Pixel 9a component quality concerns are fueling pre-order delay

Google just formally introduced the Pixel 9a, its latest attempt at offering a slightly more affordable point of entry into the world of Pixel phones. And despite being one notch down from flagship status, it still delivers a pretty darn attractive hardware package, including the largest battery in a Pixel phone yet. But news of the Pixel 9a’s debut hasn’t arrived without a little unexpected uncertainty, as Google has yet to share full details of its plans for both pre-orders and the start of actual retail availability.

With phones like last year’s Pixel 8a, Google opened pre-orders for the hardware immediately, and communicated a specific date for the phone’s release. With the Pixel 9a, however, all we have from Google so far is that sales will get started sometime in April, and while there will once again be a pre-order window, Google is waiting to announce exactly when that will begin.

What gives? Why such a drastic change to the company’s approach to this release?

We reached out to Google in the hopes it would be willing to shed a little light on the decision, and the company has just followed up with some insight into what’s going on here:

“We’re checking on a component quality issue that’s affecting a small number of Pixel 9a devices.”

Now, we don’t yet know (and to be fair, never may) exactly what phone component might be causing those headaches, but fans of A-series Pixel phones already have hardware failures on the mind in the wake of the Pixel 4a’s battery controversy. That’s all the more reason for Google to take its time with any potential problems this time around, and possibly delaying the start of sales briefly in an attempt to avoid a bunch of warranty claims later.

Of course, now we’re probably just going to have every new Pixel 9a owner putting their phones under the microscope, wondering if they might have a bad component that slipped through the cracks, but one thing at a time.