Review of the Google Pixel 7a

Even though Google has only been in the smartphone business for a little over 10 years, we've already become used to the rapidly growing company's high-caliber offerings. With many of the features seen in more costly Pixel smartphones and enough capability to make it seem like a member of the smartphone family, the Google Pixel 7a is a mid-range offering from the Pixel series.

Similar to the iPhone SE series, Google has long prioritized cost with its Pixel-a range. However, Google packs a lot more into its low-cost phone than Apple does. To the extent that the vanilla After using Pixel 7a, Pixel 7 becomes an afterthought. Its premium-like appearance, exceptional performance, and two dependable cameras secure its place in our ranking of the top Google Pixel phones.

Advantages

• Feature-rich vanilla Android experience
• Great cameras with software support
• Impressive performance for the price
• Satisfying punchy 90Hz OLED display

Drawbacks

• Finicky fingerprint sensor
• 128GB storage without scope for expansion
• No power brick and charging speeds are still average
• Gets hot pretty quickly

Cost and accessibility

The Google Pixel 7a is available from a number of stores, including Google's web shop and Amazon. Retail pricing ranges from $450 to $500, depending on whether you require an unblocked device or not and your network provider. The Google Pixel 7a is available in Charcoal, Snow, Sea, or Coral as far as color goes.

Specifications

Attributes

Features that set Pixel phones apart from the competition include call screening, real-time speech translation, background noise reduction during audio conversations, and voice message transcription. The 7a model is one of these phones. I really like the feature called Hold For Me, which allows you to be notified when someone returns to the conversation and waits for you when the other person puts you on hold.

The Pixel 7a offers far quicker text-to-speech and translation than the majority of flagship non-Google smartphones. It also offers a speedier Google Assistant experience. This is because Google uses cutting-edge hardware—more precisely, the TPU AI accelerator—to handle the majority of these jobs, greatly accelerating reaction times.

It should come as no surprise that a Pixel offers the finest conversational experience from the Google Assistant. With surprisingly good results, Google also leverages similar AI prowess to do tricks in the photographs app, like as unblurring photographs and removing things. With the Pixel 7 or Pixel 7 Pro being a discounted smartphone, having features like Magic Eraser for less than $500 is a huge benefit.

The Pixel 7a uses an under-display fingerprint scanner for authentication. Although it seems to have inherited the problems of its predecessors, it performs as planned. Sometimes it has trouble registering the fingerprint, particularly if you have a screen cover on. I had assumed that I was the only one experiencing the unwanted fingerprint antics, but a quick check on Reddit turned up several user complaints.

I just registered many fingerprints of the same fingerprint and adjusted the touch sensitivity from the Settings app to fix the problem. This method quickens the recognition rate. It's important to note that compared to the more sophisticated ultrasonic-type fingerprint sensors, the optical fingerprint sensors included within the Pixel 7a have a tendency to be slower and less accurate. This is not only a problem with Google's mid-range handset.

Photography

The distinctive camera experience of Google's mid-range phones—which often surpass other Android models in terms of still photographs and video recording—is one of the main draws of choosing a Pixel phone. Google equipped its A-series low-cost phone with a 13-megapixel ultrawide camera with a broader field of view than its predecessor and a powerful 64-megapixel main camera. Selfies are captured by the 13-megapixel front camera.

Regarding image quality, here is where the unique Pixel color science really shines. You get almost natural colors with sufficient depth, well-controlled exposure, and a wide dynamic range. The Pixel 7a does a great job in bright outside lighting, maintaining a good level of clarity in images. Nonetheless, there is often a hint of overexposure due to brilliant sky in the backdrop of a picture.

One important component of the improved 64-megapixel primary camera that makes use of pixel-binning is very impressive. Because of the Pixel 7a's superior noise reduction capabilities over the Pixel 6a, images taken inside often maintain their original color profile and surface details. Pixel phones have always excelled in HDR performance, and the Pixel 7a is no exception.

