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Release Date (UK): May 2019 |
With the Pixel 3a XL, Google has attempted to offer the most popular features of its larger flagship, the Pixel 3 XL, at an affordable price point. While there have been compromises in some areas, the 3a XL still packs in some impressive features, including the same excellent camera as the Pixel 3 XL.
The Pixel 3a XL, along with its smaller sibling the Pixel 3a, herald Google’s first foray into the mid-range smartphone market. The Pixel 3a XL offers a large-screened and much more affordable alternative to Google’s most recent flagships, the Pixel 3 and 3 XL. Its headline feature is its impressive camera, which is the same as the one on the Pixel 3. It also offers the same slick pure Android experience, and Active Edge technology, which enables you to launch Google Assistant by squeezing the phone. While it’s taken a hit in terms of performance and storage, the much lower price tag may well make up for that.
The Pixel 3a XL’s camera is its primary selling point. It has the same 12.2MP rear camera as the Pixel 3 XL, and some sophisticated AI software working behind the scenes. It lacks some of the features found in its flagship cousin, including the Pixel 3 XL’s powerful image processing chip, meaning it won’t process images as quickly or effectively.
TechRadar called it a ‘remarkable camera considering the price of the phone’ and thought it took ‘some stunning shots’. The Guardian thought it took ‘fantastic images nearly every time’. T3 called it ‘phenomenal’ and found it took photos with sharp details and natural colours, while Trusted Reviews was impressed by its portrait mode, accurate colours and detail retention.
The Pixel 3a XL’s Night Sight mode offers impressive low light photography, with Trusted Reviews calling it ‘astounding’. T3 thought the resulting images were ‘grainier and fuzzier’ than those taken by the Pixel 3 XL using Night Sight, although TechRadar disagreed, finding it managed to ‘brighten up some of the darkest scenes in an almost magical way’.
The Pixel 3a XL has an 8MP front camera, but lacks the Pixel 3 XL’s dual-camera setup and wide-angle lens. Trusted Reviews found the selfie camera ‘works well in abundant lighting’ but found its dynamic range was challenged by high-contrast situations, with noise and grain evident even in bright shots.
The Pixel 3a XL looks similar to its flagship predecessor. Like the Pixel 3 XL, it has the same dual-tone matt and gloss design on the rear, although it swaps the Pixel 3 XL’s metal and glass body for plastic. Google has also done away with the Pixel 3 XL’s notch at the top of the screen, opting instead for a small block of bezel above and below the display.
The handset comes in black, white or lilac. While it lacks water resistance, reviewers welcomed the return of the 3.5mm headphone jack. It also has a fingerprint scanner on the rear.
The Pixel 3a XL is slightly taller and thicker than the Pixel 3 XL, although its bezels mean it has a smaller screen. The plastic body also makes it lighter than the Pixel 3 XL. TechRadar found it sat well in the hand, but thought people with smaller hands might struggle to use it one-handed.
The Pixel 3a XL has a 6-inch OLED display, with a Full HD+ resolution of 2,160 x 1,080. This is lower than the Pixel 3a’s, which is 2,220 x 1,080. Coupled with its larger screen, this means the Pixel 3a XL has a significantly lower pixel density than its smaller sibling. However, TechRadar found it was ‘solid enough to provide good detail no matter what you’re doing’.
T3 thought the screen wasn’t quite as sharp as you might like, with colours that were ‘a little lacklustre’. However, Trusted Reviews thought it offered great contrast, true blacks and vivacious colours, and What Hifi? called the screen ‘very much a winner’, with crisp detail and punchy colours.
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The Pixel 3a XL has the mid-range Snapdragon 670 chipset paired with 4GB of RAM. This is a step down from the Pixel 3 XL’s Snapdragon 845, making it noticeably slower - but it’s still fast enough to deliver comfortably on all but the heaviest tasks.
The Guardian found it performed ‘better than its paper specifications might suggest, thanks to Google’s excellent software’. Trusted Reviews found it ‘felt fast and fluid’ and ‘as responsive as the premium devices it was trying to emulate’ - except when gaming.
The Pixel 3a XL has a 3,700mAh battery, which Google claims will last 30 hours on a single charge if you enable the Adaptive Battery setting. TechRadar found it always lasted the whole day with typical mixed use. The Guardian found it lasted 27 hours between charges. It lacks wireless charging, but its 18W fast charging will give you around seven hours of use in just 15 minutes of charging.
There are two key differences between the 3a XL and its smaller equivalent, the Google Pixel 3a - screen size and battery life. The 3a XL has a 6 inch screen whereas the 3a’s screen is 5.6 inches. Whilst larger screens can contribute to the battery draining faster, The Guardian found that the 3a XL lasted three hours longer than the smaller model.
