Google - Pixel 10a 128GB (Unlocked) - Obsidian

So far I have no complains for the phone, light weight and sturdy

Combining capable hardware with excellent artificial intelligence and a pure android experience, the Google Pixel 10a is nothing short of a superb, feature rich, all-around phone at a great value. I typically use the phone to stream programming, listen to music, take photos, play games casually, and view social media content, things that I think 99% of us phone users do on a daily basis. The Pixel 10a does all these things effortlessly. The phone responds instantaneously to swiping and tapping. Apps load and run without hesitation. The phone is well-balanced, and light, which is perfect when using it with one hand. The back of the phone is flat, no more raised back camera. This is a welcome physical change to the pixel A phones. I love that the display brightness can go up 3,000 nits which makes it easier to see outdoors against bright sunlight. The 6.3” display produces vibrant punchy colors, without being too oversaturated. This is considered a budget friendly phone, but the Pixel 10a’s camera borders on flagship quality and features. The Pixel 10a makes taking photos so easy. Just point and shoot and the Google software will process the photo to create images that appear natural as our eyes see it. The camera has no trouble with scenes with varying bright and dark areas (dynamic range). I enjoy taking photos, but I usually just snap shots without much thought of improving myself. I don’t have an excuse for taking poorly framed and composed images now. The Pixel 10a is equipped with an AI feature called Camera Coach by providing guidance on framing and composition to help folks like myself improve our picture taking skills. I also love the automatic close up Macro focus of the camera. I was wowed by the rich detail captured by the Macro focusing. I took photos of flowers up close and could see the little furry ends inside the flower. Just amazing that the phone can do this without needing to purchase fancy and expensive camera equipment. Another feature I enjoy using is the Magic Eraser. It’s not exclusive to the Pixel 10a, but it’s such a fun and useful feature to make unwanted objects disappear. There are so many other camera features packed into this little phone that it’s hard to cover everything. With Auto Best Take, group shots become easier as the camera will work its computational magic to create a merged photo from a series of photos to try to get it so that everyone in the group is looking their best. Add Me is another photo merge feature for group photo where the individual holding the camera for the first group photo can also put themself into the finished photo by having someone else take the second photo while the first person positions themself into the second frame. Another feature is Reimagine, where the AI editor will help you reimagine your photographs. Besides the camera, the battery life is also amazing. There’s plenty of battery to last a full day. I have been using the phone heavily doing various activities like streaming videos and using apps, and still have 30% battery after using it for 10 hours. When it is time to recharge, the phone charges up fast with 30 watts of fast wired charging or 10 watts using wireless charging. I started dabbling with Gemini Live, the new AI Google assistant. It works well. The Gemini assistant is fluid, conversations are natural as if I’m having a conversation with a real person, and the results produced by Gemini are informative and relevant. Also, beginning with the Pixel 10a, Google has now equipped the phone with a safety feature called Satellite SOS where you can connect with emergency responders even while out of range of wifi or cellular coverage. One of the things I like about the Pixel series phones is that you get a pure android experience and without the pre-installed bloatware that comes from other phone manufacturers. You receive the full unadulterated versions of the operating systems, and Google will provide 7 years of software operating system and security updates. (But this is all assuming that your phone battery can last that long. In my experience, a phone’s weakest link is the battery recharge life. After hundreds of recharge cycles, the battery deteriorates to such an extent that it becomes unusable, or it begins swelling up and emitting noxious smells.) Do I recommend the Pixel 10a? The Pixel 10a is more than capable of running the apps and performing the tasks that most consumers need. It is competitively priced, comes with an excellent camera, has a battery that can run the whole day between recharge, is equipped with a plethora of security and safety features, has a bright and responsive display, and has seven years of updates, I would say the Pixel 10a is a an excellent value and a good buy for anyone in the market looking for a new phone.

