Google makes the Google Pixel 6a official

The Google Pixel Watch wasn't the only exciting announcement to come out of this year's Google I/O developer conference, with the company also showing off their next budget-friendly Pixel smartphone.

The new Google Pixel 6a echoes the design language of last year's Google Pixel 6, with a large rectangular camera bump on the back. Otherwise, the two-tone design here isn't much of a deviation from previous A-series Pixel devices. 

There's a 6.1 inch FHD+ OLED screen (clocked at 60Hz) on the outside of the Pixel 6a, plus a Google Tensor processor on the inside. The device also includes a competitive 4GB of RAM, 128GB of storage and a 4410mAh battery.

In terms of the camera, the Pixel 6a is set to break from earlier A-series devices in a fairly significant fashion. Rather than rely on the same camera hardware found in the flagship Pixel, this year's the back of the Pixel 6a boasts a 12.2-megapixel wide angle camera and a 12-megapixel wide angle one. This is complemented by an 8-megapixel camera on the front of the device, but it's still a step down from both the camera kit found on the Pixel 5a (which didn't come to Australia) and the Pixel 6 (which did).

Even if the Pixel 6a will likely use the Tensor processor and Google's Pixel camera app to swing above its weight when it comes to the results that this humble hardware can deliver, the difference between the photography-related specs found here and those in Google's last flagship suggest it's looking to shore up other aspects of the smartphone experience this time around.

In Australia, the Google Pixel 6a arrives at an RRP of $749. Google will be running pre-orders for the device from July 21st ahead of a full retail launch on July 28, 2022.

The Pixel 6a arrives in three colors:

• Chalk
• Charcoal
• Sage

At the time of writing, the full list of local retailers and telco partners for  the device are to be announced. However, given the popularity of previous A-series device, expect the usual names to crop up sooner rather than later.