Google Pixel 4a launch looks imminent as Google stops selling Pixel 3

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The Pixel 4a may be close to launch since Google is no longer selling the Pixel 3

Google Pixel 4a
(Image credit: Future)

Wave goodbye to the Pixel 3, as Google has removed the phone from its site after the company's stock ran out. But hopefully this means there's space for the Pixel 4a.

As explained by a source within Google to AndroidPolice (via GSMArena), the Google Store is no longer offering the Pixel 3 or Pixel 3 XL because it's sold out of the phones. That leaves just the Pixel 3a series and Pixel 4 series available for purchase. This matches the time last year when Google stopped stocking the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL, so this move isn't too surprising.

You can still buy a Pixel 3 from other places, such as Best Buy or B&H Photo, although stock will likely run out in other places soon too if Google has ceased selling the phones itself. If you can't get one, the Pixel 3a is excellent and reasonably priced, while the Pixel 4 is a very intelligent flagship phone, albeit with a few problems.

The Pixel 3 being removed from the Google Store could point to the imminent arrival of the Pixel 4a. We've been expecting Google's next mid-range device to arrive in the front half of 2020, at least until the coronavirus pandemic struck.

Using a similar back design to the Pixel 4, but featuring an all-new punch-hole display on the front, the Pixel 4a will likely offer toned down performance in a less-premium plastic chassis. But the upcoming midrange phone may still sport an AMOLED screen, a stock version of Android 10, and a single rear camera backed up by the same awesome post-processing software that you find on any other Pixel phone.

You'll likely be able to pick up a Pixel 4a for around $400, the same price as the Pixel 3a. And that's good news, given that Apple is also tipped to reveal its mid-range iPhone 9 in the next few days, targeting the same price point.

Richard Priday
Richard Priday
Assistant Phones Editor

Richard is based in London, covering news, reviews and how-tos for phones, tablets, gaming, and whatever else people need advice on. Following on from his MA in Magazine Journalism at the University of Sheffield, he's also written for WIRED U.K., The Register and Creative Bloq. When not at work, he's likely thinking about how to brew the perfect cup of specialty coffee.