Pixel 11 Pro review: smaller batteries, a MediaTek modem, and a matte finish only in black

If you own a Pixel 10 Pro and you're weighing the $1099 Pixel 11 Pro or the $1299 Pixel 11 Pro XL, the upgrade case sits in the camera and in how the phone charges. Android Authority's review says the Tensor G6 isn't a particularly big performance upgrade.

The chip is still interesting for a different reason. Android Authority notes the G6 is the first Tensor silicon to drop Exynos modem technology, using a MediaTek M90 modem instead, which is the kind of change that doesn't show up in a spec bullet but shapes how the phone behaves on a network for the next several years.

Battery capacity went the wrong way. The Pixel 11 Pro carries 4,850mAh against the Pixel 10 Pro's 4,870mAh, and the 11 Pro XL's 5,115mAh sits below the 10 Pro XL's 5,200mAh. Google's answer is a new Extreme Charging Mode that cuts back background tasks to charge faster while the phone is under 50%.

On the camera side, the telephoto gets a new, larger sensor that captures 30% more light than the Pixel 10 Pro's. Camera Looks is the other headline addition, letting you set colors, contrast and more before you shoot rather than after.

Not everything new lands. HiLight has already proven disappointing, according to Android Authority's reviewer.

The smaller model stays at 6.3 inches, which the review calls a treat for one-handed use, and it drops to 204 grams from the 207-gram Pixel 10 Pro. Google claims the pair has "more than twice" the scratch resistance of previous models. Magnets are still built into the phone itself, and that keeps Google the only major Android brand doing it.

Color choice turns out to matter more than usual. The matte finish arrives only on the black Obsidian version, and Android Authority's reviewer describes people getting excited about it and then being disappointed it was the only one. Olive, Fog and Canyon are lovely to look at, in the same reviewer's words, and feel gross the moment you touch them.