Pixel 6A vs. iPhone SE: We did a camera comparison between two of the bet sub-$500 phones you can buy.
You can find the phones in this camera comparison here👇
Apple iPhone SE:
Google Pixel 6A:
*CNET may get a commission from this offer
We wanted to find out if it was possible for phones to be both affordable and take great photos and videos. Keep in mind that both Apple and Google use machine learning and processing to counter the limitations from their tiny lenses and camera sensors. The results were surprising as one phone consistently did better than the other.
For more check out our full written Pixel 6A vs. iPhone SE Camera test👇
CHAPTERS:
00:00 iPhone SE vs Pixel 6A
01:08 Cameras and Settings
03:12 Photo Comparison
03:42 Favorite Photos
04:10 Side-by-Side Photo Comparison
05:36 Ultrawide Angle Lens
06:09 Digital Zoom
06:34 Indoor Lighting
07:14 Portrait Mode
08:41 Night Sight
09:50 Selfie Camera
10:33 Favorite Videos
11:14 Side-by-Side Video Comparison
12:13 Image Stabilization
12:56 Conclusion
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Steve King
July 21, 2022 at 8:12 pm
Should have compared it to the iPhone 11 since the price is in the same ballpark.
eli vegba
July 21, 2022 at 11:39 pm
That’s a flagship phone,😑
Ryan Holloman
July 21, 2022 at 8:30 pm
Honestly the main take away if you take more photos than videos get the pixel and if you take more videos get the iPhone. It seems to me that Apple is focusing more on video quality than pictures!
Joua Angela Yang
July 21, 2022 at 10:50 pm
My same thoughts too
Alberto Portugal
July 21, 2022 at 8:31 pm
My bad bro
LarryUK
July 21, 2022 at 8:37 pm
I’ve got a Samsung S20 5g. I try it against every phone I find but none come close to screen quality and camera clarity.
Sully
July 21, 2022 at 8:59 pm
You’re dreaming. Lol
Joshuva Antonio
July 21, 2022 at 8:37 pm
Take the Pixel 5 ! Its the best out of the bunch in Pixels. Why?
Great 90hz Refresh, Outstanding Portability and Weight, Great Back Camera for Nature Shots , Great battery, and Unlimited Storage of Photos and Videos in Cloud ( Even Pixel 6 Pro doesnt have it )
So For an Android Guy, Pixel 5 might be the one to go
Ps : I use iPhone as Primary and Pixel 5 as secondary for every other stuff which actually needs a Laptop
Tony Moore
July 22, 2022 at 1:11 am
I have the Pixel 6, and it’s hard to imagine the 5 being better, especially with this Tensor chip. But… you never know.
RickOShay
July 21, 2022 at 8:39 pm
Pixel is way superior – I’d buy that over any iPhone any day.
_PBT_
July 21, 2022 at 8:44 pm
6a for seamless integration into the Google ecosystem I’m presuming
pointlessfailure
July 21, 2022 at 8:53 pm
I like how buying a new phone has made everyone a photography expert. Especially when the average user takes like 1 picture a week.
Izzy
July 21, 2022 at 10:07 pm
Snapchat girls: my goals are beyond your understanding!
Cryptomania
July 21, 2022 at 8:56 pm
SE is a one ancient device compared to the 6a. I hope Apple makes the discontinued mini into an SE next year.
D V
July 21, 2022 at 10:34 pm
I’d also be okay with a XR body as well.
jkb462
July 21, 2022 at 8:59 pm
“Salt and Pepper Daddy” 🤣
jkfdkjjd
July 21, 2022 at 9:00 pm
SCH SCH SCH SCH
Higgs Boson
July 21, 2022 at 9:05 pm
I wonder how much Google paid for this “comparison”
Bardlez B'Gardlez
July 21, 2022 at 9:11 pm
[Google] “Hey C-Net. Would you mind telling everyone that the bottom-of-the-line iPhone takes better video than ours, and only say you’d pick our camera based solely on software features that the iPhone doesn’t have? Thanksabunch. Here’s a million dollars.”
