10 months after the Pixel 8a, Google is returning to the mid-range segment with the Pixel 9a. Offered at the same price as its predecessor, this new Pixel modernizes its offering, but continues to make some concessions to justify a price difference that is widening with the Pixel 9. Do they have a strong impact? Is the price-performance ratio good? Find out in this full review.
Like Apple, Google is adopting a dual strategy in the smartphone market. On one side, premium smartphones: the Pixel 9, Pixel 9 Pro, Pixel 9 Pro XL, and Pixel 9 Pro Fold, for example. And on the other side, a more accessible offering, symbolized here by the A range. The latest of these smartphones is called the Pixel 9a. It was made official in March 2025. It succeeds the Pixel 8a, released in May 2024. Less than a year earlier.
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Like Apple's iPhone 16, the Pixel 9a is more or less a slimmed-down version of a high-end model. Here, the source of inspiration is the Pixel 9. Of course, "slimmed down" also means some changes to the technical specifications. Camera, connectivity, charging, RAM... the concessions concern many areas. Are they significant? What about value for money? We answer these questions (and many more) in this comprehensive review.
Price, availability, and competition
The Pixel 9a's recommended retail price starts at €549. So, there's no price inflation compared to the Pixel 8a. The smartphone comes in two configurations, with 128GB or 256GB of storage. It costs €60 to upgrade from one version to the other. Here are the prices for both versions:
- 128 GB: 549 euros
- 256 GB: 609 euros
Note that the arrival of the Pixel 9a led Google to lower the price of the Pixel 8a by 100 euros. Thus, the latter is now sold for 449 euros and 509 euros. Among the Pixel 9a's direct competitors, you'll find the Samsung Galaxy A56, Apple's iPhone 16, Xiaomi's Xiaomi 14T, Poco F7 Pro and Redmi 14 Pro+, Oppo's Reno13, OnePlus 13R, Nothing Phone (2), Honor 200 and Motorola's Edge 50, knowing that some of these models will logically be replaced soon.
The Pixel 9a has been official since March 19, 2025. It will be available in France from April 14, 2025. It is available both in Google's online store and at third-party retailers: Darty, Boulanger, Fnac, etc. It is available in four colors: black, "porcelain" white, "iris" purple, and "peony" pink, which you can discover here. In the box, you will find the smartphone, a tool to open the SIM card tray, and a USB-C to USB-C cable.
Design and interface
The Pixel 9a adopts most of the aesthetic codes of the Pixel range, notably the Pixel 9. But Google goes further here in the disappearance of the camera module. Already less visible in the Pixel 9 than in the Pixel 8, this block now blends almost entirely into the shell of the Pixel 9a. It remains protruding, but by less than a millimeter. However, the Pixel 9a measures the same thickness as the Pixel 8a: 8.9 mm.
The Pixel 9a has a different length and width than the Pixel 9 and Pixel 8a. It is indeed a little taller and a little wider than the latter. This will explain how Google managed to improve the battery (we will come back to this). The Pixel 9a is therefore larger… while being lighter! Indeed, it weighs 186 grams compared to 188 grams for the Pixel 8a and 198 grams for the Pixel 9.
The difference is explained in particular by the materials used: aluminum for the frame, mineral glass for the screen protection (Gorilla Glass 3 precisely) and plastic for the back. A matte back that's pleasant to the touch and doesn't retain fingerprints. The Pixel 9a is IP68 certified against water and dust, like the Pixel 9. The Pixel 8a was "only" IP67 certified.
At the front, we find a 6.3-inch screen, 0.2 inches larger than the Pixel 8a. This is the same diagonal as the Pixel 9. The borders of this screen are larger than those of the Pixel 9 and its competitors. This explains why the Pixel 9a is larger than the Pixel 9 with an identical screen size. The centered punch for the selfie sensor and the optical (and not ultrasonic) fingerprint reader is still there. The technical elements on the edges are in the same place.
