Google Pixel 3a carries the same camera as the Pixel 3 but it is powered by a less powerful processor.Google is pushing into the mid-range smartphone segment with Pixel 3a and Pixel 3a XL phones, which were launched at its annual developer conference keynote on May 7. Even though the phones have the same 12.2MP rear camera as the flagship Pixel 3 series, the image quality might not be the same, thanks to a lower-powered Snapdragon 670 processor.
On Pixel 3, powered by the flagship Snapdragon 845 processor, Google had touted the fact that it was achieving superior results with software enhancements. Now, it remains to be seen if it can achieve the same with the lower specced Pixel 3a.
“I don’t know if you could say exactly the same. I think that’s where the camera team is passionate about the features they are building and that they are meeting the bar they want users to experience,” said Sabrina Ellis, VP, Product Management at Google in a roundtable.
To ensure a similar camera quality, she says, the team has pushed really hard and run all kinds of metrics on everything. Of course, given the lower price, the new Pixel 3a phones have had to compromise on several aspects like ditching a glass body design and letting go of wireless charging support as well as waterproofing.
Asked about the things they had to give up for bringing down the price, Sabrina said, “Well I think there’s a couple things that I will admit I don’t personally think that much of a surprise. So, the case is plastic and not glass. It is a lighter phone for me and that is a positive, but some people have actually said to me, they like the more solid feel, so that is the difference there.”
Also read | Pixel 3a XL first impressions: The same great experience, but at the right price?
Another compromise was that wireless charging could not be included in the Pixel 3a phones, she added. “Then we have the headphone jack that made waterproofing a lot more difficult. So, the waterproof rating is lower,” she explained.
Google Pixel 3a and 3a XL have been targeted for a different audience set, but the phones do not come cheap. It looks like Google is mainly banking on the camera capabilities to drive the sales. Google Pixel 3a and Pixel 3a XL will cost Rs 39,999 and Rs 44,999 respectively in India. There is only the 4GB RAM and 64GB storage variant.
Disclaimer: The author is in California on the invite of Google India.
