Big G perfected the recipe by releasing a very well-rounded phone with excellent specs and great value, which comes with the familiar and useful Pixel camera, which has become slightly better than its predecessor.
Google Pixel 9a
Google Pixel 8a
Main camera 48MP F1.7 25mm Sensor: 1/2" 0.8µm
Main camera 64MP F1.9 26mm Sensor: 1/1.73" 0.8µm
Ultrawide camera 13MP F2.2 Sensor: 1/3.1" 1.12µm 120º FoV
Ultrawide camera 13MP F2.2 Sensor: 1/3.1" 1.12µm 120º FoV
Front-facing camera 13MP F2.2 20mm 1.12µm
Front-facing camera 13MP F2.2 20mm 1.12µm
Notable is the upgrade with the main camera, which has now scored a slightly lower 48MP resolution in comparison with the older 64MP sensor found on the Pixel 8a. However, the aperture has notably become faster at F1.7 in comparison with the "slower" F1.9 on the older Pixel. At the same time, the camera sensor has slightly shrunk in size down to 1/2", but as a consolation, it has ever-so-slightly become wider: 25mm vs 26mm.
No major changes on the ultrawide and front cameras, which reiterate the specs of the older Pixel 8a. And despite the lack of a dedicated telephoto camera, thanks to in-sensor cropping, the Pixel 9a offers a 2X lossless zoom, which emulates a short telephoto camera.
As usual with Pixels, the brunt of improvements isn't in the hardware, but in the software aspect of the camera, which can usually squeeze more out from the same hardware.
Is that the case with the Pixel 9a? Well, let's see how it fared in our independent in-house camera test and then compare it against some rivals.
Google Pixel 9a
PhoneArena Camera Score
BEST 158
134
PhoneArena Photo Score
BEST 165
143
Main (wide)
BEST 87
73
Zoom
BEST 29
20
Ultra-wide
BEST 26
22
Selfie
BEST 30
28
PhoneArena Video Score
BEST 155
126
Main (wide)
BEST 83
67
Zoom
BEST 27
14
Ultra-wide
BEST 24
19
Selfie
BEST 28
25
With a cumulative score of 134 points, things are looking pretty good for the Pixel 9a!
Find out more details about photo and video scores for all phones we have tested on our PhoneArena Camera Score page
As evident in the table above, the Pixel performs well against some of its rivals in the same price class, like the iPhone 16e and the Galaxy A56 5G, and is just slightly less impressive than the flagship Pixel 9, which is a great achievement for the $499 Pixel 9a.
The affordable Pixel impresses in the still photo test, where it achieves 143 points versus 153 for the Pixel 9, 128 for the iPhone 16e, and 131 points for the Galaxy A56. The video result is also fairly good: 126 points are nothing to sneeze at, considering that the Pixel 9 has achieved 136 points, the iPhone 16e just 107 points, and the Galaxy A56 some 113 points.
Interestingly, the older Pixel 8a achieves a similar camera score in our tests, which speaks of a rare intergenerational synergy.
Overall, the camera is a pleasant surprise, hitting way above its pay grade.
Google Pixel 9a camera spider chart
Pros
Excellent image quality despite the fairly lackluster hardware
Good sharpness and excellent fine details
Lossless 2X camera zoom mode
Cons
Some oversharpening artifacts in the finer details
While lovely, most colors aren't very true-to-life
Slightly flatter look without much contrast
No HDR or portrait preview in the viewfinder
Main camera
The main camera of the Pixel 9a delivers excellent images with superb dynamic range and colors that are vivid enough to be likeable. Details are pretty decent, but there are some oversharpening artifacts visible when you zoom in. The signature flatter Pixel looks here, as the algorithms are working overtime to bring down the highlights and boost the shadows so that everything is well-exposed.
The Pixel does a mighty fine job zooming in, despite the lack of a dedicated camera up for the task. Thank the large 48MP main sensor for that. Images are perfectly usable at up to 4X, though zooming in after that doesn't necessarily deliver great results.
Ultrawide camera
The Pixel 9a boasts a very decent utlrawide camera, especially when you compare it against its rivals at this price point. We get excellent detail and macro capabilities here, but once again some oversharpening artifacts.
Selfies
Selfies aren't okay, but the Pixel 9a traditionally applies some really heavy post-processing with the goal of exposing faces better, which doesn't always look too great. The selfie camera isn't particularly keen on shadows anywhere on the face of the subject, so it tries hard to overexpose those. Detail is sharp, though, but the colors are a personal preference.
Video
When it comes to videos, the Pixel 9a can take up to 4K@60fps videos, and those usually come pretty detailed and with an overall style that's pretty much identical to what a regular Pixel 9 flagship would deliver.
The footage sometimes feels a bit flat and lacking some contrast, but you will only notice that if you compare the Pixel 9a with a Pixel 9 next to it. There's some oversharpening visible here as well, but nothing too drastic, mind you.
The ultrawide and digital 2X zoom modes deliver decent sharpness in videos. The front camera delivers very decent results, too, with lots of detail and good dynamic range.
Conclusion
The Pixel 9a is an absolute win when it comes to image quality and camera performance. It surely punches way above its weight and doesn't hesitate to best phones with more impressive camera setups that cost way, way more.
Of course, there are some issues present, which can be easily linked to Google's sometimes overbearing post-processing that can potentially ruin the realism in certain shots. The slight oversharpening is a common theme with most cameras and camera modes here.
But looking past that and considering the $499 starting price of this phone, it offers A LOT of camera.
Peter, an experienced tech enthusiast at PhoneArena, is captivated by all things mobile. His impartial reviews and proficiency in Android systems offer readers valuable insights. Off-duty, he delves into the latest cryptocurrency trends and enjoys sci-fi and video games.
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