Ryan Whitwam at Ars Technica:

The Pixel 9a has less RAM than the flagship Pixels, which standardized on 12GB largely to provide Gemini Nano with reserved memory without impeding performance. However, the Pixel 9a still just has 8GB of memory, which is a problem for local AI processing. This is the first Google phone to ship with a new super-small AI model. It saves on resources but can’t support some of the best Pixel AI features.

This is a familiar problem for Google, which initially disappointed Pixel 8 owners last year when it said Gemini Nano wouldn’t come to that phone. Google reversed course several weeks later and released Gemini Nano as a developer preview despite the phone only having 8GB of RAM. Google confirms this preview was the first appearance of the XXS Gemini AI that now runs on the Pixel 9a out of the box.

To make Gemini Nano run well on a device with 8GB of RAM, Google had to make some sacrifices. On the more minor side, Gemini Nano 1.0 XXS doesn’t run continuously in the background, unlike the flagship Pixels. The Pixel 9a only loads Gemini XXS (and eats into your RAM) when the model is needed, which might make some features a bit less responsive. A more serious drawback is the lack of multimodality—Gemini Nano 1.0 XXS is text-only.

I think this is fine. Most people that purchase a Pixel 9a will barely notice the lack features like Pixel Screenshots and Call Notes. Both are super useful features, which you can get on the Pixel 9 that you can currently get for the same price as the Pixel 9a. And even so. If people shout loud enough, Google might add it later similar to how they did with the Pixel 8.

It’s plausible that the majority of Pixel 9a purchasers may remain largely oblivious to the absence of features such as Pixel Screenshots and Call Notes. While these functionalities are undoubtedly beneficial, they are available on the Pixel 9, which currently retails at a comparable price point to the Pixel 9a. I believe that plenty of user advocacy could prompt Google to subsequently introduce these features, mirroring their previous actions with the Pixel 8.