Google Announces Pixel 5a, a New Budget Pixel Phone

DQW Bureau

28 Aug 2021 00:00 IST Updated On 28 Aug 2021 05:51 IST

New Update

Google Announces Pixel 5a, a New Budget Pixel Phone

Google is revamping its hardware business, which doesn’t substantial profit for the company, as compared with its services such as Search, YouTube and Google Cloud. The Pixel 5a is an advancement over last year’s Pixel 4a 5G, introducing a larger battery, a slightly bigger screen and water resistance.

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The 5a supports 5G but not the fastest mmWave 5G networks and has the same midrange Qualcomm processor as last year. Google is attempting to offer a smooth and fast software experience even on lower-powered processors.

The 5a also offers features on Pixels which other Android phones don't give. These include a voice recorder app that converts speech to text, car crash detection and smart filtering of spam calls and text messages. New versions of Android come to Pixel phones right away and updates are guaranteed for three years.

The new device sports a 5.81-inches OLED display with 1080 x 2340 pixels and 444ppi pixel density. Thanks to its high pixel density, the display accounts for sharper images and videos. The display is thin and bezel-less and comes with a punch-hole cutout for the selfie camera. The fingerprint sensor is positioned on the rear end of the smartphone.

The Google 5A is provided with a dual rear camera setup featuring a 12.2MP primary camera and 13MP ultra-wide-angle camera on the optical front. Accompanied by an LED flash, the smartphone comes with optical image stabilisation for shooting smooth videos. The selfie lovers can make use of the 8MP front-facing camera for capturing selfies. For security, the handset equips a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor for secure biometric authentication.

The phone comes loaded with a 3480mAh Li-ion battery for power backup. With fast-charging support, the handset can be refilled pretty quickly. As for the connectivity options, the handset supports 5G, 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11, b/g/n, Bluetooth v5.1, NFC, GPS with A-GPS, Glonass, NFC, Mass storage device, USB charging and 3.5mm audio jack.

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Google has also focused on unveiling new versions of its Nest products, which include gadgets such as smart home displays, speakers, thermostats, security cameras and a doorbell.

Google is also constructing a dedicated hardware campus in the Silicon Valley named “Midpoint.” Besides, earlier this month it announced the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro, two new high-end phones that will launch in the autumn and will use a new Google Tensor chip instead of one made by Qualcomm.

5a has been launched ahead of the more advanced Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro phones, which are coming soon. But Google plans to invest heavily in marketing its new flagship phones and low-end customers may find the Pixel 5a a good compromise.

5a competes most directly with Apple’s iPhone SE, which also costs the same, with the comparable volume of storage i.e., 128GB. It also competes with other similar Android phones such as the Samsung Galaxy A42 5G. But Google hopes that Android users will prefer to use the 5a, since it includes faster software updates.

The phone resellers can make a deal with Google to resell Pixel in India, as it may capture the Indian customers' imagination fast.