TLDR: Google branded phone Android 16 OS; 7 year updates, 48 Mpixel & 13 Mpixel main cameras, 4K or 1080p video, 13 Mpixel front 4K camera video, stereo recording, speech enhancement on videos, wind noise reduction on video, stereo speakers, many Gemini AI features, fast charging, wireless Qi charging, Google Tensor G4 CPU, 30 hours per charge, unlocked for all USA networks, 128GB storage, 8GB RAM, 6.3” OLED 120Hz refresh screen, satellite SOS, 3.3 ft water resistance, 5G/LTE/GSM/UMTS/HSPA+/HSDPA networks, 1 meter USB-C cable, no charger supplied. So this phone feels good in the hand, is very bright on the screen and produces very clear phone calls with everyone I contacted. I paired it with several good quality headphones such as Sony, JVC, Philips, and some ear buds and the music quality from both Google Music, Spotify and some streaming websites is very good also. The fingerprint sensor works every time and very fast for my left thumb. I am used to using the left thumb from my previous phone and it works. Maybe a bigger finger works better, I dont know. The built in AI is prompted often and in using it I appreciate the capabilities in retrieving information, comparing things, and also offering choices or history for what I am asking about and wondering about. Try it and embrace AI in whatever device you are using to stay current with the changing world. It is being taught in the schools now to students because it is the current state of computing. I charge this Pixel 10A using a variety of AC chargers I have had for years. Phone chargers, laptop chargers, and battery power banks. Using both the supplied USB-C cord and my own, it charges quickly of course determined by the watts the charger is capable of providing. I am annoyed it does not include a old style analog 3.5 mm headphone port which means if I wish to use a wired headphone I will need to locate a USB-C to 3.5mm adapter as Apple and other Android users have been doing for years now. Silly IMO. The camera sensor is very good for a $500 phone and I have no complaints other than the phone itself has no microSD card slot which every phone I have had to date included going back to Motorola, Sony, Nokia, Microsoft, LG, and Samsung. Oh well. It has 128 GB of onboard storage and my 128GB micro SD card I was previously using was never filled with my prudent deletion of bad and duplicate images and videos I made. So I don't see the lack of micro SD as being an issue for me. I also realize that the Pixel10a latest version of my messages app (Google Messages) has features that enable sharing higher quality and longer pictures and videos with anyone so I realized I had not updated it on my previous phone to my own detriment. This Pixel has the newest capabilities in that regard. It is compact in my hand and functions smoothly and quickly for my favorite apps. I don't fill up my smartphones with every app; I am selective and that is why I get over 5 years of good battery life from my phones before the battery needs to be replaced by replacing the complete phone. Like most phones, the Pixel 10a battery is not user replaceable. I am glad to have and use this new Google phone.

Google never fails to impress me. Even with their newest opening price-point device, the Google Pixel 10a, Google offers a lot of functionality and features for the $499 price point. PROS: 1. I love the refreshed design of the cameras on the back of the phone. They are flat which means the phone can sit on a table without being at an awkward angle. 2. The 6.3-inch OLED display matches the vivid, fluid look and feel of much higher priced devices. The screen is a delight to look at providing 3000 nits of peak brightness and a 120Hz ultra responsive refresh rate -- something I would have not expected on an entry-level phone. 3. Even with the glass screen protector installed, the fingerprint recognition is OUTSTANDING in comparison to early Pixel models. Very rarely have I found the device unable to read my fingerprint. (Note, while available, I did NOT set up the facial recognition). 4. Even though it's the same G4 chip from the 9-series Pixel devices, the performance meets or exceeds what I would expect from a phone at this price point. 5. Camera quality is good -- not the best, but surely adequate if you aren't a professional photographer looking for the quality from a DSLR camera. 6. Battery life is acceptable. There are a lot of various settings you can change to maximize the battery performance, but in my experience, it's no better than the 9-series Pixel devices. Still, very good. I do not use wireless charging anywhere but in my vehicle and the 10a seems to charge quickly via USB-C. 7. SOS support is now available via satellite -- something I don't think the 9-series offered. 8. Integration of Google Gemini is at least as good as other smart AI tools/features. 9. Google's version of Android Auto is an absolute delight to use. It can be set up to do myriad functions with the simple announcement of "Hey Google." A much more seamless design and user experience than other "Automotive" connectivity. CONS: 1. Not much of an upgrade from the equivalent 9-series as far as battery and performance. 2. Qi2 magnetic charging is not supported. 3. I would have probably gone with the larger screen model for both the screen size and performance enhancements. 4. All my phones are dual-SIM. The dual eSIM experience on Google's Pixel 10a (and other Android devices) is subpar to competitors' offerings. The other non-Android large-scale manufacturer of phones, tablets, computers, etc. offer a much more seamless end-to-end fully synchronized across all of that "brands'" devices. FINAL THOUGHTS: The Google Pixel 10a is a great value for an entry-level Android device. The size is a little smaller than I would have liked, but the performance, screen, cameras, and display feel premium and well-constructed. I love the fact that the rear cameras are recessed making the phone able to sit flatly on a desk. Google Gemini is without a doubt the best AI assistant/tool I have ever used. So, if you are looking for a budget-friendly, feature packed device with an excellent display, decent cameras, an outstanding AI assistant, and willing to use a smaller display device - this is a strong contender. I would recommend this device.

