Google Pixel 11 review

Main camera gets a larger sensor

The Pixel 11 gets a modest upgrade to its main camera and keeps the rest of the hardware unchanged. So we're looking at a triple setup on the back with the new primary flanked by a fixed-focus ultrawide and a 5x-ish telephoto, and the familiar non-Pro selfie camera.

The sensor upgrade takes the main camera from 1/2.0" to 1/1.56" while keeping the nominal resolution at 48MP, and the Pixel 11 does save 12MP images only - no full-res mode. The lens is somewhere around 23-24mm equivalent and it's stabilized.

The rest of the cameras use conventional RGB sensors - the Pros have Quad Bayer-type imagers all around. The telephoto is listed at 10.8MP, but it really rounds to 10.9MP and it actually outputs 12MP images. Its focal length is between 105mm and 112mm depending on where you source your data and it's regarded as a 5x zoom.

The ultrawide's 13MP sensor will also net you 12MP images in the name of consistency. Its lens' equivalent focal length is around 14mm and it's a fixed-focus lens.

The selfie camera does feature autofocus - a Pixel 9 addition that's enduring. Come to think of it, the sensor behind it is unchanged in its basic specs since the Pixel, only it used to have a fixed focus lens back then.

• Wide (main): 48MP (1/1.56", 1.0µm-2.0µm), f/1.7, 24mm, mutli-directional PDAF (5cm - ∞), OIS; 4K60 video recording.
• Ultrawide: 13MP (1/3.1", 1.12µm), f/2.2, 14mm, fixed focus; 4K30.
• Telephoto: 10.8MP (1/3.1", 1.22µm), f/3.1, 105mm ("5x" zoom), dual-pixel PDAF (72cm - ∞), OIS; 4K60.
• Front camera: 10.5MP (1/3.1", 1.22µm), f/2.2, 20mm, PDAF; 4K60.

Daylight photo quality

Main camera

The Pixel 11 may not have the Pro's main camera, but in daylight it takes quite similar photos to its better-equipped stablemates. Dynamic range and the whole Pixel take on contrast is identical and it looks really good. Colors are very similar too, only occasionally being ever so slightly warmer - either way, that means a nice balance between real-world fidelity and some better-than-real-world pop. Detail has that characteristic grittiness too and it's all quite sharp, but the Pros are still a touch sharper.

There's no full-res 50MP option on the vanilla 11 - you need to look to the higher-tier models for that.

Daylight samples, main camera (1x)

You won't be disappointed when shooting people either - skin tones are lively and lifelike, facial detail is very good. Portrait mode may be a little too liberal with the blur in its default state.

Human subjects, main camera (1x): Photo mode • Portrait mode

The 2x zoom shots aren't too great - they're pretty much the same as those from the Pros, which is probably a good thing for the vanilla model, but they're not really sharp in absolute terms. We're not talking throwaway quality, but they're merely okayish.

Daylight samples, main camera (2x)

Needless to say, that unremarkable sharpness manifests itself in portraits too, though here you'll probably be more inclined to look past it.

Human subjects, main camera (2x): Photo mode • Portrait mode

Telephoto camera

The 5x telephoto shots are solid without setting any standards. Detail is good overall and its rendition stays true to the Pixel ways, but it's not as sharp and well defined as on the Pros. The vanilla 11 does still nail the colors, contrast, and dynamic range, of course.

Daylight samples, telephoto camera (5x)

Headshots on the telephoto are mostly good too. Detail is alright, colors are on point, and the focal length lends itself well to tight framing. The Portrait mode enhances the background separation without looking too artificial, so that's good too.

Human subjects, telephoto camera (5x): Photo mode • Portrait mode

Don't go zooming in to 10x expecting miracles. The images are decent, but not really 'sharp' and not as good as the already unimpressive Pixel 11 Pro results at 10x.

Daylight samples, telephoto camera (10x)

Ultrawide camera

The ultrawide camera's photos from the Pixel 11 are pretty great in outdoor scenarios with distant subjects, getting you very good sharpness and detail, particularly for the hardware that's used. In fact, these outdoor shots are often a smidge sharper than the Pixel Pro's. The quality does drop in dimmer indoor conditions, though it still remains pretty alright. You'd still be unable to get nearby subjects in sharp focus on the 11's ultrawide, while the AF-capable 11 Pro's ultrawide does get that right. Again, no complaints about dynamic range or color rendition here.

