Google's Pixel 10 Pro Introduces AI-Powered 100x Zoom: A Game-Changer in Smartphone Photography

Here's how the Pixel's AI zoom compares to a real 100x lens

In case you missed it last week among other big news items, Google shipped a phone camera with a zoom feature that uses generative AI. That's right: the Pixel 10 Pro comes with AI right inside the camera app that cleans up otherwise crappy digital zoom images all the way up to 100x. It's a what-is-a-photo nightmare, but it's also pretty good -- at least it seems to be. But it's hard to be completely sure what the thing you're photographing is supposed to look like when it's miles away. So I brought in a ringer for some side-by-side comparisons: the Nikon Coolpix P1100. For those unfamiliar, the P1100 is a massive ultrazoom camera with an equivalent range of 24-3000mm. When you have optics like that you don't need to do any upscaling like the Pixel 10 Pro does. The camera applies some noise reduction, sharpening, and color adjustments, sure. But it doesn't have to completely guess at what any individual pixel should look like, because it had some information to start with. Digital zoom, like the Pixel 10 Pro uses, is a different story. Upscaling an image 10 or 20 or 100 times without the benefit of optical magnification leaves a lot of gaps to fill in. Algorithms can make pretty good guesses, but they are just that: guesses. The Pixel 10 Pro's Pro Res Zoom makes those guesses with the help of generative AI. And if we're taking AI zoom photos, what better subject to start with than the moon? It is asking a lot of a smartphone camera to take a picture of the moon, and Google isn't the first phone maker to bring AI to the fight. The Pro Res Zoom version certainly looks moon-like, but AI gives it a strange spongey texture that doesn't look quite right -- especially comparing it to the P1100's version. The images above of Lumen Field's exterior were taken from an overlook in downtown Seattle near Pike Place Market about a mile away. It was a hazy, overcast day so apologies for the drab images, but they give a better idea of where Pro Res Zoom excels and where it falls down. The AI model makes the numbers on the signs readable and cleans up edges really well, but it basically erases the metal cladding on the side of the building, like overly aggressive noise reduction. And once again, AI doesn't know what to do with writing. These photos of Starbucks headquarters, a mile south of Lumen, were taken from the same viewpoint. On a small screen the AI version seems alright, but if you look closely you can see where it turned some lamps into windows and gave the clock on the tower a little Salvador Dalí treatment. On a sunnier day I pointed both cameras at another Seattle landmark. I was about three miles away from the Space Needle and encountered another enemy of long-range photography: heat haze. The AI didn't quite know what to do with the distorted lines and created Tim Burton's The Space Needle instead. But you can see that the P1100 didn't fare much better, what with all the hot atmosphere between the lens and the subject. Heat haze is clearly a problem in this situation, too. I wasn't standing too far from the planes at Boeing Field in the images above, but there was a lot of hot asphalt between me and the planes I was photographing creating heat waves. But this is clearly where AI shines. In fact, it might be your only option if you're trying to correct for something as tricky as heat haze. This is where everything gets complicated. Generative AI has existed in photo editing tools for years now, and it's extremely useful for things like removing noise from a photo taken with an old DSLR. Heat haze is an even nastier problem; the random distortions and waves are all but impossible to correct with traditional digital photo editing tools. Landscape and wildlife photographers are already embracing AI editing tools that can do things your regular Lightroom sliders can only dream of. Is it different when AI is inside the camera app, not just in the professional image editor you'd use after the fact? Absolutely. Does Pro Res Zoom get things wrong a lot? Also yes. But this has been an illuminating exercise, and I don't think this is the last we'll hear of generative AI being used in the image capture tool itself.

