Google Pixel 8a
Hacker ApprovedShares rank 19 of 60 smartphones by recommenders
People recommend it as a cheap used phone with strong security and long update support, and it runs GrapheneOS well. Critics say its smooth, rounded body is hard to grip.
People recommend it as a cheap used phone with strong security and long update support, and it runs GrapheneOS well. Critics say its smooth, rounded body is hard to grip.
15 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 14
- criticize it
- 1
- approval share
- 93%
Recommended in 9 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Owned for 1 year
Median of the 5 owners who said how long they have had it.
Each square is one year.
Why it carries the badge
- 14 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 14 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 9 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Strong security and long updates
“A used Pixel 8a is a very affordable device with great overall security nearly as good as a Pixel 10”
Comment from 30 Aug 2026 in “GrapheneOS project: pixel 11 no longer supports hardware memory tagging (MTE)” “still meets all the current era security standards and still has over 4.5 years of updates remaining”
Comment from 11 Oct 2026 in “LineageOS 24” “Pixel 8 and later have 7 years of support from launch instead of 5 along with MTE.”
Comment from 29 Aug 2026 in “GrapheneOS project: pixel 11 no longer supports hardware memory tagging (MTE)” - Comment from 4 Mar 2026 in “Motorola GrapheneOS devices will be bootloader unlockable/relockable”
- Comment from 17 Jun 2026 in “GrapheneOS has been ported to Android 17 and official releases are coming soon”
- Comment from 8 Feb 2026 in “Microsoft Account bugs locked me out of Notepad – are Thin Clients ruining PCs?”
Cheap when bought used
“A used Pixel 8a is a very affordable device with great overall security nearly as good as a Pixel 10”
Comment from 30 Aug 2026 in “GrapheneOS project: pixel 11 no longer supports hardware memory tagging (MTE)” “Last year though the Pixel 8a was selling for 350€ and I got one.”
Comment from 28 Apr 2026 in “Phone is about to stop being yours” “you can easily buy an 8a for like 250 euros used”
Comment from 17 Jun 2026 in “GrapheneOS has been ported to Android 17 and official releases are coming soon” - Comment from 17 Jul 2026 in “GrapheneOS recommended for domestic abuse victims”
Fast and pleasant to use
“I got a pixel 8a just to amuse myself and i was again totally surprised how fast and easy the typing was”
Comment from 13 Feb 2026 in “Apple, fix my keyboard before the timer ends or I'm leaving iPhone” “My pixel 8a is a phenomenal computer if ignore the hype monster.”
Comment from 22 Jun 2026 in “The Doom Justifies the Valuation” Would buy again
“My pixel 8a is a phenomenal computer if ignore the hype monster.”
Comment from 22 Jun 2026 in “The Doom Justifies the Valuation” “If i had to change today i would go again for a Pixel 8A”
Comment from 25 Mar 2026 in “Apple Just Lost Me”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Slippery and hard to hold
“it appears to be designed to be as slippery as possible. Every edge is round and there's nothing to grip”
Comment from 9 Jun 2026 in “WWDC 2026: Apple is Folding” “If you have dry hands, it's nearly impossible to hold on to.”
Comment from 26 Oct 2026 in “New iPad mini”
Other smartphones people recommend
The four most recommended other smartphones, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apple iPhone | 706 | 882 | 44% | 13 | 7 yrs107 owners | — |
| Fairphone | 168 | 107 | 61% | 13 | 3 yrs19 owners | — |
| Apple iPhone Pro | 144 | 155 | 48% | 12 | 4 yrs26 owners | — |
| iPhone 13 mini | 141 | 51 | 73% | 12 | 1.5 yrs4 owners | Approved |
| Google Pixel 8aThis page | 14 | 1 | 93% | 9 | 1 yr5 owners | Approved |
What people said
18 of the 20 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“If you have dry hands, it's nearly impossible to hold on to.”
“still meets all the current era security standards and still has over 4.5 years of updates remaining”
“A used Pixel 8a is a very affordable device with great overall security nearly as good as a Pixel 10”
“Pixel 8 and later have 7 years of support from launch instead of 5 along with MTE.”
“I'd claim that this is much more ecological than buying a new Fairphone.”
“A used Pixel 8a tends to be the cheapest option.”
“My pixel 8a is a phenomenal computer if ignore the hype monster.”
“it ships with Memory Tagging Extensions (armv9 security feature)”
“you can easily buy an 8a for like 250 euros used”
“it appears to be designed to be as slippery as possible. Every edge is round and there's nothing to grip”
“Last year though the Pixel 8a was selling for 350€ and I got one.”
“will last me most of a decade”
“had no issue getting GrapheneOS (which works well!) on it”
“If i had to change today i would go again for a Pixel 8A”
“Pixel 8a is approaching 2 years old but has over 5 years of support remaining.”
“I got a pixel 8a just to amuse myself and i was again totally surprised how fast and easy the typing was”
“will receive 7 years of updates”
“I can't say I noticed a difference in quality when switching.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.