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Nothing Phone (3a) vs Google Pixel 9a

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Nothing Phone (3a) vs Google Pixel 9a

69 out of 100
Nothing Phone (3a)
VS
77 out of 100
Google Pixel 9a
Nothing Phone (3a)
Google Pixel 9a

Here we compared two mid-range smartphones: the 6.77-inch Nothing Phone (3a) (with Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 3) that was released on March 4, 2025, against the Google Pixel 9a, which is powered by Google Tensor G4 and came out 1 month after. On this page, you will find tests, full specs, strengths, and weaknesses of each of the devices.

  1. Differences
  2. Review
  3. Specs
  4. Benchmarks
  5. Battery life
  6. Camera
  7. Comments

Key differences

An overview of the main advantages of each smartphone
Reasons to consider the Nothing Phone (3a)
  • The rear camera has a 2x optical zoom
  • Has 50% more RAM: 12GB versus 8GB
  • Newer Bluetooth version (v5.4)
  • Has a 0.47 inch larger screen size
  • Supports higher wattage charging (50W versus 23W)
  • Has 2 SIM card slots
Reasons to consider the Google Pixel 9a
  • Handles wireless charging up to 7.5W
  • Waterproof body (IP68 classification)
  • 34% better performance in AnTuTu Benchmark (991K versus 738K)
  • Faster storage type - UFS 3.1 versus UFS 2.2
  • 42% faster in single-core GeekBench 6 test: 1677 and 1178 points
  • The front-facing camera can record video at 4K
  • Ready for eSIM technology

Review

Evaluation of Nothing Phone (3a) and Google Pixel 9a crucial features
Display
Screen quality, color accuracy, brightness
Camera
Photo and video recording quality
Performance
CPU and memory performance (apps, system)
Gaming
Capabilities for playing modern games
Battery
Battery life, charging type and speed
Connectivity
Networks, ports, data transmission
Scores with a red asterisk (*) are approximate and may change in the future as we gather more data.
NanoReview Score
Final comparison evaluation
Choose the importance of each parameter to more accurately identify the smartphone that best meets your particular needs.

Tests and specifications

Comparison table of technical specifications and tests
Phone:
Phone (3a)
vs
Pixel 9a

Display

TypeAMOLEDPOLED
Size6.77 inches6.3 inches
Resolution1080 x 2392 pixels1080 x 2424 pixels
Aspect ratio - 20:9
PPI387 ppi422 ppi
Refresh rate120 Hz120 Hz
Adaptive refresh rateYes (60-120 Hz)Yes (60-120 Hz)
Max rated brightness1300 nits2700 nits
Max rated brightness in HDR3000 nits1800 nits
HDR supportYes, HDR10+Yes, HDR10+
Screen protectionPanda GlassCorning Gorilla Glass 3
Screen-to-body ratio88%84.5%
Display features - DCI-P3
- Always-On Display
- DC Dimming		 - DCI-P3
- Always-On Display
Peak brightness test (auto)
Phone (3a)
1271 nits
Pixel 9a
n/a

Design and build

Height163.52 mm (6.44 inches)154.7 mm (6.09 inches)
Width77.5 mm (3.05 inches)73.3 mm (2.89 inches)
Thickness8.35 mm (0.33 inches)8.9 mm (0.35 inches)
Weight201 g (7.09 oz)186 g (6.56 oz)
WaterproofIP64IP68
Advanced coolingVapor chamber -
Rear material - Plastic
Frame material - Metal
ColorsWhite, Black, BlueWhite, Black, Red, Purple
Fingerprint scannerYes, in-displayYes, in-display
Screen-to-body ratio

Performance

Tests of Nothing Phone (3a) and Google Pixel 9a in the benchmarks
SoC
ChipsetQualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 3Google Tensor G4
Max clock2500 MHz3100 MHz
CPU cores8 (1 + 3 + 4)8 (1 + 3 + 4)
Architecture- 4 cores at 1.8 GHz: Kryo Silver (Cortex-A520)
- 3 cores at 2.4 GHz: Kryo Gold (Cortex-A720)
- 1 core at 2.5 GHz: Kryo Prime (Cortex-A720)		- 4 cores at 1.92 GHz: Cortex-A520
- 3 cores at 2.6 GHz: Cortex-A720
- 1 core at 3.1 GHz: Cortex-X4
ManufacturingTSMCSamsung
Lithography process4 nanometers4 nanometers
Neural processor (NPU)YesYes
GraphicsAdreno 810Mali-G715 MP7
GPU shading units256896
GPU clock1050 MHz940 MHz
FLOPS~537.6 GFLOPS~1684.4 GFLOPS

Benchmarks

Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Phone (3a)
1178
Pixel 9a+42%
1677
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
Phone (3a)
3214
Pixel 9a+27%
4067
Geekbench Compute (GPU)44357784
Single-core score11781677
Multi-core score32144067
AnTuTu Benchmark 10
Phone (3a)
738171
Pixel 9a+34%
991079
CPU251686161737
GPU198602464865
Memory127746191750
UX160137172727
Total score738171991079
Samples[3 tests]Less than 3