What the critics say (scores are out of 100)
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Expert Reviews | Jonathan Bray The Pixel 3a XL I think Google has stumbled across a magic formula. This is a phone that's not only far more reasonably priced than most modern flagships, but also looks good, feels just as responsive and takes photos that are equally amazing. Read full review |
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IT PRO | Alan Martin No, it's not as powerful as the flagships of last year, but ... the best-in-class camera and smooth, bloat-free installation of Android, first in line for updates. Read full review |
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TechAeris | Jason Bouwmeester If you're in the market for a new smartphone, you should definitely check out the Pixel 3a XL or the slightly smaller Pixel 3a and save yourself more than a few dollars. There's no doubt it is deserving of a Top Pick of 2019 Award here at Techaeris. Read full review |
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Neowin | Rich Woods The Google Pixel 3a XL is an awesome device, and I'll absolutely be recommending it to friends that don't want to spend a thousand dollars or close to it on a phone. Read full review |
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PC Mag | Steven Winkelman If you like a big screen, Google's Pixel 3a XL is the absolute the best phablet you can buy ... it's also a compelling alternative to high-end flagships that cost nearly twice as much. Read full review |
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phoneArena | John Velasco ... they show to all of us that you don't need to spend a fortune to get a great phone experience. They excel in all the important areas like taking photos, offering long battery life, and fluid responses navigating around the software. Read full review |
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NotebookCheck | Mike Wobker, Daniel Schmidt, Andrea Grüblinger Overall, the Pixel 3a XL is an exceptional midrange smartphone that has a better camera and battery life than its competitors. The device is well designed too, and most of its weak points are a matter of taste. Read full review |
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TheEffect.Net | John Reilly Android now has a new mid-range smartphone king. The Pixel 3a and 3a XL are incredibly well priced handsets given what you're actually getting for your money. Google's decision to cut corners on everything but the camera was the best one they've made in a while. If you like to capture impressive smartphone photos and videos but don't want to spend... the Pixel 3a or 3a XL are your obvious answers. Read full review |
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The Inquirer | Roland Moore-Colyer Rather than see these phones as Pixel-Lite models, we'd say they are more like a new generation of Nexus phones, showcasing the potential of Android without breaking the bank, only this time with Google's hand firmly on the hardware design tiller. Read full review |
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Android Central | Daniel Bader These phones have maintained most of what makes the Pixel 3 series among the most enjoyable phones to use...I miss wireless charging, and the lack of waterproofing is a bit of a bummer, but otherwise the biggest compliment I can give...is that it using it on a day-to-day basis is practically indistinguishable from the Pixel 3 Read full review |
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Tom's Guide | Philip Michaels The Pixel 3a XL features a camera that's nearly as good as the best-in-class Pixel 3 XL, and it lasts longer on a charge. Read full review |
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Wired | Jeffrey Van Camp They aren't the most stylish, but they can snap one helluva night shot. Read full review |
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Engadget | Chris Velazco ... anyone who hates the idea of paying too much for a phone simply has to pay attention to this phone. Google took just about everything that made the other Pixels worth owning, fixed a lot of lingering issues, and made the whole thing accessible to even more people. Read full review |
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Firstpost | Sheldon Pinto The Pixel 3a XL is far from perfect, it looks a bit boring, and is not as powerful as the competition, but then there's that camera. Try it out once and you will get hooked! Read full review |
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Android Authority | Dhruv Bhutani For the most part, the Pixel 3a XL makes the right compromises to hit a more affordable price point. This is the same Pixel experience you get on the full-fat Pixel 3 right down to the image quality. An affordable phone, however, this is not...fierce competition makes the Pixel 3a XL hard to justify unless an excellent camera is your primary motivation to buy a premium smartphone. Read full review |
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Tech.co | Tom Fogden To get a phone with a knockout camera, speedy performance, premium looks, and a decent screen, you used to have to spend close to $1,000. But with the Google Pixel 3a XL, that's no longer the case. Read full review |
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ZDNet | Jason Cipriani There are tradeoffs when it comes to the display and speed, but when it comes to battery life and the camera, the Pixel 3A XL shines. Read full review |
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CNET | Lynn La The Pixel 3A XL has the best camera for its price and a generously-sized screen. But if having a fast processor and more memory is a priority, get the OnePlus 6T instead. Read full review |
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The Mobile Indian | Rohan Pal If you are one of those who want a pure Android experience along with some good camera performance, then Pixel 3a XL is best suited for you. Read full review |