Daylight samples, ultrawide camera (0.5x)

Close-ups

The close-up shooting situation is a lot more straightforward on the Pixel 11 than it is on the Pros - with the telephoto having a 70+ centimeter minimum focusing distance and the ultrawide being fixed-focus, it's the main camera to the rescue with its 5cm minimum focusing distance.

At 2x zoom at close range, you'll actually be getting quite great results from the Pixel 11, with large magnification and good detail. These are better than what you can get on the supposedly more capable Pixel 11 Pros.

Close-up samples, main camera (2x)

Selfies

The Pixel 11 doesn't have the 11 Pros' selfie camera, but it does take very Pixel-y selfies. They have nice skin tones and very good detail, and you also get the benefit of having AF. The 11's field of view is narrower, but still plenty wide (21mm focal length vs 18mm on the Pros), so that's not a huge deal. Somewhat surprisingly, the Pixel 11 does notably better in the dark than the Pros, so there's that too.

Selfie samples

Low-light photo quality

Main camera

Low-light photos from the Pixel 11 are somewhere between good and very good. Detail is alright - it's not as well defined as on the Pros, but it's still not half bad and it's not very artificially processed either. Dynamic range is very good and colors are on point - in fact, the Pixel 11 proved more reliably neutral in its white balance than the higher-end Pixels.

Low-light samples, main camera (1x)

At 2x zoom, the Pixel 11 is no worse than the Pixel 11 Pro in terms of sharpness and detail, which is the positive spin we can come up with when the photos aren't too great in absolute terms. Oddly enough, the Pixel 11 somehow managed to mess up its white balance at 2x in scenes it got right at 1x (1st and 4th samples) - so much for being reliably neutral.

Low-light samples, main camera (2x)

Telephoto camera

The telephoto is actually pretty spot-on with its white balance again, also unlike the one on the 11 Pro. Detail is good - about a notch below the Pro, but at least that's in line with what you'd expect. Dynamic range is pretty great too.

Low-light samples, telephoto camera (5x)

At 10x, the Pixel 11's results are just about usable, depending on what you plan to use them for. The 11 Pro still has the upper hand here, more often than not.

Low-light samples, telephoto camera (10x)

Ultrawide camera

The Pixel 11's ultrawide captures relatively noisy photos, which still have some semblance of sharpness - we'd go so far as to say that the Pixel 11's ultrawide images are sharper than the 11 Pro's, particularly in the darker scenes. Dynamic range is good, colors don't give any grounds for complaint either.

Low-light samples, ultrawide camera (0.5x)

Video quality

The Pixel 11 can record video up to 4K60 with the main and the telephoto camera on the back, as well as the selfie camera. The ultrawide maxes out at 4K30. There's a readily available 24fps option on the rear cameras too, in addition to the 'standard' 4K30. The cloud-based 8K mode is Pro-only.

There are three codec options - the default is h.265 (HEVC), h.264 is also there for ensuring backward compatibility, and there's also AV1 - a royalty-free space-efficient alternative to HEVC. 10-bit HDR recording is also available.

There are the usual three stabilization modes, the 'Standard' being available in all resolution and frame rate settings. 'Locked' is for 2x and 5x shooting only for scenes where you just point the camera in one direction, while 'Active' is for action scenes and only works in 1080p30 at 1x and 2x, though both zoom levels are actually sourced from the ultrawide camera. You can also turn off the stabilization altogether from a global toggle in settings.

You can hit '> play' below and use the '>| next' button to advance through the playlist of all video samples, or you can watch the full playlist on YouTube.

Generally speaking, daytime videos from the Pixel 11 are very good. You can count on pleasing colors and great contrast and dynamic range from all three rear cameras. Detail is alright on all of them too - not setting any standards, but not really lacking either.

Video screengrabs, daylight: 0.5x • 1x • 2x • 5x • 10x

It's a similar level of performance from the main camera and the telephoto at night - they do a good job, without major flaws and without making you go 'wow' either, while also letting the 11 Pro keep an ever so minor advantage in sharpness. The ultrawide's clips are on the soft side, but you can probably get away with it, ideally in better-lit situations than our standard scene.

Video screengrabs, low light: 0.5x • 1x • 2x • 5x • 10x

When it comes to stabilization, if you record on the main camera while walking, you can expect some shake to be left in the end result. When used from a stationary position, however, both the main camera and the ultrawide are very stable and they pan smoothly - no complaints there. The telephoto is somewhat jumpy with its pans and there are some tremors when you point it in one direction - not great, not terrible.