I captured these 100x Pro Res Zoom photos with the Pixel 10 Pro XL -- and the results blew me away

Google certainly went deeper with AI this year with its Pixel 10 lineup. As much as I prefer the lower cost of the Pixel 10 and how it finally embraces a proper triple camera system, there's one exclusive feature that makes the Pixel 10 Pro and Pixel 10 Pro XL -- it's Pro Res Zoom. I briefly got to test out this AI-enhancing tool that leans on generative AI models to tweak photos captured on the Pixel 10 Pro and 10 Pro XL at up to 100x using their dedicated telephoto camera. The results were promising, so I ended up taking out my Pixel 10 Pro XL over the weekend to capture even more zoom photos. What's interesting is how well Pro Res Zoom works because gone are the days of faraway subjects looking like painted artwork. Instead, Pro Res Zoom adds an incredible amount of detail -- most of the time -- to zoom photos that would normally look soft and muddy. Here's what I noticed capturing photos with Pro Res Zoom. I must've captured a dozen or so signs way far in the distance with the Pixel 10 Pro XL at 100x zoom. In each and every one of those shots, the words on the sign were constantly sharpened and defined. Just take a look at all the samples above to see it in action. Those fuzzy, not-in-focus words in all of those signs suddenly become crystal clear -- making the shot seem like I was very close to it. However, there are still some instances where it fails. For example, the smaller words in some of the signs have the characteristic failures I've seen from AI trying to decipher those words. Still, I have to hand it to Pro Res Zoom to make these words much more legible. In fact, it beats my vision without having to reach for my glasses. The Pixel 10 Pro XL's Pro Res Zoom does an admirable job of drawing out textures. The Pixel 10 Pro XL did very well with astrophotography when I tried out a moon shot. In my original shot, it's clearly out of focus without any enhancements, but I love how the Pro Res Zoom photo adds a realistic amount of clarity and definition. Many of the craters look pretty convincing, but not entirely accurate. I know this because I took the same moon shot with my Unistellar Odyssey Pro smart telescope and I can see how the generative AI model of Pro Res Zoom doesn't quite get it right all the time. Then again, that's a $2,000+ specialized piece of equipment versus a phone. In another set of photos, I pointed my Pixel 10 Pro XL towards my neighbor's wooden fence. With the original, unaltered 100x zoom shot, the wood grain of the fence looks soft and out of focus -- but Pro Res Zoom then adds definition to show the distinct outlines of the wood grain. Pro Res Zoom also did an amazing job drawing out textures in the many flower shots I captured. The Pro Res Zoom images add more detail to some of them, like the wrinkles in the flower petals. The biggest boost in performance I've seen with Pro Res Zoom centers around animals. Google's clearly been training its generative AI models to know exactly how to best tweak zoom photos of animals. In the first set of shots of a pigeon, it's really impressive to see the magic that happens when Pro Res Zoom applies its enhancements. I was probably 25 feet away from the pigeon when I snapped those first set of shots. The amount of detail and sharpening applied to the pigeon is impressive, while the close shot of its neck again shows how the AI model is trained to add those proper textures. I was even more impressed with the squirrel image that I snapped in my backyard. Again, I really enjoy how the squirrel's fur becomes more defined with the Pro Res Zoom shot, but I'm even more blown away by the closer shot of its ear. The original shot is tough to distinguish on its own, but Pro Res Zoom makes it look like I was using a super zoom lens on a professional mirrorless camera to get it. For my final test, I pointed the Pixel 10 Pro XL at random people to see how well Pro Res Zoom does to enhance the original photos. In my experience, it can be hit or miss. With far away subjects, the Pixel 10 Pro XL struggles to add meaningful detail to the faces. In fact, many of the shots above with faces in them look more like painted pieces of artwork than actual photos. However, the first set of photos with the woman show how Pro Res Zoom adds unprecedented detail. I'm impressed by the night-and-day difference, but I wish it were more consistent. It could be due to how she was closer to me than all the rest of the photos. I won't deny that Pro Res Zoom is a neat trick that makes zoom photos look way better, but it does beg the question: how much is too much AI? For most of the shots, I think the generative AI models that Pro Res Zoom is trained on does nicely to fill in the gaps where the details are soft. I also like how the Pixel 10 Pro XL saves both the original photo and the enhanced one with Pro Res Zoom. That way, I can visually see the improvements. While it's not perfect with everything just yet, I know that the results will only get better. I wouldn't be shocked this time next year if Google rolled out this AI-assisted enhancement to every photo you capture.