iPhone vs Pixel 9a

Tom's Guide

@paulAntill  swapped his $1,000 iPhone 16 Pro for Google’s new $499 Pixel 9a—and used it as his daily phone for the past few weeks. Here’s what it was like to leave the Apple ecosystem, whether the Pixel 9a’s AI features and clean Android experience held up, and what really matters when choosing your best phone.  Spoiler: There’s a lot to love about the 9a… but also a few things that reminded him why he’s still tied to his iPhone.

Transcript

00:00Can the $500 Pixel 9a really replace my iPhone 16 Pro

00:04that costs twice as much?

00:06Everyone's already been comparing this

00:07to Apple's budget iPhone 16e,

00:10but I wanted to see how it holds up against

00:12what I think is actually the best iPhone you can buy today.

00:15For context, I used to be all in on Google phones.

00:17I've owned every Pixel from the OG to the Pixel 5

00:20until I made the switch to the iPhone 11

00:22and I've stuck with Apple ever since.

00:24So I figured it was time to go back to my roots.

00:26I put down my 16 Pro

00:28and ideally the Pixel 9a for a few weeks straight.

00:31And sure, comparing a mid-range Android phone

00:33to a flagship iPhone isn't exactly Apple's to Pixels,

00:37but with phone prices climbing and budgets getting tighter,

00:40the gap between the two tiers is way closer than you think.

00:43And spoiler, the Pixel 9a is a way better phone

00:46than I expected.

00:49If there's one thing Google's proven over the years,

00:51it's that budget phones don't have to settle

00:53for junky displays.

00:54I'm looking at you, 16e.

00:56Both the Pixel 9a and the 16 Pro rock a 6.3-inch 120Hz screen

01:01and side by side, they look just as sharp and vibrant.

01:04Honestly though, I'd give the edge to the 9a,

01:07mainly because of its higher peak brightness when outdoors.

01:10Really, the only giveaway that the 9a isn't a flagship

01:13is the slightly thicker bezels you get.

01:15And even then, I couldn't care less

01:18when the screen itself looks this good.

01:20In fact, I'd argue that the 9a looks more premium at a glance.

01:24The punch hole camera cutout is smaller

01:26and way less distracting, which made shows

01:28and full screen apps feel noticeably more immersive.

01:31Meanwhile, Apple's dynamic island, yeah, let's be real,

01:35it's never been some groundbreaking feature.

01:37Face ID still needs somewhere to live after all.

01:39Anyway, Google also cleaned up the 9a's design

01:42in another really big way.

01:44The camera bump, it's gone, finally.

01:48Now the back is basically flush and I'm here for it,

01:51especially since it gives us a really nice boost

01:53to battery capacity.

01:55It might be a budget phone, but it's simple, clean design

01:58actually makes the 9a my favorite looking phone of 2025 so far.

02:03Maybe it's just me, but the iPhone's camera bump,

02:05it's long overstayed its welcome.

02:07Apple, it's time for a facelift.

02:10But a great design doesn't mean much

02:14if the software driving it gets in the way.

02:16The day-to-day experience between Android 15 and iOS 18

02:20feels way closer than it used to.

02:22Now that iOS has fully embraced widgets

02:24and added a decent amount of customization,

02:26you're no longer completely stuck in Apple's walled garden,

02:30at least not the way you used to.

02:32A lot of iOS's newer features definitely feel

02:35like they were inspired by Android.

02:37It was around this point where I realized

02:39that iOS has come a really long way.

02:42There were really only a few iOS exclusives

02:44that I genuinely missed, Apple News being the big one.

02:47Beyond that though, pretty much everything else I used

02:50had a native Android app,

02:52which isn't something I could have said five years ago.

02:54Now here's a cool thing that I completely forgot Android had.

02:57When you're in your maps, if you minimize it,

03:00you actually get a widget overlay.

03:02That way you can continue to use your phone

03:04and still have your turn-by-turn directions.

03:07That's one feature I wish Apple would steal from Android.

03:10Of course, I can't bring up iOS

03:11without mentioning iMessage, AirDrop, and continuity,

03:15especially when you're also using it

03:16with an iPad or a MacBook.

03:19Not being able to seamlessly share files, reply to text,

03:22or even copy and paste simple links

03:24between my Pixel 9a and my other devices.

03:27At that point, I just wasn't sure I was gonna make it

03:29through this challenge.

03:30But here's where the Pixel really had a chance to win me back.

03:35The Pixel 9a comes loaded with genuinely useful AI features.

03:40And it's not just gimmicks or half-baked promises.

03:43Circle to Search is the MVP.

03:46You can literally draw a circle around anything on your screen,

03:49a video you're watching, a text you can't read,

03:51and boom, instant Google results.

03:54It's a fun and easy way to learn more about the content on screen

03:58without needing to switch out of my app.

04:00Call screen is still criminally underrated too,

04:03and I didn't realize how much I missed it

04:05when I gave up my Pixel years ago.

04:07When an unknown number rings the phone can pick up for you,

04:10you can just watch a live transcript of the call

04:13as it's happening.

04:14It's the perfect way to dodge spam, and to be fair,

04:16a lot of those awkward conversations

04:18that I just don't feel like having at that moment,

04:20and I love that feature.

04:21And then there's my surprise favorite, Gemini.

04:24I used it way more than I thought I would.

