Google Pixel 5 and 4A 5G: Which should you buy? By CNET

Google just released two new phones, the pixel 5 and the Pixel 4a with 5g, but they're more similar than you might think. So, let's break down the differences and work out which one is right for you. After the missteps of the pixel 4 from last year, Google has gone back to the drawing board and reworked the pixel 5. So that means that the look and feel is more similar to the previous pixel phones than the pixel 4. The fingerprint reader around the back has returned, and the OLED display now has a hole, punch camera in it much more similar to the Pixel 4a that was released a few months ago and the bezels are reduced pretty significantly. So this means that there are now three main pixel phones available to buy from Google's lineup.

There is the 349 Pixel 4a. There is the 500 Pixel 4a with 5g, and then there is the pixel 5 which comes in at 700 us dollars. So comparing the pixel 5 and the Pixel 4a with 5g on paper, there doesn't seem to be too much of a difference between them. So, for starters, they both use the same snapdragon, 765g processor they'll both have 128 gigabytes of on-board storage as well. The displays are slightly different, although they are both full HD plus.

The pixel 5 has a six-inch display, whereas the Pixel 4a with 5g is actually a little bigger at 6.2 inches. Now. The key difference, apart from that size, is that the pixel 5 display is 90 hertz, whereas the 4a with 5g it's getting clumsy kind of cheap, saying that, but that's the name of the phone that one is 60 hertz. The pixel 5 also has more ram. It has 8 gigabytes compared to 6 gigabytes on the 4a 5g, and the construction of the body is different as well, even though they look fairly similar.

The pixel 5 is an aluminum finish or aluminum, as I like to say, and it has an IP rating of ip68, so it does have some water resistance on board, whereas the 4a 5g is a polycarbonate or plastic body and there isn't any water resistance on board. Plus, there is no gorilla glass coating, or at least not gorilla. Glass 6, like the pixel 5, has the pixel 5 also comes with wireless charging, as well as reverse wireless charging. So you can charge things like your headphones from the back of the phone. The battery capacity is slightly different.

The pixel 5 is slightly higher than the Pixel 4a 5g, but both of them do have a power saving mode that promises to extend the battery life up to 48 hours. If you turn it on, but guess what the Pixel 4a 5g in this crazy gear, that is, 2020 comes with a headphone jack, which is a nice addition. We thought they went the way of the dodo, so it really seems like there is just a key few differences between the two, whether they are worth 200 to upgrade to the pixel.5 is a question that only you will be able to answer, but really the key differences that the 200 extra gives. You are a slightly higher capacity battery, a 90, hertz, refresh rate screen and a little more ram because as I'll talk about now, the rest of the features are very, very similar. The hardware of the camera specifically is pretty much identical between the two phones.

Both of them have two rear cameras, a 12, megapixel, wide angle lens and a 16 megapixel ultra-wide angle. At the back, the front camera is an 8 megapixel, selfie camera on both and the field of view is a little more narrow than the previous pixel phones. So the hardware identical the software itself, also identical when it comes to the camera side of things. Both of them will have the same. Pixel camera features that you're used to including night sight with macrophotography mode portrait mode.

The video recording obviously and super resume, as well as some extra features that is being thrown into the pixel line now to help boost the camera quality. The first is the improvements to portrait mode, so portrait mode will now be able to be able to take photos in low light in night sight mode, and there will also be a way to help boost the backlit subject so make sure that they have the most light on them. You can adjust this setting after the fact, as well retroactively for a lot of your photos within google photos. The HDR plus mode has also been improved. This is google's high dynamic range mode.

It now uses a technique called bracketing to also include the exposures over and under the meter, to help produce what google says will be more vivid and vibrant shots. Video recording is also getting a new super, steady stabilization and panning feature that will make it look supposedly a little more cinematic and the clips that we've seen from Google giving us samples looks pretty impressive now to store all these photos and videos. It's pretty important that you get some sort of storage included. Now it's no longer the Google photos, unlimited high-res storage, because that was dropped with the pixel 4. Instead, it's now three months, free of google one which gives you on top of some other things.100 gigabytes of storage and both of the phones are 5g. Despite the Pixel 4a only having 5g in its name and the pixel 5.

Not don't worry. These are both 5g, capable phones. Some other software features that they share include the new hold for me function, which is the Google Assistant waiting on hold until someone picks up on the other end that one sounds pretty useful. Both of the phones have two different and distinct color options. The pixel 5 will have a black and a sage or a green finish, and the Pixel 4a with 5g will be in a black or a white, so both of the phones are available to pre-order now from Google's website and availability is going to start from the end of October.

So those are the specs on paper, and we'll have to wait and see if it looks like the Pixel 4a 5g is actually the better value at least right now, looking at the specs, it looks like it is, but the real proof will be when we get the units in hand to see how they perform now. The other question you might be asking yourself is: is it worth upgrading from the pixel 4 now, if you want the more traditional pixel design with the fingerprint reader around the back, and you weren't a fan of the tools within the pixel 4, such as project solely which was the motion sensing tool that was really primarily used to do things to avoid touching your phone like changing tracks. However, that was a little buggy overall, and you don't need the facial unlocking technology, then maybe the pixel 5 is a significant upgrade and especially if you want the ultra-wide angle lens that might be worth it for you, but the pixel 4 also has a 90 hertz, refresh rate screen. So if you're just looking for display and performance, then maybe it's not worth the upgrade thanks for watching. I hope this video has helped break down the differences between the 4a 5g and the pixel 5 to see if it's worth upgrading for you and which one to choose stay tuned, because we'll have lots more comparisons and google coverage for you here on CNET.

Source : CNET