Google couldn't tell me this one key thing about the Pixel 10a's Tensor chip choice

When Google announced that the Pixel 10a was right around the corner, I wasn't the only person out there to assume that we'd get a pretty similar offering to normal.

For a few years now, the "a" line has been a cost-effective way to get Google's latest Tensor chip in a cheaper package, a little later than when it first arrives in a flagship design.

This year, though, Google is switching things up in a way that's sure to attract plenty of criticism, by sticking with the Tensor G4 from last year's lineup, making the internal differences between the Pixel 10a and Pixel 9a pretty tough to pick out, where any even exist.

The design is different, sure, but largely by a matter of millimetres – in the now 100% flat camera enclosure, for instance, or bezels around the display that have become ever so slightly thinner.

That one big decision to keep the G4 chip, though, when the G5 came out months ago in the Pixel 10, is a huge attention-grabber for what would otherwise be a pretty 'as expected' phone, so I couldn't turn down the chance to query Google about it during a behind-closed-doors live Q&A session.

Talking to Laura Kastilani, Product Manager at Google, I asked why the 10a hardware had foregone the upgrade to Tensor G5, but only ever received impressively media-trained responses – suggesting this topic was very much expected to come up.

Kastilani was only willing to underline that, from Google's point of view, the "Pixel 10a is packed with value" – having had no price rise this year – and underlining the claim that it's the "only phone under $500 to have the incredible Google Pixel camera" experience.

That boast is because the Pixel 10a has added some camera features from the Pixel 10, but it begs the question – if the Pixel 9a also has the same processor, why can't it get the same features?

In fact, my core question for Google went basically unanswered – how can the Pixel 10a be the best value for Google AI experiences at the asking price, if the Pixel 9a has the exact same processor and can now be readily found for around £100 or even $150 less?

Google also couldn't comment on whether the Pixel 9a will remain on sale through its own store. My guess is that it won't.

Which leaves the 10a in a curious place. I've little doubt that it'll be a great handset in its own context, but one of the biggest reasons to go for the "a" lineup will disappear if it no longer gets the newest chip each year.