Google is expected to launch the budget Pixel 8a during Google I/O 2024 on May 14, 2024. While the smartphone has not been officially announced, plenty of rumors have already given us an idea of what to expect.
Thanks to an exclusive report from Android Headlines, a couple of additional critical details regarding the Pixel 8a have surfaced, reportedly the budget phone will get an updated AI Camera and 7 years of security update support.
7 years of updates
The Google Pixel 7a came with "at least five years" of software security updates, making it a budget smartphone you could hold onto for quite some time without worrying about hacks or software vulnerabilities putting your data at risk. However, according to this rumor, the Pixel 8a will receive seven years of security updates, giving two additional years over the Pixel 7a.
This alone may make the Google Pixel 8a our best smartphone for most users when it launches later this month. It's important to note that this isn't quite as good as the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro, which get seven years of security updates and seven years of OS updates. Security updates are the more important of the two though, particularly on Android where many feature updates come from app updates rather than OS updates.
The Pixel 8a will also come with Google One VPN, which seems odd as the software is scheduled for sunsetting in June. It will also be certified with an IP67 rating for dust and water resistance.
AI Camera features
As reported by Android Headlines, "With the Pixel 8a, Google is touting the “AI-mazing” Camera on the phone. Giving it features like Audio Magic Eraser, Night Sight, and Best Take." The Pixel 7a already had access to Google's Night Sight feature and a version of Best Take. Audio Magic Eraser was a new feature added to the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro last fall.
Per Android Headlines's report, the Pixel 8a will also come with Call Assist, email summaries, and Circle to Search features for general productivity support. The exclusive also confirms that the Pixel 8a will run on Google's Tensor G3 chipset platform.
We shouldn't have to wait much longer to find out if this report was right, Google I/O 2024 is just a couple of weeks away, so stay tuned and we'll bring you the latest on the Pixel 8a and everything else Google may have to announce at I/O.
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