ZDNET’s key takeaways
- The Google Pixel 9a is the most recent midrange cellphone from the corporate and retails for $499.
- It contains a new Tensor G4 chip, useful AI instruments, an improved fundamental digital camera, and the most important battery of any Pixel.
- You will must accept some price range trade-offs, together with the shortage of a telephoto lens and slower charging speeds.
extra shopping for selections
I am inclined to suppose that the oldsters behind the most recent Google Pixel 9a are from the long run as a result of if there’s one factor that the cellphone will get proper, it is timing.
The most recent Pixel 9a retails for $499, making it a stellar cellphone funding in at present’s — and the foreseeable future’s — unpredictable financial system. After all, the recent tariff news I have been tiptoeing by has been in discussions since January.
Additionally: I changed 8 settings on my Pixel phone to significantly improve the battery life
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 impression, costs teeter on the sting, and customers rush to lock in worth earlier than the storm actually hits.
Meaning gadgets just like the Pixel 9a — ones that promise long-term advantages at a comparatively reasonably priced worth — matter greater than ever. The timing alone makes the Pixel 9a one of the crucial important gadgets of 2025, even when it wasn’t meant to be when first unveiled.
Macroeconomics 101 apart, here is what it’s worthwhile to know concerning the Pixel 9a I have been driving every day for the previous month, together with who can buy it and what makes it value upgrading to.
I am going to admit: initially, I wasn’t offered on the Pixel 9a’s new {hardware} and design. The bezels are noticeably thick by at present’s requirements – even when in comparison with equally priced gadgets just like the $459 Nothing Phone 3a Pro and $399 Samsung Galaxy A36 5G – and eradicating the Pixel-famous digital camera bar was a alternative.
The Google Pixel 9a (left) and Pixel 8a (proper).
Kerry Wan/ZDNET
In idea, stripping down the again of the cellphone makes the Pixel tougher to tell apart in a sea of glass sandwiches. In observe, this has two advantages: hand placement and lowered mud accumulation. Whereas I’d beforehand tuck my index finger beneath the digital camera bar to maintain the cellphone upheld, not having the bodily obstruction now means I can maintain the cellphone far more freely.
Additionally: Why I recommend this budget Motorola over phones that cost twice the price
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 need 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 complicated duties, together with multimodal, vision-based help.
Gemini Stay not too long ago acquired an replace that lets the AI pull in context from the cellphone’s digital camera. Simply level and ask.
Kerry Wan/ZDNET
If there’s one factor we are able to all agree on, it is that Pixel phones are infamous for gathering mud between the crevices of the digital camera bar. That is very true you probably have a case geared up, which additional traps particles and particles close to the digital camera bar.
The Pixel 9a has none of these issues, sustaining a clear aesthetic after virtually a month of going out and in of jean pockets, my backpack, and a gadget-filled shoulder bag.
Additionally: Pixel phone battery life tanking? Google is working on a fix
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 after I put the 2 Pixel telephones by 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 recognize the practicality of such upgrades, and the Pixel 9a delivers with regards to consuming content material below the springtime solar.
The day-to-day advantages prolong to the processing energy of the Pixel 9a, which options the identical Tensor G4 chipset as the opposite Pixel 9 collection fashions, together with the $1,099 Pixel 9 Pro XL and $1,799 Pixel 9 Pro Fold. Paired with 8GB of RAM, at present’s minimal quantity of reminiscence to run hybrid AI options, you are taking a look at a cellphone that handles most duties gracefully.
Google says switching to the Tensor G4 chip yields a 30% velocity bump in internet shopping over final yr’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 couple of seconds sooner. Save a couple of seconds right here and there, and also you’re taking a look at an accumulatively snappier shopping 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 gadgets as multitasking powerhouses or ones that may spell the top of gaming consoles. Regardless, I will be preserving tabs.
Additionally: This unique Android phone is a solid alternative to the flagships – especially at this price
I am extra hopeful concerning the Pixel 9a’s future due to its battery and endurance. Unsurprisingly, this is among the longest-lasting Pixel telephones I’ve examined, with a 5,100mAh capability that units a brand new document 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 actual fact, my battery exams — which encompass 45 minutes of steady utilization, from shopping 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 score. Give me 65W! 45W! I am going to even take 30W.
(Whereas I am right here: the flush digital camera design of the Pixel 9a additionally makes it far more suitable with numerous wi-fi charging docks.)
Oddly, the Pixel 8a (left) has a smaller punch gap design on the entrance than the Pixel 9a (proper) – regardless that the digital camera sensors are the identical.
Kerry Wan/ZDNET
On paper, the brand new 48-megapixel major digital camera on the Pixel 9a appears to be like like a downgrade from final yr’s 64MP shooter, however the bigger picture sensor on the previous does make a distinction.
Additionally: Google just gave the Pixel Watch its most important update yet – how US users can opt in
I principally seen the efficiency hole when evaluating night-time pictures and in environments with less-than-usual lighting. Pinching into pictures exhibits the Pixel 9a capturing extra element and vividness, naturally leading to higher distinction and shade accuracy. The Pixel 9a additionally nails pores and skin tones, which may be very troublesome when your atmosphere’s shade 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 after I not too long ago attended a New York Knicks sport and could not seize a top quality shot of the tip-off with the 8x (max) optical zoom — regardless 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, seemed implausible.)
Comparable feelings had been felt after 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 gadget since 2019.
That is probably the most well-rounded cellphone you should purchase for below $500, and the intrinsic worth that comes with it — the seven years of software program assist, the varied AI options which have trickled down from extra premium Pixel telephones, and so forth. — makes it a extra affordable alternative than its flashier rivals.
Whether or not you worth a superb show, dependable battery life, or a digital camera that will get the photographs you need (simply do not be too bold), the Pixel 9a will serve you nicely. It is one of many few best Android phones I would advocate for its itemizing worth and extra so if there is a provider deal that matches your plan.
However must you purchase one should you’re utilizing a 1-2 year-old handset? Most likely not. As a substitute, I recommend ready for the subsequent massive gross sales occasion, because the $799 Pixel 9 will doubtless fall inside an identical worth vary — again.
In case you can wait it out, the Pixel 9, for round $50-$100 extra, is the higher smartphone deal, and it is a gadget we contemplate 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 overview group spends upwards of a yr testing the ins and outs of each main cellphone launch, evaluating the day-to-day efficiency, digital camera high quality, battery life and endurance, and particular options. Here is a breakdown of each issue we contemplate earlier than we make suggestions:
- Design and ergonomics: How good a cellphone appears to be like and feels performs an enormous position in lots of customers’ shopping for journeys, so we contemplate these features closely when testing.
- Efficiency: A number of elements have an effect on a cellphone’s efficiency, together with LTE/5G sign, battery life, and background duties. Due to this fact, we usually start our evaluations with a totally charged handset, all background duties closed, and as steady a cellular connection as doable.
- Digital camera high quality: ZDNET exams cellphone cameras by capturing a whole lot of pictures and movies of varied topics and in numerous lighting circumstances. We additionally evaluate the output to that of older fashions.
- Battery life and charging: It is also necessary for us to guage how lengthy telephones final below mild, 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 gadgets from a bustling smartphone market and hopefully deliver added worth to customers, not the alternative.
- Pricing and availability: Past price range issues, we additionally be aware if a cellphone is obtainable within the US or solely internationally.
For a extra intensive breakdown, try our complete phone testing methodology page.
This text was initially printed on April 10, 2025, and was up to date on June 1, 2025.