On the software side, the Pixel 9a naturally comes with Android version 15. Without any additional overlay. And without additional software, except for those developed internally. Fitbit. Drive. Photos. Chrome. Gmail. Maps. Wallet. Play Store. YouTube. Etc. The list is quite extensive and looks very similar to the one you find on an iPhone. The interface is quite easy to use, since Google doesn't add any additional software to Android.
For AI, Gemini is there to serve you, as well as the editing tools integrated into Google Photos: Magic Eraser, Magic Retouch, automatic anti-blur, etc. Some of its features are reserved for Google One subscribers. Fortunately, the brand offers a one-year subscription to this service. Then... you have to pay.
Google promises 7 major Android updates on the Pixel 9a, as with previous Pixels, not including fixes and security patches. Fun fact: the Pixel 9a will get an extra version of Android than the other Pixel 9s, which launched with Android 14.
Screen, Performance, and Battery
Now let's get into the technical tests, starting with the screen. The display area isn't the only change to the Pixel 9a's panel. Brightness is up, too. Google says this display can reach 1800 nits across the entire panel with HDR content and up to 2700 nits at local peak (up from 2000 nits). We didn't manage to reach these figures, obviously.
But, we noted an insane brightness in manual mode: almost 1200 nits with SDR content with the natural color profile. In automatic mode and under the sun, it can go higher. On the color side, precisely, the calibration is very well mastered. Still in natural mode, the average Delta E is only 1.6, each color being very close to the reference sample. The average temperature is 6552°. Here again, Google is close to perfection.
For the rest, no changes. The panel is pOLED, offering infinite contrast ratios and good control of energy consumption. The definition is Full HD+ for a resolution that increases to 422 pixels per inch. The maximum refresh rate is 120 Hz, with only two positions (60 Hz or 120 Hz). Classic. Note that 120 Hz is not activated by default.
Under the hood, we find the Tensor G4 that we tested with the Pixel 9, also accompanied here by 8 GB of RAM. This component, developed by Google, is optimized for artificial intelligence and is more than sufficient for standard uses. However, it's far from matching a high-end Qualcomm processor. But that was never Google's goal, even if it cuts the brand off from an audience of expert users and gamers.
The SoC's performance is therefore good, but you can find better for the same price. We also observed slight overheating when the phone is under heavy load. During very demanding tests, some points on the chassis exceeded 48°C, notably the area under the camera module, where the SoC is located, and the aluminum frame. This is a little higher than competitors. Performance stability is good, hovering around 75%. Connectivity-wise, we find USB-C 3.2, Bluetooth 5.3, tri-band WiFi 6E, and NFC.
To power this platform, Google has chosen a 5100 mAh lithium-ion battery. This capacity benefits from a significant increase of just over 600 mAh, achieved thanks to the changes in dimensions observed previously. The Pixel 9a even has the luxury of having a larger battery capacity than the Pixel 9. That's not trivial.
Thanks to this increase in capacity and the good performance control, the battery life offered by this battery is excellent. The phone is close to 24 hours of continuous standard use. That's 3 days of typical use (social networks, messaging, location, streaming, etc.). For gamers, the Pixel 9a's battery life varies between 4 and 6 hours depending on the game used and graphics settings.
Once the battery is empty, it's time to recharge. In this area, the Pixel 9a is not the best in its category, far from it. It supports 23-watt fast charging (Power Delivery 3.0 certification) and 7.5-watt wireless charging. We recharged the Pixel 9a from 0 to 100% in 1 hour and 45 minutes with a 45-watt USB-C charger. Here are our measurements:
- 13% in 10 min
- 34% in 30 min
- 65% in 60 min
- 92% in 90 min
- 100% in 115 min
To protect the battery, the Pixel 9a integrates two functions: charging limited to 80% (which includes charging bypass) and scheduled charging that adapts to the user's habits. Android 15 also integrates a diagnostic to test its battery.