I had the opportunity to upgrade from a 9a to the new Pixel 10a, and while it's in some ways a small upgrade, the upgrades are noticeable. One of the biggest draws for me is that Pixel phones get updates earlier and will be supported for far longer than third-party phones. It ships with Android 16. The phone is thin, lightweight and the cameras on the back are flush. No more camera bump if you plan on using it without a case. I'm definitely adding a case though. This is a change from previous models that had a small camera bump. The cameras are great. Fantastic for daily use. The main camera is 48 MP, with good night settings. Keep in mind that more megapixels usually means more packed sensors and image quality can suffer specially at night. This takes great pictures day and night. The second camera is an ultrawide 13MP. The standard camera app takes great pictures with natural colors, not over-saturated. Being a Pixel phone, all the photo-related Gemini features are enabled, including the 'Add Me' feature to superimpose pictures, ability to choose the best picture when taking multiple shots and short videos embedded in the picture (Similar to what iOS had for years) Screen is a bright OLED with a fast refresh rate, that when enabled makes scrolling and overall interaction very smooth. I immediately noticed how smooth this. It's a 6.3" size diagonal and it's slightly brighter then the previous model. The CPU is a Google Tensor G4 with 8 GB RAM. This remains the same as in the 9a and AI processing improved with Android 16. The nice thing about Tensor CPUs is that Google can optimize Android and Gemini to this CPU unlike on other phones. Battery is great. I didn't charge it for almost two days after the initial setup and updates, and battery had over 40% charge. Granted that I didn't use it much at first. Although the battery size remains the same as in 9a, it lasts longer due to other hardware and Android optimizations. It charges faster than previous models with 30W wired and 10W wireless. Note that it doesn't come with magnets for MagSafe/Qi2 chargers, however the case itself needs to have magnets to work with these chargers so it's really not an issue. I use a Magsafe charger on my car using vent clips and the phone stays in place while charging. There is one physical SIM card slot and can support multiple eSIMs. This is nice when traveling, I can add virtual eSIMs for little money and avoid roaming charges. When I first migrated from my old phone, it offered to migrate from the physical SIM card on my old phone no an eSIM, which meant I didn't have to actually swap the SIM card, but I'm not ready to part from my physical SIM yet, so keep ion mind what you choose to do. It also incorporates emergency calling via satellite. This is new and I'm sure I'd really appreciate it if needed. I'm glad I don't need to get a top of the like phone to get a safety feature like this. Also of note, moving from a Pixel to another is very easy. Signing in with a google account and the phones next to each other makes the migration very simple. Note that it can also use the USB-C cable to connect both phones to make the migration quicker. WIFI is 6E and includes a 6Ghz radio. I get around 450 Mb/s download and 380 Mb/s upload over WiFi with some distance from the access point. Bluetooth has been upgraded to Bluetooth 6. When connecting the phone to my laptop dock for charging, I noticed that it can either mirror the screen or work in Desktop mode. In Desktop mode, Chrome and other apps are windowed, similar to a Chromebook. It also supports keyboard, mouse and Ethernet through the dock. Mine has a 2.5g Ethernet and worked fine. Movies/YouTube appear in full screen. Ideal for 1080p monitors. Connecting it to a 4K TV also works (With the USB-C cable) however it's scaled down to 1080p resolution. It also has NFC so it works with payments with Google Wallet. Unlock is via face detection and also has a fingerprint sensor built into the screen. I like the option of setting up both biometric methods in addition to the PIN. Face and fingerprint unlocking works very well and it's quick. Overall it's a fantastic phone. It does everything I want from it with no frills. Great screen, very fast and smooth, all the connectivity options I need, nice cameras and backed by Google with many years of support and Android upgrades. I also have to remark that Gemini is inconspicuously everywhere in this phone. Very much every google app has some level of Gemini integrated on it, and it disappears in the background and can be very helpful, like looking at the whole phone screen when invoking it for search, and camera/photos integrations are useful.