Google's Pixel 10a and the Annual Smartphone Upgrade Cycle
Google just launched the mid-tier Pixel 10a smartphone for $499 via a Google blog post. Techsponential will have a review unit in soon, but from the specs listed, the changes from the Pixel 9a are minor. The processor, screen size, battery size, and nearly everything else are either the same or extremely similar to last year’s Pixel 9a. There are slight changes in IP rating, Gorilla Glass, display brightness, and charging speeds.
The changes are so minor that leading tech YouTuber Marques Brownlee created a video (using the thumbnail from his Pixel 9a video) asking why even bother updating it? His conclusion, "that's just the way the industry works," and notes that Nothing is breaking the mold by NOT launching an annual flagship. That is the way the industry works (Nothing aside), and there's a reason for it: if you don't change the model -- even with just a bit faster charging, small durability improvements, and different colors -- you won't get the attention that a new model receives. This isn't just about generating a new MKBHD video -- though that certainly plays into the decision. It's also for Google's carrier retail partners who can show off the new phone to customers. Every sales rep should be getting updated training on the new phone's features. There may even be new promotions designed to attach to the launch of the new model.
Google also wants the Pixel 10 family to have a cohesive good-better-best-fold lineup. The "a" series that fills the "good" tier always launches six months later, so it would look particularly if the Pixel 9a is still sitting on the shelf next to the Pixel 11 when the 11 family launches this summer.
The real question is whether anyone should buy the Pixel 10a with only minor upgrades at the same price as last year's model. Marques' answer: yes - because of the software. So it certainly seems like Google's marketing and product management team made the right call by upgrading the phone, keeping pricing the same despite higher memory costs, and minimizing component upgrade costs elsewhere.
This report will be updated with additional analysis once I get hands on with the Pixel 10a.
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