Google’s next mid-range smartphone may be a little less mid-range thanks to a slight price hike. According to a report from 9to5Google, the upcoming Google Pixel 7a will be priced at $499, which is a $50 hike over the price of last year’s Pixel 6a.
But Google is said to be packing plenty of upgrades into the phone that could help justify the extra money. The Google Pixel 7a is expected to be officially announced during the Google I/O keynote on May 10, 2023, and it could go up for pre-order the same day and be widely available starting May 11th.
Details about the Pixel 7a have been leaking for months, and a Vietnamese website even posted a hands-on overview of the unreleased phone in March.
So we can already be pretty certain that the Pixel 7a will have the Same Google Tensor G2 processor as the pricier Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro, which will be an upgrade over the Tensor G1 in last year’s model.
Other upgrades are expected to include a 90 Hz display (up from 60 Hz), a 64MP primary camera (up from 12MP) and support for wireless charging.
While those upgrades alone probably help justify the price increase, it’s also probably worth noting that inflation may also play a role: $449 doesn’t typically buy quite as much in 2023 as it did in 2022.
According to another recent leak from Jon Prosser, Google will still have an option for folks that don’t want to drop $499 on a mid-range phone though: the Pixel 6a. Instead of discontinuing last year’s phone, Google will continue to sell it for some time, possibly at a discounted price.
Prosser also says Google will begin taking pre-orders for the long-anticipated Pixel Fold on May 10th, but that this phone won’t actually be available until June 27th, 2023.