FYI: Google is doing the cheaper Pixel 8 dirty with absurd tricks even Apple would be jealous of،
Young smartphone users may not know this, but choosing a new phone to buy was much easier and simple back then. Indeed, there was a time when Apple, Samsung, and Google only made one flagship phone per year (and later, maybe two).
I have to admit… As someone who tends to have a hard time making choices – whether it’s choosing a new phone or a toothbrush, I kind of love these “moments simple”, where the iPhone 5 was the iPhone; the Galaxy SII was the Galaxy flagship, and the Nexus 4 was the only Nexus, etc.
That being said, I also recognize how amazing it is to have a larger selection of phones to choose from, even if we’re talking about the same flagship lineup. Not to mention, I’ve been using an iPhone 13 mini for a year now – a phone that wouldn’t even exist if Apple hadn’t decided to create a flagship iPhone for those who yearn for the days of the iPhone 4 – whatever thing I use. The company didn’t really need to do that. And via the worst transition in recorded history, I can now talk about something Google didn’t necessarily have to do (but did anyway), namely change its product strategy.
Those with a keener (read: nerdy) eye may already know that the all-new Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro are… very different phones. What you might not know is Google’s sneaky way of making them even more different than you think. So, let’s talk about it?
The Pixel 8 doesn’t have a set of “magic” features reserved for the more expensive Pixel 8 Pro model, and the only reason could be Google’s new business strategy.
Google is pulling an apple for us.
- Since the birth (or rather rebirth) of the fully autonomous Pixel line, which began with the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro and the first Google-designed Tenor SoC, virtually every techie I’ve encountered has criticized the decision to Google. to set a $300 price gap between the vanilla model and the Pro model.
- The reason Google’s move stands out like a sore thumb is (of course) the natural comparisons to Apple and Samsung’s flagship lineups. Simply put, Google doesn’t have the “flagship buffer” that Samsung and Apple have (think: Galaxy S23+ and iPhone 14 Plus), making the $300 price gap between the (only) two products Pixel flagships seem extremely important and extremely difficult to justify.
- For example, until the launch of Pixel 8 series, most “smartphone experts” advised most people to “just buy the vanilla” Pixel 6 or Pixel 7 instead of the Pro models,” and I don’t blame them – the value proposition has always been in favor of Google’s $600 base model flagships.
- But this time, Google is shaking things up a bit, in a strategic shift that (in my opinion) was always only a matter of time. But to what extent Pixel 8 And Pixel 8 Pro? Well, the answer might surprise you…
The Pixel 8 Pro’s “Pro Camera Mode”, 50MP Photos, Zoom Enhancement, Video Boost, Night Sight Video, and Improved Magic Eraser are not available on the cheaper Pixel 8.
The Pixel 8 Pro’s Video Boost is just one of the new features Google has decided to lock onto the Pixel 8.
- The brand new Pro mode in the camera Pixel 8 Prowhich allows you to adjust exposure, ISO, focus, etc. is not found in vanilla Pixel 8; The most ironic thing here might be that techs have already found ways to port the “exclusive” Pro mode not only to the Pixel 8 but also on the Pixel 6 And Pixel 7
- 50MP mode – another camera feature we’ve been asking Google to add to the Pixel Camera for years is a high-res mode that takes advantage of the 50MP camera the company has been using for three years now; well, the 50MP mode is here now (and it works surprisingly well, pulling out more detail than Samsung and Apple’s 50/48MP cameras) but… it’s reserved for Pixel 8 Pro, which is total nonsense – there’s no other way to say it
- Improved zoom (coming soon) is another software feature of Google’s AI bag, which allows you to zoom in on any photo after the fact and crop to whatever you want your photo to be in the center. Using generative AI, Zoom Enhance can create a clearer image from… pixelated pixels, and considering vanilla Pixel 8 doesn’t have a zoom camera, this feature seems perfect for the $700 phone, which makes Google’s decision to make it exclusive to the Pixel 8 Pro even weirder
- Google seems magical Video boost it’s supposed to make videos taken with the Pixel 8 Pro like a million times better than those taken with an iPhone (judging by Google’s demonstration on stage) doesn’t happen either Pixel 8 – keep in mind that this feature won’t be released until the end of the year, which gives Google time to change its mind… please?
- Another camera feature not yet available only on the Pixel 8 Pro East Night vision videowhich is exactly what it’s supposed to be: make videos taken in low light brighter and cleaner
- According to the Google website, the “improved” version of the Magic Eraser (one of the Pixel 6 And Pixel 7(the most talked about features), which can help you remove even bigger distractions – including shadows and objects attached to these distractions is also exclusive to the Pixel 8 Pro
Is there any technical reason why the Pixel 8 can’t benefit from the same magical camera features as the Pixel 8 Pro?
In a nutshell, the answer to that question is… I really don’t think so.
What stands out here is that all the new software boundaries that Google has decided to set between the Pixel 8 And Pixel 8 Pro are all camera related. On the one hand, it shows how focused the camera is on the Pixel 8 Pro (and in the industry in general), but more importantly, the software nature of all of these features shows that there’s really no reason why they couldn’t work on the $700 model. Pixel 8 but only on the Pixel 8 Pro.Both phones share the same G3 tensor chip and even the same 50 MP main camera sensor, with the only hardware difference (which could potentially mean something) is the 8 versus 12 GB of RAM.
But then again, if RAM was a limitation, why wouldn’t Google increase it just to keep things vanilla? Pixel 8 the flagship, impressive camera features that the company works so hard to make and sell? Not to mention, adding another 4GB of RAM is expected to cost Google minimal amounts.
Pixel 8 vs Pixel 8 Pro: Is the huge $300 price gap justified now, or does it make even less sense?
Google’s upselling technique is different from Samsung’s and somewhat reminiscent of Apple’s.
Ultimately, I’m certainly not trying to “denounce” Google – especially since we’re talking about strategic business decisions here. But my job is to analyze what’s happening in the world of smartphones and let you decide what you think about it.
In my opinion, software lock features, not to mention the ones you try to promote so loudly and proudly, might be the least preferred way to handle upselling in the phone world. And I even think Google will listen to the tech world and reconsider some (but maybe not all) of its decisions.
Does the software lock down some of the coolest AI/camera features on the market? Pixel 8 the right way to justify the huge $300 price gap between the Pixel 8 And Pixel 8 Pro?
How Apple, Samsung and Google Upsell Smartphones
But is there a right way to create a flagship line in the first place? What is the right balance between essential and premium features? Can you make everyone happy? Probably not.
- Apple, for example, might be the least generous phone maker in this regard, as the iPhone15 and the iPhone 15 Pro may look almost the same but differ in almost every hardware element – from the materials to the SoC powering the phones – but perhaps that’s why it’s the best at upselling; Apple is also a master at making an $800 flagship that looks like a $1,200 flagship.
- Samsung sits at the opposite end of the spectrum, as one of the most generous phone makers when it comes to offering affordable premium features to flagships; for example, the Galaxy S23 and the S23+ give you pretty much the same hardware (and exactly the same software tricks) as the Galaxy S23 Ultra – except for the S Pen and 10x zoom camera, which are niche features that the majority of people don’t care.
Clearly, Google’s goal in the smartphone business is to become big enough to start playing in the same league as Samsung and Apple, and that means playing by the same (or similar) rules. So make no mistake: the more phones Google sells, the more strategic the company’s product line will become. We’ve seen this before with OnePlus and even Samsung.
