Google Pixel 9a

[eversomighty]

still using the same samsung modem as the 8a right?

most likely to

 

[limmk]

still using the same samsung modem as the 8a right?

Summary​

• The Google Pixel 9a is now official with upgraded features for $500
• While it uses the same Tensor G4 SoC as the rest of the Pixel 9 series, it has an older modem
• The Pixel 9a's Exynos Modem 5300 has connectivity and efficiency issues

The Google Pixel 9a was unveiled today, and it seems like a good package at a great price — better screen, bigger battery, new cameras, fresh colors, etc., all for $500. But in this excitement, Google tried to sneak in a downgrade that is difficult to spot but easy to notice.

The Pixel 9a extends Google’s Pixel 9 series to a lower price point while retaining most of what made the lineup good, such as the Tensor G4 chipset, a 120Hz OLED “Actua” display, IP68 rating, a 5,100 mAh battery (the biggest on a Pixel yet) with faster charging, and more. Not only is it a significant upgrade over the Pixel 8a, but is also better than the more expensive Pixel 9 in some ways.

Rainbows and unicorns​

But you know what they say, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Amid these appreciable upgrades, Google equipped the Pixel 9a with an older and weaker modem. Since the modem affects all networking and telephony capabilities, it will likely hamper all the phone bits of the smartphone experience.

Google confirmed to Android Authority that the Pixel 9a’s Tensor G4 is identical to the rest of the Pixel 9 series, except for the modem. It uses the Exynos Modem 5300 which was found on 2023’s Pixel 8 series, and was the main cause of the connectivity issues that plagued the phones. It not only affects the network quality but also increases power consumption, making battery life worse.

This decision is likely driven by cost, as the Pixel 9’s Exynos Modem 5400 uses FOPLP (Fan-Out Panel Level Packaging) which is thinner, more efficient, but also more expensive. Since the Pixel 9a doesn’t seem to cut any major corners and retains the pricing of its ancestors, using an inferior modem could be a way for Mountain View to keep costs in check.

Google Pixel 9a reviews are yet to come, and we will soon find out how much of a difference this modem mishap makes. Regardless, it’s unfortunate to see Google nerf one of its most promising phones like this, especially because most buyers won’t even know about it until after the fact.

 

[limmk]

 

[limmk]

Google has delayed the launch of the Pixel 9a – a decision seemingly made in the eleventh hour – due to what it calls a “component quality issue.”

The Pixel 9a was officially announced earlier today and, from the looks of it, should be a solid mid-range option in Google’s lineup. It stands out visually from the rest of the Pixel 9 series with the removal of the camera bar and has its own set of perks including the largest battery ever installed in a Pixel phone.

However, you can’t yet buy one.

Google was originally set to release the Pixel 9a next week (March 26 was reported ahead of the launch), but told 9to5Google that the device would be delayed into April. Pre-orders have been canceled for the time being as well through the Google Store and other retailers, such as Best Buy.

The reason for the delay, Google says, is due to a “component quality issue” affecting some devices. The exact nature of the issue hasn’t been disclosed. Google says:

We’re checking on a component quality issue that’s affecting a small number of Pixel 9a devices.

It’s unusual for Google not to offer pre-orders for a new device following its announcement, and it’s all the more odd that there’s no release date, suggesting this decision was made very close to today’s launch.

In the meantime, Google is offering notifications via email for when the Pixel 9a goes on sale. Hopefully, whatever issue is affecting these devices is one that’s quick to resolve, and also won’t find its way back to the limelight down the road.

 

[limmk]

The bezelsssssss........

 

[ThinkMe]

https://store.google.com/sg/product/pixel_9a?hl=en-GB
799 for 128gb, 256gb not known (899?)

939 lmao


Read HWZ Forum Rules!

 

[KeYoKe]

These bezelsssssss in year 2025 is illegal...

 

[limmk]

These bezelsssssss in year 2025 is illegal...

Haha ya man, so thick until can park a car. in 2025 still dare to come out with this kinda design, really criminal sia

Meanwhile, Google be like

 

[Mclairs83]

Haha ya man, so thick until can park a car. in 2025 still dare to come out with this kinda design, really criminal sia

Meanwhile, Google be like

thicker than my iphone 13 pro max lol

 

[limmk]

The Google Pixel 9a redesign is arguably the most drastic change we've seen to the Pixel lineup since the 2021 Pixel 6 added a camera bar — not counting the foldables. What made Google choose this new water-drop camera cutout, and is it the new normal for Pixels? Google gave us several justifications for the change and a hint of what to expect from the Pixel 10.

As our Pixel 9a hands-on shows, this new budget phone has ditched the camera bar and rounded edges for a flatter, machine-cut look. The dual rear cameras jut out from the plastic matte back in a teardrop shape inspired by the Pixel Watch 3 display aesthetic instead of resting inside an aluminum bar.

