The Google Pixel 4a is coming soon. Here’s everything we know (or think we know) about the upcoming mid-range smartphone.
Update: May 4,2020 (4:41 PM ET): We have updated this Google Pixel 4a rumor hub with details on the 4a’s camera and display. Read on for more information!
Original article: February 1,2020 (6:00 PM ET): Without a doubt, the Google Pixel 3a and Pixel 3a XL were some of the most exciting devices launched last year. For under $400 you got most of what made the Google Pixel 3 great, including that amazing camera. Now it’s 2020, and all eyes are on the Google Pixel 4a.
Ostensibly, the Pixel 4a will attempt to replicate what the 3a series did: slash out the expensive hardware aspects of the Google Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL while retaining the super-fast Android updates, rear camera experience, and Pixel-exclusive software features.
That’s a tall order, but Google seems up for the task. With the supposed launch of the Pixel 4a inching ever closer, we thought it was high time we compiled all the rumors we’ve found about the upcoming mid-ranger.
Below, you’ll find everything we know so far about the Google Pixel 4a. Be sure to bookmark this page as we’ll update it often as new rumors come to light.
The Google Pixel series has stuck to the same naming convention since its inception. With that in mind as well as the leaks we’ve already seen, there’s little doubt as to the name of the upcoming mid-range entry in the series. Outside of some crazy situation arising, it’s a safe bet that we’ll see the Google Pixel 4a launch as Google’s next mid-ranger.
Unfortunately, sources close to Android Authority have confirmed there will be no Pixel 4a XL this year. This might be disappointing for some fans of the Pixel 3a XL, but this will likely reduce production costs for Google and help keep the Pixel 4a at a reasonable price.
Regardless, when exactly will the Google Pixel 4a land? Google launched the Pixel 3a series at Google I/O 2019, so it seems reasonable to assume it will repeat that strategy in 2020. If so, that means Google will likely launch the new device on or around May 12, which is when Google I/O 2020 was originally set to begin before it was canceled amid fears surrounding the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.
In early April, a few pictures of some Pixel 4a packages surfaced online, suggesting a release date could be imminent. The images look pretty legit, but we should still take them with a grain of salt.
Later reports suggest that the Google Pixel 4a could land in European stores on May 22,2020. That would line up very well with the idea of Google announcing the device on or around May 12. Either way, it’s a pretty safe bet that we’ll see the launch of the Pixel 4a in early May and see it on store shelves (well, virtual store shelves, anyway) by the end of May.
As has become the norm, we already have a decent idea of what the Google Pixel 4a will look like thanks to serial leaker @OnLeaks. The renders below, based on CAD files supplied to factories that actually create the devices, tell us the most basic information about the Pixel 4a with relative certainty.
Check out the renders for yourself below:
As one would expect, the phone looks like a pared-down Google Pixel 4, which makes perfect sense. The square-shaped camera bump on the back of the device is a dead-ringer for the one on the Pixel 4 series, albeit with only one lens. The white colorway, Google “G” logo, and orange-colored power button all carry over from the Pixel 4.
However, there are some differences here. The matte-black ring that envelopes the Pixel 4 body is absent, the selfie camera is housed in a display cutout, there’s a headphone jack present, and there’s a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor here, too. The fingerprint sensor and display cutout make sense, though, as it would hardly be cost-effective to transfer all the face unlock tech from the Pixel 4 series to the Pixel 4a.
