iPhone 12 Pro, Galaxy Note 20 Ultra or the Google Pixel 5?

By Aijaz Hussain

The choice seems to be getting harder every year.

If you’re that lucky person who has finally managed to gather the money required to have that much deserved cell phone upgrade, you might be at ease with the finances, but a decision regarding which gadget to buy is where things get a little complicating.

Apple, Samsung, and Google have all released their top of the line models this year, and all three of them are beasts in their own way.

Starting off with the iPhone 12 Pro, the latest flagship from Apple’s line of the 12 series. With a 6.1 inch super retina XDR OLED, 1170p display, a 2815mAh battery, 6 gigs of RAM, the iPhone 4 and 5 inspired flat edged design supported by stainless steel on the sides, the 12 Pro comes with the newest A14 Bionic processor keeping up with the trend of providing consumers with seamless and smooth performance on a daily basis.

The biggest fear for an iPhone user over the years has been the vulnerability of these devices in terms of their body being prone to a lot of damages, in particular the screen shattering if you accidentally drop the device.

Users can be at peace this time around, as the iPhone 12 Pro comes with ceramic shield screens, promising four times better drop performance as compared to its predecessor.

The video department is where this device packs the major punch; you can now record Dolby Vision movies with the iPhone 12 Pro’s camera. And speaking of the camera, the 12 MP ultrawide sensor supports the LiDar system, which gives you a laser-optimized scanner for the surroundings, providing more accuracy and thus, enhancing your experience when it comes to portrait photography.

The other main sensors include a 12 MP wide and a 12 MP telephoto lens. The whole package comes at a cost of $999 with the 12 Pro, which roughly translates to roughly 158,691 Rs in the Pakistani market; but due to the recent imposition of import duties, you’ll have to pay 244,999 Rs to get your hands on this device. 

Next up is the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra. This bad boy rocks a Dynamic AMOLED 2x 1440p display, a 6.9 inch screen size, a powerful 4500 mAh battery, the swifter stylus that is better than ever, an edge to edge screen design and yes, a 120 Hz refresh rate, giving it a clear edge in this area over its competitor, the iPhone 12 Pro. The Note 20 Ultra houses the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 processor and the latest version of Android (10) with 12 gigs of RAM, giving you a hint on what this device has to offer in terms of performance.

The memory expandability options on are obscene, you can save data amounting upto 1 TB on this device! The Gorilla glass victus which is twice as scratch resistant as compared to the protection on the previous Note model, provides this phone with 6.5 feet withstanding as well. The main camera sensors at the back include a 12 MP periscope telephoto, a 12 MP ultrawide and a staggering 108 MP (yes, you heard that right) wide angle lens.

These camera specifications mean that you’ll be getting sharp and excellent pictures in places with good lighting at the back. Users will also find the Pro video mode, which is has been made exclusively for this device. The other features are mainly stylus centric, with the handwriting auto straightener coming out as the highlight.

You can now juice up other devices as well using the wireless powershare feature in this gadget. Now going towards the most essential part, the pricing. The Note 20 Ultra comes at a base price of $999, going upto $1199 for the 12GB RAM + 512 GB ROM version. This roughly translates to 190,461 Rs as the price for the high-end version in Pakistan. But you’ll have to pay the market price, that is, 211,000 Rs for this cell phone if you want to purchase this device over here.

Last but not the least, we’ve the Google Pixel 5. Released just a few days back, the Pixel 5 showcases a 6-inch OLED HD+ display with a refresh rate of 90 Hz on the front. The screen is made of corning gorilla glass 6 to give maximum protection to the metal and glass body of your Pixel 5 in case you drop it. On top of Android 10, it comes with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G processor, 8 gigs of RAM, taking your overall stock android experience to a whole new level. The internal storage you get with the base model is 128 gigs, and it can be expanded to 512 GB.

At the back, you get a dual camera setup; the primary camera supporting a 12 MP sensor while the other is a 16 MP wide angle lens. All of this is powered by a 4080 mAh battery pack. All these specifications may make the Pixel 5 seem an underwhelming when comparing it with the iPhone 12 Pro and the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra. However, reviewers claim that this phone offers top-notch performance like any other flagship, adding that the camera in the phone is still one of the, if not the best, out there. There is one last feature remaining, and that is probably the most attractive one. Google Pixel 5 comes at a price of $699, $300 less than what you would pay for the 12 Pro. The price roughly translates to 111,036 Rs, but the expected price in Pakistan of this gadget is between 120 to 125,000 Rs.

You may have a sound idea till now about which cell phone you should be splashing your cash on.

The Google Pixel 5 with the features it comes with along with the price seems to be one tempting offer.

But if a dual camera setup is not your cup of tea, especially in 2020 where a triple or quad camera setup has become a norm, then the iPhone 12 Pro or the Note 20 Ultra will get your attention.

On paper, the Note 20 Ultra promises power, vibrant colours through its 1440p 4K+ display as well a world full of innovation with the swifter stylus.

But if you’re interested in getting a device with supreme camera performance and videography, a user-friendly software system as that of IOS 13, then the Pro is the choice you should go with. In the end, it’s all about what suits you better, or as every other reviewer says, depends totally on personal preference.