When asked during our Google Pixel 9a briefing whether Google made this decision out of logistics or aesthetics, Pixel product manager Soniya Jobanputra answered, "We did not start with the presumption that it had to be flat."

Instead, the Pixel team's priority was to "eliminate battery anxiety" and "improve our thermal solution." And while they didn't say it outright, their secondary concerns seemed to be keeping the Pixel 9a skinny and more distinct from the mainline Pixel 9.

Why Google flattened the Pixel 9a and killed the camera bar​

One of the biggest Pixel 8a-to-9a upgrades is a battery capacity boost from 4,492 mAh to 5,100 mAh, larger even than the 6.8-inch Pixel 9 Pro XL's capacity. This helps it hit a "30+ hour battery life."

Asked about this battery life boost, product manager Shenaz Zach Mistry explained that "this user segment has also been very sensitive to the battery life," suggesting that budget Pixel buyers prioritized longer battery life over other factors.

"We had grown the battery, we had grown the vapor chamber to improve the thermals," Jobanputra said, and on top of that, "we were looking at a new camera module that had better capabilities" than the Pixel 8a camera.

Despite that, Google managed to keep the Pixel 9a and 8a at the same thickness (8.9mm). To do that, they had to look at solutions like shrinking the camera sensor and switching to a pOLED display that was "a lot thinner" than what they typically use in "this tier of product."

"The confluence of all that got us pretty darn close," said Jobanputra. "And so our mechanical team did a little bit of magic, working directly with our industrial design team to pull off this just absolutely fabulous looking new design with that flat back."

No one said it flat out, but after adding the thicker battery, the Pixel 9a engineers must have thought that the typical camera bar, rounded back, and OLED would've made the Pixel 9a too thick and ugly. So, rather than abandon the battery upgrade to make the 9a more distinct and exciting, they pivoted and treated a new, flat design as a positive challenge.

Jobanputra says it was a "culmination of a bunch of different factors" that got the Pixel 9a "within shooting distance" of a flat design. "And then once we were close, we were like, 'Let's do it. Let's make this happen. Let's give it its own personality, yet still be part of that Pixel family.'"

A new direction, but not a universal one​

Earlier this month, we saw the first Pixel 10 Pro leaked renders. Whether they're real or not, it's all but guaranteed that Google seemingly has no intention of ditching its signature camera bar on all future Pixels, just the Pixel A-series, removing the overlap between it and the flagships.

The point of this "new flat design profile" was "setting [the Pixel 9a] apart from our other Pixel 9 phones," Jobanputra said while still "remaining true to the iconic Pixel look."

Making the Pixel 9a more distinct and turning the camera bar into a perk for mainline phone buyers is a solid branding decision if nothing else. Pixel fans will either adjust to the new look or upsell themselves to the Pixel 10 for the familiarity.

That said, I'm genuinely curious if the next Pixel foldable will adopt this new camera look simply to make it easier to fold into your pocket.

// androidcentral

 

[KeYoKe]

Haha ya man, so thick until can park a car. in 2025 still dare to come out with this kinda design, really criminal sia

Meanwhile, Google be like

They think they dominate Android market.....

I see pixel 9a bezelsssssss.... I start losing hope on pixel 10 already

 

[limmk]

 

[limmk]

They think they dominate Android market.....

I see pixel 9a bezelsssssss.... I start losing hope on pixel 10 already

Pixel 10 Pro/Pro XL will still get slimmer bezels (flagship leh), but if Google really increases the battery and adds a bigger vapor chamber to improve thermals, maybe the visor won’t be there too

 

[limmk]

 

[limmk]

Due to only 8GB of RAM, the Pixel 9a will not have Pixel Screenshots or Call Notes in the Phone app.

Google says (via Ars Technica) that the Pixel 9a runs “Gemini Nano 1.0 XXS” (extra extra small). Debuting on the Pixel 8 and 8a last year, this model does not continuously run in the background — it’s only loaded into RAM as needed — and only accepts text input.

This lack of multimodal capabilities means that the Pixel 9a cannot process images (for Pixel Screenshots) or audio (Call Notes in the Phone by Google app).

Pixel Screenshots processes captures to generate summaries and make them searchable. While those are core capabilities of the app, I’d argue the app’s ability to manually add notes to screenshots and sort them into collections, as well as assign reminders, are pretty useful in their own right, especially from the bottom-left corner screenshot preview. Similarly, many people would be happy with any call recording capability in the dialer.

Like on the Pixel 8, you do get features like Summarize in Recorder, with Gemini Nano 1.0 XXS only coming into play after the existing speech-to-text solution outputs a transcript.

