Pixel 3a Anyone?

Just picked up a Pixel 3a. I came from a Galaxy S10+ and a Pixel 3 XL before that. Performance is fine, I imagine many wouldn't notice a difference between this and a flagship class phone. This camera seems as good as the regular Pixel and more reliable than the S10+, which takes great pictures only in the best light.

I'm reminded of how nice it is to carry a smaller phone.

 

I'm surprised too. In anything but the best lighting conditions Samsung's processing seems to smooth things over too much. It makes everything looks as if it's in beauty mode, losing a lot of detail. I prefer the sharpness and detail of the Pixel 3 camera even if it seems a little dark or underexposed sometimes.

I've owned most of the Pixel phones and have never been impressed by their battery life. It's still early but the the 3a seems a lot better than the other Pixels, presumably due to a more efficient SOC.

 

The first few days have shown the 3a battery life to be almost as good as the S10+, and considerably better than either the Pixel 3 or Pixel 3 XL (I had both). The screen on the 3a is good but no other phone can match the gorgeous screen of the S10+. Wireless charging is nice, but I don't consider it a necessity. I'm always interested in a new Pixel but Google really has to figure out a way to improve battery life or include a larger battery in the flagships. Samsung figured out a way to eliminate the bezels, include a headphone jack, and pack in a 4100 mAh battery. Samsung's One UI is pretty nice but I still prefer no extra apps or bloatware.

 

I used the eSIM alongside the micro SIM with Google Fi. It's a nice solution, particularly if you need two numbers. I don't but I was testing out T-Mobile (via Fi), and using my primary service, before switching to T-Mo.