Pros & Cons
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- Outstanding cameras for the price
- Sharp, bright screen
- Excellent Google AI
- Long software support commitment
- Simple, well-made hardware
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- Outdated processor
- No magnetic charging
- No mmWave 5G
Google Pixel 10a Specs
| Battery Life (As Tested) | 12 hours, 15 minutes |
| Camera Resolution (Rear; Front-Facing) | 48MP, 13MP; 13MP |
| CPU | Google Tensor G4 |
| Dimensions | 6.06 by 2.87 by 0.35 inches |
| Operating System | Android 16 |
| Screen Resolution | 2,424 by 1,080 pixels |
| Screen Size | 6.3 |
The Google Pixel 10a ($499) builds on the success of last year's Pixel 9a with a handful of thoughtful upgrades, including a brighter display, longer battery life, improved wireless connectivity, and new satellite emergency features. While Google stopped short of updating the processor or boosting the base storage, the phone still delivers an appealing mix of strong cameras, reliable performance, and useful AI tools. For anyone shopping for a midrange Android phone, the Pixel 10a has no real direct competitors at this price. It's easily the best option in the $500 range, earning it our Editors' Choice award.
Design: A Familiar Look With a Flatter Camera
If you take last year's Pixel 9a and clamp it in a press until the camera bar is pushed into the phone, you've basically made a Pixel 10a. The standout design change this year is that the 10a's rear camera module is totally flush with the rear surface: there's no raised module at all. Not that the 9a's module was thick, mind you; it was one of the thinnest in the market. Now there's just the pill-shaped cutout, made of black glass, fully nestled into the back panel.
(Credit: Eric Zeman)The rest of the design is a direct carryover from the 9a. That means the phone has just about the most basic appearance a phone can have these days. It has a simple recycled aluminum frame sandwiched between two flat panels. The frame's edges are deeply rounded, just enough to avoid forming a sharp angle where they meet the glass. The phone is compact, easy to hold, and easy to use.
(Credit: Eric Zeman)The 10a measures 6.1 by 2.9 by 0.4 inches (HWD) and weighs 6.5 ounces. The 9a has identical measurements, save for the weight, which is 6.4 ounces. The standard Pixel 10 ($799) measures 6.02 by 2.83 by 0.34 inches and weighs 7.2 ounces, while the iPhone 17e ($599) measures 5.78 by 2.82 by 0.31 inches and weighs 5.96 ounces. Any is a good option for people who like smaller phones. If you want something bigger at less than flagship cost, the Samsung Galaxy S25 FE ($649.99) is 6.4 by 3.0 by 0.3 inches and 6.70 ounces, while the Galaxy A36 ($399.99) is 6.4 by 3.1 by 0.3 and 6.88 ounces
(Credit: Eric Zeman)The front glass has been improved from Gorilla Glass 3 to Gorilla Glass 7i, which Google says is more resistant to breaking and scratching. The rear panel is a plastic composite and has a matte finish. Not only does the finish improve grip, but it also resists fingerprints and is tougher than Gorilla Glass. The 10a has the same IP68 rating for dust and water resistance as most of its competitors, including the 17e and S25 FE. The A36 drops to IP67.
(Credit: Eric Zeman)You'll find the SIM card tray on the left, the power and volume keys on the right, and a USB-C port (v3.2) on the bottom. The two buttons have a slight plastic feel, but they are easy to find and use. The phone supports one physical SIM card and one eSIM, for up to two active lines at once. You won't find a tray for microSD cards nor a 3.5mm headphone jack.
The 10a comes in Berry, Fog, Lavender, or Obsidian. I received the Fog colorway, which is a super-light shade of green.
Display: Brighter, But Otherwise Unchanged
The 10a's screen offers 11% more brightness than the 9a's. That's the only difference between the two. The 10a's OLED panel delivers up to 3,000 nits at its peak, while the 9a's taps out at 2,700 nits. These are both high numbers, and the difference is hard to see unless you compare them side by side.
(Credit: Eric Zeman)The screen measures 6.3 inches and has a resolution of 2,424 by 1,080 pixels, for a density of 422ppi. It has a semi-variable refresh rate that ranges from 60 to 120Hz. It's as sharp and as bright a screen as anyone really needs. The phone's fingerprint reader is located under the display glass. It was easy to set up and use, and I found it reliable during testing.
