đ Review score: 4/5
â
Pros
đą Brighter and stronger OLED screen
đ¤ Access to Googleâs latest AI features
đ¨ Fun, vibrant colors
đ All-day battery life
đ Seven years of software updates
â Cons
âď¸ Performance is good, but questionable down the line
đ¸ Google needs to upgrade its camera hardware
𧲠No Pixel Snap support
The Shortcut review
The Pixel 9a from last year was a great value and a solid smartphone, and I gave it a positive rating when I reviewed it. So youâd think that given how similar Googleâs ânewâ Pixel 10a is, Iâd also be praising it for being one of the best midrange Android phones you can buy.
Hereâs the thing: Googleâs budget-friendly Pixels have all sort of blended together at this point. The Pixel 9a was similar to the 8a, which was similar to the 7a, and so forth. The Pixel 10a is the most unchanged year-over-year, all the way down to the Tensor G4 chip. Itâs still priced at $500, and itâs the first device many will think of as the biggest competition Appleâs new iPhone 17e faces.
Like last year, if you have $500 to spend on a new Android phone, the latest in Googleâs Pixel A series is a great choice. While there are some hardware aspects that are beginning to feel stale, the consistent rollout of new AI features will help the Pixel 10a feel refreshing regardless. Hopefully, thatâs enough to distract you from how unbelievably similar the 10a is to last yearâs model.
Review notes
đ Same design, minus the camera bump. The Pixel 10a has the same exact design as the Pixel 9a. Google got rid of the camera bar on last yearâs phone, and for this year, the company completely flattened the minor bump that the 9a had around its rear cameras. Google said it had to re-engineer the Pixel 10a to make sure the cameras sat flush, which I suppose gives it a nice touch, but the bump on last yearâs phone never bothered me much. Still, itâs flat this year, which is something we havenât seen in any smartphone in a long time. Itâs also still IP68 water resistant, and Google says its construction is more durable than last year. Given that I refuse to do a drop test to prove this, Iâll take their word for it.
đ¨ Fun, vibrant colors. Google painted the Pixel 10a in a couple of new colors this year, including Berry which got a lot of attention online. We were sent the Lavender model, Googleâs flagship color for the 10a, and it looks a lot like the same shade as the flower. It isnât too purple-y where it looks weird, and itâs vibrant enough to stand out. Your other two color choices are Obsidian (black) and Fog (muted greenish-gray). They also look pretty nice, but Lavender and Berry are definitely the most fun out of the lineup.
đą A stronger, brighter screen. For the most part, the 6.3-inch Actua display on the Pixel 10a is the same as it was on the 9a. Itâs a solid screen with nice colors and viewing angles, and since itâs OLED, you get beautifully dark black levels and contrast. New this year is a slight boost in brightness, going from 2,700 nits to 3,000 nits of peak brightness. Will you notice this difference? Itâs unlikely, but itâs welcome nonetheless. Itâs also protected by stronger Corning Gorilla Glass 7i, which helps mitigate scratches and cracks better than the 9aâs glass.
âď¸ Performance is good, but needs an upgrade. Google includes the same Tensor G4 processor in the Pixel 10a as what was in the 9a. That chip was pretty speedy last year, and it offers decent performance this year, too. But it wouldâve been nicer to see the Tensor G5 in the 10a, given that it offers a meaningful performance bump. Still, for $500, the G4 is serviceable. You also get 8GB of RAM and up to 256GB of storage, which should prove to be enough for most average users.
đ¸ Google needs new camera hardware. The cameras on the Pixel 10a arenât necessarily bad, but you can tell theyâre getting old. Google continues to use the same 48MP main camera as it has for many generations of Pixel phones at this point, along with an unimpressive 13MP ultra-wide lens. Photos do generally look good enough for Instagram, but Google has layered so much processing on top to extract details and light that some images can look straight-up wrong. Colors arenât always accurate, contrast can get lost in broad daylight, and nighttime pictures would benefit more from a larger sensor than a tweaked processing algorithm, contrary to Googleâs beliefs. Selfies and videos are serviceable as well, but overall, thereâs nothing impressive about these cameras. Theyâre fine for casual users, but anyone who wants cameras thatâll impress will want to shop elsewhere.
đ¤ Latest in Android and AI. The big pitch when you buy a Pixel is first-in-line access to the latest Android and AI updates from Google, and that tradition continues on the Pixel 10a. It comes with Android 16 out of the box and is promised seven years of upgrades, which is nice. You also get new AI features that werenât available on the Pixel 9a, including Camera Coach, Auto Best Take, and Add Me for photos. You also get full access to Gemini and Gemini Live, and so long as history repeats itself, youâll get access to new AI models and Gemini features first before other phones. If youâre a heavy AI user, this could be a compelling enough reason to go with the Pixel 10a.
đ All-day battery life. The 5,100mAh battery lasted all day in the Pixel 9a, and it lasts all day in the Pixel 10a. I have no issue unplugging it in the morning and making it until 11 p.m. each day on a full charge. I didnât have to baby it or anything, either. I just used it like I would any other phone and it could keep up with everything I threw at it.
âĄď¸ Faster wired charging. Google increased the charging speed to 30W, which helps to juice you back up a bit quicker than before. Youâll, of course, need a power brick that can handle 30W charging, which doesnât come in the box; Google is happy to sell you its 45W charger for $30, or you can pick up a third-party solution like this one from Anker.
𧲠No Pixel Snap. The biggest downside to the Pixel 10a is the lack of Pixel Snap. Google added Qi2 magnetic charging to the Pixel 10 series last year, but decided to skip it for its mid-range phone. Itâs an unfortunate choice given that Apple just added MagSafe to the iPhone 17e, albeit for $100 more than the 10a costs. Still, it wouldâve been nice to see it. Maybe the Pixel 11a will finally adopt it.
đ°ď¸ Satellite SOS arrives on a cheaper Pixel. Google also added Satellite SOS to the Pixel 10a, allowing you to connect to satellites to send emergency messages if youâre ever out of reach of a cellular network. I didnât get to try this feature, but Google showed me a demo of how it works at my Pixel 10a briefing, and it seemed very easy to navigate when youâre in a pinch.
Should you buy the Pixel 10a?
Yes, ifâŚ
â Your budget is $500
â You prefer clean software
â Youâre ready to dive headfirst into AI
â You need all-day battery life
No, ifâŚ
â You want better cameras and Pixel Snap (get the Pixel 10)
â You want the best mid-range performance (get the iPhone 17e)
â You want a more unique design (get the Nothing Phone (4a) Pro)
Max Buondonno is an editor at The Shortcut and co-host of The Shortcut Live. Heâs been reporting on the latest consumer technology since 2015, with his work featured on CNN Underscored, ZDNET, How-To Geek, XDA, TheStreet, and more. Follow him on X @LegendaryScoop and Instagram @LegendaryScoop.