LC
July 21, 2022 at 9:56 pm
Whatever helps you sleep better at night buddy
Mirza Rizwan baig
July 22, 2022 at 12:07 am
Butt hurt?😆😂🤣 did u really expect 5 years old camera tech to beat Pixel 6a that had Pixel 5 camera? C’mon.. I’ve iPhone 13 Starlight and I can admit made mistake by using 5 years old camera tech and body.. So much u can milk 5 years old tech..
Bardlez B'Gardlez
July 21, 2022 at 9:13 pm
[Me] (has a Pixel 6 Pro)
[Also me] “Better watch this video to find out which of these two phone I’ll never own that I like better.”
Andy Abat Tang
July 21, 2022 at 9:27 pm
The iPhone is clearly just a cash grab
Emilio Amador
July 21, 2022 at 9:35 pm
Pixel 6a Is better
Zuba
July 21, 2022 at 10:48 pm
This is a better way to do comparison. Great video.
Joshua Goose
July 21, 2022 at 11:40 pm
Pixel is crap! Period ! Long time android pixel switched to IPhone. In daily use iOS is waaaaaaaay more consistent! Get real!
eli vegba
July 21, 2022 at 11:45 pm
Nice opinion
eli vegba
July 21, 2022 at 11:45 pm
I’m a long time iOS user who also switched to the pixel
Jonathan N. Kpaka
July 21, 2022 at 11:40 pm
I’ll choose the SE bcus it’s an iPhone and iPhones are the best overall
Mirza Rizwan baig
July 22, 2022 at 12:04 am
Bcuz it’s an iPhone? 🥶🥶🥶🥶🥶🫡
Mirza Rizwan baig
July 21, 2022 at 11:50 pm
Correction: it has A15 from iPhone 13 non Pro. Cuz Pro has 5 core GPU..
I hope failure of SE made realize they can’t sell 5 years old tech with just latest chipset and expect it to win over…
WALID ALHADDI
July 22, 2022 at 12:02 am
The 6a camera hardware is not just the same as the Pixel 5, but same as the Pixel 4, Pixel 3 and Pixel 2
D K
July 22, 2022 at 12:09 am
When did Ron Jeremy start doing phone reviews?
Mirza Rizwan baig
July 22, 2022 at 12:09 am
Nobody wants 5 years old tech for another 5 years.
iPhone SE 3 is a failure. There is a reason cut the product by 20% in just 1st few weeks of it’s launch.
BLASTONG DREAM 😁
July 22, 2022 at 12:33 am
What about the performance???
Rex
July 22, 2022 at 9:12 am
Interesting that bigger sensors doesn’t actually gives that much better images quality yet. Maybe phone camera manufacturers should take from the james webb 🔭 wait! phone cameras doesn’t have mirrors right. I’m going for the 6a when the price is right.
Taurean Smoke
July 22, 2022 at 2:15 pm
What do you mean the Price Is Right. Do you want the phone for free you have to be a YouTuber for that. And also the only cameras that I know of with mirrors inside of them are the telephoto cameras on the 6 Pro and the s22 Ultra!
Rex
July 22, 2022 at 7:02 pm
@Taurean Smoke it’s going to drop another 100 in two months to 350 midrange phone market. Samsung A53 is 350 and in many ways a better phone than the 6a.
Argodeon
July 22, 2022 at 10:09 am
Salt and pepper daddy look
ST
July 22, 2022 at 10:22 am
Did he just pull @everydaydad ‘s “Let’s find out”
Kumar Sivadas
July 22, 2022 at 11:00 am
Well done Patrick! Perspectives are rightly put in place and any viewer can easily make up their mind after watching this video which one to choose.Thats the impact!