Believe it or not, the 10a has the exact same screen as the Pixel 10, down to the nit. However, the 10 has a slimmer bezel than the 10a, making the black border around the screen less visible.
In comparison, the iPhone 17e has a 6.1-inch OLED panel with a resolution of 2,532-by-1,170 pixels at 460ppi. It has a static 60Hz refresh rate and outputs only 800 nits under normal conditions, peaking at 1,200 when needed. The 10a's screen is bigger, faster, and significantly brighter.
The S25 FE has a 6.7-inch Dynamic AMOLED screen with 2,340 by 1,080 pixels, a variable rate of 1Hz to 120Hz, and a peak brightness of 1,900 nits. The Galaxy A36 has the same 6.7-inch screen.
Performance: Solid Everyday Speed, Powered by an Older Chip
If there's one puzzling choice Google made in developing the Pixel 10a, it's the selection of the processor. Rather than give this new phone the same Tensor G5 chip as the rest of the Pixel 10 series, Google opted for the 2024-era Tensor G4, which powers the Pixel 9 series, including the 9a. Moreover, the 10a has the same 8GB of RAM and the same two storage options: 128GB ($499) and 256GB ($599). Apple recently doubled the base storage of the iPhone 17e to 256GB and upgraded the processor without raising the price.
(Credit: 3DMark/PCMark/Geekbench/PCMag)If this choice worries you, it should. Though the phone performs well enough under everyday use, benchmarks show little improvement over the 9a. Google has long said the Tensor G series is not engineered to compete on benchmarks, but the results still have a story to tell. See the table below:
The Pixel 10's Tensor G5 is clearly better than the 10a's G4; it delivers 50% faster CPU performance, which is nothing to sneeze at, even if the PCMark Work 3.0 test shows them to be relatively close. More importantly, the 10a barely improves on the 9a, and the iPhone 17e trounces them all.
As for Samsung, the S25 FE scored 1,967 and 6,703 on Geekbench and 15,674 on PCMark, while the A36 hit 1,028 and 2,968 on Geekbench and 13,159 on PCMark.
Could I tell that the phone has an 18-month-old processor when using it out and about? No. The normal phone features and apps, the on-device AI calculations, and Gemini Live all worked without fuss—and without making me feel like I was using a cheap device. That said, the G4 chip won't age as well as the G5 when the 10a receives future versions of Android. Something to keep in mind.
Battery Life: Slightly Better Endurance and Quicker Charging
Another aspect that's mostly unchanged is the battery. The 10a has the same 5,100mAh capacity as the 9a, which Google says can last about 30 hours of normal use.
(Credit: Eric Zeman)I put the 10a through PCMag's usual battery test, which involves cranking the screen brightness to maximum and streaming a YouTube video over Wi-Fi until the battery runs out. In this test, the phone ran for 12 hours and 15 minutes. That's a 10% improvement, which I appreciate, but it's not particularly competitive.
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In comparison, the Pixel 10's battery lasts 12 hours and 40 minutes, the iPhone 17e's battery lasts 22 hours and 2 minutes, the S25 FE lasted 17 hours, and the A36 lasted 16 hours and 40 minutes.
Google improved the wired charging speed from 23W to 30W and the wireless charging speed from 7.5W to 15W. Though the phone can be recharged wirelessly, it doesn't support Google's magnetic PixelSnap charging tech, unlike the Pixel 10. The iPhone 17e supports MagSafe magnetic charging.
The 10a took about 1 hour and 15 minutes to reach a full charge when plugged into a 45W charger.
Connectivity: Faster Wireless and New Satellite SOS
Google provided several small updates to the 10a's radio suite, and one may be a lifesaver.
For cellular data, the phone supports sub-6GHz 5G, including C-band, but not mmWave. The rest of the Pixel 10 series has mmWave on board. I tested the phone on T-Mobile's network across New Jersey, where it reached peak download and upload speeds of 191Mbps and 14Mbps, respectively. These are disappointingly low numbers, but they are most likely related to the testing locations. The 9a did much better last year when tested in Manhattan. I'll continue to test the 10a to see if data performance improves in other locations.
