Google Pixel 10a review: The sidegrade
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You can install open camera or gcam mod to get back more manual controls
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After 10 + years using Google phones because they were good basic mid range phones without a lot of the fluff of other MFGs after my 6a kicks the bucket no more for me.
Value proposition is gone, my Nexus 5x had the bootloop problems and every software update made it more unusable. And then both my 4a and 6a were part of their battery nonsense.(Foobar2k can drain my battery to under 20% from 80% in less than 3 hours now and I have to bring a battery pack to work now lol)
The lack of MicroSD and removal of 3.5mm jacks are icing on the cake. I'll have to do a lot of shopping next time. And this seems just as underwhelming and bloated with AI junk. Motorola I think had the closest compromise when I was looking after the 4a broke. Hopefully they still do and have a fingerprint reader that isn't in the screen. The 6a's in screen one is soooo bad.
Google, do evil.
Value proposition is gone, my Nexus 5x had the bootloop problems and every software update made it more unusable. And then both my 4a and 6a were part of their battery nonsense.(Foobar2k can drain my battery to under 20% from 80% in less than 3 hours now and I have to bring a battery pack to work now lol)
The lack of MicroSD and removal of 3.5mm jacks are icing on the cake. I'll have to do a lot of shopping next time. And this seems just as underwhelming and bloated with AI junk. Motorola I think had the closest compromise when I was looking after the 4a broke. Hopefully they still do and have a fingerprint reader that isn't in the screen. The 6a's in screen one is soooo bad.
Google, do evil.
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I hope they fixed the annoying glue problems of previous phones. I had a 6a and now an 8a and both, within a year, have had their back panels fall off. I replaced the glue on the 6a and six months later it came off again. Now, it didn't fall off immediately any of these times; it started coming apart at just one end, with the glue progressively failing. My 8a's new glue thing just came in the mail today, thank The Gods.
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That doesn't change the internal processing though. I experimented a lot with various cameras but it didn't feel like it helped in any meaningful way.
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| SPECS AT A GLANCE | Pixel 6 | Pixel 9a | Pixel 10a |
|---|---|---|---|
| SOC | Google Tensor | Google Tensor G4 | Google Tensor G4 |
| MEMORY | 8GB | 8GB | 8GB |
| STORAGE | 128GB, 256GB | 128GB, 256GB | 128GB, 256GB |
| DISPLAY | 1080×2400 6.4" AMOLED, 90 Hz, Gorilla Glass Victus, ~800 nits peak | 1080×2424 6.3" pOLED, 60–120 Hz, Gorilla Glass 3, 2,700 nits (peak) | 1080×2424 6.3" pOLED, 60–120 Hz, Gorilla Glass 7i, 3,000 nits (peak) |
| CAMERAS | 50 MP primary f/1.85 OIS, 12 MP ultrawide f/2.2, 8 MP selfie | 48 MP primary f/1.7 OIS, 13 MP ultrawide f/2.2, 13 MP selfie f/2.2 | 48 MP primary f/1.7 OIS, 13 MP ultrawide f/2.2, 13 MP selfie f/2.2 |
| SOFTWARE | Android 12 (launch), 5 years security updates | Android 15 (launch), 7 years of OS updates | Android 16, 7 years of OS updates |
| BATTERY | 4,614 mAh, ~30 W wired, ~21 W wireless | 5,100 mAh, 23 W wired charging, 7.5 W wireless charging | 5,100 mAh, 30 W wired charging, 10 W wireless charging |
| CONNECTIVITY | Wi-Fi 6e, NFC, Bluetooth 5.2, sub-6 & mmWave 5G, USB-C 3.1 | Wi-Fi 6e, NFC, Bluetooth 5.3, sub-6 GHz 5G, USB-C 3.2 | Wi-Fi 6e, NFC, Bluetooth 6.0, sub-6 GHz 5G, USB-C 3.2 |
| MEASUREMENTS | 158.6×74.8×8.9 mm; 207 g | 154.7×73.3×8.9 mm; 185 g | 153.9×73×9 mm; 183 g |
Not a lot of change.
eta: Pixel 6 screen brightness
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Tensor shipped with Cortex A76 and X1, which were both great in their day but aren't overwhelmingly fast anymore. The new models ship with ARMv9 cores, which will likely be mandatory for future Android updates at some point. The connectivity section you put there lists protocols, not performance, and the performance changes within each of those wireless protocols is vastly improved with newer modems. Gorilla Glass improvements are extremely tangible, and the peak brightness is a massive improvement.
