Google Expects Pixel 4a 5G And Pixel 5 To Flop

With the Google Pixel 4a 5G and Pixel 5, Google has introduced new smartphones that offer Android in its purest form. Despite great ambitions, however, they are cautious about expectations for sales figures and have therefore only ordered surprisingly small numbers.

As reported by the Japanese business service Nikkei Asia, Google has only placed orders with its contract manufacturers for around 800,000 Pixel 5, which are to be produced there this year. The group is therefore setting a very low rate, which is said to be primarily due to the lack of success of last year’s two flagship smartphones, the Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL.

Why Small numbers planned for 2020?

Overall, Google only wants to produce around three million copies of its current Pixel smartphones this year. This applies to pixel 4a, pixel 4a 5G and pixel 5 taken together. In addition to the disappointing figures for the Pixel 4 models for the internet company, the background is also the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, which is severely weakening purchasing power on an international level. In addition, there is a lot of pressure from the strong Chinese manufacturers. In total, Google had only sold around 1.5 million smartphones in the first half of 2020, which is a significant decrease compared to the same period last year. At that time, thanks to the popular Pixel 3a with 4.1 million units, it was already a respectable success in the smartphone market, mainly because Google’s devices were much less widely available than those of the competition.

For Google, the situation in the smartphone market has deteriorated considerably overall, also because US customers are currently investing primarily in other electronic devices. Instead of buying a new smartphone, most US customers currently prefer to spend their money on cheap notebooks, televisions, or everyday goods, according to the report from market observers from IDC. Internationally, the situation should not necessarily look better.