ZDNET’s key takeaways
- The Google Pixel 9a is the most recent midrange telephone from the corporate and retails for $499.
- It includes a new Tensor G4 chip, useful AI instruments, an improved major digicam, and the most important battery of any Pixel.
- You may must accept some funds trade-offs, together with the shortage of a telephoto lens and slower charging speeds.
extra shopping for decisions
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I am inclined to suppose that the oldsters behind the Google Pixel 9a are from the longer term as a result of if there’s one factor that the telephone will get proper, it is timing.
The newest Pixel 9a retails for $499, making it a stellar telephone funding in right now’s — and the foreseeable future’s — unpredictable financial system. In fact, the recent tariff news I have been tiptoeing via has been in discussions since January.
Additionally: This Pixel 10 rumor just gave Google an edge over Samsung and OnePlus
However with the most recent wave of bulletins, it is clear that the patron electronics market is about to enter a full-blown frenzy, as manufacturers brace for affect, costs teeter on the sting, and consumers rush to lock in worth earlier than the storm actually hits.
Meaning units just like the Pixel 9a — ones that promise long-term advantages at a comparatively reasonably priced value — matter greater than ever. The timing alone makes the Pixel 9a one of the vital vital units of 2025, even when it wasn’t meant to be when first unveiled.
Macroeconomics 101 apart, here is what you should know in regards to the Pixel 9a I have been driving every day for a number of months now, together with who should purchase it and what makes it price upgrading to.
I will admit: initially, I wasn’t bought on the Pixel 9a’s new {hardware} and design. The bezels are noticeably thick by right now’s requirements – even when in comparison with equally priced units just like the $459 Nothing Phone 3a Pro and $399 Samsung Galaxy A36 5G – and eradicating the Pixel-famous digicam bar was a selection.
The Google Pixel 9a (left) and Pixel 8a (proper).
Kerry Wan/ZDNET
In concept, stripping down the again of the telephone makes the Pixel more durable to tell apart in a sea of glass sandwiches. In apply, this has two advantages: hand placement and lowered mud accumulation. Whereas I might beforehand tuck my index finger beneath the digicam bar to maintain the telephone upheld, not having the bodily obstruction now means I can maintain the telephone rather more freely.
Additionally: I changed 8 settings on my Pixel phone to significantly improve the battery life
Why is that this tech nerd geeking out about ergonomics? As a result of the Pixel 9a’s energy button is pretty excessive, hand placement is one side you do not wish to restrict your self to.
That very same energy button prompts Gemini, which replaces Google Assistant on the Pixel 9a and might now fulfill extra advanced duties, together with multimodal, vision-based help.
Gemini Reside just lately obtained an replace that lets the AI pull in context from the telephone’s digicam. Simply level and ask.
Kerry Wan/ZDNET
If there’s one factor we will all agree on, it is that Pixel phones are infamous for amassing mud between the crevices of the digicam bar. That is very true in case you have a case outfitted, which additional traps particles and particles close to the digicam bar.
The Pixel 9a has none of these issues, sustaining a clear aesthetic after nearly a month of going out and in of jean pockets, my backpack, and a gadget-filled shoulder bag.
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I am additionally a fan of the brighter show, which now ramps as much as 2,700 nits of peak brightness versus the Pixel 8a’s 2,000 nits. The improved luminance was noticeable once I put the 2 Pixel telephones via my notorious torture check — aka studying text-heavy webpages from the window seat of a bridge-crossing commuter bus. Very scientific, I do know.
However most finish shoppers will respect the practicality of such upgrades, and the Pixel 9a delivers in relation to consuming content material beneath the springtime solar.
The day-to-day advantages prolong to the processing energy of the Pixel 9a, which options the identical Tensor G4 chipset because the soon-to-be-outdated Pixel 9 sequence fashions, together with the $1,099 Pixel 9 Pro XL and $1,799 Pixel 9 Pro Fold. Paired with 8GB of RAM, right now’s minimal quantity of reminiscence to run hybrid AI options, you are taking a look at a telephone that handles most duties gracefully.
Google says switching to the Tensor G4 chip yields a 30% velocity bump in internet looking over final 12 months’s Tensor G3, and I imagine it. With the Pixel 9a and Pixel 8a in hand (and on the identical Wi-Fi community), the previous loaded up the varied picture carousels, internet hyperlinks, and the story river on ZDNET’s homepage a number of seconds sooner. Save a number of seconds right here and there, and also you’re taking a look at an accumulatively snappier looking expertise.
The massive query is how the Tensor G4 holds up over time. By that, I imply mobile efficiency, energy effectivity, and reminiscence administration after 1-2 years, as these have all been issues raised by real customers. In Google’s protection, the corporate would not essentially market its units as multitasking powerhouses or ones that may spell the top of gaming consoles. Regardless, I will be holding tabs.
