Here's why you should be excited about the possibility of Pixel 4a launching in India

Pixel 4

Google did not release the Pixel 4 in India, primarily due to the tech behind Motion Sense — Project Soli. While the Google flagship for 2019 did not hit the Indian shores, fans can hope for the Pixel 4a’s launch in India, here’s why.

A modern design language

Our colleagues and other people, in general, often complained that the Pixel 3a ‘doesn’t look like a Rs 40,000’ smartphone. Recently, image renders of Pixel 4a were uploaded online by a credible tipster. These images reveal what is an altogether a smartphone that looks very up-to-date. And the first-look itself gives us some hope that the Pixel 4a is coming to India.

The Pixel 4a will reportedly feature a marginally bigger 5.7 or a 5.8-inch display. But that’s not the reason why we say it looks up-to-date. According to the leaked renders, Google would opt for a punch-hole display that would be placed on the top-left corner. This also means that there wouldn’t be thick bezels above and below the display, unlike the Pixel 3a (Review) that came with a chunky head and chin bezel.

The absence of these bezels also hints the absence of the Project Soli chip used for Motion sense, one of the primary reasons why the Pixel 4 did not come to India. 

The ace camera of the Pixel 4

One of the few things we really loved about the Pixel 3a (Review) is its camera. The more-affordable and watered-down Pixel 3a came with the same camera found on its premium sibling. The leaked renders show that Google Pixel 4a will have the same camera module design as the Pixel 4, but will house a single lens. 

Keeping in mind what Google did last year, we can expect the Pixel 4a to feature a 12.2MP single rear camera sensor. The camera, in combination with Google’s bag of tricks on the software front, can click amazing pictures. Maybe that’s what the ‘a’ in Pixel 3a and Pixel 4a stands for - amazing.

Better battery life

Amongst the list of complaints made by Pixel 4 users online is the battery life. The smaller Pixel 4 comes with a 2,800 mAh battery, whereas the taller Pixel 4 XL gets a 3,800 mAh battery. Since Pixel 4 did not come to India, we cannot test the claim. However, considering Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor’s power requirements, it is safe to say that the Pixel 4 would struggle to stay up for even a complete workday.

The Pixel 4a is likely to get powered by a Snapdragon 730 or the latest Snapdragon 765 processor in the unlikely event of getting support for 5G. Snapdragon 7xx series is known to offer a balance between performance and battery life. During our Pixel 3a review, we had a similar experience when it came to battery life with the Snapdragon 670 and a 3,000 mAh battery. 

So when is the Pixel 4a launching?

There isn’t an exact date yet for the Pixel 4a launch. However, we can expect Google to launch the Pixel 4a in May or June when the company hosts the Google I/O conference. Based on these initial leaks, we cross our fingers and speculate that the Pixel 4a will come to India following the US launch.