Should you get Google’s AI-powered Pixel 7a or wait for the Pixel 8a?

Google I/O 2024 takes place next month, but we already know what's on the agenda: AI, AI, AI, AI, and AI. There might be a few other announcements mixed in there though, like the upcoming Google Pixel 8a smartphone that the company will surely unveil. Should Android fans who want a new cheap smartphone wait for that model, though? Probably not.

Read our Google Pixel 7a review, and you'll see that the current-generation model is already a fantastic phone. It also has tons of great AI features thanks to the updates that Google has been rolling out recently. Plus, the Pixel 7a is currently on sale with a huge $150 discount at Amazon and Best Buy. That drops it to just $349, which is an incredible value. Meanwhile, the Google Pixel 8a is rumored to be getting a price hike that will be pretty substantial.

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Google's Pixel 6a was a fantastic Android phone. As a matter of fact, it still is — and it only costs $299.99 right now on Amazon. That seems like a steal, but why get this old model when you can score the Pixel 7a with all of its awesome AI features for just $50 more?

But the Pixel 7a is better in every way. It's basically a flagship Pixel 7 smartphone but for the price of a mid-range device. And right now, that mid-range price is down in "entry-level" territory thanks to a huge discount. You can currently score an AI-powered Google Pixel 7a for just $349 instead of $499, which is a massive 30% discount.

The Pixel Fold is cool, but the Pixel 7a was the true star of Google I/O last year. Here are the Google Pixel 7a specs highlights:

6.1-inch OLED display (429 ppi)

Under-display fingerprint reader

IP67 water/dust resistance

Google Tensor G2 octa-core chip

Mali-G710 MP7 GPU

128GB of UFS 3.1 storage

8GB of RAM

64-megapixel wide-angle main camera (rear)

13-megapixel 120-degree ultra-wide camera (rear)

13-megapixel selfie camera (front)

Stereo speakers

All that for $499 is unquestionably a bargain. But some people are unhappy becayse the new Pixel 7a was $50 more than the Pixel 6a was at launch. If that annoyed you, I have some even worse news: The Pixel 8a is almost definitely getting yet another price hike.

Sure, there will probably be a few new AI features announced at I/O 2024 that the Pixel 7a doesn't get. At least, not officially. If you want, you'll almost certainly be able to find simple workarounds that bring all of Google's latest and greatest AI features to the Pixel 7a. At just $349 for a factory unlocked Pixel 7a, it's definitely worth it.