The price of the now-discontinued Pixel 4 dropped to $550 yesterday and I considered letting you know. That was, until I realized the Pixel 4 XL wasn’t seeing the same discount, remembered the two reviews I wrote ripping the smaller Pixel 4 to shreds, and thought it would be better to remind you that the Pixel 4a is coming in 10 days.
Seriously, don’t buy the Pixel 4. Don’t look at the current $250 discount and think, “Man, that might be worth it!” It’s not going to be worth it. The regular Pixel 4 was never a good phone and won’t be for the next few years even as Google pushes updates to it.
The battery life is still atrocious. The lack of a fingerprint reader is a bit of a nuisance. The display on it is pretty average. Sure, the software is excellent and receiving updates for three years will be nice, but trust me, as someone who has used the phone for extended periods of time on several occasions, this is not the phone for you.
Wait 10 days and buy the Pixel 4a. The Pixel 4a might lack the processing chops of the Pixel 4 and the 90Hz display, but it has a really solid single camera experience (with astrophotography!), far better battery life, a better front design with more display and less bezel, a super fast rear fingerprint reader, headphone jack, and it’ll only cost you $350. This is the Google phone for those looking to save a few bucks.
If you want the flagship from Google, which (again) has been discontinued in less than a year, go with the Pixel 4 XL if it ever gets another steep discount. It’s a mostly good phone that will get you through a couple of years, just avoid the smaller one.
Got it?
Pre-order Pixel 4a: Amazon | Best Buy | Google Store
Is the 4a an upgrade from the 3? My camera lenses cover is busted but debating waiting for the Pixel 5
No IP Rating is a problem. I’ve had heavy rain kill 2 phones.
Don’t choose a phone by it’s IP rating. Last week, my 4 month old 4XL was submerged in 2″ of water for 30 seconds and died. Google had me have it inspected by UbreakIFix whom said it’s has water damage and it’s not warrantable despite their IP68 rating. That’s BS.
No company offers water damage under warranty. Fine print says phone is water resistant not waterproof but 2 inches of fresh water shouldn’t kill it unless it had been repaired before and the seal was broken
Meanwhile my OG Droid survived heavy rain and beer being spilled directly on it and my Note 2 survived falling out of my pocket while running through a torrential rain storm and sat submerged in water for at least 15 mins before I realized it was gone and went back for it. Both cases the speakers were clogged and the camera lens fogged up, but it all dried out after a day or so and was 100% fine afterwards. I may have got lucky, but since then I haven’t cared much about water resistance or at the very least am fine with any non-IP rated water resistance.
Which one has better water resistance? That’s what matters to me. In this case, that means I’ll be waiting for the 5.
The best this trillion dollar hardware/software company called Google has to offer is a $350 budget phone that isn’t even out yet. Got it.
Or, “if you want the flagship from Google” wait until October for the Pixel 5 to (hopefully) be available, and then see how the 4a stacks up.
I wish that was the case. Pixel 5 = midrange processor, no XL model . . . unfortunately, it sounds like Google is moving away from flagship specs and leaving me behind. We have 5 Pixel XLs (various models) in my immediate family. Have owned every Pixel model and a couple of Nexus. I will kick the tires on the Pixel 5, but likely will go with another phone with true flagship specs and a near native android experience. Maybe a OnePlus?
Nothing is confirmed…and it’s rumored that the pixel 5 will be a big phone I think 6.5 inches anyway just no xl branding .
Just bought the 4xl thru republic wireless for $500 plus lots of shipping and tax. Saw this post and a little nervous I missed something better. Hope the phone will get me until the 5 can be properly vetted to see which is better, or until the 6. Hoping for the best. Coming from a 2 xl, I was unsure about the benefit of a step up to the 4a.
Yes return it and get the 4a. The screen is . 2 inches smaller and had a better screen to body ratio and it’s new so you’ll have a guarantee of 3 years of updates..
The 4xl has a 6.3″ screen. The 4a has a 5.8″ quite a difference
My mistake. And that’s really not a big difference. Especially for the more pocketable size of the 4a with a screen that is only .5 inches smaller. But don’t take my word for it. Ask Kellen!
What about the processing difference? And the extra lens? I intend to do macro photography and some macro video. I don’t know if there will be a big difference in processing power between the 2xl and 4a