6ix
July 22, 2022 at 11:21 am
The first ever comparison in which I see Apple losing
PotatoCabbage98
July 22, 2022 at 11:23 am
If apple calls themselves “innovative”, they wouldn’t be using such an outdated, 5 year old design with their “newest” iPhone 🙄
linh phan
July 22, 2022 at 12:39 pm
I bought pixel 6 last month, because of the it’s cameras and Google always roll out their os updates to Pixels earliest.
Levi Nring
July 22, 2022 at 12:53 pm
Believe it or not , pixel does great in terms of competitional photography ,no other phone on merket can’t beat up 👍
Graham Evans
July 22, 2022 at 2:14 pm
Computational
hienho15
July 22, 2022 at 12:53 pm
At first I thought it was Ron Jeremy doing phone reviews now. LOL
CRLS[ARYO]
July 22, 2022 at 12:58 pm
I have the SE 2020 version… and it has been great. The phone is super fast, photos and videos great for both city and landscapes for vacations. The phone I had before was a MOTO G power and the camera was “okay” but not great at all
Michael Dietsche
July 22, 2022 at 1:27 pm
Pixel photos better – no surprise. But I was surprised how much Apple has improved their photo processing (check out the photos on an old iPhone 8, same base hardware as the SE).
neolakraj
July 22, 2022 at 1:35 pm
I liked the pixels photos but the video was a huge letdown. Have to buy both…. I will get a 14 Pro Max when it arrives. 😀
Divyam Maheshwari
July 22, 2022 at 1:53 pm
Too many ads on this video. It’s awful. 👎🏻
Taurean Smoke
July 22, 2022 at 2:13 pm
Coming from a pixel 6 user who has never had an issue with bugs or the fingerprint not working I’m just waiting for everybody to start saying the fingerprint scanner doesn’t work at all they can’t get in their phone and it’s unusable so I can read comments on YouTube crying with a biggest smile on my face looking at the internet Apple spin machine trying to say they all have the pixel and it’s not working knowing full well they have an iPhone in their pocket and they’re just mad that Google made another killer phone, when Apple user sees that Apple only has 18% worldwide market share and Google is closely on their heels already with just five phones LOL that means iPhones aren’t as good as people say they are if they only have 18% market share and you can buy a $300 iPhone and people still aren’t buying your phones like that such a tragedy what’s going to happen when Google sells more phones than Samsung and Apple!😁😁😁😁😁
Giovan Goentoro
July 22, 2022 at 2:19 pm
I want Google to sell Pixel devices in Indonesia.. Pls Google if you read my comment..
shahez ahmed
July 22, 2022 at 2:32 pm
pixel 6a doesnt have action pan and long exposure
Spider Boy Games
July 22, 2022 at 3:45 pm
If this was a boxing match they would have stopped the fight after the first round. That is old sensor on Pixel but damn that is such a good sensor and google’s computation is just insane.
nuno silva
July 22, 2022 at 4:06 pm
Ron Jeremy working for CNET now?!
Augusto Lugo
July 22, 2022 at 4:23 pm
Pixel by a mile, to begin with you have double the storage, an ultra wide camera, night sight, spam screening, google hold, google transcript, and google assistance that it is much better than siri, a bigger screen and a design that is not 6 years old!!
Nathan Schueller
July 22, 2022 at 4:44 pm
Too bad Celso is wearing a Giants shirt. Dodgers crushed them in Baseball yesterday ⚾
Thomas Shriner
July 22, 2022 at 6:17 pm
😀l am so happy my financial life has totally changed ever since I ventured into stock investment. Ive been earning over $18,000 dollars every single week.
Brandy Adkins
July 22, 2022 at 6:33 pm
Mrs Catalina is obviously the best, I’ve been able to secure a steady inflow of my returns of stock investments.
Philip Mullar
July 22, 2022 at 6:37 pm
Adequate mentorship is the key to suo ceed in stook market, I’ve made over $120k ever since I started following her recommendations.
