JOIN USGoogle Pixel 3a review: Top-notch camera phone
Google launched the company's most affordable of phones-- Pixel 3a and the Pixel 3a XL-- at the I/O 2019 event in California in May.
The new Google Android mobiles- 5.7-inch Pixel 3a and the 6.0-inch Pixel 3a XL-- made their way to India in mid-May for Rs 39,999 and Rs 44,999 respectively. I had an opportunity to test the new Pixel 3a and have been using it for a little over a week and here's what I feel about on the phone.
Design, display and build quality:
If you place a Pixel 3a and the original Pixel 3 series, you will have a hard time differentiating them and more so, If looked from the rear-side. The former comes with dual-tone finish with glass enclosure housing single-lens primary camera with LED flash on the top, and the rest of the body has frosted matte finish, which also houses a fingerprint sensor and 'G' brand engraving.
But, once you hold them in the hand, you will notice the difference. Google, for obvious reasons (to cut the costs), has used polycarbonate-based material for the Pixel 3a's shell. It's light and the compact structure offers a good grip to hold on to the phone. And, yes, it is sturdy too.
On the front, Pixel 3a comes thick bezels on the top and the base. It has one front camera in the top left corner and a speaker in the middle. In the upper edge, it houses a 3.5mm audio jack, which is sorely missed in the original flagship phone.
At the bottom, it comes with two stereo speakers at opposite ends with Type-C port in the middle.
On the left side, it comes with single physical SIM slot, but it can be noted that the device supports eSIM similar to Pixel 3, 3 XL, Apple iPhone XS, XR, and XS Max. So, you can still get the option to add the second SIM.
On the right side, it houses a power button and volume rocker. Like the original Pixel 3 series, the mid-range model also supports Active Edge feature, which the user can make use to trigger the Google Assistant. To avoid accidental activation, there is an option to adjust the squeeze sensitivity of the frame.
As far as the display is concerned, it comes with 5.7-inch full HD+ screen with 18:9 aspect ratio. Despite the thick bezels, you will have a good time watching videos thanks to OLED-based screen, which not only offers true black colour tone in the videos and images but also is power efficient. Even if you play HD content, it doesn't drain faster compared to LCD-based phones.
Performance:
Pixel 3a is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 670 and is backed by 4GB RAM and 64GB storage. For a phone priced around Rs 40,000, its quite a let down to have a mid-range chipset.
Having said that, Pixel 3a (or 3a XL) will perform smoothly under normal day-to-day chores like app launching, web browsing, multi-media texting on WhatsApp or any messenger apps.
However, you cannot count on Pixel 3a with graphics-rich games, as it begins to show lag-ness. And if you happen to start video recording or taking images in dark with Night Sight mode on, the phone tends to get little warmed up.
Truth to be told, the heating wasn't that overwhelming to suggest Pixel 3a gets 'over-heated' when put through its paces.
Pixel 3a scored 1,59,761 on AnTuTu and on Geekbench 4, it managed to get 1616 and 5174 points on single-core and multi-core tests, respectively.
One of the perks of being the Google phone is that Pixel 3a is assured to get three major software updates and get four years of monthly security patches. Except for OnePlus and HMD Global Oy (Nokia), other third-party OEMs do not even properly offer two years of software support.
So, Pixel 3a owners can feel safe from future malware threats and also enjoy dessert-flavored software updates longer than other branded phones.
Another notable aspect of the Pixel 3a is the Titan M security chip, where it holds all the sensitive data such as the passwords and the operating system and protect them from spyware.
Also, Google offers unlimited cloud storage for photos taken on the Pixel 3a, so you never have to worry about a shortage of space for installing new apps in the future. The only qualm is that the picture stored is not the original taken by Pixel 3a, but a compressed high-resolution image.
For now, only marquee Pixel 3 series owners have the privilege of storing original quality images in the Google cloud storage.
Camera:
Google's Pixel 3 is one of the best camera phones in the market and the same amazing hardware is incorporated in the lower-priced Pixel 3a. Needless to say, it has no competition in the sub-Rs 50,000 price category.
The Pixel 3a houses 12.2MP primary sensor on the back with LED flash and it takes stunning pictures in all light conditions period. What I loved the most were the images taken via Portrait and Night Sight modes. As you can see the picture below, the camera has been able to blur the background flawlessly, while retaining minute details of the subject, in this case, the flower and buds. It can be noted that the Pixel 3a takes two images with different level of blurriness and the user can pick the best of the duo and delete the other or retain.
And in the night sight mode, It's amazing how Pixel 3a, despite the pitch darkness, is still able to reproduce the accurate colour of the vehicle and also absorb every light photons in the apartment complex far away in the background.
It's really an incredible feat for a phone with a single-lens camera and the credit has to go to Google's camera software developers. There are rival phones with three and four sensors in the primary camera module, each incorporated for a particular purpose such as the focus on subject, background, in-depth scene detection, and other aspects, yet the quality of the picture, particularly in terms of capturing details, remains a lot to be desired.
On the front, Pixel 3a flaunts an 8MP selfie shooter. It is not the same sensor used in the flagship Pixel 3, but it does the job pretty good again thanks to the incredible software.
If you are in the market searching the best camera phone under Rs 40,000, Pixel 3a is your best bet and won't regret one bit.
Battery:
The Pixel 3a houses a 3,000mAh battery with 18W fast charging capability. During the testing, the Google mid-range phone consistently delivered a full day of battery life under normal usage practices such as browsing web, social media channels, playing videos and games, but would like to remind users, that I consciously did not go overboard with the latter two, as they will drain the battery to the tilt if play longer than an hour each if mobile data is on.
This aspect is subjective, as even the phone with 5000mAh cell, will not last a full day if the user stream videos on multi-media apps with mobile data on unless the contents are viewed offline.
Rest assured, the Pixel 3a will last a whole day under normal usage, with at least 20-25 percent juice left before you decide to hook it to the power source and be done for the night.
Final thoughts:
During the I/0 2019 event, Google said that the Pixel 3a series was targeted for emerging markets. To an extent, Pixel 3a, which costs much less than the flagship Pixel 3 series, fulfills in several aspects such as display, clutter-free pure Android interface, full-day battery, eye-pleasing dual-tone shell, and it has the best camera hardware for a phone not only in its class (Rs 40,000 - Rs 50,000 range), but also better than some mobile models costing over a lakh in India.
But, it fails in one aspect- the Processor. Using under-powered Snapdragon 670 chipset takes a little shine off the Pixel 3a series in terms of appeal for prospective consumers particularly in India, where there are several options such as OnePlus 7 and Oppo Reno 10X Zoom, which house Snapdragon 855 octa-core, Qualcomm's most powerful chipset to date and costs less.
Having said that, the Pixel 3a series will be able to find takers among Android purists and amateur camera enthusiasts. If you are ready to spend a few thousand bucks more, go for the Pixel 3a XL, as it offers a bigger display and longer battery life. (FYI: It comes with 3,700mAh).
If you are extreme user, who like binge watch on multimedia streaming apps and play graphics-intense games, then the original Google Pixel 3 (or 3 XL) will serve you well.
Pros:
Top-notch camera. Best in its class period.
Pure Android experience and guaranteed to get three major software (Android Q, R & S) updates
Google's advanced Titan M security chipset
Day-long battery life
Really good OLED display and visually impressive dual-tone finish of the shell
Active Edge feature to trigger Google Assistant
Cons:
For a phone priced around Rs 40,000, Google could have used better processor such as 675 or 730 or 845 series like Nokia 9 PureView.
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