It should be noted, however, that the Pixel 4's lack of an ultra-wide-angle lens is a factor here, and we believe it would have earned at least three more points if it had that extra hardware. Not enough to bridge the distance between the phones at the top of the chart, though.

In the video category, the Pixel 4 made do with a score of 101. That makes it the joint top phone in DxOMark's ranking, alongside the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 5G. In the selfie segment, the new Google phone recorded a score of 92—on par with the Mate 30 Pro but worse than phones like Galaxy S10+ (96) and Asus Zenfone 6. (98)

It's important to note that DxOMark should definitely not be taken as gospel. You'd be much better served checking out the full review and having a look at the numerous sample shots for yourself.