Photos, video and audio
On the photo side, the Pixel 9a benefits from the same positioning as the Pixel 8a: a proud main module, with nice embedded technologies, a decent ultra-wide-angle module, but nothing more, and a selfie sensor less interesting than that of the high-end Pixels. Lower definition. Less bright lens. Smaller pixel. No autofocus. Here's the full setup:
- Main: 48 MP sensor, f/1.7 aperture lens, Dual Pixel autofocus with optical image stabilization, 0.8 micron pixel size.
- Ultra Wide: 13 MP sensor, f/2.2 aperture lens, 120° viewing angle, 1.12 micron pixel size, fixed focal length.
- Selfie: 13 MP sensor, f/2.2 aperture lens, 1.12 micron pixel size, fixed focal length.
The photos produced by the Pixel 9a are typical Pixel photos: heavily reworked after shooting, especially portraits. Sharpness, brightness, white balance, and even colorimetry are altered by Google's algorithms. It makes you wonder where photography ends and recomposition begins. The bokeh effects, for example, are almost too precise to seem natural: it is not the aperture of the lens that produces this effect, but post-production processing.
Backlighting is well managed to bring out details despite the direct influx of light. But the shots remain darker than some competitors. The colorimetry of the three sensors is not identical. The main sensor opts for a much more neutral balance, while the ultra-wide-angle sensor will lean towards blue and the selfie sensor towards yellow. For comparison, this is not really the case with Apple.
During the day, the photos are impressively sharp, but also with their texture detail. We noticed this in two exercises. First exercise: the 2x lossless zoom, which is very well made and gives the Pixel 9a an artificial macro mode. The digital zoom goes up to 8x, but it's not really recommended to go above 5x, even during the day. Second exercise: portraits. Unlike some Asian smartphones that alter faces, the Pixel 9a preserves the skin's texture for a natural result... almost too natural. This remark applies to the main sensor, but also to the selfie sensor.
The autofocus is fast and accurate. Moving objects are frozen in the moment. We even think the Pixel 9a takes photos in anticipation. As proof, the Pixel 9a, like the other Pixel 9s, automatically activates the "animated photos" mode (a substitute for Apple's Live Photos). The algorithm will then select the best moment to convert it into a photo. You can, of course, change this choice manually. At night, the Pixel 9a shows certain limitations. Without “night vision” and in dim light, the photos are less good, even with the main sensor.
In video, the Pixel 9a offers the essentials: 4K on the main sensor and Full HD on the two rear sensors, in 30 or 60 images per second in both definitions. And the result is very decent with both sensors. Unlike photography, the colorimetry between the two sensors is consistent. The results are natural, the colors are accurate, and the brightness is good. Optical stabilization is available in 4K and Full HD. And ultra-stabilization is blocked in Full HD and 30 frames per second.
The digital zoom goes up to 3x with the ultra-wide-angle sensor and to 5x with the main sensor, for decent results, but where we notice noise, during the day and in the evening. At night, external lights cause reflections that are not always graceful on the lenses. It is possible to reduce ambient noise to isolate the voice, regardless of the shooting mode. It is possible to reduce ambient noise in post-production, but only on videos of less than a minute. Too bad.
Finally, the audio experience offered by the Pixel 9a is, again, minimalist and not very balanced. Indeed, the Pixel 9a has two speakers: a main one and one hidden in the phone's earpiece. The power offered by this duo is quite low, even at 50%. To compensate for this lack, each speaker plays part of the other's track. But the two speakers aren't as powerful as each other.
Furthermore, their audio signatures aren't identical: the main speaker is clearer than the secondary one. This affects the level of detail offered on certain frequencies: while the mids and high mids are well represented, the bass is weak and the treble is lost. We much prefer to use headphones for multimedia.
So, should we buy it?
The Pixel 9a meets "basic" needs, but it meets them well. It offers good connectivity. Its screen is comfortable for all types of content. It's very good for social media and everyday apps. It excels at everyday photography. And it can even take you on a few fun adventures if you're feeling up to it. And all this for a budget that's not increasing, making it very good value for money. However, it won't go any further. Are you an expert photographer, an experienced gamer, or an amateur videographer? The Pixel 9a will frustrate you. You might as well aim higher, or even look elsewhere.
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