If you like your Pixel 6 then I'm happy for you. The 9a has very noticeable day-to-day improvements.
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I'm just saying that as a user of a fully-depreciated Pixel 6 I do not see any compelling reason to upgrade, which should concern Google. They obviously would like me (and those like me) to spend money on their new baubles.
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I expect most people can buy a phone at this level and run it till it dies or runs out of support. If I don't get 5 years out of a phone now, I feel short changed.
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Google are the one Android manufacture that don't need to worry, They make their money from advertising and their store, so just having users is valuable.
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Galgos are awesome! All the ease of care of a Greyhound (the sixty mile per hour couch potato), more stamina than an English & Irish Greyhound so you can run with them and that Spanish charm. Plus they're one of the oldest breeds in the world and so no real inbred genetic issues & are even mentioned in the first sentence of Don Quixote. They're just one of the breeds that'd qualify as an ultimate hunting dog & so you may need to be careful around cats, smaller dogs, rabbits / hares, goats & sheep etc.
Love the Galgo photos & the phone looks good for a mid-ranger also. I just wish we could buy them 'officially' here. Google really need to expand the approvals more widely.
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Based on the pricing and comparison, I would ask in addition “What if you can get the Pixel 9 for less than a new 10a?”
I mean, I got a deal, but I got the 9 last summer as a backup phone for $249, no trade-ins, unlocked within 90 days. Better camera, 12GB of RAM, better fingerprint reader, satellite SOS, and faster charging. Without looking, it’s $569 on Amazon new and unlocked, and I’d think you’d be able to find it cheaper with half an hour of searching. With that in mind, I’d probably skip both the 9a and 10a and just get a straight 9.
I mean, I got a deal, but I got the 9 last summer as a backup phone for $249, no trade-ins, unlocked within 90 days. Better camera, 12GB of RAM, better fingerprint reader, satellite SOS, and faster charging. Without looking, it’s $569 on Amazon new and unlocked, and I’d think you’d be able to find it cheaper with half an hour of searching. With that in mind, I’d probably skip both the 9a and 10a and just get a straight 9.
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I got a Spigen Tough Armor MagFit case for my 9a, which works great with every magnetic charger I have tried.
I do wish they would move the fingerprint sensor out of the screen. This keeps me from using security screen protectors. Even my cheap-ass 2024 Moto G Play backup phone has a side-mounted fingerprint sensor.
I do wish they would move the fingerprint sensor out of the screen. This keeps me from using security screen protectors. Even my cheap-ass 2024 Moto G Play backup phone has a side-mounted fingerprint sensor.
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I replaced my wife's 6a and my 7a last year for a pair of 9a's. Due to the 6a battery issues we got a nice credit on that phone that cut the price on her new phone a good bit. 9a has been excellent, going by our normal lifespan/upgrade process it'll probably be 11a or 12a time when we are ready to upgrade again. My 7a had a cracked screen and the USB C port was pretty flaky, really the first time I've had an issue with a Pixel in quite some time.
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Pixel already feels like a downgrade from a Galaxy, and I couldn't tolerate the thermals and low speeds. I don't think I would want a downgrade from the normal Pixel. The amount of options are dwindling unless you want to Chinese phones (I won't consider it.) The myth of "Stock Android" doesn't exist anymore with all the AI slop. You can make any Android phone "stock" if you want to go with that tedious task.
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I, might have gotten that email too.
However, I'm currently using my Pixel 6 and it's still quite serviceable thus far. Only issue is being in use for 3 years, the battery life has taken a noticeable hit. However, nothing charging the night before, and/or bringing an external battery bank/pack, wouldn't alleviate.
EDIT: Also, storage is getting tight. 128 GB doesn't go as far these days as it used to
![:\](https://cdn.arstechnica.net/civis/data/assets/smilies/slash-1x.png "Slash :\")
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Do you think they bury them in the desert like Atari did for the ET carts?
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Completely unrelated, but I replaced foobar2000 with Musicolet a year or so ago and find it superior, to the point I wish there was a desktop version.
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Sometimes they just tell you to go fuck yourself. "Unfortunately, after careful review of your submission, your device has been determined ineligible for an appeasement. As a result, we have rejected your request."