For comparison, the Pixel 9 series, which ranges from 12 to 16GB of RAM, runs “Gemini Nano XS” (extra small).

Another Pixel 9 feature you do get on the 9a, as advertised on the product listing, is Pixel Studio. Last year, Google said the “image generator [is] powered by an on-device diffusion model running on Tensor G4 and our Imagen 3 text-to-image model in the cloud.” There’s also Add Me in the Pixel Camera that uses the Tensor G4 chip and its TPU.

 

[limmk]

TL;DR

• Google has confirmed to Android Authority that the Pixel 9a doesn’t support Satellite SOS, a feature that lets you contact emergency services in areas without Wi-Fi or cell service.
• This is likely because the Pixel 9a has the older Exynos Modem 5300 instead of the newer Exynos Modem 5400 in the rest of the Pixel 9 series.
• Google also told us that the Pixel 9a won’t support satellite messaging.

The Google Pixel 9a was finally announced this week, and it brings a lot of the Pixel 9’s features to a lower price point. For example, both phones have the same display, chipset, storage options, and software support. To achieve the Pixel 9a’s $499 price point, Google had to cut back in some areas, including what modem it’s using. The Pixel 9a uses a last generation modem, and as a result, it’s missing out on one of the Pixel 9’s key safety features: Satellite SOS.

Ahead of the phone’s launch, Google told Android Authority that the modem in the Pixel 9a is the Exynos Modem 5300, which is the same modem used in the Pixel 8 series. In contrast, the rest of the phones in the Google Pixel 9 series use the Exynos Modem 5400 from Samsung. Apart from having better efficiency, stability, and performance than its predecessor, the Exynos Modem 5400 also supports the 3GPP Release 17 standard. 3GPP Release 17 enables support for 5G non-terrestrial networking (NTN), allowing devices to connect to low-earth orbit satellites.



We were curious if this meant the Pixel 9a won’t have any satellite connectivity features, so we reached out to Google to find out. A spokesperson for Google confirmed to Android Authority that the Pixel 9a doesn’t support Satellite SOS, a key safety feature available on the Pixel 9, Pixel 9 Pro, Pixel 9 Pro XL, and Pixel 9 Pro Fold.

“Confirming Pixel 9a will not support Satellite SOS and satellite messaging.” – A Google spokesperson

Satellite SOS connects your Pixel phone to emergency services when your phone is out of Wi-Fi or cellular service range. Google announced it with the launch of the Pixel 9 series last year. It was initially limited to users in the continental U.S. but recently expanded to Alaska, Hawaii, Canada, Europe, and the UK with the recent March Pixel Drop update.

Google’s statement also confirmed that the Pixel 9a doesn’t support satellite messaging, which recently became available on the Pixel 9 series with the same March Pixel Drop update. With satellite messaging, Pixel 9 users on Verizon and T-Mobile can send text messages to friends and family members while off the grid.

Although the Pixel 9a doesn’t support this same feature, I think Starlink’s satellite service may still work on the device. Starlink’s service, which is currently in beta for both T-Mobile and non-T-Mobile customers, enables satellite messaging on existing phones without requiring specialized hardware. Starlink’s newer satellites utilize Direct to Cell technology, broadcasting their own network using T-Mobile’s mid-band spectrum. This should theoretically allow the Pixel 9a, along with other non-satellite-capable Android devices, to send text messages in areas without cellular coverage.

Even if the Pixel 9a had the newer Exynos Modem 5400, it’s uncertain whether Google would have enabled the Satellite SOS and satellite messaging features. Google’s announcement of the satellite feature for the Pixel 9 series only mentioned two years of free access, suggesting it could introduce a subscription fee in the future. Since Satellite SOS relies on Skylo (for its non-terrestrial network) and Garmin (for responding to emergency requests), Google might have chosen to differentiate the Pixel 9a by omitting the feature. However, to make the Pixel 9a compete more favorably with the iPhone 16e, Google may have chosen to include Satellite SOS had the hardware supported it. Who knows what the company would have done in this hypothetical situation, but as it stands today, the Pixel 9a lacks the same satellite capabilities its more premium siblings and some of its more direct competitors enjoy.

 

[limmk]

 

[KeYoKe]

Pixel 10 Pro/Pro XL will still get slimmer bezels (flagship leh), but if Google really increases the battery and adds a bigger vapor chamber to improve thermals, maybe the visor won’t be there too

Hahahaha who knows later they will give us a surprise.... They best at doing such things...

 

[KeYoKe]

Pixel 8a not even bezels, so they make it thicker to have even bezels

 

[HMAN]

Don't care so much over the modem, going to buy one for my wife to replace the pixel 6 with shattered back glass .