Google Pixel may dent iPhone 7 hype

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India is among the six countries in the world where Google will launch its Pixel and Pixel XL smartphones. With pre-orders starting on October 13, it could dissipate some of the hype around the Apple iPhone 7’s launch this Friday.

Google’s Pixel range of phones have been designed entirely in-house and the prices, starting at Rs 57,000, are also similar to that of iPhone 7. The devices will go on sale by the end of October across Flipkart, Croma, Reliance Digital and Vijay Sales.

Armed with Google’s artificial intelligence-powered assistant and top-notch hardware to boot, the Pixel and Pixel XL mark Google’s entry into the truly high-end smartphone market. While the previous Nexus devices were often compared to the iPhone, the search giant along with its partners sought that those devices were accessible to a larger number of buyers.

“If you look at it from Google’s perspective, they’re trying to position Pixel as the most premium Android experience you can get. If the company can market it well in the next two-three weeks, they could attract mature Android buyers in the market for a new device and with the Samsung Note 7 debacle, I’d say Google is well placed,” said Neil Shah, partner at Counterpoint Research.

But, a big sticker price could mean low sales for the Pixel phones. Even Apple controls only three per cent of the smartphone market. Moreover, Apple heavily relies on older models of its iPhone, such as the 5s which sell for under Rs 20,000, to drive nearly half of its sales in the country.

While Google has its work cut out cannibalising Samsung’s share in the premium smartphone market, experts say going after Apple will be a Herculean task. Samsung, a long-time partner of Google, is the only player that is giving Apple a tough fight in India’s premium device market, with HTC, Sony and LG being relegated to the sidelines.

“The big question is if Google Pixel can position itself as the most advanced smartphone. That’s something we’re going to have to wait and see,” added Shah.

Apple’s focus on growing its business in India suggests that the country is on the way to becoming one of the largest markets for premium smartphones. If Google wants to beat the iPhone with its Pixel phones, it is going to have to replicate or break the aspirational value which Apple has so successfully created for its devices.

In terms of picking partners for India, Google is clearly showing global rivals Amazon and Apple that it is taking sides. The new Pixel smartphones will be sold exclusively on Flipkart.

Google has also tapped one of Apple’s largest India partners — Reliance — which runs a large number of exclusive Apple stores in the country.

“Both Google Pixel and the iPhone could be technologically pari passu products of equal importance, of equal value, of equal affinity, but in image terms the two are like chalk and cheese. Apple is the platinum standard of the industry whereas Google is a ration shop for information. So, Google needs to invest a lot more than depend on the laurels of being the most accepted, the most daily used and the most intrusively used brand in India,” said Harish Bijoor, a brand consultant.

Being a services company before becoming a device maker, Google knows a thing or two about a wholesome experience, and isn’t leaving it solely up to its new Pixel phones to woo buyers. The firm, which will offer 24x7 device support for its new smartphones, has also extended the service to India, setting up a dedicated call centre for its buyers here.