Additionally: Why you shouldn’t buy a Google Pixel phone right now – even if you’re a superfan
I am extra hopeful in regards to the Pixel 9a’s future due to its battery and endurance. Unsurprisingly, this is likely one of the longest-lasting Pixel telephones I’ve examined, with a 5,100mAh capability that units a brand new report for Google.
The 1-2 further hours I’ve squeezed out of the Pixel 9a in comparison with the Pixel 8a (4,492mAh) have been admirable, particularly with my camera-heavy workflow. In truth, my battery exams — which encompass 45 minutes of steady utilization, from looking social media feeds to streaming movies to creating calls — put the Pixel 9a in pole place above the Pixel 9 Professional XL. Now, if solely Google might enhance the wired charging velocity from the sluggish 23W ranking. Give me 65W! 45W! I will even take 30W.
(Whereas I am right here: the flush digicam design of the Pixel 9a additionally makes it rather more appropriate with varied wi-fi charging docks.)
Oddly, the Pixel 8a (left) has a smaller punch gap design on the entrance than the Pixel 9a (proper) – despite the fact that the digicam sensors are the identical.
Kerry Wan/ZDNET
On paper, the brand new 48-megapixel major digicam on the Pixel 9a appears like a downgrade from final 12 months’s 64MP shooter, however the bigger picture sensor on the previous does make a distinction.
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I largely observed the efficiency hole when evaluating nighttime images and in environments with less-than-usual lighting. Pinching into images exhibits the Pixel 9a capturing extra element and vividness, naturally leading to higher distinction and colour accuracy. The Pixel 9a additionally nails pores and skin tones, which may be very troublesome when your setting’s colour temperature (learn: leaning extra orange or blue) is off.
What left me wanting extra was the zoom capabilities, as I felt the shortage of a devoted telephoto lens once I attended a New York Knicks recreation again in April and could not seize a top quality shot of the tip-off with the 8x (max) optical zoom — despite the fact that I sat only a few sections away from the court docket. (A extra distant shot of the total area, taken with the 13MP ultrawide and pictured above, appeared unbelievable.)
Comparable feelings had been felt once I tried to seize the unshakable aura of turkeys crossing a road on Staten Island. The curiosity killed me, and one step nearer meant the birds bolting away.
ZDNET’s shopping for recommendation
Cash is a delicate subject now greater than ever, so here is my shopping for recommendation after testing the Google Pixel 9a and each different A-series system since 2019.
That is essentially the most well-rounded telephone you should purchase for beneath $500, and the intrinsic worth that comes with it — the seven years of software program help, the varied AI options which have trickled down from extra premium Pixel telephones, and so on. — makes it a extra affordable selection than its flashier rivals.
Whether or not you worth a very good show, dependable battery life, or a digicam that will get the photographs you need (simply do not be too formidable), the Pixel 9a will serve you effectively. It is one of many few best Android phones I would advocate for its itemizing value and extra so if there is a provider deal that matches your plan.
However must you purchase one when you’re utilizing a 1-2 year-old handset? In all probability not. As a substitute, I recommend ready for the subsequent huge gross sales occasion, because the $799 Pixel 9 will probably fall inside an identical value vary — again.
If you happen to can wait it out, the Pixel 9, for round $50-$100 extra, is the higher smartphone deal, and it is a system we think about the best option for most consumers proper now, together with energy customers and enterprise professionals. Regardless, your choices within the midrange market are promising proper now, and the timing could not be higher.
ZDNET’s evaluate group spends upwards of a 12 months testing the ins and outs of each main telephone launch, evaluating the day-to-day efficiency, digicam high quality, battery life and endurance, and particular options. Here is a breakdown of each issue we think about earlier than we make suggestions:
- Design and ergonomics: How good a telephone appears and feels performs an enormous position in lots of customers’ shopping for journeys, so we think about these elements closely when testing.
- Efficiency: A number of components have an effect on a telephone’s efficiency, together with LTE/5G sign, battery life, and background duties. Subsequently, we sometimes start our evaluations with a totally charged handset, all background duties closed, and as secure a cell connection as potential.
- Digicam high quality: ZDNET exams telephone cameras by capturing lots of of images and movies of varied topics and in varied lighting situations. We additionally evaluate the output to that of older fashions.
- Battery life and charging: It is also vital for us to guage how lengthy telephones final beneath gentle, average, and heavy utilization, how lengthy they take to recharge, and the way they do it (wired, wi-fi, or each).
- Particular options: These options distinguish examined units from a bustling smartphone market and hopefully carry added worth to customers, not the other.
- Pricing and availability: Past funds issues, we additionally observe if a telephone is obtainable within the US or solely internationally.
For a extra intensive breakdown, try our complete phone testing methodology page.
This text was initially revealed on April 10, 2025, and was up to date on August 16, 2025, to replicate the most recent retailer offers and upcoming launch of the Pixel 10 sequence.
