When comparing HTC 10 vs Google Pixel, the Slant community recommends Google Pixel for most people. In the question“What are the best phones released in 2016?” Google Pixel is ranked 2nd while HTC 10 is ranked 3rd. The most important reason people chose Google Pixel is:
Given it's a Google phone, new updates will roll out rather frequently and for a long time on this phone. So you'll get the latest Android.
Specs
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Great build quality and materials
The aluminum uni-body design is back, this time with some improvements. The power button has distinguishing ridges, the 'HTC bar" is gone, and they removed the bottom speaker helping it achieve almost 5% higher screen-to-body ratio. On the rear is a massive chamfered edge, which catches light differently and makes holding the phone feel more comfortable.
Pro Clean, simple UI
HTC's Sense 8 UI borrows heavily from stock Android, making minor additions and revisions instead of a complete re-haul. Instead of including multiple apps (a gallery app from HTC and one from Google for example), they have mostly gone with Google's apps.
Some unique features are the "Freestyle" layout, which almost acts like a personalized wallpaper/homescreen hybrid. You can add stickers that fit the wallpaper's theme, and assign them to a task then touched. These aren't restricted to an app grid either. This helps keep your home screen look clean without removing any functionality.
BlinkFeed is also back, and is the best implementation of 'bite-sized' information. Samsung and others have tried copying it, however HTC continues to excel in this area. BlinkFeed is a feed of information that almost acts like a massive widget on the leftmost home screen. It can pull information from social media, news sites, and make suggestions based on contextual data (such as good places to eat near you around lunchtime).
Pro Amazing audio quality - both speakers and 3.5mm jack output
HTC is using a new strategy when it comes to speakers - they are using a front facing tweeter (focuses on high frequency) in the earpiece and a speaker in the bottom (focusing on the bass). It might not be the dual-front facing stereo speakers of yesteryear, but this provides space for a larger screen without making the body of the phone larger, and also doesn't compromise on audio quality
HTC is also using a DAC, as well as a dedicated amp for each speaker. The phone also supports Hi-Fi audio, putting this in the contest for best current audio experience on any phone.
Pro Great performance
In GFXBench 3.0 onscreen, the HTC 10 scores 52 fps on T-Rex and 29 fps on Manhattan. This is in line with the Galaxy S7, and about 50% better than the Galaxy S6 and Nexus 6P.
For the offscreen GFXBench 3.0, the HTC 10 achieved 90 fps in T-Rex and 47 fps on Manhattan. This is just a hair slower than the US Galaxy S7 variant, but ahead of the international Galaxy S7, Galaxy S6, and Nexus 6P.
In Geekbench 3: single-core, the HTC 10 is just a hair slower than the US Galaxy S7 and slower than the iPhone 6S Plus, but faster than the international Galaxy S7, S6, and Nexus 6P.
Pro Adaptable SD card storage
You can install apps on the SD card, and use it the exact same as the internal storage. Other flagship phones don't allow this - their SD cards are restricted to media (music, movies, pictures).
Pro Good camera
HTC has tweaked their 'ultrapixel' idea - this time they've gone with a 12MP sensor with large pixels (although they aren't as large at the 4MP camera in the M7 and M8, but considerably larger than the M9's 20MP shooter).
Colors can be muted in daylight shots, but the HTC 10 nails lowlight shots. No doubt the OIS and laser-assisted focusing helps here.
Pro Great multitasking performance
With 4GB of RAM, the HTC 10 can store many apps in the DDR4 RAM without needing to re-load them. This saves a bit of battery life (the processor doesn't need to work hard loading the app back up from scratch), but the more significant benefit is the speed at which users can switch between apps.
Pro Really good screen quality
HTC uses the newest IPS LCD 5 display, which can produce very similar saturated colors that you'd find on Amoled panels, or in the settings you can change it to be more realistic looking - like a traditional LCD panel. The screen also responds faster than any other display out there, however this has never been a problem before.
Pro Lots of storage available
The HTC 10 starts at 32GB of storage and some markets have a 64GB version available - there is no 16GB model. This storage can be expanded through a SD card, adding an additional 256GB. This SD storage can be used for anything including apps - not just media like most Android phones.
Pro Future-ready charging port
USB Type C is the new charging/data transfer standard that has just begun rolling out in 2015. It offers faster data transfer speeds, and a reversible port as well as a more durable connector. It should stick around for the next 5-10 years.
Pro Fast charge times
The HTC 10 is Qualcomm QuickCharge 3 compliant, and comes with a QuickCharge charger in the box. This helps it charge very quickly when the battery is almost dead, however the charging speed decreases the closer it gets to full.
Pro Narrow bezels
The bezels on the HTC 10 are small, which helps it achieve a screen-to-body ratio just over 71%. This helps maximize the screen space, while not increasing the physical body of the phone much.
Pro Fast updates
Pro Great price
Pro Beautiful finish
HTC was one of the first manufacturers (other than Apple) to put effort into making their phones look great - starting 4 years ago with the HTC One M7. This trend has continued with the HTC 10. The aluminum body is only broken by 2 flat antenna lines on the back, and the whole rear edge has a massive chamfered edge which catches light and reflects it. It's a beautifully elegant looking phone.
Pro Great front camera for low light.
The front camera has a large f/1.8 aperture, large 1.34 µm pixels and ois which contribute to a better low light performance than competition. It is also good for vloggers as it is the only flagship device to include ois on the front camera.
