New Pixel or cheap Pixel

The Pixel 11 release date was 20 August 2026, and the Pixel 11 costs £879 for 256GB at Google's UK list price. Amazon UK sold the Obsidian 256GB Pixel 11 for £799 at the time of writing (September 2026). The Pixel 10 is the better buy for most people: at £549 for 128GB on Amazon UK, the Pixel 10 costs £250 less and shares the Pixel 11's screen, RAM, telephoto camera and seven-year update promise. The Pixel 11 earns its premium only for buyers who need 256GB, shoot a lot in low light, or want the extra year of software support.

When was the Pixel 11 released and how much is it?

Google announced the Pixel 11 range on 12 August 2026 and released it in the UK on 20 August 2026. Pre-orders opened on announcement day. The Pixel 10, for reference, went on sale in August 2025, so the Pixel 11 arrived on the usual 12-month cycle.

Amazon UK priced colours differently at the time of writing: the Obsidian 256GB Pixel 11 was £799, while the Pistachio 256GB model sat at the full £879. Buyers who don't mind black save £80. The Pixel 11 Pro XL was also £180 under list on Amazon UK, which makes it only £20 more than the smaller Pixel 11 Pro and worth a look for anyone considering the Pro line.

What's new in the Pixel 11?

The Pixel 11 changes the chip, the main camera sensor, the storage and the weight, and keeps almost everything else. The Pixel 11 runs Google's Tensor G6, which Google says is up to 20 percent more power-efficient than the Tensor G5 in the Pixel 10. 9to5Google's side-by-side comparison described the performance step between the two chips as modest, so buyers should treat the Tensor G6 as an efficiency upgrade rather than a speed one.

The Pixel 11 weighs 197 g, 7 g less than the 204 g Pixel 10, with the same 152.8 x 72 x 8.6 mm footprint and a slimmer camera bar. Storage moves from UFS 3.1 to faster UFS 4.0, and the base capacity doubles from 128GB to 256GB. Both phones have a 6.3 inch 1080 x 2424 OLED at 120 Hz with 3,000 nits peak brightness, 12 GB of RAM and an IP68 rating. The Pixel 11 ships with Android 17 and adds software features such as Camera Looks presets and Magic Capture.

What does the extra £250 buy you?

The extra £250 buys double the storage, a larger camera sensor, a newer chip and one more year of updates, and nothing else a buyer will see day to day. Compare Electronic built the line-by-line breakdown below from Google's specs and the Amazon UK prices at the time of writing (September 2026): £799 for the 256GB Pixel 11 against £549 for the 128GB Pixel 10.

Compare Electronic's read: storage is the one line item with a clear cash value. The 256GB Pixel 10 costs £610 on Amazon UK, so a like-for-like Pixel 10 costs £189 less than the Pixel 11 rather than £250. That leaves roughly £189 for the camera sensor, the Tensor G6 and the extra year of updates. Per gigabyte, the 256GB Pixel 11 at £799 works out at £3.12, cheaper than the 128GB Pixel 10 at £4.29.

Why is the Pixel 11 more expensive?

The Pixel 11 is more expensive because Google removed the 128GB model. The Pixel 10 started at £799 for 128GB in 2025; the Pixel 11 starts at £879 for 256GB, an £80 rise in the entry price. Compared storage tier to storage tier, the Pixel 11 is actually cheaper: the 256GB Pixel 10 launched at £899, £20 more than the 256GB Pixel 11.

Memory prices also rose across the phone industry through 2026, which pushed several manufacturers to cut low-storage models rather than raise headline prices on them. The effect for UK buyers is a higher entry fee to the Pixel range, which is exactly why a discounted Pixel 10 looks so attractive now. The cheapest new Pixel overall remains the Pixel 10a; our best budget phones guide covers it.

Is the Pixel 11 camera noticeably better?

The Pixel 11 camera is better in low light and at long zoom, and the same everywhere else. The Pixel 11 keeps a 48 MP f/1.7 main camera, but the sensor is physically larger; 9to5Google calculated that the bigger sensor gathers over 50 percent more light than the Pixel 10's. More light means cleaner night shots and faster shutter speeds for moving subjects, and the Tensor G6's updated image processor supports that.

Both phones use a 13 MP ultra wide, a 10.8 MP 5x telephoto and a 10.5 MP front camera, and both record 4K video at up to 60 fps. The Pixel 11 extends Super Res Zoom from 20x to 30x, which is a digital crop aided by processing rather than new optics. Buyers who mostly shoot in daylight will struggle to tell the two cameras apart.

How long will each get updates?

Google promises seven years of Android and security updates for both phones, counted from launch. The Pixel 10 is supported until August 2032 and the Pixel 11 until August 2033. A Pixel 10 bought in September 2026 therefore has about 5.9 years of support left, against about 6.9 years for a new Pixel 11.

Compare Electronic's cost-per-year figure divides the Amazon UK price at the time of writing by the years of promised support left. The Pixel 10 is £23 a year cheaper to own on that basis, and few buyers keep a phone for the full seven years anyway.

Google Pixel 11 - the newest standard Pixel

The Pixel 11 suits buyers who need 256GB, who photograph children, pets or events indoors where the larger sensor helps, and who plan to keep the phone for five years or more. The Pixel 11 comes in Frost, Pistachio, Hibiscus and Obsidian.

Google Pixel 10 - the value pick

The Pixel 10 costs £549 for 128GB on Amazon UK at the time of writing (September 2026), £250 below its £799 launch price. The Pixel 10 suits buyers who keep their photos in the cloud, want the 5x telephoto that the cheaper Pixel 10a lacks, and would rather spend the difference on a case, a charger or a pair of wireless earbuds.

Pixel 11 vs Pixel 10: full spec sheet

The Pixel 11 and Pixel 10 share their screen, RAM, dimensions and secondary cameras, and differ on chip, main sensor, storage and weight.

Should you buy a discounted Pixel 10 instead?

Yes, a discounted Pixel 10 is the smarter buy for most people in September 2026. At £549, the Pixel 10 delivers the same display, RAM, telephoto and build as the Pixel 11 for 31 percent less. The Pixel 10 is also sold with seven years of updates from 2025, so software support is not a reason to avoid it.

• Skip the Pixel 11 if 128GB is enough, if most of your photos are taken in daylight, or if you upgrade every two or three years.
• Skip the Pixel 10 if you shoot a lot of 4K video, need 256GB (the 256GB Pixel 10 costs £610 on Amazon UK, only £189 less than the Pixel 11), or want the longest update runway.
• Skip both if battery life comes first: our longest battery life smartphones list has stronger options, and the Pixel 11 Pro at £1,079 is the step up for buyers who want Google's Pro camera system.

UK buying notes: neither Pixel includes a charger in the box, so a UK 3-pin USB-C adapter rated at 30 W or more is needed for full wired speed. Google's standard UK warranty is two years, and the Consumer Rights Act 2015 gives 30 days to reject a faulty phone for a full refund. For other Android and iPhone options, see the best phones in the UK this autumn and our iPhone comparison.

Verdict: Pixel 11 or Pixel 10?

The Pixel 10 is the better buy for most UK buyers. At £549 on Amazon UK at the time of writing (September 2026), the Pixel 10 costs £250 less than the Pixel 11 and £93 per year of remaining software support, against £116 for the Pixel 11.

The Pixel 11 is the right choice for buyers who need 256GB, value low-light photography, and want updates until 2033. Anyone buying the Pixel 11 should pick the £799 Obsidian listing on Amazon UK over the £879 colours unless the colour matters.