OnePlus 13s vs Pixel 9a: Similar looking phones, which one is better?

Both devices are exceptional in a crowded market segment separated by specs and price wars, presenting two different versions of what a phone priced under Rs.60,000 should look like compared to being a proper flagship. They both have a similar target audience, but their designs differ by priorities and audience personality. What makes the OnePlus 13s and Pixel 9a so different from one another? Read this detailed comparison of OnePlus 13s vs Pixel 9a to get clarity of which phone best suits your needs.

OnePlus 13s vs Pixel 9a: Design and feel

OnePlus 13s makes a sleek, thin phone, with a Velvet Glass back that is high-end, but convenient. It has smooth corners and a lightweight structure that provides it comfort to use over a long time. Meanwhile, the Pixel 9a is fatter and introduces a more playful, confident design with new color choices and its camera sense of a small bump, leaving the familiar A-series look behind. When OnePlus is moving towards refined nature and symmetry, Pixel is choosing character and friendliness.

Which phone is better: OnePlus 13s vs Pixel 9a

The OnePlus 13s is thinner (8.2mm vs 8.9mm), a little bit lighter (185g vs 186g), has a glass back to look more premium, whereas the Pixel 9a has a plastic back. Another advantage is that the OnePlus provides a better amount of screen to body ratio (90.6% vs 79.4%) which makes it slimmer and more futuristic to touch.

OnePlus 13s vs Pixel 9a: Display

The two phones have excellent screens considering the price, but they are more advantageous in one way or another. So the Pixel 9a has insanely high brightness, over 3,000 nits, and near-ideal color accuracy, which means it is a great choice to people using it outside their homes and those who can appreciate properly rendered visuals. The OnePlus 13s with lower peak brightness, features more lively, cinematic colours and handy tricks such as glove mode and consistent looking bezels to boost the media experience.

Which phone is better: OnePlus 13s vs Pixel 9a

• The Pixel 9a takes the prize (as a brighter and more accurate colour phone), with the OnePlus 13s as the most vibrant and had a better design.

• The Pixel 9a offers a better peak brightness (2700 nits compared to 1700 nits) and pretty close to studio-level colour accuracy, which is great both when outdoors and when content creators need it.

• OnePlus 13s: increased resolution (2640x1216 vs 2424x1080), OLED display and brighter colours, and some nice additions such as the glove mode and consistent bezels.

OnePlus 13s vs Pixel 9a: Performance

The OnePlus 13s is a performance beast. The Snapdragon 8s Gen 3, 12 GB RAM, and cool tip-to-tip makes it a power users phone, gamers, multitaskers, and anyone looking to have an elite level of speed. The Pixel 9a, equipped with Google Tensor G4, has little to do with raw performance and more concerning smooth performance daily tasks. It will be an excellent option for people who desire to have a fuss-free experience and measure scores to a benchmark are an afterthought because the assistance is intelligent and reliable.

Which phone is better: OnePlus 13s vs Pixel 9a

OnePlus 13s is based on the Snapdragon 8 Elite (3nm), which supports a much better access to CPU and GPU performance in comparison with the Pixel 9a Tensor G4. It also has an increased RAM (12GB vs 8GB) and storage (using UFS 4.0 vs UFS 3.1), which is a sure win in terms of gaming, multitasking, and heavy-duty applications.

OnePlus 13s vs Pixel 9a: Software and AI

Deeply integrated AI functionality, including Magic Editor, Best Take, Live Translate, and others make the Pixel 9a truly convenient and a smart tool straight out of the box. The OnePlus 13s responds by itself having its own AI package, where Mind Space and Gemini integration can be used as a productivity and translation tool on the device with ease. The AI of Pixel is smooth and automatic in comparison to the OnePlus where the user has more freedom of customisation.

Which phone is better: OnePlus 13s vs Pixel 9a

• Pixel 9a (seamless AI), OnePlus 13s (customization and power-user features)

• Pixel 9a: Has the smooth, unnoticeable AI (Magic Editor, Best Take, Live Translate) that is profoundly integrated with the phone and improves everyday activity when used out-of-the-box.

• OnePlus 13s: Offers greater AI controls and personalization, such as on-device settings and Gemini connectivity, targeting-power users.

• Verdict: Pixel 9a is best served to those in need of convenient and straightforward AI; OnePlus 13s is better suited to those who like to tinker more.

OnePlus 13s vs Pixel 9a: Cameras

The OnePlus 13s produces eye-catching colorful images and is fantastic at close-up performance, but it lacks an ultrawide camera. The Pixel 9a is about natural color and dynamic range as well as using AI to improve editing, and has a serviceable ultrawide. When it comes to immediate, lively shots, OnePlus takes the lead.

Which phone is better: OnePlus 13s vs Pixel 9a

• Winner (versatility and natural photos): Pixel 9a, Winner (high-res and selfies): OnePlus 13s

• Pixel 9a: Dual camera that has an ultrawide lens, excellent dynamic range, and class-leading night mode. The selfie camera is 13MP but does great HDR selfies.

• OnePlus 13s: Dual 50MP (main + telephoto), main and selfie camera are more than doubled (32MP front), but it has no ultrawide lens. Suitable when using punchy and lively shots as well as during close-up.

• Conclusion: Pixel 9a can capture more natural and multipurpose shots, including ultrawide; OnePlus 13s can deliver more high-res, punchy pictures and selfies.

OnePlus 13s vs Pixel 9a: Battery and charging

There is also no doubt that the OnePlus 13s wins on battery life: it has a 5,850mAh cell, supports fast 80W charging, and lasts a long time. The battery is also efficient and supports fast wireless charging, whereas the 5,100mAh battery supports wired charging that is slow by comparison in the Pixel 9a.

Which phone is better: OnePlus 13s vs Pixel 9a

• OnePlus 13s: Bigger 5,850mAh battery, 80W fast-charging (less than 50 minutes to full-scale) and extended support to intensive usage.

• Pixel 9a: 5,100 mAh battery, 23W wired charging, can receive wireless charging, and it will take it more than 100 minutes to charge fully.

• Conclusion: OnePlus 13s has a better battery capacity and very high charging speed.

OnePlus 13s vs Pixel 9a

Conclusion

It is a good idea to choose the OnePlus 13s in case you care more about raw power, fast charging, and an excellent design. Nevertheless, assuming that you desire an AI-enabled phone with end-to-end integration and the naturality of photography, coupled with a less expensive price range, it is only fair to pick Pixel 9a. The two phones are good in their own aspects, and hence it all depends on what you value.

Disclaimer: The information regarding the gadgets/devices listed in the table and article has been sourced from various secondary sources. For detailed product specifications, please refer to the brand sources.