Google announces Pixel 5, Pixel 4A 5G, and Pixel 4A • Hacker News Board

Re: Google announces Pixel 5, Pixel 4A 5G, and Pixel 4A

#111

Post by solarkraft » Mon, Aug 03, 2020, 5:06 PM UTC

Here's a pretty enlightening video ny Dave2D about the strategy behind this uncommon Monday launch: https://youtu.be/oAy9EuBRCpg

TL;DW: They're positioning it directly against the Oneplus Nord.

Personally I'm happy the Pocophone F1 finally has some competition in the quality-reasonably-priced segment.

For Normies the 4a will probably be the best software-wise while I still consider the Pocophone a great device due to its repairability and large battery (good FOSS ROM support is important but luckily given on such popular devices).

Re: Google announces Pixel 5, Pixel 4A 5G, and Pixel 4A

#112

Post by andybak » Mon, Aug 03, 2020, 5:11 PM UTC

usrusr wrote: post #106

Google's handset portfolio is starting to get a bit messy. Ignoring any earlier but still available models you have a 4 in 64GB and 128GB versions, a 4a without a 64GB option, a 4a 5G that also differs from the regular 4a in some other specs, no 4 5G, an announced straight 5 and presumably everything in regular and XL versions that may or may not differ in other specs as well. Reminds me of how Motorola made people c…

The thing that finally made me jump ship to Macbooks about 10 years ago was the fact that I needed a week and a spreadsheet to choose a PC laptop.

Re: Google announces Pixel 5, Pixel 4A 5G, and Pixel 4A

#113

Post by Krasnol » Mon, Aug 03, 2020, 5:11 PM UTC

KerrickStaley wrote: post #91

TremendousJudge wrote: post #85

Earlier quoted context omitted.

350 dollars is "budget"?

Yes. The Pixel 4's launch price was $800 for the basic configuration, the S10 launched at $900, and the iPhone 11 (which is actually more mid-range in Apple's lineup than "flagship") launched at $700.

Only because there are more expensive phones and where the high price is even part of the marketing, doesn't make that one "budget". There are also many cheaper phones. China is full of them.

Re: Google announces Pixel 5, Pixel 4A 5G, and Pixel 4A

#114

Post by rattray » Mon, Aug 03, 2020, 5:12 PM UTC

TremendousJudge wrote: post #85

PossiblyKyle wrote: post #26

One of the biggest reasons I'm happy with the increasing competition in the budget segments is that they're starting to make the 'right' sacrifices, slightly negating the distinctive features and advantages of flagship phones. Flagship phones will either have to adapt (introducing more useful features and not extra camera-bloat), or people will just keep buying the cheaper ones.

350 dollars is "budget"?

Given that flagship phones are $800-$1000, yes, that's the high end of budget or the low end of mid-range.

Re: Google announces Pixel 5, Pixel 4A 5G, and Pixel 4A

#115

Post by Krasnol » Mon, Aug 03, 2020, 5:14 PM UTC

andybak wrote: post #112

usrusr wrote: post #106

Google's handset portfolio is starting to get a bit messy. Ignoring any earlier but still available models you have a 4 in 64GB and 128GB versions, a 4a without a 64GB option, a 4a 5G that also differs from the regular 4a in some other specs, no 4 5G, an announced straight 5 and presumably everything in regular and XL versions that may or may not differ in other specs as well. Reminds me of how Motorola made people c…

The thing that finally made me jump ship to Macbooks about 10 years ago was the fact that I needed a week and a spreadsheet to choose a PC laptop.

So if the specification weren't important for you, why did you bother?

I think it's quite nice to have the choice, upgradability, price range, etc.

Re: Google announces Pixel 5, Pixel 4A 5G, and Pixel 4A

#116

Post by intsunny » Mon, Aug 03, 2020, 5:14 PM UTC

Its a shame the Pixal 4A does not have an ultrawide camera.

Of all the newfangled phone features, an ultrawide camera (with the software to back it) seems to be one of the new truly worth while features. I never understood nor cared for the feature until my job gave me a new phone with that had one.

It would be quite the bummer to go back to having a phone without this feature.

So many phone reviews drone on and on about the latest Snapdragon 2934838 chipset with its 2^N cores and 2^N GB of RAM. The vast majority of us simply don't care for the horsepower nonsense. We're not looking to run hadoop on top of k8s on our phones. The cameras are really where things matter.

Re: Google announces Pixel 5, Pixel 4A 5G, and Pixel 4A

#117

Post by rattray » Mon, Aug 03, 2020, 5:14 PM UTC

owenversteeg wrote: post #96

wccrawford wrote: post #4

Does the 4a still disable the USBC video-out? I've wanted to use that feature a few times in the last few years and I'm bummed that the Pixel line hasn't supported it.

Yeah, I have to say, USBC video out sounds like a gimmick until it isn't. I completely ignored it in choosing a phone but it has saved my butt countless times now. Usually the way it happens is that the computer intended for playing a movie/show/presentation/etc has a problem, lacks a cable, etc. Then I spot a USBC to HDMI dongle (basically everyone with a new Mac or recent ultrabook has some kind of USBC dongle) and…

Thanks for sharing, I wouldn't have thought of that.

Re: Google announces Pixel 5, Pixel 4A 5G, and Pixel 4A

#118

Post by rattray » Mon, Aug 03, 2020, 5:16 PM UTC

What does the "A" in 4A mean? Large? Small? Cheap? Fancy?

The answer didn't appear in a skim of the first several paragraphs, and like many here I don't care enough to RTWFA

Re: Google announces Pixel 5, Pixel 4A 5G, and Pixel 4A

#119

Post by legitster » Mon, Aug 03, 2020, 5:16 PM UTC

usrusr wrote: post #106

Google's handset portfolio is starting to get a bit messy. Ignoring any earlier but still available models you have a 4 in 64GB and 128GB versions, a 4a without a 64GB option, a 4a 5G that also differs from the regular 4a in some other specs, no 4 5G, an announced straight 5 and presumably everything in regular and XL versions that may or may not differ in other specs as well. Reminds me of how Motorola made people c…

It's important to point out that the vast majority of phones are sold through the channel - carriers will probably choose to sell their own subset of all the options based on their own market research.

Re: Google announces Pixel 5, Pixel 4A 5G, and Pixel 4A

#120

Post by notyourday » Mon, Aug 03, 2020, 5:17 PM UTC

intsunny wrote: post #116

Its a shame the Pixal 4A does not have an ultrawide camera. Of all the newfangled phone features, an ultrawide camera (with the software to back it) seems to be one of the new truly worth while features. I never understood nor cared for the feature until my job gave me a new phone with that had one. It would be quite the bummer to go back to having a phone without this feature. So many phone reviews drone on and on a…

> The vast majority of us simply don't care for the horsepower nonsense.

Non-flagship Android phones are visibly slower in a responsiveness than flagships. So yes, people do care, otherwise they would not be buying flagships, saving gobs of money and accepting that sometimes it takes several seconds to open an app.