Hi, this is Wayne again with a topic “Google Pixel 8a vs OnePlus 12R: Night and Day”.
Google’S latest a series device was already a little confusing given the rest of the lineup, but what happens when you throw oneplus’s mid-range answer into the mix? Here’S why you need to consider the OnePlus 12r, because flagships aren’t the only devices this thing can kill. Let’S talk about that: hey guys, I’m Ryan Thomas and if you’re looking for the best mid-ranged Android smartphone right now. These two are your Best Bets. Google’S pixel 8A is a more compact device that focuses on its AI smarts and software, where oneplus’s approach with its larger 12r leans into performance, build quality and battery life. While they may share similar price tags, they aren’t squarely aimed at the same type of Android User.
This is obvious the first time you pick these two devices up, while the pixel a a done, some substantial bezels, a scratchy plastic back and a streamlined subtle camera bar the OnePlus 12 RS build feels considerably higher end with a glass back super thin bezels with curved Screen sides and a larger, more prominent camera Hub that protrudes further out the back of the device. To put it bluntly, the 12r just feels more expensive and higher end than the pixel 8A. Now, as cool as those curved sides are, they are a little impractical and I’ve had my fair share of phantom touches with not only the 12r, but also the regular 12. And for that reason I love the fact that Google went for a flat display with the AA thick and uneven bezels aside.
It is the easier panel to operate due to its more reachable size and lack of Curves. Both phones on paper, Rock full HD, Plus 120 HZ OLED displays so are sharp, fast bright and when you hold them side by side, you quickly realize that the 12 hours panel is the far superior one with better off AIS, viewing angles higher real world Peak brightness And being bigger makes it better for playing games and watching films. It’S great that Google upgraded the A’s display from 90 HZ to 120 as it’s something you can certainly feel, but it’s just not quite at the level of the OnePlus, which is able to hit 120 FPS more frequently to make full use of the 120 HZ display. Because it employs the Qualcomm Snapdragon, 8 Gen 2, a much more powerful processor from both a CPU and GPU standpoint.
Both phones are Zippy in and around the OS browsing social media, all the basics, that kind of thing, and while the 88 isn’t particularly bad when it comes to 3D gaming, it can play games for sure. But it’s just not at the level of the OnePlus. If you’re a big mobile, gamer I’d take the 12r for its far smoother gameplay experience, and I quite like the game modes on oxygen OS with its hyper boost mode. That drops background apps and Discord integration right in the game that you’re playing this better performance.
Hard hardware setup makes the 12 art the faster device now, but also going forward, which is an area that gets kind of tricky for OnePlus. At the same time, because its three years of promised platform upgrades and a further year of security patches is a fraction of the pixel, 8 A’s, seven years of upgrades and patches, whether this kind of thing matters to you is heavily going to depend on your personal Preference for upgrade Cadence are you the sort of person to trade in your device every 2 or 3 years? If so, no worries you can go with either phone and be absolutely fine. But if you keep your phone longer, the pixel 88 is the Nob brainer, where it matters more, is actually in the secondhand Market, because that means that in 3 or 4 years time, when someone sells their old pixel 8A on eBay, it’ll still get another 3 or 4 years of upgrades for the next user, which keeps the thing out of landfill or at least delays the inevitable and the software itself is more feature Rich on the pixel side of things. If you’re the kind of person to really engage with and use all the features on the spec sheet, the aa’s AI features are brilliant.
The voice, recognition and transcription is usable and reliable Magic. Eraser and audio eraser come in clutch too, not to mention the ability to change the sky in photos and, of course, Top Shot for getting just the right selfie. These features are pretty great when they work and sure it’s not 100 % hit rate, but it’s early doors for this kind of thing, and it works surprisingly well on the AA, the OnePlus 12r, not having these things officially could put some people off, and I know You can Sid load these things, but the average person isn’t going to want to go through the hassle of doing that. It’S safe to say that Google has leaned super hard into its software and kind of let the hardware side just pass now.
This software can’t really speed up a phone or increase its battery life substantially to beyond the Hardware’s limits, but we all know that it can massively impact a phone’s camera performance and if we take a look at these things on paper for just a second you’ll realize That these two phones aren’t that far apart when it comes to their Hardware, Tech and in the real world, the 8A has that signature pixel look to it when it comes to the colors, the contrast, there’s more punch and an almost crisper looking profile by comparison. The 12 R photos tend to look a a little more washed out with lifted Shadows, which sure will give you a little more detail in those Shadows. But it also contributes to images that, in my opinion, just aren’t as fun to look at these aren’t bad photos at all, but they aren’t the level of the pixel 8A and more often than not, the pixel took photos that were more true to life and more. What I saw with my own eyes when shooting the 12r, not sharing the hassleblad processing with the full fat 12 means it can’t compete with the more natural AA. I found the same to be true in terms of computational Photography where the pixel did portrait mode and night sight better overall, with more accurate images across the board side. Note, though, I do actually prefer the less processed look of the oneplus’s night mode.
It’S not as technically impressive, but the tones down approach to lifting Shadows does actually make its images. Look a little nicer to me, but that’s personal preference. When it comes to video these phones both have their compromises with their main cameras. They can both shoot Ultra HD 4K at up to 60 FPS, which is great, whereas the ultra wide cameras can only shoot up to Ultra HD 30 on the pixel 88 and actually full HD 30.
On the 12r, I found the pixel8 a to record the more stable video as a whole and the 12 hours footage can look a little jarring, so the pix 8A just does video better and I think, as a whole. The pixel 8A does cameras better. Don’T get me wrong. The 12 hourz cameras are pretty good for the price point. They’Re, absolutely fine, but the 88 cameras are better from a quality standpoint from an aesthetic standpoint, in my opinion, and also come with the far more feature, Rich toolkit for augmenting your media.
After the fact, and if you’re worried about battery life i’ just say this skip the pixel a and just go straight for the 12r, the for is pretty much 4500 Milah battery is a whole th000 Milah hours smaller than the OnePlus 12 hours, and the charging is Substantially slower too not to mention, there’s no charger in the box with the 8A, where you get an 80 W or 100 wat brick with the 12r depending on your region. Look the pixel 8’s battery life isn’t bad. It’S an all day phone for me with absolutely no bother, but the 12 hours battery can last Me 2 days with little worry, and that combined with the rapid charging, is reason enough for me to consider the 12r over the pixel 8A. But when it comes down to it, these phones are made for entirely different mid-range smartphone customers. One offers you all the smarts, the future support at the cost of build quality and performance, and the other goes all out on speed longevity and build quality at the expense of software features. If it’s me, I’m taking the 12, the cameras is aren’t as good as the AA, but the hardware is just that much better that it’s a no-brainer for me.
I want to hear what you have to think about these, though, because I can certainly see why one might pick one over the other. It really is a tossup while you’re down there be sure to hit like if you enjoy today’s content and subscribe to never miss another upload. I’Ve been Ryan, Thomas and I’ll catch. You later cheers .