Google is removing itself from the market for low-cost smartphones

Summary

Google.. Smartphones were pricey wherever you looked only ten years ago. The few inexpensive gadgets that were available didn’t provide experiences satisfactory for regular usage, which put anyone on a tight budget in a difficult situation. Fortunately, as smartphones became more sophisticated, more potent components made their way into more affordable models, resulting in some genuinely amazing experiences that cost far less than a typical flagship phone. An excellent example of this is Google’s Pixel A-series, which offers comparably fantastic phones with just enough restrictions to keep them pleasantly reasonable for the typical consumer.

Regrettably, Google appears to have failed to keep up with the trend of declining pricing for budget smartphones, as seen by the company’s decision to raise the prices of its budget portfolio even while prices in the market continue to decline. The Pixel 8a is reportedly going to cost almost as much as a flagship from a few years ago, which has A-series fans questioning if they will ever be able to afford smartphones from Google at all.

The cost of Google’s Pixels keeps going up.

Within a few years, the A-series went from $350 to over $500.

When it came to low-cost smartphones, the Pixel was initially a really excellent deal. When the Pixel 3a, Google’s first A-series gadget, was first released, it only cost $400. The Pixel 4a was even more affordable, with a price as low as $350, the lowest to date. The Pixel 7a peaked at $500 last year, while the Pixel 5a and Pixel 6a both shot up to $450 in the next years. According to rumors from a German store, the Pixel 8a could cost as much as $550 when it launches, which would only put it $50 more expensive than the Pixel 6 and Pixel 7 did when they were first released a few years ago.

That certainly appears to be a Google pattern that cannot continue. The price of the Pixel A-series smartphones is rising at a rate that will make them more expensive than an iPhone in five years, whether it’s due to inflation or the unstoppable power of the market. Though it is inevitable that a plateau will eventually occur, Google is more than willing to fully remove itself from the low-cost smartphone industry.

Even worse, Google doesn’t offer any ground-breaking features or remarkable specifications for its expensive price. While there are many smartphones in the Pixel A-series with OLED screens and powerful cameras, and with chipsets that are the same as those of their flagship siblings once Tensor was adopted, the display quality and battery life of these devices are still subpar when compared to other smartphones in the market. On paper, the Pixel 7a is a really bad deal when compared to something like the OnePlus 12R, and it’s unclear if raising the price of the Pixel 8a will make it any better.

In summary, there is no real need for Google to charge more for low-cost smartphones, which is why some consumers may choose to switch to their rivals. Since they are actually among the only manufacturers (apart from Apple) without a smartphone that costs less than $300.

There are more reasonably priced alternatives to this cheap smartphone.

Rivals are keeping things inexpensive, from OnePlus and Nothing to Samsung and Motorola.

If you’re willing to look past Pixel, there’s a lot to offer if you’re looking for something reasonably priced. The equivalent Samsung Galaxy A-series, which is both expansive and reasonably priced, is the most apparent place to start. For instance, the Galaxy A54, which retails for just $450, boasts a stunning display and a sizable battery; we anticipate the forthcoming A55 to do the same. For even less money, the Galaxy A15 and Galaxy A25 only cost $200 and $300, respectively, and come with an OLED screen, a full camera array, and a larger battery than the Pixel 7a—all without the superb processor of the Pixel. However, Samsung has done a great job of offering many more options than Google, which perhaps offers them a little more leeway when it comes to actual pricing.

However, this does not absolve Google because other, less capable smartphone makers have also been able to maintain cheap costs. Motorola has established itself as a well-liked low-cost competitor to Samsung, offering a similarly broad range of reasonably priced devices, such as the $200 Moto G Stylus, which comes with a stylus. Even at $350, the Nothing Phone 2a is still significantly less expensive than the rumored pricing of the impending Pixel 8a, even though it won’t be available in US carrier stores.

Furthermore, even though it would be simple to blame Tensor G3’s inclusion for Google’s anticipated price increase, the OnePlus 12R already mentioned negates that claim. For a mere $500, it boasts a powerful multi-day battery, a display that far surpasses that of the Pixel 7a, and a flagship-caliber Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC. The specifications sheet is commendable enough to warrant our Editor’s Choice award, despite OxygenOS’s inferior software experience compared to the Pixel.
It’s safe to conclude that Google seems to be abandoning its users who are on a tight budget. Sure, they could change course and eventually produce a phone that is even more affordable, or they could just randomly choose the future course of its phone line. In any case, you’ll have lots of other affordable options to choose from when things return back to normal because it looks like any Pixel phone will be a little bit out of your price range for the time being.