Google Pixel 9A: Google has long followed the tradition of carrying the same design language from its premium flagship smartphone to its more affordable ‘A’ series model. However, this changed with the introduction of Google Pixel 9A last month.
While Pixel 9A has now been unveiled for several weeks, it is still unavailable to buy in India. But we managed to get our hands on Pixel 9A, so that you can be given a quick run of its specifications, features and overall experience. So you can decide that the latest Pixel 9A is worth the idea, yet there is a price tag of Rs 49,999.
Design and Build
Pixel 9A claims a flat design with a round corners, not even cameras spread because Google has removed with the camera bar. Only the power and volume button is slightly spread from the side, the rest of the phone looks like an all-screen. It also makes it extremely comfortable to use Pixel 9A. Google’s latest Pixel smartphone has been introduced in obesidian, porcelain, iris and peony shades. Our porcelain model had an elegant matte white finish, although it was prone to some smoking. While Gorilla Glass 3 uses the Gorilla Glass 3 protection on the Google display, the phone opposed the plastic back, which was a shame on this price range.
On the other hand, you get an aluminum frame and an IP68 rating for added durability. The phone weighs 186 grams and is 8.9 mm thick. It has quite thick bezels, which has become a theme for the ‘A’ series pixel, but it did not thank me too much for this new design. Overall, I was surprised to see the Google brake tradition and was giving my identity to Pixel 9A with this new design.
Display
For the display, Pixel 9A is not far from the original Pixel 9 (review). The phone has a 6.3-inch FHD+ (1080 x 2424 pixels) P-ULED display with a comfortable 20: 9 aspect ratio and support for always-on display features. The screen becomes very bright with a high brightness (HBM) of 1,800 notes and the peak of 2,700 NITs.
The display has a 120Hz refresh rate, which can be set on 120Hz by default in settings, although it consumes more power. Overall, the performance of the Pixel 9A becomes very bright, while reproducing vibrant colors and excellent details.
Performance
Pixel 9A is operated by the same tensor G4 chipset from the top-end Pixel 9 Pro XL (review). The chip is paired with 8GB LPDDR5 RAM and 256GB UFS 3.1 storage. While the tensor G4 chip is not known for its major performance, Google has added a vapor room to the Pixel 9A to improve the thermal.
we could not test the performance of Pixel 9A, although it is close to Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip based on our Geekbench 6 test. While the chip is easily powerful enough to run the most multitasking workload, long gaming sessions or video recording in day heat can prove to be more as a challenge.
Cameras
In terms of optics, Pixel 9A has a F/1.7 aperture, OIS, and PDAF with an F/2.2 aperture and a 48MP primary sensor with 13MP ultravide lens with 120º FOVs. The main camera is slightly smaller than the sensor used on the Pixel 9 Pro fold, so it is not the same as the major sensor on the Pixel 9 and 9 Pro/Pro/XL. The Pixel 9A uses the same 13MP ultravide sensor for selfie.
I was only able to summarize cameras on Pixel 9A, although the overall results were good in daylight, capturing a ton detail and accurate colors with a touch of vibrancy. Pixel 9A distributes faster images compared to 9A 8A and better highlight control compared to 8A. Ultravide lens reflects the expansion and loyalty of the main camera, and while the 9A zoom may decrease in versatility, its extraordinary quality is more for it. Night vision also works amazing to maintain a more realistic looking scene, while colliding in detail.
Macro focus now automatically becomes active when a sunflower icon-dominated, detailed close-ups that produce a sunflower within 5 cm. Mithun Live’s real-time video feature indicates your camera on an object and is engaged in an interactive conversation with Gemini about what you see. Pixel 9A impressed with his cameras, despite my brief experience with the device.
Battery
Surprisingly, the Pixel 9A has the largest battery in the Pixel device so far-even Pixel 9 Pro is larger than one in XL. It has a huge 5,100 mAh cell, which operated me comfortably through moderate use throughout the day. I have not yet pushed it to my limits, but given the size of the battery relative to the handset, my expectations are quite high.
Pixel 9A supports 23W wired and 7.5W wireless charging, which is the slowest in the section. Given the number of Chinese phones is quite disappointing. Also, you do not get an adapter in the box, another latedown.
Software
The Pixel 9A runs out of the box and runs stock Android 15, with Google with seven years of Android OS and security updates. Android 15 on Pixel 9A provides a smooth and clean interface. It integrates several smart AI tools such as Magic Editor, Pixel Studios and Gemini-Integrated Call Screening. However, compared to high-end models, some software enrichments are missing.
For example, some QPR2 UI tweex (such as adaptable mode redesign, wide battery visual, and additional AI features such as pixel screenshots and call notes) have not yet come. These omissions reflect the hardware agreement, while still providing a sophisticated Android 15 experience to keep 9A cheaper. However this is still the strongest software experience in the segment.
Overall Best Phone From Pixel series
Overall, a device appears from our first impressions of Pixel 9A that pushes the envelope for inexpensive pixel phones. With its fresh design, upgraded hardware and impressive AI integration, 9A provides significant progress at a lower price than 8A. However, it still has several aspects to prove that it matures. Stay for our complete review, where we will explore its software performance and camera capacity intricacies, and determine if the Pixel 9A lasts its high expectations.
