A few weeks ago,Dubbed I said the Google Pixel 9a is one of the budget phones to buy this year. Now, a popular tech YouTuber is recommending the opposite, and I see his point.
JerryRigEverything, a tech YouTube account with more than 9 million followers, posted a new video this week where the host stress tests the new mid-range Pixel phone and performs a teardown to look at its internal components. The host finds some minor things to dislike about the external materials as well as the water and dust resistance, but for home repair enthusiasts, there's one major, majorproblem: The battery is nearly impossible to remove.
SEE ALSO: Google's AI Mode reportedly replacing iconic 'I'm feeling lucky' buttonIt seems Google has glued the Pixel 9a's 5,100mAh battery (which performed very well for us in testing) such that home removal is extremely difficult, at best. According to JerryRigEverything, most other major smartphone manufacturers, including Apple and Samsung, have stopped doing this, but Google persists.
In general, the Big Tech companies have become much more repair-friendly in the past five or six years, and there are even manufacturers like Framework who make devices with the express purpose of being repair-friendly, so it feels a bit like Google is out of step with the rest of the industry here. Clearly, Google hasn't gotten the Right To Repair memo yet.
Overall, the Pixel 9a has gotten good-to-great reviews for a budget smartphone (including from me).
And let's be honest: This is hardly a dealbreaker for a typical mobile customer. The average person wouldn't even know how to disassemble their phone in the first place. But if you want to maintain the possibility of one day replacing your Pixel's battery, this development is worth knowing about.
Topics Google
Previous：The Rag Dolls of Pompeii
Next：Inhospitable
We Owe Each Other Everything
I, a Novelist: An Interview with Halle Butler by Patrick Cottrell
Revisited: Watson and the Shark by Elizabeth McCracken
Redux: Revelry by The Paris Review
The Sounds of Internment
James Tate’s Last, Last Poems by Matthew Zapruder
Cooking with Anzia Yezierska by Valerie Stivers
Whiting Awards 2019: Tyree Daye, Poetry
California Stars
Objects of Despair: Mars by Meghan O’Gieblyn
Anointing the Dead
I, a Novelist: An Interview with Halle Butler by Patrick Cottrell
Skate Escape: On ‘Minding the Gap’
Dressing for Others: Lawrence of Arabia’s Sartorial Statements by Isabella Hammad
Take It to the Spank Bank
Two Memories of W. S. Merwin by The Paris Review
W. S. Merwin, 1927–2019 by The Paris Review
The Laws of the Fairy
More Fog, More War
Staff Picks: Bangs, Barbie, and Bodies by The Paris Review
Elon Musk blames Twitter bots for RussiaWatch these hardcore ducks binge on peas like there's no tomorrowElon Musk agrees to buy Twitter again ahead of trial1993's 'Super Mario Bros.' is the only Mario movie we needHow to enable twoWhy people leave a space before punctuation in textsBefore Celsius froze its customers accounts, the crypto lender's founder withdrew $10 millionThe summoning circle meme calls upon your deepest, darkest desiresHurricane Ian's victims need your help. Here's where you can send assistance.The jaguar who attacked woman taking a selfie won't be put down'Quordle' today: See each 'Quordle' answer and hints for October 6Disney pulls its channels from Dish network in ongoing carriage disputeThere's an app that helps Trump fans avoid 'MAGAphobic' businessesDisney pulls its channels from Dish network in ongoing carriage disputeNetflix's Jeffrey Dahmer series backlash highlights ethical issues with true crime obsessionHow to block spam textsGoogle Pixel 7 and 7 Pro announced at 2022 Made by Google eventGoogle Pixel 7 and 7 Pro announced at 2022 Made by Google eventWatch these adorable dogs absolutely crush the cheese challengeWhy spam calls are everywhere, and what you can do to prevent them Happy Birthday, Sara Teasdale by Sadie Stein Hypothetical Tom Robbins–Inspired Ben & Jerry’s Flavors by Sadie Stein This Overdue Library Book Wins, and Other News by Sadie Stein Under Cover by Sadie Stein Short Story by Sadie Stein Emma Cline’s “Marion” by Lorin Stein A 1912 Eighth Beer Paradise In the Ninth by Mark Chiusano Imaginary Extensions: A Conversation with Caleb Crain The Liminal Space by Sam Stephenson A Table of Remarkable Æras and Events by Sadie Stein Senior Poetry by Nathan Deuel What We’re Doing: Not Staying in Room 1212 Sketches from the Trial of Bradley Manning by Molly Crabapple Defiance, and Other News by Sadie Stein Archie Revisited by Sadie Stein How to Prepare for the Past by Brian Cullman A Partial List of Things John Berryman Found Delicious by Elon Green Sex on the Beach by M.J. Moore