Saving – Earlybirds Invest

Rita El Khoury / Android Authority

The mid-tier smartphone market is healthier than ever. There are plenty of great phones at very reasonable price points. One of our favorites is the Google Pixel 9a, which is already affordable at its full $499 retail price. The deal is now even sweeter, as the device has dropped to a new record low price of $399.

Buy the Google Pixel 9a for just $399 ($100 off)

This offer is available from Amazon. The discount applies to all available color versions: Obsidian, Iris, Peony, and Porcelain.

Google Pixel 9a

Google Pixel 9a

All the Pixel essentials for less.

The Google Pixel 9a brings built-in Gemini, an incredible camera, all-day battery, and seven years of updates for under $500.

I very often recommend the Google Pixel 9a, especially for people on a tighter budget. At just $499, this phone will be a pleasure to use, and most people won’t see the benefit in paying for a higher-end device. Today’s $399 price point makes it much more enticing.

If you read our Google Pixel 9a review, you’ll quickly find it performs way above its price range. We really didn’t have much to complain about, as it essentially offers a close-to-high-end experience.

The Pixel 9a features a powerful Google Tensor G4 processor, elevating its performance to that of the higher-end Pixel 9 series. The 8GB of RAM isn’t much to write home about, but it will be more than sufficient for most casual users. You might not even notice any slowdowns unless you’re really pushing its multitasking limits.

Rita El Khoury / Android Authority

It has a smaller 6.3-inch display, but this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Many of us prefer smaller phones, after all. It’s also a really nice display, with a P-OLED panel, a Full HD+ resolution, and a 120Hz refresh rate. Additionally, its camera system is really nice, considering the price range.

The battery life is pretty decent. It has a 5,100mAh battery. Aided by the Tensor G4 optimizations, it can last about a whole day under a usual load. We never got any battery anxiety from it. Based on our tests, it also managed to beat most of the direct competition, including the Pixel 8a, Apple iPhone 16e, and Samsung Galaxy S24 FE.

Google also didn’t skimp out on the design department, despite it being a more affordable handset. I love the fact that it has no camera bump, which is very rare these days. It still comes with an aluminum frame, and features an IP68 rating for water and dust resistance.

Ryan Haines / Android Authority

Iris

You also won’t have to worry about it becoming obsolete very soon, as it gets one of the best update commitments in the industry at seven years. It’s really only matched by Samsung.

Are you interested? Jump on this deal while you can. Remember, it is at a record-low price, and such offers tend to go away pretty soon. There’s never been a better time to get a Pixel 9a!

If you’re not convinced, you can always take a look at our list of the best budget phones. There are some other great options in there.

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You need to cover your near-term needs first

I’m someone who encourages people to save for retirement as much as possible and whenever possible. Not only will you likely need the money later in life, but you get a pretty sweet tax break for contributing to a 401(k) or IRA, so why not do it if it’s money you can afford to part with?

But if you’re worried about a recession — which people should be, frankly — then the most important thing to do is assess your emergency fund. And if it’s not where it needs to be, then it needs to take priority over your retirement savings, at least for a little while.

As a general rule, people are advised to keep three to six months of living expenses in emergency savings in the event of job loss, or to cover unplanned bills. I think it’s prudent to stick to the higher end of that range unless your job is extremely recession-proof.

I would also urge certain people to maintain an emergency fund beyond the six-month threshold. If you’re self-employed, that’s one reason to have more savings. If you lose your job, you won’t be entitled to severance or unemployment benefits.

I’d also suggest having extra emergency savings if your job is very unique, or if your industry has the potential to be highly impacted by a recession. If you’re a marketing director for a high-end fashion designer or department store, that’s the sort of job that could go away if a recession hits and consumers scale back on luxury purchases. It’s also not necessarily the easiest job to replace.

A short-term pause shouldn’t hurt you

I’ve been saving for retirement since my 20s, but there have been periods when I’ve had to cut back on 401(k) or IRA contributions to address more pressing needs. If your emergency fund isn’t strong enough to get you through a recession, this may be one of those times for you.

I would never suggest taking a five-year break from funding your nest egg (unless, of course, it can’t be helped). But taking a three- or four-month break from retirement plan contributions to boost your near-term cash reserves probably won’t hurt you in the long run. What it could do is set you up to avoid debt and other unwanted consequences in case the economy tanks this year and your job ends up on the chopping block.