[lordvader]

Originally Posted by Chetan_Rao

iPhones are a different story because they're the sole iOS option. Not so for Android. This pricing isn't going to work in the mass market.

Maybe they are not targeting the mass market. I'm no expert but if a company is selling an ecosystem then who would they want to sell, obviously people with deeper pockets than average Joe. And the offerings that Google showcased yesterday are definitely pointing towards the ecosystem pitch. Getting customers to invest in an OS is likely to keep the revenue streams alive for a longer time. Apple, through its expensive offerings, both hardware and software, has been able to keep the customers engaged. And not to take away the seamless experience that they provide. By the way, this time google has kept some features as exclusive to pixel, such as the pixel launcher, so as to maintain the exclusivity.

Moreover, with so many players fighting it out in the budget segment, it wouldn't make much sense to try to compete there. To be honest, the smartphone user in India has been late to the nexus / google phone party. Regular updates never used to be a decision criteria while buying a phone. And OS updates was one of the biggest USP of early nexus phones.

[Chetan_Rao]

Originally Posted by lordvader

Maybe they are not targeting the mass market. I'm no expert but if a company is selling an ecosystem........

I don't disagree, but the only fly in that ointment is it's far easier to open up a closed Ecosystem by providing more options, than closing up a currently open ecosystem with plenty of options.

Exactly what I meant by 'differentiation'. Whether Google have differentiated Pixel enough from the other Android offerings (features and/or UI) to justify a user 'wanting' to pay up the extra moolah, is what remains to be seen.

[lordvader]

Originally Posted by Chetan_Rao

Exactly what I meant by 'differentiation'. Whether Google have differentiated Pixel enough from the other Android offerings (features and/or UI) to justify a user 'wanting' to pay up the extra moolah, is what remains to be seen.

I understand what you mean. But the way I look at it, a premium looking and performing phone (yet to be tested) with a flexible but connected ecosystem is a much bigger plus in comparison to others. And that is good news for Google but it may not necessarily excite the dispersed user base, which I guess is the case now.

From what I read, Google has designed the phone in and out, even though its manufactured by HTC.

All I'm trying to say is that the path they have taken may not be entirely bad. In a way, its good because it shows focus and confidence as a company as they are challenging Apple in its turf.

As a user, and that too with a limited budget for smartphone I'm not pleased. Especially since when I have used Nexus 4, the epitome of VFM device. But if Google is able to take on Iphone with Pixel in the premium segment then it should augur well for it and Android.

Though interestingly I feel the focus has not been much on the new version of Android. Or is it because it's yet to be released formally?

[thoma]

Originally Posted by thoma

Just fell for the offer on amazon.in for Redmi Note 3 and moreover the grey color was available in the 32GB variant. INR 1000/- off today and another 15% cashback on purchase from mobile app. Comes to an effective of ~9.35k.

How long does Amazon take to dispatch the Redmi Note 3? I have ordered one on 3rd and no shipment details till now. The seller is Cloudtail India.

[phamilyman]

Originally Posted by lordvader

I understand what you mean. But the way I look at it, a premium looking and performing phone (yet to be tested) with a flexible but connected ecosystem is a much bigger plus in comparison to others. And that is good news for Google but it may not necessarily excite the dispersed user base, which I guess is the case now.

From what I read, Google has designed the phone in and out, even though its manufactured by HTC.

All I'm trying to say is that the path they have taken may not be entirely bad. In a way, its good because it shows focus and confidence as a company as they are challenging Apple in its turf.

As a user, and that too with a limited budget for smartphone I'm not pleased. Especially since when I have used Nexus 4, the epitome of VFM device. But if Google is able to take on Iphone with Pixel in the premium segment then it should augur well for it and Android.

Though interestingly I feel the focus has not been much on the new version of Android. Or is it because it's yet to be released formally?

Sorry. Its dead on arrival. In a country where value maximization is in our blood - this is horrible pricing for a brand that does NOT have aspiration value.

Here's how the aam aadmi thinks - the 64 GB Nexus 6p for 36.4k (before deals) looks mindblowing value for money compared to Pixel 5" for 57k. Now dxomark 89 vs 84 is not going to swing any numbers.

In fact, in India, iPhone 6 sales really spiked upwards in 2015 when it got discounted to the 36-38k mark by Paytm and others at the time of the 6s launch - we indians love value. And Pixel is anything but value.

