Although it’s hard to forget what with all of Google’s AI projects sucking the air out of the room we did get a new piece of Pixel hardware timed with I/O this year. Despite not appearing on stage, the Pixel 8a hit store shelves timed perfectly to discussions of Project Astra, bringing Google’s latest (and, presumably, forthcoming) AI tools to a cheaper price point than ever. Although reviews, including my own, seem pretty positive about the Pixel 8a, it also seems to have spawned a broader conversation on Google’s smartphone lineup, and whether the A-series lineup should continue after this year at all.
