Google Pixel 4a Battery & Charging Test Complete: nothing to brag about
We may earn a commission if you make a purchase from the links on this page.
The Google Pixel 3a was one of the best midrange smartphones released in 2019 but its battery life was often a let-down. Google’s Pixel 4a seems to be no less impressive – some say it’s even better value for money – but has the battery life been improved?
Our PhoneArena battery life test is designed to show off how good battery life really is. The process consists of three components, which you can read about in length here, but in a nutshell, it involves some light browsing use, then slightly more demanding video playback, and lastly a bit of 3D gaming.
The Google Pixel 4a boasts a 3,140mAh battery coupled with a 5.8-inch OLED display and the Qualcomm Snapdragon 730 chipset. Here’s how well the midrange phone did in our extensive battery life test:
With a run time of almost 9 hours and a half, the Pixel 4a performed decently in our web browsing battery test. It outlasted the iPhone SE (2020) and Nokia 7.2, despite the latter’s bigger battery, but fell just short of the results achieved by the Pixel 3a last year.
Our PhoneArena battery life test is designed to show off how good battery life really is. The process consists of three components, which you can read about in length here, but in a nutshell, it involves some light browsing use, then slightly more demanding video playback, and lastly a bit of 3D gaming.
PhoneArena Browsing Battery Test Results
Google’s latest phone also falls short of the Galaxy A51 and Moto G 5G Plus, although that was to be expected considering their respective 4,000mAh and 5,000mAh batteries.
PhoneArena YouTube Video Playback Battery Test Results
That is almost 20 minutes better than its predecessor and over 2 hours more than the similarly priced iPhone SE (2020). The Galaxy A51 and Moto G 5G Plus lasted longer, but again that is down to their drastically bigger batteries.
PhoneArena 3D Gaming Battery Test Results
3D Gaming is the toughest test of all and the small battery inside the Pixel 4a struggled to keep up with competing smartphones. It only lasted around 4 hours and 50 minutes during our testing, putting it slightly behind the iPhone SE (2020).
Charging Test Results
Google Pixel 4a Charging Test (18W in-box charger):
- in 15 minutes: 22%
- 30 minutes: 44%
- 45 minutes: 64%
- 60 minutes: 81%
- 1 hour and 15 minutes: 92%
- 1 hour and 30 minutes: 99%
- 1 hour and 35 minutes: FULL CHARGE
Conclusion
Google seems to have done a good job optimizing the Pixel 4a so that it gets the most out of its small 3,140mAh battery. A bigger battery would undoubtedly be welcome, but the numbers are enough to get you through a day without very heavy usage.
FCC OKs Cingular\'s purchase of AT&T Wireless
Things that are NOT allowed: