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Google Has Done It Again

The Google Pixel 9a has set another standard in mid-range smartphones

7 min readApr 14, 2025
Image courtesy of the author

It already feels like 2025 is the year of the midrange smartphone, and we’ve only reached April.

However, for me, there’s one midranger which usually sets the standard each year, and it comes from Google. This time, it’s the turn of the 9a, and I can confirm — in the biggest spoiler imaginable — that Google has done it again.

This is for several reasons, but it’s telling that I’ve drawn this conclusion after just 24 hours with the Pixel 9a. I’m allowed to do that, by the way — before you jump into the comments and ask if I’ve been paid by Google to say that (I haven’t, obviously). I’ve reviewed enough smartphones to know pretty quickly if they are rubbish, average, great, or genre-defining.

Let’s get into why the Pixel 9a is the latter.

Specs and pricing

The Pixel 9a is powered by the Google Tensor G4 chip, and it has 8GB of RAM. There are two storage tiers to choose from — 128GB and 256GB, which are priced at £499/$499 and £599/$599, respectively.

The display is a 6.3-inch unit with a 120Hz refresh rate and 2,700 nits of peak brightness. The Pixel 9a also has stereo speakers, IP68 water resistance, and both facial and…

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Mark Ellis
Mark Ellis

Written by Mark Ellis

Tech reviewer. Join my free weekly newsletter for access to my Discord server 👉 https://newsletter.markellismedia.uk/subscribe

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