Top model with a lower price tag

Review: Google Pixel 9a - Cheaper phone with surprisingly few drawbacks

Pixel 9a is Google's budget alternative to Pixel 9, but I have to search hard to find things it's actually worse at.

Published 10 April 2025 - 16:41

Google's strategy is to launch its top models in the Pixel series in the autumn, and then release a cheaper model in the spring. Since Google uses Pixel to showcase its latest software, the cheaper model has the same performance as the top models and is usually trimmed in other areas, such as choice of materials, screen, and cameras.

In the past year, they have released Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro, where Pixel 9 costs 10,800 kronor and Pixel 9 Pro has a slightly better screen and an extra telephoto camera for a couple of thousand kronor more. Now they are releasing Pixel 9a for 6,500 kronor, roughly the same price range as Samsung's popular mid-range model Galaxy A56 and 2,000 kronor less than Apple's iPhone 16e. Compared to Pixel 9, the 9a has fewer drawbacks than ever.

The screen on Pixel 9a, for example, has identical specifications to that on Pixel 9: 6.3 inches, 2424 x 1080 pixels, maximum brightness of 1800 nits in direct sunlight and 2700 nits during HDR viewing, and a refresh rate of 120 Hz. I have not been able to compare with the screen on Pixel 9 as I only have a 9 Pro available, but it is an excellent screen, especially after I turned on the enhanced refresh rate which is off by default. In direct sunlight, I also notice that the maximum brightness is unevenly distributed so that the screen looks a bit shaded along the sides. I remember the same effect on Pixel 9 but cannot say if it is stronger here. It is possibly an aesthetic issue, but the entire screen is still fully readable in the sun.

However, it is noticeable that the Pixel 9a has rather thick black bezels around the screen, thicker than one is used to even for cheaper models. The construction itself is perhaps what most obviously feels a bit cheaper than the Pixel 9. The frame is aluminium but the back is plastic, and for that matter, the screen glass is the older Gorilla Glass 3, less durable than the Gorilla Glass Victus 2 that protects the screen on the Pixel 9. However, the Pixel 9a has the same dust and water protection class, IP68, which means it can be submerged in water and not just withstand a few raindrops.

The Pixel 9a is also a bit thicker in all dimensions, making the phone feel a bit bulkier. Unlike the Pixel 7a and 8a, the 9a is therefore not a slightly smaller and more compact model than Google's top models. However, the camera bump is significantly less protruding on the Pixel 9a. The slightly thicker construction has also been used to insert a larger battery, and Google calls the Pixel 9a the phone with the best battery life among their phones. This matches our measurements, but only because the Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro had noticeably below-average battery life, while the Pixel 9a is on par with other manufacturers' mobiles.

Fast as a top model

As mentioned, the Google Pixel 9a is powered by Google's Tensor G4 system chip, the same as in the Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro. Google says that the important thing is not to break any performance records but that the chipset is adapted to the phone's services and system for the best user experiences. That's exactly what you say when you can't break performance records, and in our performance tests, the Tensor G4 is roughly on the same level as the best chipset Qualcomm had two years ago. At the same time, it cannot be denied that Google is right. The system virtually never stutters, and the phone feels fast in all situations. It is also a significantly faster mobile than Samsung's equivalent mid-range model, the Galaxy A56.

The cameras are the area where Google has most obviously economised compared to the Pixel 9 series. The main camera is 48 megapixels, but the camera sensor is significantly smaller than that in the Pixel 9 and 9 Pro, which are 50 megapixels. The wide-angle camera is also noticeably simpler with its 13 megapixels and without autofocus. There is no telephoto camera at all, but that's the same for the Pixel 9; only the Pixel 9 Pro in the series has it.

