The Google Pixel 3a is the best smartphone you can buy for less than $400 with its excellent camera, solid processing power, and clean Android experience.
If you want a truly stellar phone for less than $400, the Google Pixel 3a is your best bet. I've been using the phone since it came out, and it truly is exceptional. It takes better photos than many flagship phones I've used and it doesn't feel underpowered at all. The Pixel 3a can work on any network, too.
Not only do you get timely software updates and a pure Android experience, but you also get most of the same specs you'd find on Google's flagship Pixel 3 phone.
The Pixel 3a has a 5.6-inch OLED screen with a 2,220 x 1,080-pixel resolution and 441 pixels-per-inch. Although it may not look as fancy or modern as those gorgeous edge-to-edge screens you'll find on the Galaxy S10, this screen is no slouch. It's crisp and clear, with deep blacks and excellent color reproduction.
The black edges along the sides of the screen may be a little thicker, but that's one of the few tradeoffs here. The other main style difference is that the 3a is encased in plastic rather than metal or glass. However, this is hardly a bad thing — in fact, it actually makes the Pixel 3a more durable, as glass tends to shatter.
Inside, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 670 processor and 4GB of RAM power the Pixel 3a, making for a seamless experience. It may not have the sheer power and speed of a flagship phone, but you probably won't notice the difference. You also get 64GB of storage, which is more than enough for most people.
Best of all, you get Google's amazing camera tech. Just like the standard Pixel 3, the 3a takes superb photos that rival or indeed exceed the quality of iPhone photos. This is thanks to a 12.2-megapixel dual-pixel camera on the back with a ƒ/1.8 aperture optical image stabilization, and an impressive Night Mode that illuminates even the darkest shots. On the front, you get an 8-megapixel selfie cam.
If you prefer big phones and can swing it, the Pixel 3a XL is just $80 more.
Pros: Affordable, great cameras, pure Android, made by Google, timely security updates, solid processing power
Cons: Not as cheap as some others