Google Pixel 7a review

Design, build quality, handling

The Pixel 7a follows in the footsteps of the more expensive Pixel Sevens with its design, abandoning the previous a-series generation's styling. So, gone are the two-tone back panel and the always-black visor, replaced by a single color for both 'pieces' of the rear panel and camera strip in a complimentary hue.

Snow Google Pixel 7a (left) next to Obsidian Pixel 7

The 7a does come in a few different colorways compared to the 7, though the Snow one from the above photo is shared. The 'black' version here is called Charcoal and is a few shades lighter than the Obsidian of the 7. Instead of the 'green' Lemongrass of the 7, the 7a comes in a 'blue' Sea colorway, as seen on our review unit. And while all three of the above variants of the 7a are available on Google's website and at third-party retailers, an extra fourth colorway called Coral is exclusive to Google's own store.

Now, while the 7a's back looks just like the 7's, things are different here in a few ways. For one, the camera strip isn't made from one piece with the phone's midframe - it's still satin-finished aluminum, just attached to the rear cover. That rear cover is plastic, as opposed to the glass on the 7.

Glass vs. plastic is a material choice with pros and cons no matter which way you go, and among plastic's virtues is that it's less likely to shatter in the event of a drop. From that perspective, the clumsier types could find the 7a a more suitable match. Scratching is a whole different subject, of course, and not one where plastic does well.

Everyone will appreciate the dust and water resistance though, which may not be as good as the 7's but still pretty solid - the 7a is rated to survive down to 1m underwater for as long as 30mins and not the 7's 1.5m (that's the difference between IP67 and IP68).

While the material selection isn't a bad thing in itself and the 7a being plastic doesn't make it look any worse than the 7, there's something about the way the rear panel meets the frame that's less than ideal. Running your finger from the frame into the panel gives a slightly scratchy feel - it's not like it's going to hurt you, but it's a little weird.

The frame itself is still aluminum and has that non-glossy satin treatment - that's more or less the same as the Pixel 7 and unlike the 7 Pro's shiny rails. The physical controls are the same as on any recent Google phone and that means a reverse arrangement of the power key and volume rocker than pretty much any other phone - power above volume. Well, technically, that's not even a power key all by itself, but the Google Assistant button instead - it's just that we're old.

The buttons have a positive, if a bit stiff, click action. Their placement is such that they're always within easy reach for operation with either hand.

The frame has antenna lines that are symmetrical left to right, except for the bottom where there's just a single off-center one, to the right of the USB-C port.

The bottom is also home to a couple of mesh-covered slits, the right one serving as the bottom speaker's outlet while the left one is where the primary mic gets its input. The top features a lone mic pinhole, while the left side holds the card tray.

Bottom • Top • Left side with card tray

Making our way to the front of the Pixel 7a, we're greeted by the relatively small 6.1-inch display. What's immediately striking is how meaty the bezels around it are - sure, the compact screen does exaggerate their thickness, but they're not objectively thin to begin with. The Pixel 7's black borders are certainly slimmer.

We can't fault the Pixel 7a for its fingerprint reader placement - a good 4cm up into the display where your thumb would naturally fall. In our experience, it worked as fast and as reliably as on the 7 or 7 Pro. Perhaps the ultrasonic Galaxy readers are a bit better, but the 7a didn't leave us waiting for unlocks.

Both the 7 and 7a feature flat displays, so you can't pick one over the other based solely on that. But the 7a does try and make a case for itself looking from the standpoint of another usability aspect - it's the more compact handset.

That said, the 7a's whole pocketability advantage is more of a subjective perception. The biggest difference is in height where the 7a is less than 4 millimeters shorter. The 7a is barely narrower, and actually slightly thicker than the 7. You'd think that the 6.1" vs. 6.3" difference in display diagonal would translate into a more meaningful physical difference, but the bezels get in the way.

You can see how the two phones size up in our 3D Size compare tool by clicking the image below.

It's not meaningfully lighter either, the 7a. At 194g it's essentially the same weight as the 7 (197g). Compared to the 6a's 178g, the 7a is tangibly heavier and that's, in a way, a downgrade for the lineup - basically, there's no lightweight current Pixel anymore. And no - just because the 6a remains available, doesn't make it any less outdated.

We may have spiraled too harshly into criticism, and that may be unfair to the 7a. It still operates pretty decently with just one hand - a bit better than the 7. It's just not a big enough advantage to be considered a selling point itself.

The Pixel 7a's design leaves no doubt what lineup the handset belongs to and is both recognizable and appealing - to the right crowd, at least. The dust and water resistance is appreciated since it doesn't come guaranteed at this price, even though we've started seeing it more often. The bezels do rob the front of some poshness points and while it's still the shortest Pixel, it's not necessarily all that compact.