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Google Pixel 4a Now Official. Pixel 4A 5G and Pixel 5G Coming Soon.
Delayed by the pandemic, Google finally launches the Pixel 4a in the US with a killer price tag. Much like the Pixel 3a of last year, the successor is cheaper, better, more capable, and more powerful. Though Google has abandoned its XL variant, the Pixel 4A 5G will be announced as early as September 2020 for $499(~P24,500). As for the 4G version, it’ll retail this month for only $349(~P17,100). Available in Just Black only, the latest mid-range device gets paired with 6GB RAM and 128GB non-expandable storage.
Let’s start with the best feature of the Pixel 4a — the camera. Google is still using the 12.2MP f1.7 Sony IMX363 from a few years ago; however, Google Camera app now adds support for Live HDR+ preview, dual-exposure controls, Super Res Zoom, and Night Sight that enables astrophotography. Take note: All of that with one sensor only. The selfie camera is now less obtrusive, thanks to a relatively large pinhole cutout on the top-left corner. It houses an 8MP f2.0 Sony IMX 355 sensor, capable of fixed focus and EIS.
While we expect the camera to be the best in its price point, the biggest upgrade here is the chipset. From Snapdragon 670, Pixel 4A now sports Snapdragon 730G that’s comparable with SD 720G. On top of that, the phone will get three years of major Android upgrades and three years of monthly security patches. As for the battery, it’s a bit bigger than the Pixel 3a at 3140mAh, but early reviews show good battery life thanks to the chipset and software optimization. And yes, it supports 18W fast charging PD via USB-C.
As for the rest, Pixel 4a still comes with an audio jack, south-firing speaker, rear-mounted fingerprint scanner, accented power button, polycarbonate unibody, better Google Assistant, Now Playing for background song recognition, Live Caption, Google Call Recorder, and speech dictation, among others. If you’re expecting Active Edge, that feature is gone here.
Google bundles the Pixel 4a with 3 months of YouTube Premium, Google Play Pass, and Google One (100GB/month). You can pre-order via Amazon US right now, with arrivals on August 20. Canada will get it on September 10, with the rest of the world in October. As always, it’s not going to be available in the Philippines.
As mentioned earlier, a 5G variant will arrive later. We have a feeling that it’ll use the Snapdragon 765G. Other than that, no specs were mentioned. On top of that, Pixel 5 will join the launch as well.
READ: Best Budget Samsung Phones in 2020
Google Pixel 4a specs, price, availability in the Philippines
- Display: 5.81″ FHD+ OLED, Pinhole cutout, HDR, Always-On, Gorilla Glass 3
- Design: polycarbonate unibody
- Dimensions: 144 x 69.4 x 8.2 mm, 143g
- Chipset: Qualcomm SDM730 Snapdragon 730 (8 nm)
- CPU: Octa-core (2×2.2 GHz Kryo 470 Gold & 6×1.8 GHz Kryo 470 Silver)
- GPU: Adreno 618
- RAM: 6GB
- Storage: 128GB UFS 2.1 non-expandable
- Main Camera: 12.2 MP, f/1.7, 27mm (wide), 1/2.55″, 1.4µm, dual pixel PDAF, OIS
| up to 4K@30fps video recording with gyro-EIS - Selfie Camera: 8 MP, f/2.0, 24mm (wide), 1.12µm
| video up to FHD@30fps - Connectivity & Ports: 4G LTE, Bluetooth 5.1, WiFi ac, GPS, USB-C, audio jack, NFC
- Security: face unlock, rear-mounted capacitive scanner
- Battery: 3140mAh(18W PD)
- Audio: stereo speakers
- OS: Android 10.0
- Colors: Just Black
- Price: $349(~P17,100)
- Release date: August 20, 2020 (US), September 10 (Canada)