Memory

RAM
RAM size8, 12 GB8 GB
Memory typeLPDDR4XLPDDR5X
Memory clock2133 MHz4200 MHz
Channels44
Storage
Storage size128, 256 GB128, 256 GB
Storage typeUFS 2.2UFS 3.1
Memory cardNoNo

Software

Operating systemAndroid 15 Android 15
ROMNothing OS 3.1Stock Android

Battery

Capacity5000 mAh5100 mAh
Max charge power50 W23 W
Battery typeLi-PoLi-Po
ReplaceableNoNo
Wireless chargingNo Yes (7.5 W)
Reverse chargingNo -
Fast chargingYes (61% in 30 min)Yes (50% in 30 min)
Full charging time1:06 hr -
Battery life tests
Web browsing08:06 hr -
Watching video16:25 hr -
Gaming05:49 hr -
Standby131 hr -
General battery life

Main camera

Matrix50 megapixels48 megapixels
Image resolution8192 x 61448000 x 6000
ZoomOptical, 2xDigital
FlashLEDDual LED
StabilizationOpticalOptical
8K video recordingNoNo
4K video recordingUp to 30FPSUp to 60FPS
1080p video recordingUp to 60FPSUp to 60FPS
Slow motion240 FPS (720p)240 FPS (1080p)
Angle of widest lens120°120°
Lenses1) Standard: 50 MP
2) Telephoto: 50 MP
3) Ultrawide: 8 MP
1) Standard: 48 MP
2) Ultrawide: 13 MP
Camera features - Bokeh mode
- Pro mode		 - Bokeh mode
- Pro mode
- RAW support
Standard lens
Image resolution50 MP48 MP
Aperturef/1.9f/1.7
Focal length24 mm25 mm
SensorSony LYT-600Samsung GN8
Sensor size1/1.56"1/2"
Pixel size1 micron0.8 micron
AutofocusPhase autofocusPhase autofocus (Dual Pixel)
StabilizationOpticalOptical
Telephoto lens
Image resolution50 MP -
Aperturef/2.6 -
Focal length50 mm -
Sensor size1/2.74" -
Pixel size0.64 micron -
StabilizationOptical -
Ultra-wide lens
Image resolution8 MP13 MP
Aperturef/2.2f/2.2
Focal length15 mm -
SensorSony IMX355Sony IMX712
Sensor size1/4.0"1/3.06"
Pixel size1.12 micron1.12 micron
StabilizationDigitalDigital

DxOMark main camera tests

Photo quality
Video quality
Generic main camera score
Bokeh - 65
Preview - 78
Zoom - 121
Samples - Photo samples of Google Pixel 9a from DxOMark

Selfie camera

Megapixels32 megapixels13 megapixels
Image resolution - 4032 x 3024
Aperturef/2.2f/2.2
Focal length22 mm20 mm
SensorCMOSCMOS
Sensor size1/3.44"1/3.1"
Pixel size - 1.12 micron
AutofocusNo -
StabilizationDigitalDigital
Video resolution1080p (Full HD) at 30 FPS2160p (4K) at 30 FPS
Depth sensor (TOF 3D)NoNo

Connectivity

Wi-Fi standardWi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax)Wi-Fi 6E (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax)
Wi-Fi features - Dual Band
- Wi-Fi MiMO
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot
- Wi-Fi Display		 - Dual Band
- Wi-Fi MiMO
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot
- Wi-Fi Display
Bluetooth version5.45.3
Bluetooth featuresLELE
USB typeUSB Type-CUSB Type-C
USB version23.2
USB features - Charging
- USB-Storage mode
- OTG		 - Charging
- USB-Storage mode
- OTG
DisplayPortNoYes
GPSGPS, GLONASS, Galileo, QZSSGPS, GLONASS, Galileo
NFC*YesYes
Infrared portNoNo
Network
Number of SIM*21
Type of SIM cardNanoNano
Multi SIM modeStandby -
eSIM support*NoYes
Hybrid slotNoNo
5G supportYesYes

Sound

SpeakersStereoStereo
Headphone audio jackNoNo
FM radioNoNo
Dolby Atmos - No

Other

CategoryMid-rangeMid-range
AnnouncedMarch 2025March 2025
Release dateMarch 2025April 2025
Launch price$329$499
Configurations- 8 / 128 GB
- 8 / 256 GB
- 12 / 256 GB
- 8 / 128 GB
- 8 / 256 GB
SAR (head) - 0.99 W/kg
SAR (body) - 1.39 W/kg
Sensors - Proximity sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient light sensor
- Compass
- Fingerprint		 - Proximity sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient light sensor
- Compass
- Fingerprint
Bundled chargerNot includedNot included
*Disclaimer! NFC, GSM network support, and some other specs can be different depending on the country.
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