3 things Google should do with the Pixel line

[PixelTracer]

These are the three things that Google should do with the Pixel line:

1. Make it a budget line.

When the Nexus line was introduced back in 2010, It was meant for
people that didn’t have the money for a $600-$700 phone.
They had stock Android and excellent specs for a low price.

Every model in the line up until the Nexus 6 cost around $200-$350.
Starting with the Nexus 6, They turned it into a premium line to
compete with Apple and Samsung which kind of killed it.

I know they did this recently with the Pixel 3a which costs $400.

If the Pixel 4 is around the same price, It would sell a lot of units.

2. Add a MicroSD card slot and bring back the headphone jack.

Every Google-branded Android device after the Nexus One does not
have a MicroSD card slot for some reason. I guess they think since the
device has a lot of storage, Nobody needs an SD card.

They are somewhat right about that, But it’s always good to have a
MicroSD card slot on a phone. If you take a lot of pictures, store a lot
of music and apps, or if you use your phone for shooting 4K video.

But Google is not the only Android phone manufacturer to omit the
MicroSD card slot, Samsung tried this back in 2015 with the Galaxy S6
and people were not happy about that, so they put it back in with the
Galaxy S7.

And also bring back the headphone jack, The Pixel line hasn’t had one
since the original released back in 2016. Because there are people out
there who still use wired headphones to listen to music.

3. Make another good Android tablet.

The last Android-powered tablet that Google made was the Pixel C
released in 2015 and it was okay.
Then they released the Pixel Slate in 2018 as a sort of successor to the
Pixel C. Instead of running Android, It ran Chrome OS.

Chrome OS itself is fine on things like Chromebooks but it’s not a
great OS for tablets. It’s like with Amazon’s Fire OS where it’s great for
their budget tablets and smart speakers but it’s not good on
smartphones.

Google, please Please PLEASE make another tablet like the Nexus 7
with either a very powerful Snapdragon or with AMD graphics
because that would be awesome. And it would be a worthy
competitor to the iPad, the Surface and the Galaxy Tabs.

Keep in mind, This is just my personal opinion. You may agree or disagree.

 

[Mike Dee]

What's wrong with them having a mid range and a premium device?

 

[PixelTracer]

What's wrong with them having a mid range and a premium device?

I have nothing wrong with them. I was just saying that not everyone has the money to buy a premium phone when they can buy a phone with premium specs at a lower price.

 

[dov1978]

I can honestly say I don't miss micro sd or the headphone jack anymore. I'm over them. The Pixels especially have free cloud storage to cover the expandable storage. For me personally I always found they caused more problems like battery drain etc. I also think the Pixel 3a covers the Nexus ethos or even OnePlus seems to have picked up where they left off.

 

[belodion]

It is quite beyond belief, and understanding, that time after time after time, manufacturers seem unable or unwilling to give customers what they want. There is almost always something about a new device that is guaranteed to be instantly disliked. Notches, punch holes, curved displays, no headphone jack, huge size, sealed batteries, unreliable fingerprint sensors, slippery glass backs, and absurdly high prices are obvious examples. When the manufacturers do get it right - the iPhone SE for example - they stop making it and produce no successor, despite huge popularity.

I largely agree with what you say, and I'd add to it that I'd like to see a fully-specced compact version of the Pixel.

 

[Mike Dee]

I have nothing wrong with them. I was just saying that not everyone has the money to buy a premium phone when they can buy a phone with premium specs at a lower price.

And Pixel offers both now

 

[Morty2264]

It is quite beyond belief, and understanding, that time after time after time, manufacturers seem unable or unwilling to give customers what they want. There is almost always something about a new device that is guaranteed to be instantly disliked. Notches, punch holes, curved displays, no headphone jack, huge size, sealed batteries, unreliable fingerprint sensors, slippery glass backs, and absurdly high prices are obvious examples. When the manufacturers do get it right - the iPhone SE for example - they stop making it and produce no successor, despite huge popularity.

I largely agree with what you say, and I'd add to it that I'd like to see a fully-specced compact version of the Pixel.

I agree as well and would totally love a more compact version of the Pixel. And I loved the iPhone SE! My brother and husband used them and really enjoyed the experience.

 

[anon(10092459)]

I think the thought is what does Google want the Pixel line to be. I continue to be in the mind that the "Google Experience" is the target and not the "Android Experience" so much.

To that end, I think having a premium line and a mid-tier offering is enough. The 3a, during sales and promotions, was very low and reasonably priced.

Google wants to highlight cloud storage, not SD storage. That being a big part of the "Google Experience" with Google photos as example.

Not sure what a separate tablet would do at this point. I think the vision is to focus on PixelBook and making it the best laptop and 2-in-1 it can be.

 

[Golurk]

Here’s my 2 cents on what Google needs/should do with the Pixel line:

1. Attempt to improve the designs on their flagships. I’m not asking for pop-up cameras, teardrop notches etc...but if they’re gonna have bezels at least try to make them uniform. A dual hole punch would have been nice.

2. Bigger battery. The 3 had a sub 3000mAh battery which frankly was a bit lacklustre. Rumours say that the P4 will have a 5.6-5.8 inch screen and the XL a 6.4 inch battery...so I hope they have at least a 3200mAh and 3750mAh capacity respectively.

3. The Pixel 4 will probably have 6GB of RAM and triple rear cameras...Google has managed to catch up with its competitors and knowing its AI processing software will probably have awesome photo abilities.

4. I hope the 4a series has a better design and faster processor. I loved the 3a’s camera, headphone jack and OLED display but I feel that the bezels and snapdragon 670 were a let down. Hopefully the 4a series will get the snapdragon 685 (if that’s what it’ll be called) or maybe even a 7xx series.