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T3 | Aaron Brown Google Pixel 3a XL is impossible bargain. Granted, there are some compromises the screen isn't as good, and it's unwieldy compared to rivals with all-screen designs. Read full review |
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Trusted Reviews | Alex Walker-Todd The Google Pixel 3a XL makes for a great big-screened Pixel 3 alternative, without the price tag. It nails the software and camera experiences so important to capture the feel of the full-fat Pixel 3 series, in spite of its more affordable nature. Read full review |
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NDTV Gadgets | Aditya Shenoy If you are interested in the Pixel 3a XL or Pixel 3a, you'll get a great experience. Read full review |
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What Hi-Fi? A serious smartphone for Android purists on a budget...For just over half the price of the Pixel 3 XL (and other flagship smartphones) you get many of its features: an OLED display, a first-rate camera and a seamless Android experience, plus the 3.5mm headphone jack and a decent battery life. If only Google could improve the Pixel sound, we'd have a flawless mid-market marvel. Read full review |
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TechRadar | James Peckham Its design may not be head-turning, but the Google Pixel 3a XL packs a punch internally and has a great camera for the price. It's some of the best of Google in a phone, at a lower price tag than previous Pixel handsets. You won't get the best processing power or lots of storage, but when you're paying a lot less that shouldn't be so much of an issue. Read full review |
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Stuff | Andrew Williams It's no flat-out bargain... But when the general performance, camera quality and battery life are as good as this, it does seem you get the high-end Pixel essentials for a lot less cash. Just like Google promised. Read full review |
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Pocket-lint | Chris Hall There's plenty of appeal in the PIxel 3a XL, not least being able to get a great Pixel camera for a lot less money. But compared to rivals at this price point, it's still a hard sell. Read full review |
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Mashable | Raymond Wong Don't let the cheaper pricing fool you: Google's Pixel 3a and 3a XL still have terrific cameras...the features that matter the most, such as the Pixel 3's outstanding camera, clean Android 9 Pie, and long battery life, are all present and accounted for...some tradeoffs, like the less powerful Qualcomm chipset, a plastic construction, and the lack of wireless charging and water-resistance. But I don't think those are dealbreakers for people who'd rather save a few hundred bucks and gain a headphone jack (yes, you won't need a dongle to listen to music on these phones). Read full review |
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The Guardian | Samuel Gibbs ... buy one for the camera and software, and I'm sure you will be very pleased for several years. Just don't go in thinking it's dirt cheap or the best thing ever. Read full review |
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The Verge | Dieter Bohn This is the kind of phone Google should be making: something really good and really affordable. Read full review |
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TechPP (Technology Personalized) | Nimish Dubey It is not as if the Pixel 3a XL is a bad device. It isn't. It just is a little out of place in the current market scenario. Read full review |
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The Indian Express | Shruti Dhapola Pixel 3a XL's big problem is the price ... yes, the camera is excellent, but that alone cannot justify the price tag. Read full review |
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The Economic Times | Hitesh Raj Bhagat It's not a bad phone - just a little out of place in a hypercompetitive market. Read full review |
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91mobiles | Deepak Dhingra ...a bit of a tough sell, especially in a market ...where we have tons of other options. At that pricing, these phones encroach upon the so-called flagship killer segment, where we currently have the likes of the OnePlus 6T and the LG G7 Plus ThinQ.... And with no other frills like a display notch, gradient finish, pop-up camera, etc to boast of, the Pixel 3a and 3a XL hold more nerd value than mass value. Read full review |
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AnandTech | Andrei Frumusanu I don't think the Pixel 3a phones are competitive. The phone's sole advantage here lie in the software experience that is sometimes more streamlined than what most Asian OEMs besides Samsung are able to offer. Read full review |
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Compare Google Pixel 3A XL specs side-by-side with other phones
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Form factor: Touchscreen bar Dimensions 160.1 x 76.1 x 8.2 mm (6.3 x 3 x 0.32 in) Weight: 167 g (5.89 oz) |
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Size: 6 inches diagonal Resolution: 2160 x 1080 pixels Screen Density: 402 ppi Screen-to-Body Ratio: 76.3 % Display Type: OLED |
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Chipset: Qualcomm SDM670 Snapdragon 670 (10 nm) CPU: Octa-core (2x2.0 GHz 360 Gold & 6x1.7 GHz Kryo 360 Silver) GPU: Adreno 615 RAM: 4GB |
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Main Camera: 12.2 megapixels dual pixel with LED flash Secondary Camera: 8 megapixels |
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Built-in Storage: 64GB Expandable Storage: Not Available |
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Capacity: 3700 mAh
Removable Battery: No Wireless Charging: No Quick Charge: Quick Charge |
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Official website GSMArena specs page |
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