Report: Google is doubling down on Pixel 4a successor in India

Google launched the Pixel 4a in India last year, but we’ve already seen rumors regarding the Pixel 5a‘s release. Now, a Google executive has claimed that the firm will be bringing the Pixel 4a successor to the market in larger quantities than the previous phone.

“Google doubled inventory for Pixel for India last year and this year the intention is to further increase the focus and get larger share from global inventory for the India market,” the unnamed company executive told the Economic Times.

The executive reportedly claimed that Google was also watching the pricing strategy of players like Apple and OnePlus in the Rs 30,000 to Rs 40,000 range (~$413 to ~$551). It’s worth noting that the Pixel 4a launched in India at a promotional price of Rs 29,999 (~$413) with a regular price of Rs 31,999 (~$441).

“Pricing is a learning curve. The fight is on… we came up with an aggressive pricing for Pixel 4a, which gave good results,” the executive was quoted as saying. So presumably the Pixel 5 or whatever the 4a’s successor is called will offer similar pricing in India.

Related: Google Pixel 5a — Five things we want to see

Google curiously decided against bringing the 5G-enabled Pixel 4a 5G and Pixel 5 to the country though. And the executive told the Economic Times that Qualcomm’s 5G silicon pricing was to blame and would’ve increased the cost of the phone.

“Why do we want an expensive phone when Indians can’t use 5G. Because of hardware cost, 5G variants weren’t launched in India,” the source elaborated.

The Pixel 5G phones also brought more horsepower, a secondary rear camera, and much bigger batteries compared to the Pixel 4a. So it’s not as if 5G is the only reason to pick up one of these devices. Furthermore, the Pixel 5 added a high refresh rate, wireless charging, and water resistance.

Would you buy a Pixel 4a 5G or Pixel 5 if your country didn’t have 5G networks? Let us know by taking the poll below.