Gary Leon Hughes
July 22, 2022 at 6:51 pm
People are so confident with their talk about this Mrs Catalina how do get started with her?
Ella Kum
July 22, 2022 at 6:52 pm
@catalina144
Shivam Verma
July 22, 2022 at 6:45 pm
Pixel obliterates iphone out of water
Chad H
July 22, 2022 at 8:49 pm
That camera comparison wasn’t even close. Yikes!
nuyou21
July 22, 2022 at 10:42 pm
With everyone saying the performance on the Pixel 6a is bad it has to be the iPhone SE easily. Plus, with iOS 16 coming out soon it’s safe to say even more Android users are about to switch to buy it. 💯😁
MICHEL NALUNVA
July 23, 2022 at 10:15 pm
SE is just an older phone with an updated chip.
nuyou21
July 23, 2022 at 10:34 pm
@MICHEL NALUNVA 😂The loved SE is 7th in the Top 10 Bestselling Smartphones Globally list. While the so-called best of Android like the Pixel 6 didn’t even come close to making the list. 🤣
ChuckE3
July 23, 2022 at 12:10 am
So…take photos with Pixel and videos with iphone.
Cheuk Seto
July 23, 2022 at 2:52 am
Apple should have changed the SE body design to a 12 mini/ iPhone 11 OR should have kept or lowered the original selling price of $399. A higher priced $429 iPhone 8 body and camera, even with a 13 ‘s chip, feels like a quick cash grab for those who aren’t really in the know of mobile phones. Just not a really good deal.
I originally wanted to buy an SE as a second work phone, then I decided to just pay more for a 13 mini knowing that it will be discontinued and a design that won’t age too quickly in these next few years.
Neeran Pamheiba Meitei
July 23, 2022 at 3:25 am
Great comparison video. I love your team too. All of you are super cool. 😎
Dave Brannigan
July 23, 2022 at 3:49 am
At 7:10, why are your cat’s ears cropped in the iPhone SE photo? Is it the angle or some weird digital correction?
Tim Tsai
July 23, 2022 at 4:09 am
I choose the IPhone any day. Why? Because the 6a will most likely overheat itself and shut off the camera when I need to use it, just liken my 5a
fulosophy
July 23, 2022 at 4:12 am
I have to agree that photos in general Pixel does a great job, however iPhone always had better video capabilities, in terms of exporting and editing etc, when I import a 60 or 120fps “slow motion” clip from iPhone to Adobe Premiere, it actually reads 60fps and you can edit or change the frame rate accordingly, but when I import a “slow motion” clip shot by Pixel, it will just play in slow motion and in the editing software it will say 30fps, it’s so damn annoying, no flexibility.
Also, on the iPhone you can set certain section of the clip to slow motion and the rest play at regular speed, you can do the same on the Pixel but only recognized in the Photo app, when you try to upload that clip to social media, the entire clip will be in slow motion.
I really wish Google will fix this issue.
Tawsik Abdullah
July 23, 2022 at 6:55 am
Google won’t solve any issues. They always mess up one thing or another. They aren’t serious about their pixel lineup at all. In some countries, 6A’s price has reached the 650$ mark. Which doesn’t make any sense to me.
Ian Bert Rafal
July 23, 2022 at 4:17 am
i just noticed that your choice of words when describing the pixel are way favorable to iPhone. Everytime SE fails to compete in some areas, you always make an explanation and ways on how to resolve the down side. iPhone and pixel can adjust the blur after taking the photo by the way, but you didnt give pixel the chance to market that even though pixel first offered that in the market. hmmmm. try to change your laptop to chrome OS. and never get back. Let’s see if you will still praise iPhone. You’re just locked up in ios ecosystem I guess.
