Google Pixel 8 Pro vs. Asus Zenfone 11 Ultra: Can't beat the classics

Is the new big-screen Asus a contender, or just a pretender?

• Google Pixel 8 Pro

  The better choice
  $749 $999 Save $250

  One of our favorite phones of 2023, the Pixel 8 Pro remains an incredible device that should satisfy some of the most demanding users. It boasts a complete resume of fantastic photo and video capture, focused OS refinements, capable hardware, and novel AI tools — and it's often discounted below MSRP.

  Pros

  • Industry-leading cameras
  • Ever-expanding AI toolkit
  • 7 years of Android updates

  Cons

  • Tensor SoC lags behind competition
  • Disappointing 30W charging

  $749 at Google Store

• Asus Zenfone 11 Ultra

  Big and fast

  Asus took the soul of its ultra-powerful ROG Phone and wrapped it in a sleeker, more professional design, complete with the latest iterative hardware upgrades a flagship deserves. It doesn't do much to stand out from the current sea of big phones, but it's still an awfully complete package.

  Pros

  • Exceptional battery life and charging
  • Blazing-fast performance
  • Extremely crisp display with 144Hz gaming

  Cons

  • One of the heaviest slab phones
  • No Verizon or 5G mmWave support
  • Only two full Android updates

  $900 at Asus

The much-talked-about Google Pixel 8 Pro took home countless end-of-year awards, with consistently great cameras, improved performance and efficiency, and increasingly useful AI tools driving most of the arguments. The Pixel 7 Pro's few faults shrunk considerably with the new generation, leaving experts and average users impressed at the flagship's complete hardware and software package.

Of course, it's also pretty big, and big phones sell in droves these days. So Asus, long renowned for its relatively compact Zenfone 10, decided to try its hand at a near-7-inch smartphone. Essentially a less aggressive version of the ROG Phone 8, Asus' new big flagship sports the hardware you'd expect from a near-$1,000 device.

So what, exactly, makes the Zenfone 11 Ultra worth considering over Google's top-of-the-line slab phone? It largely depends on how you value extreme battery life and performance overhead because Asus' new offering doesn't do much else better than the Pixel.

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Price, specs, and availability

On the market since October 2023, the Pixel 8 Pro is readily available from Google, major carriers, and third-party vendors. It was the first Pixel phone to hit the $1,000 mark, which was neither great news nor particularly surprising.

Asus' latest entrant in the large-format phone race, the Zenphone 11 Ultra, aims to undercut that base price, with a $900 MSRP. The only problem? As of press time, Google and third-party outlets offered the Pixel 8 Pro at just $750, and such discounts aren't exactly rare at this point. Moreover, if you want a new Zenfone, you'll have to buy it outright; Asus doesn't offer trade-in discounts or carrier deals. And while the device is available from Asus and select retailers at the moment, the phones aren't exactly famous for staying in stock over the long term.

• 	Google Pixel 8 Pro	Asus Zenfone 11 Ultra
  SoC	Google Tensor G3	Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3
  Display type	LTPO OLED, 1-120Hz	LTPO AMOLED, 120Hz (144Hz gaming)
  Display dimensions	6.7"	6.78", 20:9
  Display resolution	1344 × 2992	2400 × 1080
  RAM	12GB	12GB LPDDR5X
  Storage	128GB, 256GB, 512GB, 1TB UFS 3.1	256GB UFS 4.0
  Battery	5,050mAh	5,500mAh
  Charge speed	30W wired, 18W wireless (with Pixel Stand 2), 12W wireless (Qi), 5W reverse wireless	65W wired, 15W wireless, 10W reverse wireless
  Charge options	Wired, Wireless, Reverse wireless	USB wired, Qi wireless, reverse wireless
  Ports	USB-C 3.2 OTG	1x USB-C 3.2, 1x 3.5mm
  SIM support	Dual SIM (Nano SIM and eSIM)	Dual-SIM dual standby
  Operating System	Android 14	Android 14
  Front camera	10.5MP sel