Google Unveils Pixel 8a With A Great Preorder Bonus And Trade-In Offers

Following plenty of leaks and rumors, the mid-budget Google Pixel 8a has officially dropped in the Google Store. No new surprises here, hardware-wise, but it's confirmed: the price stays put at under $500 and, for the first time, there's a higher capacity 256GB version available for $560 (as long as you don't mind it only in black). As a small bonus, Google is offering shoppers some pretty decent trade-in offers on their older devices.

The baby of the Pixel 8 series is here and just looking at the innards and capabilities, the 8a is fixin' to be another hot-seller for Google. Powering the device is the current generation Tensor G3, bringing with it some AI smarts that Pixel 8 and 8 Pro users have been exclusively enjoying for some months now. You've probably already noticed how much more rounded the corners of the phone are, but the basic shape and dimensions are the same as the popular Pixel 7a. 


The display thankfully hasn't grown in size, instead keeping a 6.1-inch size to make this phone relatively palmable. However, the panel itself has been upgraded to be 40% brighter (2,000 nits max, 1,400 HDR) with a variable refresh rate up to 120Hz, 30Hz more than before. The 8a also comes in either 128GB or 256GB internal storage flavors, both with 8GB of DDR5x RAM. These storage sizes are still rather stingy, but at least we now have options.

Over on the camera side, the 64MP OIS main sensor is a carry-over from the 7a. Paired with that is a 13MP OIS+EIS ultrawide with 120 degrees FOV. Another 13MP sensor serves as the selfie cam.


As we reported last week, Google has blessed the 8a with a feature dump of AI features from its higher-end sibling, including Audio Magic Eraser, Circle to Search, Best Take, and more. Thanks to the Tensor G3, users will also be able to run Google's on-device Gemini Nano AI model.

Unfortunately, even though the battery has been slightly increased to 4,492 mAH with the ability for wireless charging, it's a bummer to see Qi2 not adopted here.

The phone is available now for pre-order at the Google store, available in four colors—Aloe, Bay, Porcelain, and Obsidian. For now, the 256GB model comes only in Obsidian. If you plan on trading your older device during purchase, Google is offering up to $500 for an Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max, so basically a free phone. To make the deal sweeter, if you buy before May 19, you will get $100 Google Store credit.