The Pixel 6 & Qualcomm Modems Performance Discrepancy Revealed in This Analysis

The Pixel 6 series is one of the first flagship Android phones to come with non-Qualcomm CPUs in years, and the modem is no exception. According to a new investigation, the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro use a Samsung modem, which results in a significant performance difference.

Performance Discrepancies between the Pixel 6 and Qualcomm modems

PCMag pitted the Pixel 6 Pro and its Samsung-made 5123b modem against the Galaxy S21 Ultra and Qualcomm’s X60 modem. Qualcomm modems are found in nearly every smartphone sold in the United States, including iPhones.

After analyzing the data, we’ve determined that this decision has a negative impact on the Pixel 6 series. While, the Pixel 6 lineup can handle everyday tasks such as removing duplicate photos without any issues there are still some performance issues worth mentioning.

When it came to signal reception, Qualcomm’s modem in the S21 Ultra consistently outperformed the Pixel, with a few exceptions when the Pixel did manage to win out. When it came to speed tests, the storey was essentially the same. In comparison to the S21 Ultra, the Pixel 6 Pro routinely pulled slower speeds. This was also evident on mmWave 5G, where the Pixel was able to get roughly 1Gbps while the Samsung phone was able to achieve over 2Gbps. The Galaxy S21 Ultra won six out of seven tests on “regular” mid-band 5G.

Another example mentioned in the investigation is a Pixel 6 Pro owner who had connection problems as the phone moved from LTE to mid-band 5G to UWB 5G. Another member of the PCMag crew reported that the Pixel was able to retain a connection that the S21 Ultra dropped when using low-band connections in rural locations.

On paper, it’s evident that the Samsung modems used in the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro aren’t up to par with Qualcomm’s gold standard. Signal strength and speeds in everyday use, however, don’t always tell the same message, as we pointed out in our review. It’s more difficult to discern the disparity without comparing speeds and strength side by side.

Summing Up

Google and Samsung, on the other hand, definitely have some catching up to do with Qualcomm. After all, one of the most crucial aspects of a smartphone is connectivity, and the Pixel 6 series is now lagging behind.