Dimitri Lashkhi
July 23, 2022 at 4:27 am
Is your friend’s name Soso? Is he Georgian?
charanjeet Sharma
July 23, 2022 at 5:03 am
Just add s21fe
charanjeet Sharma
July 23, 2022 at 5:04 am
Videos on iphone , Still Photos on Pixel
Matias Muttoni
July 23, 2022 at 5:09 am
I would buy the 6A too. The only thing stopping me, is that I’m an iPhone user and I rlly like FaceTime and iMessage but if they implement it on android, I wouldn’t mind switching.
Styles_zafar
July 24, 2022 at 11:47 am
You can use Google duo, Google messages on pixel phones. Also, FaceTime also can be used on Android phones via the shared link.
Matias Muttoni
July 24, 2022 at 11:37 pm
@Styles_zafar It’s not the same tho😭
FaceTime is greatly linked to iMessage. And iMessage and Google messages are completely different. iMessage Carries a lot of stuff compared. I’ll just wait and see
ባልሽ ባሌክስ
July 23, 2022 at 5:27 am
I wish i could know the speakers comparison, too.
Tawsik Abdullah
July 23, 2022 at 7:00 am
Poor display, small battery, old design. Who will buy iphone SE in this price range!
Sivarahul S
July 23, 2022 at 7:47 am
Compare it with nothing
Isaac Terry
July 23, 2022 at 8:05 am
The battery life on the se is garbage vs the 6a as well huge deal for me
Joseph Barney
July 23, 2022 at 8:16 am
6a was best and I’m not just saying this because I watched on my pixel 6. 😂
Archishman Roy
July 23, 2022 at 11:46 am
iPhone 11 vs pixel 6A
Fahad Zaman
July 23, 2022 at 11:58 am
I wanna buy a pixel 5a,will it be available in the uk?brand new or a used one, either one would work…😐
Jay Kap
July 23, 2022 at 2:52 pm
Pixel 6A is a non starter, because the camera hardware is same as the Pixel 5A. If a person doesn’t care or know about it, its fine. I have the Samsung S20FE, and that is a very good overall at its present price level. Honestly wireless charging is a must today. 90Hz display refresh would have been easily justified!!
Bo Xoffisa
July 23, 2022 at 5:38 pm
And the referee declared it, the winner is;
V K
July 23, 2022 at 9:31 pm
Photos were better on Pixel. Apple is muuuuuch better at videos, though.
Felipe Eliezer
July 23, 2022 at 9:59 pm
I’m shocked
MICHEL NALUNVA
July 23, 2022 at 10:10 pm
The SE is an older phone with an updated chip.
Blue Gene
July 23, 2022 at 11:33 pm
Yes, I would go for the Pixel 6A because – like most competitive Androids – the camera set-up is an all-round experience. The photos on the Pixel 6A look so much better than the iPhone SE. For the most part, I don’t think that the video coming from the Pixel 6A is a disaster. Most people don’t crop in on a 1080p capture. I thought the Pixel 6A video was crisp in scenes that didn’t have too much contrast / dark areas. For once, a Google designed Android phone, the video looked very smooth. That said, I can see that the iPhone SE video is a tad sharper.
Does the Pixel 6A have manual settings for photos and videos? Maybe manual settings can result in a better video capture. This is why I prefer Samsung’s flagships; the manual settings can churn out superb results!
tuvietnamm
July 24, 2022 at 9:03 am
The fact that iOS and Android is the main factor when pulling the trigger and the iPhone is always a safe choice, I would pick the pixel 6a just because how exciting it is everytime I take a photo and wait for the result. It brings me joy to use it.
Canab Abdirzak
July 24, 2022 at 9:07 am
Best iphone Se❤️
HarryVlogs
July 24, 2022 at 12:47 pm
Yeah pixel is clear winner even before watching the video
Branimir
July 24, 2022 at 3:16 pm
Does the tensor chip still overheat?
Rupesh Kumar Badam
July 24, 2022 at 10:08 pm
Similar to just last year’s pixel 5? The sensor is the same that has been used since the Pixel 2 series.
