Google Pixel 3a and Pixel 3a XL officially announced

Google has officially unveiled two new affordable members of the Pixel family. The Pixel 3a and the Pixel 3a XL both come with the promise of that incredible Pixel camera experience along with years of software support from Google.

While most smartphone manufacturers try and combine premium designs and specs on their devices, Google is trying a different approach. Their newly announced Pixel smartphones opt for a solid performance coupled with a stellar camera and an affordable price.

The main highlight of the Pixel 3a smartphones is the 12-megapixel camera it borrows from its flagships. The lens promises the impressive Night Sight feature and should be able to capture similarly great photos.

Additionally, Google promises that the new Pixel 3a series will be receiving three major software updates (Android 10 Q, Android 11 R, and Android 12 S) and unlike other brands where you have to wait for months for new software, the updates here will come the very moment when Google releases them.

Google has opted to use a plastic build for the Pixel 3a devices and has opted for Dragontrail Glass screen protection instead of the popular Corning Gorilla Glass. The stereo speakers from the flagships have also been replaced with a single loudspeaker on the bottom of the device. Customers will be able to pick up the Pixel 3a handsets in one of three color choices - "Just Black", "Clearly White" or "Purple-ish".

While the headphone jack is present, the handsets won't offer water resistance or wireless charging features found on Google's flagships.

The Pixel 3a family is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 670 chipset. While this may be considered a mid-range chip its performance is comparable to flagships of late 2017, which should be ideal for most users. You still get 4GB of RAM coupled with the chipset, which may have not been great on the flagships, but is pretty decent at this price point.

Pixel Camera

The highlight as we mentioned before is the impressive camera on both Pixel handsets. While some phone makers insist on putting two, three, four and more cameras on their phones, Google has proven that you don't need more than one camera to get great images.

You get the single 12-megapixel camera on the back capable of capturing those impressive 'Night Sight' photos that brighten images even at night when human vision can barely see them.

Release and Availability

Customers will be able to pick up the Pixel 3a or the Pixel 3a XL starting today, May 7th.

The Google Pixel 3a is priced at $399 while the larder Pixel 3a XL will cost $479. Customers will be able to purchase both handsets on Sprint, T-Mobile, US Cellular, as well as Google Fi, alongside Verizon.