Google Pixel 8A vs Samsung Galaxy A55: Which is the best budget gaming phone?

The Google Pixel 8A and Samsung Galaxy A55 are two popular smartphones in the budget mid-range category. They are both fairly inexpensive and have more than decent chipsets, which makes them great choices for gaming. However, which is the best gaming smartphone out of the two for budget users? That's what we will determine in this article.

Below, you will find the two smartphones' performance benchmarks to judge their gaming capabilities better.

Note: This article is subjective and solely reflects the writer's opinions.

Google Pixel 8A vs Samsung Galaxy A55

The Google Pixel 8A is the cheaper version of its bigger sibling, the Pixel 8. Meanwhile, the Samsung Galaxy A55 is Samsung's best mid-range smartphone for 2024. Let's compare the two phones in detail, starting with their specs.

Specs comparison

Here are the specs of the Google Pixel 8A and Samsung Galaxy A55:

Specifications	Google Pixel 8A	Samsung Galaxy A55
Display	6.1-inch OLED display with 120hz refresh rate	6.6-inch Super AMOLED display with 120hz refresh rate
Chipset	Tensor G3	Exynos 1480
Operating System	Android 14	Android 14 with One UI 6.1
Memory and storage	8GB RAM and up to 256GB storage	Up to 12GB RAM and 256GB storage
Camera setup	64 + 13MP rear camera setup with 13MP selfie camera	50 + 12 + 5MP rear camera setup with 32MP selfie camera
Battery and charging	4492 mAh battery with 18W wired and 7.5W wireless charging	5000 mAh battery with 25W fast charging

Design and display

The Pixel 8A features Google's iconic phone design with a horizontal camera bar with rounded corners. The side and the mid-frame are made of aluminum, but the rear panel is plastic.

Meanwhile, the Samsung Galaxy A55 has a glass rear panel with Corning Gorilla Glass protection and an aluminum side frame.

Essentially, the Samsung phone wins in terms of build quality, but the Pixel phone is superior in terms of design. The Galaxy A55 has a weird bump on the side frame that elevates the power and volume buttons, but personally, I don't like it.

As for the display, the Pixel 8A features a 6.1-inch OLED display with a 120hz refresh rate and HDR. The Samsung Galaxy A55 has a large 6.6-inch Super AMOLED display with a 120hz refresh rate. They are both great displays, but there are a few noticeable differences.

The Samsung phone has a larger display, which may or may not be a big deal depending on the user. However, the Pixel phone can get almost double the brightness of the Samsung phone, which can make a lot of difference under direct sunlight.

Performance and cooling

This is where you will see a massive difference between the two phones. The Google Pixel 8A is powered by a flagship-level Tensor G3 that has a clock speed of 3 GHz. On the other hand, the Samsung Galaxy A55 has an Exynos 1480 with a clock speed of 2.75 GHz. It's a premium mid-range chipset from Samsung but can't perform close to the Pixel's Tensor chip, which you see in the benchmarks.

However, these specs don't convey the full picture. So, let's check out how the two chips perform in popular benchmarking tools like Geekbench, AnTuTu, and 3D Mark:

Benchmarks	Google Pixel 8A (Tensor G3)	Samsung Galaxy A55 (Exynos 1480)
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)	1,760	1,168
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)	4,442	3,503
AnTuTu 10	1,106,280	742,548
3D Mark Wild Life	8,489	3,875

The Tensor G3 chip leaves the Exynos 1480 in the dust in every test. It is 51% and 27% faster in single-core and multi-core CPU benchmarks. In the 3D Mark Wild Life GPU test, the Tensor chip offers more than twice the performance of the Exynos and will comfortably deliver a far better gaming experience.

The Samsung Galaxy A55 has a vapor chamber for cooling the chip, but the Pixel 8 A doesn't. So, the Samsung phone will remain relatively cooler than the Pixel phone.

Memory and storage

The Google Pixel 8A only has 8GB RAM, and there's no option with higher RAM capacity. However, you can choose the storage with up to 256GB. On the contrary, the Samsung Galaxy A55 can be purchased with up to 12GB RAM and 256GB storage.

Camera performance

Pixel phones are known for their camera performance, and the Pixel 8A does not disappoint in this regard. It takes great quality photos that can go toe-to-toe with the Galaxy A55 and even beats it in night photography. The primary and ultra-wide camera of the two smartphones takes some good photos, but the Pixel phone's pictures have a more natural color tone.

The same goes for the selfie camera. I like the natural color tone of the Pixel phone as opposed to Samsung's saturated pictures.

Battery and charging

The Samsung Galaxy A55 has a slightly larger battery and faster wired charging than the Google Pixel 8A. However, in real life, both batteries should deliver similar battery life. The Samsung phone may last half an hour more since it has a slightly bigger battery, but that's not a huge difference.

The Samsung phone will charge faster with a wired charger, but there's no wired charging functionality. On the contrary, the Pixel phone has wireless charging support, which gives it an advantage over its Samsung counterpart.

Price

The pricing is where the Galaxy A55 wins big time. It is currently available for $379, which is 24% cheaper than the Pixel 8A ($499).

Final verdict

The Google Pixel 8A is the best gaming smartphone out of two for budget users. It outperforms the Samsung phone and provides more than twice its gaming performance. If gaming is your priority, the Pixel phone is your best option, but it is 31% more expensive.

However, if you cannot shell out $499, you can go for the Samsung Galaxy A55. Its gaming performance is not bad. It's quite decent but definitely not on the same level as the Pixel phone.

Edited by Rachel Syiemlieh