Pranav Menon
July 25, 2022 at 3:33 am
They should do iphone 13 mini vs Google pixel 6a
Juan Carlos Araujo S.
July 25, 2022 at 4:20 am
Sincerely, I would add the Galaxy A53 to this. What the Pixel and th iPhone have in terms of computational photography, the A53 has in brute force (megapixel count)… And is cheaper.
Marcin Karwiński
July 25, 2022 at 5:57 am
Due to certifications, it seems that Pixel 6A has not been allowed to connect to several 5G bands used outside of USA and maybe Japan or UK, thus in several European countries there’s a limited 5G access and even slight problem on LTE ones, especially in CEE region… though perhaps impacting EMEA regions as a whole. Basically, where there is no official distributor channel, there’s a high chance that Google has not had their devices certified, thus issues with carriers’ bands may occure, limiting advanced features. Apple seems to have had their handhelds certified everywhere and offer SE everywhere… Still, at that premium they’re coming, they’re less of a proper intro into Apple iPhone ecosystem, so less useful to actually have, than what 6A does for current Pixel & Android ecosystem.
Rony
July 25, 2022 at 8:05 am
How much money did CNET got to promote a phone?
MithunOnThe.Net
July 25, 2022 at 8:10 am
I’d pick the 6a overt he SE. The iPhone SE overall is way overpriced for what it offers, not just lacking in the camera department.
Andre Wilson
July 25, 2022 at 10:41 am
I just felt in love with this guy! He reminds me of someone used to be in some naughty industry 🙂
Anthony Angiada
July 25, 2022 at 12:23 pm
Damn didn’t even go over a battery comparison between the two
B N
July 25, 2022 at 2:32 pm
A6
the lone star
July 25, 2022 at 2:54 pm
I bought the pixel 5a after being sold on the camera software, and though the pictures came out nicely, taking the photos and videos were a mess. Take the actual photo took forever to register, meaning if you press the button to snap a shot, it takes a few seconds to actually take it and then a few extra seconds to process… if you move, you make a mistake. Videos looked good, but the phone gets too hot too quick. I like the iPhone SE, it’s a better experience.
Mohamad Al- Hafizul
July 25, 2022 at 3:25 pm
I like your casual review style.. thanks
Trevor Smith
July 25, 2022 at 5:52 pm
Looking good sir. Keep it up!
e. c. a eca
July 25, 2022 at 10:41 pm
Ese iPhone es una burla
Taylor Davies
July 25, 2022 at 11:23 pm
Often with photo comparisons, the photos aren’t good for comparison, but you did a great job! If you’re going to get an iPhone you’ve gotta get a better one if you want quality photos. For a budget phone though, the pixel 6a takes home the gold.
Chris Webster
July 26, 2022 at 1:04 am
FFS, I thought this guy was Ron Jeremy.
Sandi Hermana
July 26, 2022 at 9:15 am
I hate you Big man when you always review about tech i really prefer lexy or the other than you😤
Robby Cahyadi
July 26, 2022 at 4:18 pm
JPEG and RAWR~
Gaurav Singh
July 26, 2022 at 4:50 pm
Even my pixel 4a camera better than iPhone se.
Kent Purdy
July 26, 2022 at 8:07 pm
simply love the SE body
Drain The Swamp
July 27, 2022 at 7:47 am
My wife and I got the Google Pixel 3 when it came out. We LOVE the camera pictures. I show off the Night Sight pics all the time. I have pics taken at 2 AM where you can’t see where you’re going and the obstacles are lit up. You just have to hold the camera still for a few seconds.
Christopher Fields
July 27, 2022 at 12:33 pm
Google pixel will always be better than android and Apple fan boys will never see that 😂
Michel and Mara
July 27, 2022 at 1:06 pm
Videos are stuttering, has to do with the editing 24 frames and 30 frames.