The Pixel 10 is going to be an iterative update, but even so, there is still room to improve over the Pixel 9. Here are a few areas we want to see Google make changes to make an even better Android smartphone.

Without being too hasty, the Pixel 9 has been an excellent return to form for Google. Sure, it borrows a little heavily from the Apple playbook in terms of the design and build, but that doesn’t stop it from being a superb product in its own right. The Pixel 9 Pro Fold, in particular, is one of the best foldable phones to date as it corrects some of the glaring design errors made with the original Pixel Fold.

Performance

We’ve had four versions of the Tensor chip to get used to, and it has been drilled into us that performance is not a strong suit. Google is insistent that AI prowess is more important to the SoC, but there is almost zero reason that we shouldn’t at least get some raw grunt to power the “default” Android experience. Owners

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The million-dollar question is whether the switch away from Samsung to TSMC as the foundry for Tensor G5 will be enough to give any major performance uplift.

Even if we temper our expectations based on leaked information, just stick faster UFS 4.0 storage in the handset. It’s 2025, UFS 3.1 storage is 2020 tech. Adopting newer storage tech means faster read-write speeds, which in turn can hide some of the performance pitfalls as apps load faster and transfer rates improve. This will benefit the Pixel 10 for the entirety of its lifespan and improve the experience over the Pixel 9 without any major hardware changes.

Yes, 95% of people out there simply won’t care or won’t notice. Speaking on behalf of the 5% that do know, it would just be a nice upgrade for the 10th iteration of the Pixel series.

Battery life and charging speed

If the move to a TSMC chip aids performance, the bigger benefit could be efficiency. Short of throwing in larger batteries or adopting silicon-carbon tech to increase capacity in a smaller footprint, we’re going to need this for increased phone longevity day-to-day.

Pixels have struggled with lifespan almost from the very get-go, and although the 8 and 9 series have stabilized things for all but the insane use cases. Snapdragon phones have an undoubted edge, and it’s because the chip is better at power management. Thermals have been pretty good on the Pixel 9, so we have no major complaints when talking about device temperatures.

That said, I have personally found that the standby time on my Pixel 9 Pro XL is woeful compared to the Galaxy S25 Ultra, and it’s hard to ascertain why. Both devices have very similar core internals, but it’s likely the SoC that is the reason for the decreased lifespan when my phone is idle. I’ve seen dips of almost 25% overnight with my Pixel 9 Pro and Pro Fold, with little reason for that to be the case.

I’m probably shouting into the void when it comes to charging tech, but the fairly modest upgrades on the Pixel 9 to 27W and 37W could be extended further still. I’m spoiled with the OnePlus 13 charging via wire in under 20 minutes; it makes the Pixel 9 charging times feel glacial. 45W should be the minimum across all devices and not limited to just the Pro tier phones – albeit capped at 37W in the real world.

Camera

A few things need to be resolved with the Pixel camera when the Pixel 10 arrives. Most notable is the lag when using the 50MP mode. This has seemingly persisted for a while, but it builds on another issue that I think is, in part, due to how Google processes images after the shutter has been pressed.

Although this is not limited to just the Pixel series, when you are in the viewfinder, the image you capture versus the one you eventually end up with can be drastically different because of the post-processing effects that are all handled automatically. It would be great if the Pixel 10 were the first in the lineup to be able to show real-time what an image will look like before you hit the shutter button.

Alternatively, it would be nice if there were a way to disable certain post-processing effects without having to use an app like Snapseed or spend a while in Google Photos tweaking for a more “natural” image effect. I have found myself using Zerocam to get zero processing in my photos.

Last year, we hoped that some of the zoom lag when switching lenses would get fixed. It is still a bit laggy when flip-flopping between zoom lengths. I’m hopeful that this can finally get resolved at some point – even if a Google Camera update is able to fix it. If the base Pixel 10 is getting a dedicated telephoto, we need consistency in every area.

Video Boost has been a revelation in many ways. The Pixel 9 getting 8K recording has been amazing, but can we improve the framerate options on Pixel 10, please? 30fps is fine for most people, but 60fps could be a real game-changer, even if the wait times for cloud processing could turn into hours. It wouldn’t bother me all that much, as the footage you get after processing is some of the best on mobile.

One selfish wish is for Google to add a LOG recording mode for video. It’s been on my personal wishlist for a couple of years now, and I think it would be great for any budding mobile videographers given the flexibility to work with LOG footage in post-production workflows.

Continued build-quality improvements

While problems persist with practically every piece of technology, there’s no denying that faults have been somewhat common with Google phones over the years. That said, Pixel hardware has improved drastically since the Pixel 5 was released. It’s immediately obvious how much better the Pixel 9 is than previous versions. The quality of materials is evident, the in the hand feel in tandem with the shape changes.

Positives aside for a second, I wish there were some minor changes. The display still feels a little hollow when you’re tapping. When using something like the Galaxy S25 Ultra, you can immediately tell that Samsung is further ahead when it comes to high-end materials, fit, and finish. It’s not as pronounced as it was in years gone by, but as long as Google keeps chipping away, I’m hopeful that each iteration will feel even better than the last.

Integrations

Gemini isn’t for everyone. It’s solid, but maybe, like in iOS, we could get rudimentary integration with other AI services like ChatGPT or Claude and use other services as the default voice assistant on our devices. It wouldn’t need to be particularly in-depth — it would be merely a way to use other platforms in place of Gemini Live. Understandably, Google probably doesn’t want to do this, but even a basic option would be appreciated.

Software stability

Android 16 QPR1 is a big visual update, but most of the core experience is similar to what we’ve seen before. If this is to be a big launch alongside the new hardware, it needs to be super slick right out of the box. Nail the fundamentals, fix any glaring issues like jelly scroll, and we’re likely in for the best experience with a brand new Pixel phone in some time. Network stability is taken care of thanks to the modem change last year, so it’s all systems go so long as Google nails this Android 16 QPR1 out of the gate.

What improvements do you want from the Pixel 10?

What improvements do you want to see over the Pixel 9 when the Pixel 10 arrives? Let us know down in the comments section below.

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