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Same. I'll keep my 8a until it is no longer usable which could be after the 11a, 12a, or later.
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I know it likely costs them a bit more but I prefer the visor over the flush cameras. They also don't wobble.
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If you're going to say things like this, it would be great if you actually described the times you actually needed that performance. Otherwise, this comes off sounding like a story.
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Kinda hard to have wireless charging with a fingerprint sensor back there.
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Hey guys, I just bought a KIA. Why is it not like a Ferrari? I mean it drives really well and gets me to where I'm going perfectly. I just expected a V12 and leather everywhere for the small price I paid.
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You'll likely be buying a case for it like everyone else. Buy with the magnets.
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I wonder if the 10a having ever so slightly worse benchmarks is just standard inconsistencies in performance, or if shaving the camera bump all the way cost then a little in the heat department and so it gets a little warmer and performs slightly worse.
My sister basically had the exact same experience and things to say when she reached out to me for my thoughts on her next smart phone coming from that same razr flip phone.
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Lucky, my Pixel 6 has to be wirelessly charged because it cannot hold onto a cable reliably even when sitting on a flat surface, and the camera module is full of dust making the camera unusable for decent photos so I have to carry my Nikon everywhere. Shame, because I'd feel no need to replace it otherwise. (I've asked for it to be cleaned out but was told they can't risk opening it up because of a crack in the edge of the front glass from being dropped onto tarmac that would probably mean the screen assembly would fall apart if disassembled).I, might have gotten that email too.
However, I'm currently using my Pixel 6 and it's still quite serviceable thus far. Only issue is being in use for 3 years, the battery life has taken a noticeable hit. However, nothing charging the night before, and/or bringing an external battery bank/pack, wouldn't alleviate.
EDIT: Also, storage is getting tight. 128 GB doesn't go as far these days as it used to
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I think she would have put up with the awkward screen until the Pixel 11 came out if the camera was usable. The camera really is an unforgivable sin. She's only had it for a few months but it's so bad she decided to get the 10a to hold her over until the 11 comes out just so she can take pictures that that don't look like they were taken on a phone from 20 years ago.
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The new Google Pixel has a processor that is behind a Apple 12 Pro iPhone, which was made five years ago and for further reference it is barely ahead of the Apple 11 Pro iPhone in processor speed, most os heavy duty G whiz Google functions need to be uploaded to Google’s data-center for processing and then slingshotted back to the Pixel phone. G whiz that’s the same MO that Gemini uses to phone home for functionality.
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How well does it do at making phone calls? or Wireless connectivity outside of an urban area?
I get that these are smartphones, but being able to make calls and connect for emails are still important metrics and why I buy a phone. Otherwise I might as well use a tablet all the time.
I have trouble trusting Google to make good choices, at least since the Pixel 6.
I get that these are smartphones, but being able to make calls and connect for emails are still important metrics and why I buy a phone. Otherwise I might as well use a tablet all the time.
I have trouble trusting Google to make good choices, at least since the Pixel 6.
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That's generally more reliant on the carrier than the phone.
FWIW, I've been using Fi on Pixels for the last six years and the last time I had any mobile connectivity issues with them was with the 6a because my worksite is situated in a relative dead zone and the modem was sometimes slow reconnecting after I left the site. And even that got patched within a month. Otherwise, I've made multiple cross-country trips without losing signal, other than the inside of Wind Cave National Park.
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The functions that have to go to Google's data center for processing would have to do the same thing on an iPhone. A lot of the advanced AI features they're pushing are something that a mobile device will probably never be able to run. A lot of them my gaming PC that is less than a year old probably doesn't have the horsepower to run.
As far as real world performance? Who cares. I'm sure that no one notices the difference in practice for what most of us use our phones for, unless you're doing a lot of heavy gaming. In which case even for android phones there are much better choices if that is important to you. Which is why Ars lists that separately. Not every phone is going to be good for everyone and that is fine.
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Everyone is on a different upgrade cycle just because Google, Apple, or Microsoft release something particularly a hardware item yearly that doesn’t mean everyone upgrades at the same time but in the tech world you have to keep moving forward iterating or you end up like Intel, Xerox, or a Kodak behind and in some cases out of business like Motorola of Schaumburg, Illinois……
Honorable mentions: Companies standing still in comparison to their competition US Steel (recently sold to the Japanese), GM, Ford, and Tesla.
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