Our colleagues from 9to5Mac recently released details of a report suggesting that iPhone owners tend to keep their devices on average for three years. This led us to think about what the “Android iPhone” means. Do Google Pixel owners wait longer to upgrade, or do you want to get a new device when the newest Made by Google cohort joins the wider hardware family?
Google currently has two separate smartphone lines. The main Google Pixel premium series and the accessible Pixel “a” series. If you go to the Google Store, you have three devices: Pixel 4a, Pixel 4a 5G, and Pixel 5.
Pixel 4a starts at just 349 USD / 349 GBP, while Pixel 4a 5G is priced at 499 USD / 499 GBP, and Pixel 5 comes at 699 USD / 599 GBP. This is a pretty clear price separation for the 2020 launch models, but we did some deep diving into the complex differences that you should definitely check to better understand what you are missing out on or if you should upgrade from a Older Google Pixels:
If you just want a phone that works well, has a good camera, great software and the semi-quantifiable “Pixel” experience, then the 4a is a remarkable smartphone for only $ 349. But things are a bit confusing, because Pixel 4a 5G and Pixel 5, at least internally, are pretty much the same. If you want “premium” features, such as an official IP rating, wireless charging, or a 90Hz display, then the Pixel 5 is the one you want to upgrade to.
However, if you want to upgrade from an older device, say Google Pixel 3, the entire 2020 Pixel series is actually a step in the action because of the mid-range Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G chipset. If you have a Pixel 4 or 4 XL – save the increased battery size and 5G connectivity – Pixel 4a 5G and Pixel 5 are not upgrades but upgrades.
If you’re a Google fan, you’re probably updating your Pixel every year, hoping for slightly better performance and cameras, as well as improved and exclusive Android features. 2020 was the first time this was not as obvious because the “pilot” Pixel is not the most powerful available. It is true that the 2019 Pixel 4 is still the most powerful Google phone.
We expect the Pixel 6 to be the first Android device manufactured by Google to include an internally developed processor. This could be Google’s attempt to mimic that of Apple’s A-Series processors. Unfortunately, it may only match the performance levels of the Pixel 4a 5G and Pixel 5 Snapdragon 765G chips. This could make any proposed upgrade from an older device to the Google Pixel 6 a little harder to justify, but in the long run, the performance gains could be substantial.
When switching from an old Google Pixel device to a new one, I bet most of you expect better battery life, better display, cameras, some design changes, and a faster processor. 2020 felt like a bedtime for the Pixel series, but maybe this was necessary in a crowded Android pilot space. It’s easy to understand the painful frustrations of Pixel fans, but realistically the Pixel series was almost exclusively about software, not hardware.
Given this, how often do you update Google Pixel and why? Tell us in the comments section below.
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