Google has just announced its latest Aseries smartphone, the Pixel 9a. This updated phone replaces last year’s Pixel 8a and sits just below the Pixel 9 in the brand’s range.
It’s designed to offer a mix of the newest Android capabilities and artificial intelligence (AI) upgrades at an affordable price, along with what you probably know Pixel phones best for – that impressive camera quality.
Google Pixel 9a: Price
How affordable are we talking? Well, the price starts at £499 for 128GB, going up to £599 for 256GB. This significantly undercuts the recently unveiled iPhone 16e. If you’ve been mulling over a move to Android, now might be the ideal time.
Google’s streamlined operating system is super easy to understand and use, and we were highly impressed when testing out the latest releases from Google last year, including the Pixel 9, Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 9 Pro Fold.
We’d hope that, just like those models, this is a top performer with great cameras, a speedy chip and an excellent display – we’ll be getting our hands on it soon for a full review.
Google Pixel 9a: Design and performance
The new design is one of the other most notable changes, as the Pixel 9a now has a flat back with a far smaller camera bump and the ability to lie flat on a tabletop.
It comes in purple, pink, white or black (that’s Iris, Peony, Porcelain and Obsidian, in Google lingo) and now has an improved IP68 rating for durability, which means it’s both dust and waterresistant. The screen is larger and brighter too, and made with scratchresistant glass.
The 9a includes the latest Tensor G4 processor that first made its debut in Google’s newest Pixel handsets launched in August 2024, and it should be 30% faster than last year’s Pixel 8a for web browsing.
Like almost every phone nowadays, it comes with a lot of AI features, including the Google Gemini assistant and “Gemini Live” for freeflowing conversations. It also has an AIpowered voice recorder that transcribes and runs on the device, along with image generation capabilities via the Pixel Studio app.
All this, and it has increased battery capacity, too. It should now deliver over 30 hours of battery life, according to Google.
Google Pixel 9a: Cameras
While the Pixel 9a is made to be the best budget smartphone in the range, it looks set to deliver loads of value with a dual rear camera system boasting a 48megapixel main camera and a 13megapixel ultrawide camera.
For the first time in an Aseries phone, the 9a will also have macro photography capabilities, which means you’ll be able to take closeup photos of subjects – ideal for capturing details in flowers or getting a shot of some small print that’s otherwise too difficult to read.
It also supports 4K video recording, and a suite of AIpowered camera modes including “Add Me” (where the photographer can add themselves to a group shot in a twostep process) and “Best Take” (which picks the best facial expressions from a series of photos so you don’t get group shots where someone has their eyes closed).
How to preorder the Google Pixel 9a
The Google Pixel 9a starts at £499 and will be available, beginning in April, from the Google Store and through the usual retailers where you can buy the best smartphones.
We’ll update this article when we know more about when you can preorder this new affordable handset from Google’s lineup.
It’s worth mentioning that, just like several other recent releases from the brand, Google promises that Pixel 9a owners will get seven years of Android, security, and Pixel Drop updates for new features. This matches the number of updates Samsung now provides, and while Apple doesn’t state how long it officially supports iPhones with updates, they tend to get around five to seven years too.
Simon Cocks is Good Housekeeping UK’s Technology Editor, overseeing tech shopping content and strategy for the title. He previously also worked across other titles including Esquire UK, Digital Spy, Men’s Health UK and Women’s Health UK.
Simon specialises in testing the latest smart gadgets, home entertainment gear, headphones, speakers, portable chargers, radios, ebook readers and smartphones. He’s reviewed top tech products from brands including Google, Apple, Amazon, JBL and Bose.
A magazine journalism graduate from Kingston University in 2014, Simon also worked on the Discovery and Silkroad inflight magazines. He then gained experience writing about entertainment at SFX and Total Film. He also contributed reviews and interviews to TwitchFilm (later ScreenAnarchy), CultBox and Frame Rated.
He joined Good Housekeeping UK as the Editorial Assistant for Special Projects and was part of Good Housekeeping’s Consumer Affairs Team between 2014 and 2019. In this role, he conducted price comparison research, wrote detailed household and moneysaving advice guides and edited thousands of indepth reviews for the Good Housekeeping Institute.
He has focused on technology and gadgets since 2020, where he started by testing out power banks and instant cameras. He writes reviews, roundups, news articles and deals updates, and also covers top tech deals during sales like Amazon Prime Day, Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
When not testing out the latest gizmos, you’ll find Simon either catching up with the newest releases at his local cinema or out shooting with his beloved compact camera.
You can follow Simon on Instagram, on Bluesky, on LinkedIn and on Threads.