The Pixel 10a has the same Wi-Fi 6E radio as the 9a. When tested on my home's Wi-Fi 6 network, it did well at 704Mbps down and 272Mbps up. This compares favorably to a Galaxy S26 tested in the same spot, which hit 755Mbps down and 263Mbps up.
Google upgraded the personal-area network radio from Bluetooth 5.3 in the 9a to Bluetooth 6.0 in the 10a. That gives it some future-proofing, which I appreciate. Perhaps most importantly, Google added satellite-based emergency SOS service to the phone. The rest of the Pixel 10 family already has satellite SOS. This tool allows you to connect to satellites when in areas without cellular coverage to send emergency messages.
Audio: Clear-Enough Calls, Average Speakers
The Pixel 10a is a good voice phone, but not the best I've tested. Voices are generally loud and clear, but the phone sometimes struggles to filter out background noise, making conversations tricky to hear. This is limited to spaces with a lot of environmental sounds. Calls I placed in my quiet home were crystal clear. The earpiece reached 71.4dB, and the speakerphone reached 78.6dB. The 9a hit 76.4dB and 77.2dB, respectively.
(Credit: Eric Zeman)The Knife's "Silent Shout," our test track, does reasonably well through the phone's stereo speakers. The lows and highs are a bit quiet, with the mids more pronounced. YouTube videos come off OK, but I think most people will benefit from using a good pair of headphones.
Camera: The Best You Can Get for $500
If there's one thing Google Pixel phones excel at, it's taking pictures. The 10a is another successful effort from Google in this respect.
(Credit: Eric Zeman)The hardware didn't change. The 10a uses the same 48MP main camera as the 9a, with an f/1.7 aperture and optical image stabilization. This camera takes 12MP photos by default. You also get a 13MP f/2.2 ultrawide camera on the rear, which is joined by a 13MP f/2.2 selfie camera on the front.
(Credit: Eric Zeman)Though the components are the same as last year's, the software isn't. In addition to under-the-hood tweaks in Android 16, Google added Camera Couch (an AI-guided tutorial) and Automatic Best Take (which blends faces for better group photos). These were limited to the main Pixel 9 series last year and are available across the Pixel 10 series as well.
The camera app's UI provides easy access to photo, video, portrait, add-me, night sight, panorama, and long exposure modes. You can also quickly access controls for the timer, aspect ratio, shadows, exposure, and white balance. A quick double-press of the power key opens the camera app, and away you go.
Your point-and-shoot snaps will turn out great, for the most part. Using the 10a's camera is effortless and rewarding. Google's software is doing a lot to help. It's adept at balancing exposure, sharpening details, and ensuring proper color and white balance. As it always has, the Pixel takes photos that look the most natural among Google's top competitors (Apple, Samsung, et al.) You have an optical photo range of 0.5x to 2x, with digital zoom up to 8x, and the results look better than they should. Selfies also look excellent. The camera does a lot to assist with skin tone and clarity. It's simply a great camera on a phone.
Video capture tops out at 4K60 for the rear camera and 4K30 for the front camera, the same as the 9a. You have the same focal range and can easily toggle the panorama, slow-motion, and time-lapse features. Controls are basic, with just resolution, white balance, and exposure available from the menu.
The footage looks sharp for the price point. Serious creators may want to consider the Pixel 10 Pro ($999), which offers superior video tools, or the Galaxy S26 series (starting at $899.99) for the same reason.
Software: Android 16 Packed With Pixel AI Features
The 10a ships with Android 16 and will receive seven years of OS upgrades, security updates, and Pixel drops. Samsung makes the same promise for its Galaxy S and Z phones, while Apple says its OSes can often run on iPhones up to 10 years old. Few other phone makers provide equivalent commitments.
(Credit: Google/PCMag)As for important AI tools, the phone packs Call Assist, Gemini, Gemini Live, Circle to Search, Live Translate, and Nano Banana. The Pixel 10 series already has access to these tools. In testing, I found they all worked on the 10a just as well as the rest of the Pixel line. To have this much AI power in an affordable device is really terrific.