Although the Pixel 7a doesn't have a dedicated telephoto lens, you can still produce respectable 2x and 8x Super Res Zoom photos by using some ingenious AI upscaling and digital cropping. The AI does an excellent job of pixel-upscaling and produces images with cohesive subject separation, clarity, and saturation if the lighting isn't too harsh, albeit at the expense of digital noise.

The Pixel 7a's Real Tone technology, which captures skin tones true to reality without using excessive lightening or smoothing, is another amazing camera feature. This tool is very useful for taking portrait photographs. But even with its astoundingly precise edge recognition, the Pixel 7a's default setting is a fairly mild bokeh effect.

With enough perseverance and a tripod that faces the night sky, the specialized Astrophotography setting on a camera may provide some very beautiful images. Additionally crisp, with excellent contrast levels and dynamic range, are ultrawide pictures. On the other hand, ultrawide photos taken in poor light are really disappointing.

It's wonderful to see optical image stabilization included in the package when it comes to video capture. The primary camera of the Pixel 7a has a 4K resolution limit and a 240 frames per second slow motion video recording restriction. All things considered, the Pixel 7a cameras provide a significant improvement in photography performance over the Pixel 6a and can compete with the more expensive Pixel 7.

Design

Google maintains the recognizable Pixel series characteristics for the Pixel 7a's design. With a polished profile that matches the surrounding frame's hue, the rear shell is made of plastic and has a glossy surface. Gorilla Glass is placed at the front to shield the OLED screen. Although it's not as robust as the Victus alternative and it's not the newest version of Corning's protective solution, it seems like Google made a little concession to lower the retail price.

The Pixel 7a feels fantastic to handle and has a sturdy build quality, even if it has a somewhat broader profile than the iPhone 14 Pro. The main reasons for this are the rounded side rails and the absence of sharp edges that may cut into your palms. Although I wouldn't classify it as a little phone, the Pixel 7a feels surprisingly light and compact in comparison to monsters like the Galaxy S23 Ultra and the iPhone 15 Pro Max.

Though the Pixel 7a is available in Sea, Snow, Coral, and Charcoal, I'm particularly drawn to the light-blue tones of the Sea option. Amidst a crowded market of uninteresting phones that combine chrome and muted hues, the Pixel 7a is a welcome change of pace. Another unique choice in this spectrum is Coral, a hue that will definitely cause some people who use less expressive gadgets to pause and take notice.

But if you're considering purchasing a Pixel 7a, it's also a good idea to get a protective cover to put on as soon as you open the package since scratches and scuffs on the back panel appear very rapidly. Positively, Google employs high-quality thermoformed composite plastic that is difficult to distinguish from glass components.

Because plastic doesn't break like glass, you may avoid costly repairs and the worry of treating your phone like something worth thousands of dollars instead of hundreds. This is another advantage of the manufacturer utilizing plastic. Additionally, the construction is IP67 approved, so you won't have to worry about sporadic spills of liquid or a quick dive into the swimming pool.

Display

A 6.1-inch OLED display with HDR certification and a maximum refresh rate of 90Hz is used in the Pixel 7a. The screen can reach up to 1,000 nits when the adaptive brightness function is used or when the manual brightness slider is adjusted to its highest level. There are no problems with screen readability while using the phone outside because of these settings.Although an OLED panel's color reproduction is as accurate as one might anticipate, the natural profile seems a little subdued. Frequently, I found that the vivid color profile provided the optimal viewing experience for videos on streaming sites. The bezels are still somewhat noticeable, particularly around the bottom edge, but you really can't complain at that price.The battery life is reduced when the 90Hz option, also known as Smooth Display, is used, but I would always choose smoother transitions over longer battery life. Should you be switching from a phone with a 60Hz screen, such as the newly announced iPhone 15, you will notice a noticeable difference right away. Thankfully, the screen aesthetics are more tolerable than a notch thanks to the basic design with a small, centered camera cutout at the top.

