We put the Google Pixel 9 Pro XL through our rigorous suite of SBMARK Display tests to measure its performance across four criteria. In this test results, we look at how it performed across a variety of tests and common use cases.
Overview
Key Display Specifications
- 6.8 inch OLED
- Dimensions: 162.8 x 76.6 x 8.5mm (6.4 x 3 x 0.3 inches)
- Resolution: 1344 x 2992 pixels, (~486 ppi density)
- Aspect ratio: 20:9
- Refresh rate: 120Hz
Pros
- Faithful and well rendered colors in most of the tested conditions
- Well suited for readability in most environments
- HDR10 video is pleasant to watch in low-light conditions and indoors.
- Precise and fast touch
Against
- Slightly low luminance for SDR video
- Loss of luminance and visible color shift when viewed from an angle
- Holding the device in landscape orientation may cause unwanted touches with the palm of your hand
The Google Pixel 9 Pro XL’s display leads the pack with a very strong and balanced performance across all attributes, delivering an excellent overall experience in most use cases, from viewing photos to watching videos. As with previous generations of Pixels, the Pixel 9 Pro XL’s display’s color management has been its strongest feature.
The Google Pixel 9 Pro XL scored highly in outdoor readability and in direct sunlight. The screen’s luminance performed well in most of the conditions we tested. The device achieved an impressive measured peak luminance of 2,840 cd/m² with the high-brightness mode enabled in extremely bright outdoor environments, such as sunlight, measuring up to 90,000 lux. The peak luminance significantly beat the Pixel 8 Pro’s measured peak luminance of 2,572 cd/m² and the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra’s 2,572 cd/m². However, the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra still performed better in sunlight thanks to its low screen reflectance.
The Pixel 9 Pro XL’s color rendition, tested in Natural mode, was very accurate, retaining faithful skin tones in a variety of lighting conditions.
Watching HDR video on the Pixel 9 Pro XL’s screen was a comfortable and enjoyable experience in both low-light and indoor lighting, and the device’s performance was mostly on par with its closest competitors, offering adapted brightness, peak luminance, and good color rendition. In SDR, however, the Pixel 9 Pro XL’s screen luminance tended to be a little lower. Video detail was well preserved in HDR, and the screen demonstrated excellent handling of frame drops.
In the touch category, the Google Pixel 9 Pro XL’s response time was very quick and accurate, and the device’s 120Hz refresh rate ensured a smooth viewing experience in all tested use cases.
The absence of flicker, well-controlled luminance, color consistency, and effective blue light filtering have also earned the Google Pixel 9 Pro XL SBMARK’s Eye Comfort label, distinguishing it as a visually comfortable device to use in low-light conditions.
Test summary
About SBMARK Display Tests: For evaluation and analysis, a device is subjected to a series of objective and perceptual tests under controlled laboratory and real-life conditions. The SBMARK Display Score takes into account the overall user experience provided by the screen, considering hardware capability and software tuning. Only factory-installed video and photo apps are used in the tests. More in-depth details on how SBMARK performs its tests
The displays are available in the article “A closer look at SBMARK display tests”.
The following section focuses on the key elements of our comprehensive tests and analyses performed in SBMARK
laboratories. Full reports with detailed performance evaluations are available upon request. To order a copy, please
contact us.
How the display readability score is composed
Readability measures the ease and comfort of the user
to view still content, such as photos or a web page, on the display in different lighting conditions. Our
The measurements carried out in the laboratories are complemented by perceptual tests and analyses.
Skin tone rendering in an indoor environment (1000 lux)
From left: Google Pixel 9 Pro XL, Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max, Honor Magic6 Pro
(Photo for illustration purposes only)
Skin tone rendition in a sunlight environment (>90,000 lux)
From left to right: Google Pixel 9 Pro XL, Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max, Honor Magic6 Pro
(Photo for illustration purposes only)
SCI stands for Specular Component Included, which measures both diffuse and specular reflection. The reflection from a simple glass pane is about 4%, while it reaches about 6% for a plastic pane. Although the first surface of smartphones is made of glass, their total reflection (without coating) is usually about 5% due to the multiple reflections created by the complex optical stack.
The average reflectance is calculated based on the spectral reflectance in the visible spectrum range (see graph below) and the human spectral sensitivity.
Uniformity
This graph shows the distribution of luminance across the entire display panel. Uniformity is
measured with a 20% gray pattern, with bright green indicating the ideal luminance. A bright green color evenly distributed
on the screen indicates that the display brightness is uniform. Other colors indicate a loss of uniformity.
Displays flicker for 2 main reasons: refresh rate and pulse width modulation. Pulse width modulation is a modulation technique that generates pulses of variable width to represent the amplitude of an analog input signal. This measurement is important for comfort because flickering at low frequencies can be perceived by some individuals and, in extreme cases, can induce seizures. Some experiments show that discomfort can occur at a higher frequency. A high PWM frequency (> 1500 Hz) tends to be less annoying to users.
How the displayed color score is composed
Color evaluations are performed under different lighting conditions
conditions to see how well the device handles color with its surroundings. Devices are tested with sRGB and
Display-P3 image models. Both the faithful and default modes are used for our evaluation. Our measurements are performed in
The workshops are completed by perceptual tests and analyses.
Circadian clock factor is a metric that defines the impact of light on the human sleep cycle. It is the ratio of light energy that contributes to sleep disruption (centered at 450 nm, representing blue light) to light energy that contributes to our perception (covering 400 nm to 700 nm and centered at 550 nm, representing green light). A high circadian clock factor means that the ambient light contains strong blue light energy and is likely to affect the body’s sleep cycle, while a low circadian clock factor means that the light has weak blue light energy and is less likely to affect sleep patterns.
How the Display Video Score is Composed
The video attribute evaluates the standard dynamic range
(SDR) and High Dynamic Range (HDR10) video management in indoor and low-light conditions. Our measurements are performed in
The laboratories are completed by perceptual tests and analyses.
Video rendering in a low light environment (0 lux)
Clockwise from top left: Google Pixel 9 Pro XL, Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max, Honor Magic6 Pro
(Photo for illustration purposes only)
Indoor video rendering (1000 lux)
Clockwise from top left: Google Pixel 9 Pro XL, Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max, Honor Magic6 Pro
(Photo for illustration purposes only)
These indicators show the percentage of frame irregularities in a 30-second video. These irregularities are not necessarily noticeable to users (unless they are all in the same timestamp), but they are an indicator of performance.
How the Display Touch Score is Composed
We evaluate tactile attributes based on many types of
contents where touch is essential and requires different behaviors such as gaming (quick touch for response time), web (fluid
page scrolling) and images (precise and smooth navigation from one image to another).
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