PS: Ever noticed 90% of Indian iPhone cases have a hole to show off the apple logo? I don't recall a single android phone case with such a feature to show off the mfr logo. Will Google get that brand recall ? I really doubt that.

[Vid6639]

This will be a repeat of Nexus 6 when they tried to go premium and bombed that time for 2 reasons. One was the physical size and other was price.

Just for the pure android experience which even a 15K Motorola comes close to is absurd to think they can charge 60K. They don't have the brand image that apple has.

Then there's the resale. No android phone till date has anywhere close to decent resale. The iphone is the opposite. I felt quite dejected over the weekend when my dad's iphone 5 from 2012 had a buy back of 8K vs my Nexus 5x bought in April which was 7,500. Mine you mine was a 32GB nexus which I shelled out 28K for.

There is just no USP in the Pixel phones to justify the price premium.

To top it off with Pixel Google has pretty much denied the pure android experience to teh masses. This was something which theNexus set out to do from the start. Above average hardware, good pricing and pure android experience.

I had my heart set on the Pixel + but now will be looking at the Moto Z play. The Nexus 5X will remain with me as the last nexus series. Only reason I'm changing is really bad battery of the 5X.

[_chikku]

Only positive in Pixel being hitting the top rank in dxocamera charts.. yet price is not justified for India

[lordvader]

Originally Posted by _chikku

Only positive in Pixel being hitting the top rank in dxocamera charts.. yet price is not justified for India

Originally Posted by Vid6639

There is just no USP in the Pixel phones to justify the price premium.

Originally Posted by phamilyman

And Pixel is anything but value. Will Google get that brand recall ? I really doubt that.

Pricing may not be conducive for Indian market but its perfect as far as competing with Apple is concerned. With Nexus 6, Google didn't go all out in terms of pricing. The way I look at it is they held back a little, positioned the Nexus 6s premium yet affordable and it didn't get them anywhere. But this time, they have declared war from the word go by pricing the phone exactly same as iphone (~$769).

At this point, we don't know the real life performance of pixel vis-a-vis Iphone so it would be unfair to sign it off completely. I'd like to see a few real world comparisons and then make up my mind about this phone.

For starters, I found this article comparing camera performance of flagships including pixel - http://www.androidauthority.com/new-...camera-720209/

I'm not a photography expert but the pixel shots look a tad better than that of others.

[shifu]

Has anybody bought a "unboxed" product from snapdeal? They have a One Plus 2 for 17k and it sounds like a good deal!

[pratyush6]

It's too early to judge the pricing of Pixel IMHO. The phone does look class and with Google's ecosystem (which most Indians use more than Apple) it could shake up the market.
And Google is no Blackberry, who ecosystem was dying and still priced their phones at a super premium. Unfortunately, the problem is going to be the oft abused Android name - when manufacturers sell an Android from 5k to 60k, the experience is never symmetrical.
I hate the ugly chin it has got, a la the iphones, which is one of my reasons not to buy those. The design - a dual tone one is new and frankly should stand out, which is good. Lets hope it finds some success.

I for one find the Google ecosystem far more useful than Apple, at-least over here in India. I was looking at the Pixel but now would look to OnePlus again for a phone. To me they make absolutely amazing phones and the pricing is justified.

[praful]

Now that Google tracks has shut down a couple of months back, has anyone found an equally good replacement for it?

Most of the options I have seen have too much bloat associated with it.

I liked the simple yet effective interface of the Google app.

[KD007]

Originally Posted by naveenroy

Mi Max - the battery itself will make you happy. Been using it for more than a month now and no worries - and the battery life makes me smile everyday.

How good is the rerouting speed in google maps?

[SchumiFan]

Originally Posted by lordvader

For starters, I found this article comparing camera performance of flagships including pixel - http://www.androidauthority.com/new-...camera-720209/

I'm not a photography expert but the pixel shots look a tad better than that of others.

The Pixel photo's dark areas are brighter and the normal areas are clearer with more details. LG looks whitewashed whereas iPhone looks good in the bright areas it looks darker overall. Samsung doesn't get that much detail although and again brighter (white washed).

Just my observation as well.

Still digesting the price though :(

[vb-saan]

A face down fall from around 1m, and this happened – cracks on both corners.
Repair cost quoted around 200 SGD (after 50% discount for Samsung Concierge customers); decided to stay with the broken screen for next 6 months or so.

[GrammarNazi]

The best thing would be that we could have those tags like the old Nokia phones had. Atleast have that option!

Ofcourse, phone companies want us to spend a heavily at ASC's to repair the screens.