Yes, Google Should Stop Making Flagship Handsets (Premium)

I don’t believe rumors that the Pixel 5 will be a mid-range handset instead of a flagship. But that is exactly what Google should do.

I’ve been writing about my love/hate relationship with Pixel since the first version launched in late 2016. Unlike its Nexus 5X and 6P predecessors, the Pixel lineup has been marked most obvious by poor product quality and too-high pricing. But I’ve stuck with the phones for a variety of reasons: their incredible camera systems, their clean Android software image, and their full compatibility with the Google Fi wireless network I enjoy so much.

My preferences are my preferences. But Pixel’s reliability and pricing problems are universal, especially when combined with Pixel’s lack of brand awareness. Everyone has heard of iPhone and Galaxy, and each is revered in its own way for being the best choices in the market by large customer groups. But Pixel? To most, it’s an unknown, and it’s one that inexplicably costs as much as those iPhone and Galaxy flagships. To a few, it is known ... for reliability problems. It’s no wonder Google’s sales are terrible.

I’ve been harping on Google to lower the price of Pixel since the first version, and for good reason: Even aside from the reliability issues---which only became obvious once the handsets started shipping to customers---Google simply can’t command the same prices as the market leaders. And this isn’t an opinion: Pixel sales have been horrible every year. In fact, they’re getting worse over time.

But there was one bright spot: In May 2019, Google released its first-ever mid-range handsets, the Pixel 3a and 3a XL. These delightful---and delightfully affordable---handsets did something that no other Google handset has ever done: They moved the needle on sales. For the time ever, Google mentioned Pixel in a positive light in an earnings announcement using hard numbers, noting  that “overall Pixel unit sales in Q2 [2019] grew more than two times year over year.”

The Pixel 3a was---and still is---special for many reasons. From its durable and attractive polycarbonate body to its reliable rear-mounted fingerprint reader to its stunning (single) camera system, it really delivers, and on a budget. Of course, Google did cut some corners. The display is weighed down visually with big bezels. The storage is slow (eMMC) and non-expandable (during or after purchase). And the performance is just south of acceptable, especially for those who are used to flagship quality.

These problems are all easily fixed. In fact, one of them---the slow storage---will allegedly be fixed in the Pixel 4a, thanks to its rumored use of faster UFS 2.1 storage.

More to the point, with a few tweaks, this type of mid-range handset could really shine, and for just about anyone, and do so at a price level that makes more sense for Google and the lackluster Pixel brand. A better if not totally leading-edge processor. At least a dual-lens camera system....