US Cellular briefly opened a support page for the Google Pixel 8a, indicating the phone's official release may be very close.
This news comes to us from a post by well-known leaker Evan Blass, who spotted that US Cellular had accidentally posted a device tutorial for Google's budget smartphone. The single image included is of the front of the new Pixel, and its new rounded chassis.
So it's about 1AM early Saturday morning at Google HQ. How long will it take the right person to notice this and reach out to someone at the carrier, who will then presumably need to ping yet a third individual at the vendor responsible for posting (and removing) these tutorials? pic.twitter.com/4neK48wGUZApril 13, 2024
The alleged Pixel 8a image matches prior leaks that seemed to reveal the phone's design. Yup, it looks a lot like the Pixel 7a it'll replace. This is somewhat disappointing as the noticeable bezels we complained about in our Pixel 7a review are still present, though it isn’t surprising considering the Pixel 8a is still a budget model. While it doesn’t show off the back of the phone, we have seen the camera layout leaked before in a YouTube ad.
So. Many. Leaks.
This US Cellular listing is one of a series of leaks that have revealed almost the whole Pixel 8a, including most of the specs, before the official launch. For instance, according to leaks, the Google Pixel 8a has a 6.1-inch FHD OLED screen and a Google Tensor G3 chip. The image in question also shows off the Obsidian color, one of the four that will apparently be available.
We have a reasonably good idea of how much the phone will cost, around $500 to $550. This could mean its price is slightly higher than the Pixel 7a, which retailed for $499 on release.
It has long been assumed that we will see the Google Pixel 8a for the first time at Google I/O 2024 on May 14. While we don’t know the exact retail release date, this US Cellular post indicates that stores are already preparing for it, likely meaning that the Pixel 8a will go on sale quickly after its announcement.
For more information about Google’s next budget device please see our Google Pixel 8a hub, which has all the latest news and rumors. You could also read up about the upcoming Android 15, which will no doubt be discussed in depth at Google I/O, along with the rumored Pixel Fold 2, which we're also hoping will appear at the event's keynote presentation.
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