The smaller sensor should produce images with poorer nuances when zooming in and less light sensitivity, and I photograph with the Pixel 9 Pro, Pixel 9a, and Samsung Galaxy S25 to see just how much worse the main camera is. It turns out not much. Both colour reproduction and sharpness are somewhat better for the Pixel phones than for the Galaxy S25, but above all, the images from the Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 9a are very similar. I really struggle to create photo situations where the advantages of the camera in the Pixel 9 Pro should show, but for photos in daylight, the images often look like they were taken with exactly the same camera when I blink between them. This might say something about how consistently Google post-processes the images, but above all, it makes it difficult for me to criticise the camera in the Pixel 9a. To the extent that differences occur, they are usually in favour of the 9 Pro, but they are extremely small.

When I zoom in, it becomes different. According to Google, both phones take advantage of the fact that they use sensors of around 50 megapixels to take 12-megapixel photos to create zoomed-in images with two times magnification while maintaining sharpness. This is clearly noticeable in the images from the Pixel 9 Pro, but not at all in the images on the 9a. They are not sharper than if I zoom in on an image to 200 percent on a computer screen. The phone allows me to zoom up to 8 times magnification, and overall the images are acceptable even at maximum zoom, but the camera does not have any real zoom capability.

When photographing in the dark, the difference between the Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 9a should be greater, and it is - in some images. But again, it takes many attempts, in semi-darkness the cameras are about equally good and in pitch darkness about equally bad. The wide-angle camera on the Pixel 9a lacks autofocus and is nothing to boast about, but at the same time, it is in the nature of wide-angle images that there is more content and less detail, and I cannot say that I am bothered by the wide-angle camera being too poor.

The main camera also has a macro function, which means I can get sharp images even if they are taken at very close range. It works significantly better than, for example, the low-resolution macro camera found in the Samsung Galaxy A56.

Unpredictable AI Features

For Google, the software is of course the main focus, and the Pixel phones are in many ways just a way to provide a platform for the services and AI features they are working on. The phone naturally comes with Android 15 from the start, and just like the Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro, it is promised seven years of system and security updates.

The Pixel phones also have some features that you won't find in other Android phones, but it can be surprisingly difficult to determine exactly what those features are. Partly because Google presents features as exclusive even though they are not. In the material I received before testing the Google Pixel 9a, I was informed that it would be the first with the feature where Gemini Live can see and understand what is displayed on the screen. I can start a Gemini Live chat, turn on the camera, and discuss what is shown with Gemini. I try walking around the apartment and asking about houseplants and other things it sees, get good answers, and can ask follow-up questions, all in Swedish. But, as it turns out, I can do the same with my three-year-old Galaxy S22, so not as exclusive as Google made it seem.

Additionally, there are a number of AI features that the phone has, but not when it is set to Swedish as the language. For example, I can turn on live translation, but I am informed that only the SMS and camera apps are supported in Swedish. This means that features like recording and transcribing phone calls and a number of other smart language features disappear for Swedish users.

AI-based camera editing features are available, including Magic Editor, where you can specify an area of the image and then with a text prompt write (in Swedish) what you want there in the image and get a couple of suggestions. Auto Frame is a feature mainly used to straighten images that have become skewed and fill in the parts that then ended up outside the image. As usual with AI image editing, the result is sometimes astonishing, sometimes laughable. Above all, it's not something I would actually think of using for any purpose other than entertainment.

Despite the black frames around the screen and the plastic back, there is very little in the Pixel 9a that makes it worse than other models from Apple, Samsung, and Google themselves for over 10,000 kronor. But the price tag of several thousand less makes it an extremely affordable mobile.

Questions and Answers

Is a subscription to Gemini Advanced included in the price as it is with the Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro? No, but Gemini Advanced does work on the mobile if you have paid for it separately.

Does the phone have wireless charging? Yes, Google has included that in the phone, which is unusual in this price range.

Does the phone charge quickly? No, rather strikingly slowly. It takes almost two hours to fully charge with a standard-based fast charger.

An alternative

If it has to be a Samsung, the Galaxy A56 is closest in price. But you get a slower system chip and not as many years of system updates for the price.