04:27It's not just a voice assistant,

04:28it's like having a full-on smart helper

04:30that you can talk to naturally, ask follow-up questions,

04:34and even have it describe what it's looking at

04:36with your Pixel's rear camera.

04:38What tree am I looking at?

04:39Wow, that's a beautiful cherry blossom tree.

04:43Are you wondering about the specific type of cherry blossom,

04:46or do you have something else in mind?

04:47When does it bloom?

04:49It's blooming right now.

04:50Kwanzaan cherry trees usually bloom in mid-spring.

04:53Even for simpler stuff like asking for a restaurant recommendation

04:57the other day, Gemini didn't just spit out a list.

05:00It gave me actual context to help me decide where to go.

05:04Find me a good Japanese barbecue restaurant near 42nd Street

05:08that's not too expensive.

05:10I found two Japanese barbecue restaurants near 42nd Street

05:14that fit your criteria.

05:16Gyukaku Japanese Barbecue.

05:18This restaurant is praised for its high-quality meats,

05:21exceptional service, and overall amazing experience.

05:24So let's see how well Siri can do.

05:26Siri does give me the same result,

05:28but it only gives me one option.

05:30Doesn't give me the whole little backstory and context

05:32if I wanted to learn a little bit more.

05:33If someone's maybe a little bit pickier

05:35or isn't familiar with the restaurant,

05:38this isn't as detailed as I'd like.

05:40And it's not just that Siri's responses

05:42felt more basic in comparison.

05:44Gemini quickly and reliably gave me the info I wanted,

05:48so much so that it became the smarter way to find things,

05:52instead of just bouncing between Maps, Yelp,

05:54and a bunch of other browser tabs.

05:56And if you're curious just how far Pixel's AI has come,

06:00including all the crazy stuff like photo editing

06:02and generative art, you can check my full deep dive,

06:06link below.

06:08If you know me, you know that I'm all about cameras.

06:11As someone who shoots a ton of content for work,

06:13any phone I carry has to be a powerhouse

06:15for both photos and videos.

06:17So how does this year's budget Pixel stack up?

06:20The Pixel 9a has a really solid dual camera system,

06:23and in daylight, it absolutely holds its own.

06:26Photos and videos come out sharp,

06:28even in tough high-contrast scenes,

06:29and for the most part, I didn't have any major complaints.

06:32Portrait mode is good,

06:34but when you put it side-by-side with the 16 Pro,

06:37you don't quite get that same depth of field.

06:40Telephoto performance is where things get

06:42a little bit more interesting, though.

06:44Because the iPhone 16 Pro does have that dedicated

06:47five times 12-megapixel telephoto lens,

06:49it does take the lead.

06:51Although, at similar zoom levels and good lighting,

06:53the Pixel 9a isn't too far behind.

06:56When you start Pixel peeping, yes,

06:57the iPhone definitely shows more detail

06:59and better depth of field,

07:01and you can see where the 9a is actually leaning

07:03on software magic to sharpen things up.

07:05But still, it's impressive how far

07:07Google's computational photography has come.

07:10Once the lights go down, though,

07:11it's a different story.

07:13The 9a starts to show its limits even more.

07:16And if I wasn't standing perfectly still,

07:17shots would get blurry really fast.

07:20That carries over into video, too,

07:22where the 16 Pro easily takes the win.

07:25It's got better stabilization,

07:26especially with its telephoto lens,

07:29better dynamic range and harsh lighting,

07:31and much cleaner, less jittery low-light footage.

07:34I might do a blind test soon

07:35just to see how close these phones can look

07:38in the same conditions,

07:39but if cameras are your top priority,

07:41the Pixel 9a is still a very much good

07:44for the price option,

07:45just not the iPhone 16 killer you thought it might be.

07:48So a few weeks in,

07:52what was replacing my iPhone 16 Pro

07:54with the Pixel 9a like?

07:56Honestly, it revealed a lot.

07:57First, the Pixel 9a is an insanely good value.

08:01I got flagship-level performance,

08:03an arguably better display,

08:04especially for outdoors,

08:05and AI tools that I actually wanted to use,

08:08all for $500.

08:10And that's before any of the promos

08:11or discounts that we frequently see.

08:14It reminded me why I love the Pixel series

08:16and got hooked on it in the first place.

08:18And for a lot of people,

08:19this is hands down the phone you should buy today.

08:22But has it fully won me back?

08:25Not quite.

08:25And that's not because the Pixel 9a isn't good enough,

08:28because for its price, it's absolutely stellar.

08:30Ultimately, this whole challenge showed me

08:32that it's not really about hardware or even software

08:35that keeps me loyal to my iPhone.

08:37It's the ecosystem.

08:38And it's that ecosystem that more than makes up

08:40for the underwhelming Siri

08:42and honestly what feels like a few years

08:44without any real invasion on iPhone's front.

08:46All that to say, the Pixel 9a made a lasting impression,

08:49especially with its genuinely useful Gemini features,

08:52which yeah, I'm gonna miss

08:54when I switch back to my iPhone.

08:56At its budget price point,

08:57this phone offers a lot for $500.

09:00But what do you think?

09:01Could you ever make the switch?

09:02Let me know in the comments below.

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09:14And that's a wrap.

09:15Stay tuned for more tech goodness.

09:17And until the next one, I'll catch you later.

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