I heard the Pixel 10a is here, but all I see is the Pixel 9a Plus

The new mid-ranger by Google is here, but the Pixel 9a suddenly makes much more sense. | Image by Google

I almost forgot the Pixel 10 lineup exists. Mea culpa. Its big August day was sandwiched between the July Galaxy Unpacked event (where the marvelous Galaxy Z Fold 7 was presented) and September's iPhone 17 premiere.

Since then, a ton of interesting phones have materialized, like the Xiaomi 17 Ultra or the OnePlus 15. But that's no excuse.

The aforementioned Pixel 10 lineup is now proudly announcing to the world another family member – the just-released Pixel 10a.

Trouble is, all I see is a Pixel 9a Plus kind of device.

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Am I asking too much?

Let's get the record straight. On the new Pixel 10a, we've got the same Tensor G4 chipset from Pixel 9a, the same design (although the new phone is marginally thicker AND lighter), the same 6.3-inch display (although ever so slightly brighter), same battery capacity, same cameras, same RAM and storage capacity options, same price…

Hey, I like that last one!

Yeah, the new Pixel 10a still starts at $499. No price hike equals almost a discount in today's inflation-infested world of ours. However, we've got to keep it real here (or at least I've got to) and we can't keep pretending that the Pixel 9a is not a worthy contender for your hard-earned cash. Now that the Pixel 10a is official, the Pixel 9a prices will surely drop. And if you would rather not spend too much money on a phone, maybe that's the safest bet.

After all, you're getting just about the same experience, as the chipset – a phone's brains, so to speak – is the same. The Tensor G4 is now two years old. And even when it was brand-new, it failed to beat most of the rivals in terms of raw power.

Furthermore, there isn't more RAM available on the new model. You won't get superior pictures with the 10a, as the cameras – as I said above – are the same.

What's new?

If you want an ever-so-slightly brighter display, you'll be tempted by the Pixel 10a. On paper, its panel gets up to 3,000 nits of brightness, compared to the 2,700 nits of the Pixel 9a's panel. However, that's just a tiny portion of the screen for a certain amount of time. While the new panel is obviously improved, I don't expect the new enhancements to make it a day-and-night kind of difference.

The Pixel 10a is designed to be marginally taller, wider and thicker, but it's a bit lighter than the previous model. It looks the same, so if you expected something more exotic, you could be disappointed.

There's Gorilla Glass 7i instead of Gorilla Glass 3, which should lead to a higher degree of toughness. Although many of us just slap an extra screen protector – mid-rangers deserve a shield, too.

A nice addition is the Pixel 10a's Satellite SOS capabilities – something the Pixel 9a doesn't offer.

Finally, there's the battery improvements. Point for the Pixel 10a! Let me tell you in detail about it.

What I personally like about it

I'm an old-school Pixel a-series user: my Pixel 3a veteran has served me faithfully for many years. To this day I'm surprised by the pictures it took (in the right conditions with the best light available, but in some nighttime shots, too).

The new Pixel 10a keeps the very respectable 5,100 mAh battery of its predecessor. However, it now supports 45W wired charging instead of the 23W speeds of the Pixel 9a.

Now, that's still not impressive – not in the world of 80–100W+ wired charging speeds that many Chinese phones offer. But if you're someone who prioritizes fast(er) charging and you want to keep it nice and cheap, the Pixel 10a is surely the way to go.

The new handset can go from 0 to 100% in an hour, while the Pixel 9a charges fully in about an hour and a half. 30 minutes is a serious difference, folks. Don't underestimate it.

How the Pixel 10a could've shined bright like a diamond

What if… Google chose to go with a dual camera setup that includes a telephoto lens instead of an ultra-wide one?! There, I said it.

I'm of the minority that says present-day main cameras on phones (~23-24mm) are wide enough already. I don't know about you, but a dedicated telephoto is what I need and use way more than the ultra-wide one.

Camera brands understood that too – almost all popular point-and-shoot cameras by Canon, Nikon and Sony had optical zoom lenses starting at 24mm or even 28mm focal length. What followed was the telephoto territory.

Both flagships and mid-rangers (like the just-released Vivo V70) tend to prioritize the telephoto snapper. They pack large sensors, large lens apertures, they develop special portrait modes for these cameras.

Google could've gone where nobody in the mainstream dares to go; we could've – and should've – gotten a Pixel 10a with a main camera and a telephoto on board.

That would make this new phone truly "new".

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