Google Launches Pixel 3a Phone for $399
By Janko Roettgers
LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Google added a new mid-range device to its phone line-up Tuesday: The new Pixel 3a is available for $399 effective immediately. The company is also bringing its entire phone line-up, including last year’s Pixel 3 and Pixel 3XL, to a range of new mobile carriers, including Sprint and T-Mobile.
The Pixel 3a comes with a 5.6-inch display with a screen resolution of 1,080 × 2,220 pixels. The company is also shipping a larger version, the Pixel 3a Max, with a 6-inch screen with 2160 x 1080 pixels, and costs $479. Both versions will be available in 3 colors calls Just Black, Clearly White and Purple-ish.
Google’s new mid-range phone isn’t as powerful as its flagship devices, as it is relying on a budget-minded Qualcomm Snapdragon 670 processor, as opposed to the Snapdragon 845 that’s at the heart of the Pixel 3. The company did integrate the same camera also available on the Pixel 3. That camera benefits from Google’s advanced in artificial intelligence to offer features like Night Mode, a special HDR mode that optimizes images under low-light conditions.
Both the Pixel 3a and the Pixel 3a XL come with 64GB of storage on board, with no option to add more storage. For comparison, the Pixel 3 also ships with 64GB, but consumers who are willing to pay more can get the device with up to 128Gb of storage. Another Pixel feature missing from the Pixel3a is wireless charging
The company is also walking back a controversial design decision for its high-end phones: The Pixel 3a will once again have a headphone jack, something that Google started to omit starting with the Pixel 2 that launched in 2017. There is no word on whether the Pixel 4, which is expected to launch this fall, will follow that lead.
As a Google device, the Pixel 3a will be first in line to get a bunch of features introduced at the company’s I/O developer conference Tuesday. These include a new augmented reality mode for Google Maps that offers turn-by-turn directions, which is coming to Pixel phones starting this week. In fall, Pixel phones will also get access to a range of new privacy and digital wellbeing features.
Google announced the new phone models and software features during its Google I/O developer conference in Mountain View, Calif. Tuesday. The company also used the event to unveil a new 10-inch smart display called the Nest Hub Max, and announced some changes to the privacy and third-party app integrations for its home hardware.
