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The Google Pixel 4a: A Worthy and Inexpensive iPhone Alternative

Photo credit: Google
Photo credit: Google

From Best Products

The Acura MDX that I’ve been driving since college is good enough for me. It has decent gas mileage, it’s easy to repair, and it has plenty of cargo space. Most importantly, it safely gets me from point A to B. The Google Pixel 4a is a lot like my Acura. It costs nearly three times less than other smartphones on the market, but it still gets the job done.

Like expensive rides, so many smartphones these days are status symbols. The Google Pixel 4a, on the other hand, doesn’t really make much of a statement. It’s an extremely straightforward device that doesn’t have any bells and whistles to make it stand apart from the dozens of other smartphones there are to pick from. But it costs a heck of a lot less at only $350, and it’s just as reliable.

Key Specs

• 5.81-inch OLED display with a resolution of 1,080 by 2340 pixels; 443 ppi; 120 Hz refresh rate, HDR support
• Qualcomm Snapdragon 730G chipset
• 6 GB of RAM; 128 GB of storage
• 12.2 MP main camera; 8 MP selfie camera
• 3,140 mAh battery with fast wired charging tech
• Stereo speakers with headphone jack
• Android 10 and minimum 3 years of OS and security updates

I’ve been using the Google Pixel 4a for a week now and think that it’s one of the best smartphones money can buy, considering its stellar screen, long battery life, generous storage space, and impressive camera quality.

Here’s why I prefer it over much more expensive smartphones — along with the few forgivable faults that it has.

It Feels Solid and Is Comfortable to Hold

The Pixel 4a sports a wonderfully compact design. Although its body is primarily plastic, it doesn’t feel cheap. It has a matte-black finish reminiscent of a chalkboard. It’s much grippier than glass-backed phones, plus it doesn’t attract fingerprints as easily. However, it does smudge slightly.

Photo credit: Google
Photo credit: Google

There’s a fingerprint sensor on its backside, which came in handy for quickly unlocking my phone when I was wearing a mask. Since the Pixel has NFC, I could make contactless payments using Google Pay. It lacks a face scanner, but offers impressively thin bezels, and a hole punch front-facing camera at the corner of its 5.8-inch OLED display. There’s even a headphone jack at the top of the phone — a welcomed feature that’s not as common as it used to be.

I would have liked to see Google offer buyers more color options to choose from. The Pixel 4a only comes in black. There is a small pop of color on the side of the phone, where you’ll find a mint green power button.

It Has an Excellent Camera

Google has a knack for outfitting its smartphones with phenomenal cameras, and the Pixel 4a continues the trend. It effortlessly captures photos and videos in practically any environment. Despite the square camera patch on its back, the Pixel 4a only has one lens and a single LED flash. It’s actually the same lens and sensor as the last two generations of Google smartphones. It’s a 12.2 MP shooter with an f/1.7 aperture.

Photo credit: Google
Photo credit: Google

The Pixel 4a brings some convenient camera features, too, including dual exposure controls, Night Mode, Super Res Zoom, and Live HDR+. Without a doubt, it’s the best camera phone for the money. During my testing, the Pixel 4a captured high-quality images, especially at nighttime. Its portrait mode was also impressive.

It Offers Plenty of Power for the Price

As long as you’re not doing any intensive gaming, video encoding, or large work tasks, the Pixel 4a offers a smooth experience overall that outshines other budget phones like the Samsung Galaxy A51 and Moto G Power.

Photo credit: Google
Photo credit: Google

Inside the Pixel 4a is Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 730G chip along with 6 GB of RAM. No doubt it’s a step up from the Pixel 3a, but the $400 iPhone SE’s A13 Bionic chip definitely has a leg up on the Pixel. The iPhone is faster, more powerful, and will likely last longer.

On the plus side, Google says the Pixel 4a will receive 3 years of software updates, so if you don’t upgrade your phone frequently, it’s still a great choice. Additionally, the Pixel 4a comes with 128 GB of storage compared to the base model iPhone SE’s 64 GB.

Besides its camera, what I probably love most about the Pixel is how long its battery lasts. Since quarantine began, my screen use has increased significantly. After a day of heavy use, I still had around 30% of life shortly before bedtime. Thanks to the Pixel 4a’s large 3,140mAh battery, I never felt the need to recharge the phone during the day.

It Delivers the Best Software Experience

Since this smartphone comes directly from Google, it offers the latest and most advanced iteration of the Android operating software, free from bloatware. You can guarantee that this smartphone will be the first to get new Android features and critical security updates.

The operating system on the Pixel 4a felt less cluttered and easier to use than other Android phones I’ve tested in the past. It includes the ability to automatically filter out robocalls before your phone even rings, safety features like car-crash detection, and speech-to-text support in phone calls.

I was slightly disappointed to see that I couldn’t squeeze the phone to trigger the Google Assistant like I could with previous Pixel devices. You still can swipe from the phone’s bottom corners or say “Hey Google” to activate it, however.

Some Minor Shortcomings

There’s a lot to love about the Google Pixel, but like with any gadget, it’s not without its share of faults. Given this smartphone’s affordable price point, I think these shortcomings are very easy to forgive.

For example, the Google Pixel 4a lacks wireless charging. Fortunately, it recharges quickly using the included 18-watt adapter and USB-C cable, so you can reach 50% battery capacity in only half an hour.

I also would have liked the Pixel 4a to have some level of water resistance. Although the phone feels quite durable, it’d be nice to have some added peace of mind knowing that if it gets wet, it won’t break.

Some folks may complain about the Pixel 4a’s lack of a MicroSD card slot and Google's omission of 5G connectivity. Neither bothers me, especially considering that the device has 128 GB of storage and 5G isn’t mainstream yet. For those who live in cities with 5G, Google plans to sell a 5G-supported variant for $499 this fall.

Wrap-Up

If you’re shopping for a new smartphone and want something that’s reliable yet affordable, you can’t go wrong with the Google Pixel 4a. Priced at $350, it’s quite cheap, but it doesn’t feel cheap thanks to its reliable processor, great battery life, clean software, and better-than-average camera.

Overall, the Pixel 4a is the perfect example of what a budget smartphone should be, and it proves that you don’t need to pay a premium for cutting-edge tech.

SHOP PIXEL 4A

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