Pixel 9a gets early teardown: Vapor chamber, cameras, more [Video]

Ahead of next week’s launch, the Google Pixel 9a has already undergone a teardown.

We see the plastic back plate and motherboard cover (16 screws). There’s graphite film over the NFC and wireless charging coils, as well as a sizable LED flash.

There’s a single screw holding a cover over the battery connector. The 5,100 mAh battery has pull tabs, but the effectiveness is unchanged from before. Underneath that is the copper vapor chamber, which was previously only on the Pixel 9 Pro and above.

On the motherboard are the wide, ultrawide, and front-facing cameras. Like past Pixel A-Series phones, there are just two microphones compared to three on the main line. The USB-C port and SIM reader are soldered to the main board, which is unfortunate for repairability.

Finally with this Pixel 9a teardown: “…if you accidentally insert the SIM ejector tool in the wrong hole you don’t need to worry since both the microphones and the filters are seated above the holes and they wouldn’t get damaged.”

More on Pixel 9a:

• Google Pixel adding ‘Battery health assistance’ for long-term use, starting with Pixel 9a
• Pixel 9a lacks Satellite SOS support with its older modem, Google confirms
• Pixel 9a lacks Pixel Screenshots, Call Notes due to RAM

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