Google’s Pixel 3a is Coming Soon

You may have been hearing (i.e. being teased) for awhile now that Google’s midrange Pixel 3 devices are coming out this year. Well, some Reddit techies were able to find some hidden device profiles in the Google Play Console that indicate it’s really here. Or at least, will be here, sometime this year. In the next few months. For sure.

The big tell is that these phones are listed as “midyear experiences,” indicating that Google intends to launch them sometime soon, perhaps at its I/O developer conference in May. At a higher level, it indicates that Google could be introducing a new rhythm to its release cadence for Pixel devices, with a midrange refresh slotted right in the middle of the standard 12-month cycle it’s copied from Apple, Samsung, and others.

According to the Google spec sheets, both will feature 4GB of RAM and nearly identical displays, although Sargo appears to have a slight bump in resolution (from 1080 x 2160 to 1080 x 2220) and an increase in DPI from 400 to 440. Given those numbers, 9to5Google is speculating that Sargo is the smaller of the two devices with a 5.6-inch display, while Bonito is the larger 6-inch one, despite the aquatic naming scheme seeming to suggest otherwise.

Over the last few months, a ton of details about these phones have leaked out, primarily thanks to 9to5Google and XDA-developers. Both had a hand in corroborating that the device names are likely not “lite” variants on the traditional Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL, but instead will be released as the Pixel 3a and 3a XL. It also appears that both will feature OLED panels, a Snapdragon 670 processor, a 12-megapixel rear-facing camera, and a 3,000 mAh battery.

It’s certainly no surprise that Google may want to tap into a larger market that goes beyond the high-end flagship level, where Apple and Samsung dominate. But the timing window is a tricky one here, and doesn’t leave Google a lot of room to make this announcement and properly market where these phones fit into its lineup if it’s going to turn around and announce a whole new flagship refresh a few months later. Typically, Google launches it’s next gen models in October, which would likely be Pixel 4’s release date. So they’ve got to release the midrange now, or risk competing with…themselves.

That said, there could be a big market for the stock Android experience combined with Google’s stellar hardware design and software camera chops, all in a more affordable package. If the price is low enough, it may not matter what the Pixel 4 looks like or how cheap the Pixel 3 or even the Pixel 2 becomes after October.

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