Pro Great fingerprint scanner
The fingerprint scanner doubles as the home button, and is located centrally on the bottom chin. It doesn't click - it's just a touch-capacitive pad. Fingerprints are read quickly and extremely accurately, and the button is located on the front where you can press it while it's sitting down on a desk or table.
Pro Well balanced
Pro Software remains up to date
Given it's a Google phone, new updates will roll out rather frequently and for a long time on this phone. So you'll get the latest Android.
Pro Likely the best smartphone camera from 2016
Compared to other smartphones, the Pixel camera currently (October 2016) holds the highest score from DXO mark (in terms of color depth, saturation, etc). Many reviews also praise it as the smartphone camera which takes the best pictures out there. Also the camera really launches fast, allowing you to capture sudden moments. Although there is no hardware OIS (optical image stabilization), the software stabilization does a great job.
You can see a comparison video here of the Pixel against the iPhone 7, Galaxy S7, HTC 10, Sony Xperia XZ and LG G5.
Pro Unlimited original size Google Photos backup
With this phone (only at the moment), you can back up on Google Photos the original version of your photos (full resolution) at no cost. Other phones can upload unlimited photos to Google Photos as well, although they will be compressed image files.
Pro One of the fastest CPUs (in 2016)
The Google Pixel is using the new Snapdragon 821 processor. Other phones from earlier in the year have used the Snapdragon 820. The 821 only has minor differences to the 820.
Pro Integrated Google Assistant
Google Assistant is a more refined Google Now. It's more conversational, and can do different things instead of being limited to a single app. Google Assistant can bring up relevant information in more places than Google Now could, such as conversations within the Duo app.
Pro Fingerprint sensor can be used to trigger other actions
You can double tap the power button to start the camera, swipe the fingerprint sensor in various directions to trigger predefined actions like showing/hiding the notifications, which is pretty handy given it's on the back on the phone.
Pro USB-C charger
USB Type-C port, the future of USB (much more resistant than micro-USB and allows charging either way...). If you have other modern devices you're likely having one of those already, and if not you have a standard short USB-A cord in the package (also micro-USB to USB-C adapter for charging are very cheap).
Pro Daydream VR ready
The Pixel supports Google's VR standard (Daydream) with very rapid refresh rate, and all the required highly sensitive sensors.
Pro Exists in small and larger form factor
The spec are the same for both sizes, except the battery (2700mAh on the 5" Pixel, and 3450mAh on the Pixel XL) and screen resolution (1080p on the 5" Pixel, 1440p on the Pixel XL).
Pro Best Android based UI
Google Assistant, Pixel Launcher, Google Camera, and other google services are available only for pixel devices.
Pro Icons provides shortcuts to functions of that app without opening that app
For example, if you want to send a message, a long press on Messenger opens up options to start a new conversation or continue a recent conversation.
Pro Unofficially waterproof
Officially it's not waterproof (spill and splashes proof). However one guy already tried to immerse the phone in water for an hour and found it had no effect on the phone except distorting the speakers sound (while still wet, similar to officially waterproof phones).
Of course it is not recommended that anyone try this as it will most likely void the warranty and could potentially damage the phone.
Cons
Con Lack of exciting features
While the LG G5 has it's modular bottom, the Galaxy S7 Edge has that edge with software to enhance it, and the Nexus 6P has pure stock Android and will get the fastest updates. The HTC 10 lacks a single headlining feature, and even the design is a small evolution of the M7's original design 3 years ago.
Con Paintwork on black HTC 10 makes small chips obvious
Black paintwork contrasts with the silver body so the little chips look more obvious than on the silver model
Con Too expensive
You can find cheaper phones with similar specs to this e.g. the galaxy s7
Con New charging port
Old micro USB cables will not work with this device, meaning if you lose or break your cable you will need to buy a new one instead of using an old cable you had lying around. If you need to top up your phone away from home, it will be much harder to find a suitable cable initially.
Con In bright light, the camera can turn colors grey
In very bright settings, the camera mutes colors, turning them grey. With any luck, this can be fixed through a future software update.
Con Screen brightness has limited range
In bright daylight, it can be hard to clearly see the screen. At night (or in dark rooms), the screen is a bit too bright. Other phones offer more range with their brightness than the HTC 10.
Con Unpredictable battery life
A 90 minute full HD video on 100% brightness drained the battery by 22% - a poor result - which is much higher than the ~16% we typically see. However, while web browsing over WiFi it scored 8 hours - a very good result - beating out the Galaxy S7 (7.6 hours), iPhone 6s (7.45 hours), and the Nexus 6P (5.65 hours). This is a new phone, so perhaps a software update can stabilize the battery life.
Con Not worth the price
The cost is bit higher than the related specs.
Con Camera may have lens flare issues
Some consumers have reported issue with lens flare in their pictures. It is not widely reported, but does seem to cause some people problems.
There is also a similar issue on the HTC 10, which is a close hardware design to the Pixel.
Con Not officially rated as waterproof
The Pixel (and Pixel XL) is not officially rated as waterproof, at all. It's only IP53 certified (5 for dust, 3 for water), which means it's pretty dust resistant, but would only survive a light rain or splashes, as opposed to the Galaxy S7 which is IP68 and iPhone 7 which is IP67.