Google’s new Pixel 10a just released, and personally, I have mixed feelings about it. Sure, the improvement over last year’s Pixel 9a is barely noticeable, and there may be better competitors in its price range, but there may just be some people this phone could be for, especially if you can get it at the right price. Before we get into that, let’s talk specifics on what has actually changed with the Pixel 10a since the last generation.
First of all, the charging speed of the 10a has increased over the 9a, from 23W to 45W, with wireless charging being bumped from 7.5W to 10W. The 10a has Satellite SOS functionality, while the 9a does not. Externally, the camera bump sits more flush with the rest of the phone, and the 10a uses Gorilla Glass 7i compared to Gorilla Glass 3. The phone is slightly lighter, smaller, and thicker (by a negligible amount), and its display is slightly brighter, increasing from 2,700 nits to 3,000. The bezels are ever so slightly thinner, and it supports Bluetooth 6.0 instead of 5.3. The consistent trend here is that all of the upgrades to this phone are very small, incremental upgrades over the last generation. The Tensor G4 processor has remained, as well as the 8GB of RAM, the dual camera system, the 6.3″ 1080×2424 OLED display (other than brightness), the 5,100mAh battery, and much more. If the average user was given both the Pixel 9a and 10a to daily drive, the two would be virtually indistinguishable.
However, just because the 10a hasn’t been upgraded much from the last generation, doesn’t mean that it’s a bad buy right now. The Pixel 9a was and still is a phone loved by many for its good value, having enough performance and then some for the average user, an amazing camera, and many flagship features as well like IP68 dust and water resistance, for a decent price, along with frequent Google Store promotions offering competitive discounts. The same goes for the Pixel 10a, namely said promotions offered by Google. Until 3/11 (I’m a bit late writing this, as there’s only two more days to claim the offer) you can get either $100 in Google Store credit or a pair of Pixel Buds 2a with your purchase. Many users who are not first-time Pixel users have been getting discounts, too, reporting getting coupons in their inboxes for $50, $100, and even $150 off the Pixel 10a.
These Pixel users are getting emailed seemingly at random, but after reading the testimonials of hundreds of users, your likelihood increases if you’re at the Gold tier or higher in their Google Play Points reward program. Gold tier users have also been getting emailed $400 off discount codes for the Google Pixel 10 Pro, which in my opinion is quite a steal, especially if you’re trading in your old Pixel phone, as Google is offering pretty inflated trade-in values right now.
So should you buy the new Pixel 10a? At its original price of $500, with no extra goodies like the store credit or the buds, no. There are other phones in the ~$500 price range that are better value than the 10a. You can get a refurbished Pixel 9 Pro, a refurbished Galaxy S25+, almost a brand new Galaxy S25 FE, and more. With that being said, it’s not the worst phone at $500. I would take it over a Galaxy A56 any day. I would simply hesitate to buy it at that price not only because of potentially better options in existence, but also because of the knowledge of how much cheaper it could have been. Google puts out constant discounts and offers for their phones, and users online are even sharing and trading their discount codes if you can’t get one yourself. But right now, as of 3/9/2026, I would say the Pixel 10a is a good enough deal simply because of the guaranteed Pixel Buds 2a or $100 in store credit. Despite barely having changed from the last generation, it offers great cameras, adequate performance, and just overall a functional phone that should meet all of your needs for a decent price. That’s all most of us really want or need from our phones these days, isn’t it?