Much like the potential upgrade path from the Pixel 4 series to the Pixel 5, suggesting that someone shoul09d “upgrade” from the Pixel 3a to the Pixel 4a is a bit silly. Despite maybe being a little overdue, we’re here to examine whether this might be something to consider for those shopping for a new smartphone on a budget.

At the bottom end of the smartphone spectrum, the lower you go, the more features you tend to lose — something even more pronounced in the US market where solid, affordable smartphones are harder to come by without many of the big Chinese brands to contend with.

With the Pixel 4a coming much later in the year than expected, the actual time between its release and that of the Pixel 3a makes things a little more complicated. The Pixel 3a released at I/O in May 2019, and it wasn’t until August 2020 that its successor was quietly unveiled with little to no fanfare. While we don’t suggest upgrading after such a short space of time due to increased E-waste, a lot can change in 15 or so months.

You might be looking at the $350 Pixel and wondering if it’s a solid follow-on for a slightly battered and bruised Pixel 3a. Let’s go over the specifics and help you decide. In the interest of fairness, the Pixel 4a 5G might technically be part of the Pixel 4a series, but it straddles the fence with both the Pixel 4a and the Pixel 5 – we’ll likely compare them directly at a later date.

Video — Google Pixel 3a vs. Pixel 4a: Worth the upgrade?

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Hardware

This might be a bit of an unfair comparison from the outset, as the lack of Pixel 4a XL means that fans of large, affordable Pixel devices will have to bump up their budget and grab the Pixel 4a 5G instead. At $499, the Pixel 4a 5G fits a slightly different niche, and with a faster chipset means it’s not quite in the same league and would be an obvious winner in almost every regard.

In summary, the Pixel 3a and 4a don’t differ quite as much as you might have thought. The upgrades have been made in just the right areas. Upping the RAM from 4 to 6GB will really help with longevity, while the faster storage is a real tangible bonus for performance levels. Increasing the available storage from 64 to 128GB is something that will likely make a lot more difference than you might think.

The Qualcomm Snapdragon 730G provides around a 40% bump in performance over the Snapdragon 670. I can’t imagine that will be immediately noticeable. It’s the improved UFS 2.1 storage and increased RAM that will make the most difference, but it might not necessarily be immediately noticeable in general day-to-day apps and basic texting, calling, browsing, and whatnot. Gaming is an area in which the Pixel 4a should provide a decent bump over the Pixel 3a and 3a XL.

You can see that the Pixel 4a leaves behind the design language first introduced with the Pixel 2 — and continued with the 3 and 3a. The polycarbonate unibody has a fully matte finish, which should age much better than the glossy two-tone Pixel 3a. You’ll also notice the Pixel 4a camera bump is now larger and has taken some design cues from the Pixel 4 — albeit without the extra lens.

It’s the display where the most prominent changes are apparent, as the Pixel 3a and 3a XL include substantial bezels on all sides. The forehead and chin aren’t totally eradicated on the Pixel 4a, but the upper-left punch hole notch and reduced bezels on all sides mean that you get a larger display in a smaller form factor.

There’s a bump from the Dragontrail Glass used on the Pixel 3a to Gorilla Glass 3 on the Pixel 4a. However, the FHD+ resolution returns, as does the 60Hz refresh rate. It’s a series of modest hardware improvements but only if you’re willing to give up the larger form factor option.