Last week, I made a post all about the Pixel 4a after one year! Looking back at that post, I realized just how much I didn’t cover. In this post, I am going to try and fix that and try to cover more of the features that this incredible device packs in. Let’s get into it!
Cameras & Software:
So, let’s start with the feature that everyone wants to know about… the cameras. If you caught last week’s post, you will know that I love this phone not for its camera hardware, but the software. The interesting thing about Pixels up to this point (1-5), they have had the same ageing and not perfect camera system, but compared to any phone with this Sony sensor, the Pixel just blows them out the door. Google is one of the few big brands still putting this sensor on phones, but… Yi no longer makes action cameras. Despite ageing hardware, the mind-blowing software with Google’s cutting-edge research in it creates awesome photos. Let’s look at some photos!
As you can see from this photo and others, the Pixel 4a has awesome dynamic range, and it is surprising just how many phones can still struggle with that.
This next photo is cool since it shows off a feature that I use many, many times a day. The double click power button to camera. There is no quicker way to access a smartphone camera than the power button feature. It is found on a lot of phones now, but often are not enabled. If you are on a phone with any new version of Android or IOS, this is a feature is likely available, just hidden behind settings.
I got this bird just before it swooped behind the trees. This took literally seconds because I can double-click as I pull the phone out of my pocket and the phone is always super quick to get the exposure and focus. I want to congratulate Google for making that so quick with a phone without a laser autofocus system or depth sensor.
It may seem strange for me to spend so much time on that, but I literally use that feature every time I take a photo, so I feel that it is a feature worth emphasizing. 😂
Although this is not photo related, I also want to touch on the 3rd party microphone support. I didn’t go super in-depth last week, but wanted to bring it up again.
Google never has advertised this, but this can record awesome external mic audio, and that really makes up for the subpar mics built in. It is a feature that I just appreciate.
One more photo that I want to look at:
This photo is really cool to me because I wasn’t using portrait mode. This is just the phone knowing the depth of the log and where my focus point is to make this! The transition is perfect as well! The cameras just have so much effort and thought put into them!
Size, Screen, Specs:
Next, let me talk about the fact that this is literally the perfect sized phone! It has small bezels, which gives great screen space and keeps the phone small. In this photo you can kind of see the top and bottom miniature bezels and if they bother you, the Pixel 5a and 4a5g both have slightly smaller ones.
The other thing I want to mention is the charging. The 18w charger that comes with it is way faster than a typical in-the-box charger. Now, this may be irrelevant because future phones from Google won’t ship with chargers, I just am not sure if Google has applied that to older models.
Battery: The battery in the 4a is great. You will be able to last all day with average use. If you use it super heavily (lots of 4k recording or gaming), like many other phones at this price, you likely won’t last a day. If you are using it lightly, you will be able to stretch it for two days, which I was surprisingly able to do. 😂
Price:
I need to start by saying the price is kinda complicated right now. I bought the phone at $349 and the price has been fluctuating online. Google doesn’t sell it from their store because the 5a is out, so you may struggle to find it for a great price. I do need to note that prices will come down soon.
Now, one more thing! In case you were wondering about my case, I literally just got a new one. My old case was always meant to be temporary during the supply shortages last year… I finally upgraded and wished I did sooner. I highly recommended the Spigden case and wish that I had switched sooner 😂. I just want to give that pointer
With the Pixel 5a out, you can get more features, but this is a great phone to keep in mind as well (especially as prices begin dropping). The Pixel 6 is on the horizon though and that is looking to be the best of the best in Android, so if you can spare double the price… you may want to wait until October 19!
Thank you so much for reading! Drop a comment below and let me know what your favourite camera phone is, and have an awesome week!
–Digital Wonders & Smiles
Digital Wonders and Smiles 