Performance

The Tensor G2 chip, which powers the premium Pixel 7 Pro, is what Google has equipped the Pixel 7a with. While it may not be as quick as Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 or Apple's A16, this phone won't slow if you don't care about the results of phony tests.The second-generation Tensor processor is paired with 128GB of storage and 8GB of RAM. Sadly, neither a microSD slot nor a larger storage configuration are available to allow for storage expansion. That's a little frustrating since a lot of Pixel fans choose Google phones because of their good cameras, so it would make sense to provide extra storage so users can save more high-quality photos locally rather than storing them on the cloud.The Pixel 7a is surprisingly good when it comes to gaming phones, which we love here at SmartRead. Even at high graphical settings, playing games like Call of Duty: Mobile and Asphalt 9: Legends runs smoothly and doesn't cause any overheating issues. However, if you want to play games like Genshin Impact, be ready for decreased frame rates and a hotter device after a brief gaming session.When it comes to pure performance, this phone can handle all of the standard smartphone features you would expect from a contemporary gadget. With the available chipset and RAM combination, running many programs in the background without noticeable stutters or aggressive background task management is possible.Even though the Tensor G2 handles games well, it's a bit strange CPU. It's not exactly blowing up the charts with its sheer CPU power. It is more akin to the mid-range Snapdragon 7 Gen 2 SoC from Qualcomm. Consider a somewhat out-of-date Apple A-series chipset or a generation-old Qualcomm Snapdragon if I had to place it in the big-name class.I have already mentioned one major problem with the Pixel 7a's performance in this review, however. Users began complaining about problems with the heating soon after the debut. Regretfully, Google still hasn't fixed those problems. throughout testing, the phone even sent out a "device is too hot" warning signal when taking 4K movies throughout the day.I downgraded to the official Android 13 release with the most recent security patch from the Android 14 beta, yet the heating issues still exist. When it comes to fundamental smartphone operations like texting and web surfing, overheating is seldom a concern. For heat management, you may have to use throttling techniques like reducing the brightness or visual quality if you want to play performance-intensive games for extended periods of time.

Rechargeable

For whatever reason, Google gave the Pixel 7a a somewhat inferior 4,385mAh battery in comparison to the model that came before it. The device's wired charging limit is 18W, which isn't too bad by Apple and Samsung standards, but it falls short when compared to Chinese phone manufacturers like Xiaomi and OnePlus.Although it is a little exaggerated, Google boasts that the battery would last 24 hours on a single charge. By the end of the day, after four and a half hours of screen time, a good amount of music streaming over Bluetooth earphones, a few phone calls, and social media browsing, I needed to connect the phone into a charging outlet.Although it wasn't a particularly noteworthy performance, I consider myself to be a digital citizen who is often online and enjoys using phones to their utmost. Therefore, a full day of battery life even with heavy use is still a success. You won't have any battery issues with the Pixel 7a if your use of smartphones isn't as rigorous.

Is it wise to purchase the Google Pixel 7a?

The Pixel 7a costs £449, but even at that price, it offers a lot of good features. The build quality, which is certified IP67, is good, and the OLED screen is quick enough. For the price, the phone's sheer performance capability is equally amazing, but what really sets it apart from the competition is the long list of unique Pixel features.Even though the filmmaking component isn't as stunning as still picture photography, the camera performance is among the finest in the budget range. A full day's worth of use can be obtained from the battery, and wireless charging is a nice extra.Apart from overheating and demanding gaming sessions, the Pixel 7a has little issues overall. With the right magic wand, Google may cure the fingerprint and heating concerns with the Pixel 7a, making it the company's greatest mid-range smartphone to date.

Substitutes

Check out the options below if you don't believe the Google Pixel 7a is right for you.Nothing Phone (1)

There is fierce competition in the sub-£500 category. The Nothing Phone (1) stands out with its distinctive light-up appearance, strong cameras, crisp display, and uncluttered software if brand legacy isn't your top priority.Samsung Galaxy S22

If you love to shop for deals, you may choose the Samsung Galaxy S22, which was reduced shortly after the Galaxy S23 was released. The iPhone SE, on the other hand, is a secure choice inside the mobile ecosystem, but at the price of a very antiquated look.Xiaomi Poco F5

When comparing Chinese manufacturers, the Xiaomi Poco F5 has excellent features and performance for the price it is being offered for. Its flexibility isn't quite as great as that of the Pixel 7a, and its cameras aren't as good either.