For years most of our attention has been focused on flagship handsets from companies like Apple, Google and Samsung. But since last year’s release of the excellent Pixel 3a, midrange devices have gotten a lot more interesting. Today Google finally announced the Pixel 4a, which cuts a few corners but still delivers fast performance and even a flagship-level camera for the low price of $350. But it isn’t your only choice if you want a great phone in the midrange. We lined up the Pixel 4a’s specs against those of the iPhone SE and Samsung’s Galaxy A51 to see how these devices measure up under the hood. (We didn’t include the OnePlus Nord since it’s not available on the US.) If you want the full scoop on the Pixel 4a, though, be sure to check out our full review.

	Pixel 4a	Galaxy A51	iPhone SE (2020)
Pricing	$349	$350	$399 / $449 / $549
Dimensions	144 x 69.4 x 8.2 mm (5.7 x 2.7 x 0.3 inches)	158.5 x 73.6 x 7.9 mm (6.24 x 2.89 x 0.31 inches)	138.4 x 67.3 x 7.3 mm (5.45 x 2.65 x 0.29 inches)
Weight	143g (5.04 ounces)	172g (6.07 ounces)	148g (5.22 ounces)
Screen size	5.81 inches (147.6 mm)	6.5 inches (165.1 mm)	4.7 inches (119.38 mm)
Screen resolution	2340 x 1080 (443 ppi)	2400 x 1,080 (405 ppi)	1,334 x 750 (326 ppi)
Screen type	FHD+ OLED	FHD+ Super AMOLED	Retina HD LCD
Battery	3,140 mAh	4,000 mAh	1,821 mAh
Internal storage	128GB	128 GB	64 / 128 / 256 GB
External storage	None	None	None
Rear camera(s)	12.2MP, f/1.7	Quad camera: Wide: 48 MP, f/2.0 Ultrawide: 12 MP, f/2.2 Macro: 5 MP, f/2.4 DoF: 5 MP, f/2.2	12MP, f/1.8
Front camera(s)	8 MP, f/2.0	32 MP, f/2.2	7MP, f/2.2
Video capture	1080p at 30 fps	4K at 120 fps	4K at 60 fps
SoC	Qualcomm Snapdragon 730G	Samsung Exynos 9611	Apple A13 Bionic
CPU	2.2 GHz octa-core	2.3 GHz octa-core	2.65 GHz hexa-core
GPU	Adreno 618	Mali-G72 MP3	unnamed quad-core
RAM	6 GB	4 GB	4 GB
WiFi	Dual band, 802.11ac	Dual band, 802.11ac	Dual band, 802.11ax
Bluetooth	v5.1	v5.0	v5.0
NFC	Yes	Yes	Yes
Operating system	Android 10	Android 10	iOS 13
Other features	USB-C, 3.5mm headphone jack	USB-C, 3.5mm headphone jack	IP67 certified, Lightning connector, Qi wireless charging

Meanwhile, the 12-megapixel ultra-wide camera turned out to be a pleasant surprise. It captures a 123-degree field of view with minimal barrel distortion around the edges, and its colors are even poppier and more saturated than what you’d get out of the main camera. If you’re walking around and shooting photos on a clear day, those pale blue skies will turn out a little more neon than you’d expect. Since this camera is mainly meant to capture lots of attractive, well-lit space, it’s no surprise that it struggles more than the main camera does in low light.

Rather than a telephoto camera (which was almost certainly too expensive for a phone like this), the A51’s third sensor is a 5-megapixel affair for macro photos. I’ve wondered in the past who spends their time bopping around and looking for very small things to take photos of, but ever since testing the OnePlus 8 Pro, I’ve become one of those people. It’s too bad, then, that this never produced the sort of crisp, super-tight images I was hoping for. That’s partially because the camera’s image processing seems to iron out some of those minute details, but also because the narrow depth of field means getting everything framed up just right can take some work.

And that last lens? It’s for a 5-megapixel depth sensor that Samsung uses to capture data for more bokeh-filled portraits. It does its job well. I’ve seen more than a few phones struggle with accurately separating the subject from its background, but the A51 handles the task without much fuss. 

Ultimately, no matter which camera you spend the most time with, be prepared for good — not great — results. If getting the best overall photo is your biggest concern, you’d still be much better off with one of Google’s Pixel 3As or the iPhone SE. Samsung’s real edge here doesn’t lay in the quality of its images so much as the flexibility that multiple cameras provide.