I’ve spent nearly a week with a Pixel 6 as my main phone, and the only things I’m really missing from my iPhone are iMessage, AirPlay (HomePods), AirDrop, and also the camera system of the iPhone 13.

The first three are obvious features designed to lock you into an ecosystem. But as for the cameras, the iPhone feels a little more reliable and faster for me. Maybe it’s because I’m comparing the iPhone 13 Pro to a Pixel 6 (not Pro).

The colours also tend to be a bit more vibrant from the Pixel camera, sometimes even making photos look over processed. I’m sure most of it is just because I’m used to the “iPhone” style though.

It’s not all bad though, here are some of the things I prefer on the Pixel:

• Better phone colours (I have coral).
• Flat camera bump (No annoying rocking when using flat on a desk).
• More customisable home screen (icons can go wherever you want!).
• Colour scheme taken from your wallpaper, and icons/widgets/system apps make use of the colour scheme.
• Always on display.
• Better notification management. E.g. turning off individual categories, such as marketing nonsense.
• More customisable control center (not sure what this is called on Android).
• Magic Eraser.
• Google Search/Assistant/Lens in a prominent place on the home screen.
• Photo editing suggestions (especially the sky filters).
• Better integration with more smart home products.
• It feels as if more things can happen in the background.
• Good sports alerts.
• Better system widgets.
• Interesting camera modes such as action pan to create a blurry background or long exposure to create a blurry subject.
• Now playing UI throughout the entire system, on the lock screen, home screen, and when you pull down from the top, handles multiple sources perfectly and can switch between them.
• Can charge another device wirelessly.
• Restart is an option alongside powering off.
• The haptic feedback when using the keyboard.
• Having two apps split vertically.
• More controls on the “Picture-in-Picture” player.
• Fingerprint recognition.
• Also having specific locations where the phone stays unlocked (at home).
• Slightly bigger screen.
• The wider resolution (taller phone).
• Camera cutout over the notch.
• The Google podcasts app over Apple’s.
• The suggested articles feature that’s a swipe away from the home screen.
• Being able to select text and export photos from apps while in the app switcher.

There’s probably a lot more that I’ve already become used to. So while there are things I miss from the iPhone, there’s quite a lot that I’m enjoying on the Pixel.