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The Pixel 6a has a flat screen with a slightly thicker bezel below.
Ron Amadeo
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Back.
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The top of the phone has a punch-hole camera and earpiece speaker.
Ron Amadeo
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Look at a gorgeous flat screen.
Ron Amadeo
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This side has a SIM slot.
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This side gives you a look at the buttons.
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There’s a USB-C port at the bottom and no headphone jack.
Ron Amadeo
Google is really swinging for the fences this year. The Pixel 6a isn’t just the latest in the reliably excellent Pixel A series; this “middle” A-line also gets a massive upgrade in the form of a class-leading system-on-chip. Yes, the Google Tensor SoC that debuted in the Pixel 6 is also in the Pixel 6a. It’s the same chip, and that means the Pixel A series doubles its speed every year. Did we mention the phone still costs $449?
Google has created a mid-range juggernaut.
A new family of smartphones
With the launch of the Pixel 6 last year, Google finally hit a solid path forward for its smartphone division. Aside from Google’s in-house SoC (with a lot of help from Samsung), Google also had a hardware design it could finally call its own, based on the distinctive and even somewhat useful camera band.
In the past, Google would turn the tables on smartphones every year and start over, seemingly from scratch. That means a disjointed, directionless phone brand that mostly felt doomed every year. But the Pixel 6a is clearly “step 2” of a long-term iterative process for Google’s phone hardware. The Pixel 6, Pixel 6a and Pixel 7 (which has already been officially announced and pictured) are clearly part of the same family of smartphones, and this represents a big step forward for Google’s hardware. The company is moving a little closer to more serious hardware endeavors than Apple and Samsung.
Advertisement Expand / The camera bar returns, but it’s much shallower than the Pixel 6 version.
Ron Amadeo
The Pixel 6a is definitely part of this new family of smartphones, and feels more like a third, smaller size from the flagship Pixel line than an entirely new mid-range product. The Pixel 6 Pro is the 6.7-inch version with a 120Hz display, a 5,000mAh battery, 12GB of RAM, and a price tag of $899. The Pixel 6 is 6.4 inches, with a 90 Hz display, a 4,600 mAh battery and a price tag of $599. The Pixel 6a is another step down, with a 6.1-inch, 60Hz display, 4410mAh battery, and 6GB of RAM for $449. They all have the same design and the same SoC, they’re all waterproof (the Pixel 6a is IP67), and they all have in-screen fingerprint readers. Google’s lineup now looks a lot like Samsung’s, with three flagship phones at the top.
The biggest downer is the 60Hz display, which isn’t as nice as the 120Hz display you’ll find on more expensive phones, but it’s fine for basic smartphone use. The camera system is led by the tried and true Sony IMX363 as the primary sensor instead of the newer sensors in the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro. Google has been using this sensor since the Pixel 2 and is very good at getting decent results from the ancient chip. It will probably outperform everything else at this price point.
There’s also no wireless charging and, as is common with the Pixel line, no microSD slot. This year, Google is also removing the headphone jack from the mid-range A series.
Enlarge / The Pixel 6a’s camera cover is separated from the rest of the camera band, which should reduce glare in photos.
Ron Amadeo
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