Google officially took the wraps off its latest Pixel 3a and Pixel 3a XL at this year’s I/O conference a couple of days ago. While the two smartphones are great mid-range offerings for the international market, their marked-up Indian pricing is a little hard to swallow. The Pixel 3a XL (4/64GB) costs INR 44,999, which is about the same as what the Samsung Galaxy A80 (8/128GB) is expected to launch in India soon. If we were to look for a smartphone that is already available for purchase in India at that price, then we have the Honor View 20 (review). The View 20 actually costs INR 37,999 for its 6GB RAM +128GB storage model, while INR 45,999 will fetch you the 8GB RAM +256GB model – something worth considering since none of these phones offer microSD card support.
With pricing out of the way, let’s compare the rest of these phone’s specifications and features to see whether the Pixel smartphone has any chance of surviving in this fiercely competitive Indian smartphone market.
Google Pixel 3a XL vs Galaxy A80 vs Honor View 20: Design, Display
The Honor View 20 offers one of the most attractive rear panel designs we have seen in a recent smartphone. While the rear is still plastic, it exhibits mesmerizing V-shaped reflections that shift depending on how light fall on it. The phone also makes use of a sturdy aluminum frame. The 6.4-inch Full HD+ LCD on this phone is almost entirely bezel-less thanks the use of a punch hole selfie camera cutout. An added bonus here is the presence of an IR blaster.
The Galaxy A80 from Samsung stands out the most thanks to its swivel/pop-up camera that can be used for both rear photography and selfies. The back of the phone uses a Gorilla Glass 6 panel, the front gets Gorilla Glass 3, and both sandwich an aluminum frame. This phone offers a truly bezel-less viewing experience, and it also gets an in-screen fingerprint scanner. The display is AMOLED, measures 6.7-inches, and offers a Full HD+ resolution. One drawback here is the Galaxy A80 is the only phone here to not offer a 3.5mm headphone jack.
The Pixel 3a XL’s body, on the other hand, is plastic. It offers the same dual-tone design found on the standard Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL, along with a stereo speaker setup. However, we don’t see how Google can justify the enormous bezels at the front considering the bottom speaker has now been moved beside the charging port and fires downwards. The display is still OLED, offers a standard Full HD resolution, and measures 6-inches.
Google Pixel 3a XL vs Galaxy A80 vs Honor View 20: Camera
Google has indeed worked hard on to ensure its software imaging processing is just as good when compared to smartphones with larger resolution camera sensors and multi-sensor setups. The phone offers the same 12.2MP rear camera found on the flagship Pixel 3 phones. The front, however, now gets a single 8MP camera without the accompanying wide-angle sensor.
The most versatile photography can be had on the Galaxy A80 as its 48MP + 8MP (ultra-wide) + 3D TOF camera setup can also be used for selfies. The Honor View 20 gets a similar 48MP + 3D TOF setup at the back, while the front offers a 25MP selfie camera.
Google Pixel 3a XL vs Galaxy A80 vs Honor View 20: Performance, Software
The Honor View 20 gets the most powerful CPU here thanks to its flagship-grade Kirin 980 chipset. Next comes the Galaxy A80 with its Snapdragon 730 SoC. The Pixel 3a XL falls behind with its Snapdragon 670 chipset. Perhaps the only saving grace here for the Pixel phone is that it offers stock Android that will get comparatively faster updates and security patches for the next three years.
Google Pixel 3a XL vs Galaxy A80 vs Honor View 20: Battery Life
Both the Pixel 3a XL and Galaxy A80 get 3700mAh capacity batteries with 18W and 25W fast charging respectively. The Honor View 20, meanwhile, gets a 4000mAh battery that supports 18W fast charging as well. all three phones make use of USB Type-C ports for charging.
Google Pixel 3a XL vs Galaxy A80 vs Honor View 20: Verdict
Out of these three phones, the Honor View 20 offers the best value. Bonus features include the IR blaster and a punch-hole selfie camera. Then we have the Galaxy A80 that offers the wow-factor of a swivel camera. There is also the in-screen fingerprint scanner and the inclusion of a wide-angle camera. And let’s not forget that both these phones offer nearly bezel-less displays.
This reaffirms our doubts of the Pixel 3a XL being a terrible proposition because of its ridiculous pricing in India. Even for those looking for a clean Android One experience, there are plenty of more affordable options already available, with more on the way (Xiaomi Mi A3).
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