The Google Pixel 6's killer feature — it’s the price

The Google Pixel 6's killer feature — it's the price

(Epitome credit: Tom's Guide)

The Google Pixel 6 launch spent a lot of fourth dimension talking about the Tensor processor and what it ways for that phone likewise every bit for the Pixel half dozen Pro. And since this is a Google effect, there was a lot of energy devoted to new camera capabilities congenital on Google'southward knack for computational photography.

Simply equally impressive as all those changes appear, that'southward not the reason I remember people are going to pay more attending to the Pixel 6 than they did for previous Pixels. This time around, the most highly-seasoned thing about the Pixel half dozen is its low cost.

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The Pixel 6 debuts at $599 for a 128GB telephone powered by a Tensor chipset and offering an impressive dual camera display. You lot also become a 6.iv-inch brandish with a 90Hz refresh rate. If you want a bigger screen that refreshes at 120Hz, along with a triple camera assortment, then you lot tin can turn to the Pixel half dozen Pro for $899.

How the Google Pixel 6 price compares to other phones

To put those prices in context, the Pixel six measures upwardly nicely on paper to phones like the Galaxy S21 and iPhone xiii, simply it'south significantly cheaper than both of those devices — $200 cheaper in fact. True, you tin can go an iPhone 13 mini for $699, but even that'south $100 more than than the Pixel 6'southward starting price. And Apple tree'south phone not simply has a smaller screen, the mini'due south refresh charge per unit is stuck at 60Hz.

Consider too that Google charged $699 for the Pixel five when information technology launched that phone a twelvemonth agone. The Snapdragon 765G powering that devices didn't pack a lot of punch relative to other flagships, and nosotros'd look that Tensor to hands outpace that flake. So information technology seems similar Google is charging less for a more powerful phone.

Even the more expensive Pixel 6 Pro compares favorably to the contest based on toll. At $899, the Pixel 6 Pro costs $100 less than the Galaxy S21 Plus and iPhone 13 Pro — ii devices that too offer telephoto lenses and 120Hz adaptive refresh rates.

Pixel half dozen pre-order deals add on to that value, with Google throwing in a pair of Pixel Buds A-Series earbuds with your order. T-Mobile will let you claim a Pixel 6 for free with an eligible trade-in (though you volition have to sign upward for the carrier's nearly expensive unlimited data plan).

One Google Pixel vi price caveat

There's a pretty big caveat to that price, though, and information technology helps put the Pixel 6's low cost into context. While yous can go a $599 Pixel half dozen unlocked through Google, that version won't work with high-speed mmWave-based 5G. While 5G compatible, the unlocked Pixel 6 can only admission sub-6GHz 5G bands, which aren't as faster as mmWave.

To reap the benefits of mmWave, you lot're going to have to buy a version of the telephone that works with those kinds of networks. To that end, Verizon mmWave-based Ultra Wideband network is super fast, and information technology's selling a version of the Pixel 6 that tin can connect to mmWave. Unfortunately, it costs $699, or about $100 more than Google charges. AT&T also has a mmWave-ready version of the Pixel half dozen, but it'southward even more expensive at $739.

Google Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro — (Paradigm credit: Tom's Guide)

Put another way, it looks like would-exist Pixel 6 owners are beingness asked to prioritize a lower price or faster 5G connectivity. That seems similar an unfair trade-off to make and helps explain why consumers don't seem excessively excited about 5G.

And then again, mmWave isn't for everyone. As fast as Verizon's high-speed 5G network is, it'due south but available in parts of 87 cities; the rest of Verizon's nationwide 5G coverage is notably slower. T-Mobile'south 5G speeds may not attain the heights of mmWave-based networks, only they're fast enough to authorize every bit the fastest median download speeds for 5G in Ookla'south latest test results. T-Mobile also reaches the most people with its 5G network, and information technology'south only charging $599 for the Pixel half dozen.

That's why I all the same call up the Pixel half-dozen'south most attractive feature is its price. Yes, if you're dead gear up on having a phone that works with mmWave, you'll have to pay more than (though Verizon and AT&T both have deals to lower that cost). Just for the vast majority of people, the version of the Pixel half dozen that'due south bachelor at the $599 starting cost will tick all the boxes of what they're looking for in a telephone — at to the lowest degree on paper.

Google Pixel 6 toll outlook

A phone's value is determined by more than its toll tag, and we however need to test the Pixel 6 to run across how its Tensor processor and revamped cameras concur upwardly confronting the contest. But for $599, the Pixel half dozen looks to already be off to a good start earlier our testing gets underway.

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Philip Michaels is a senior editor at Tom'due south Guide. He has strong opinions about Apple, the Oakland Athletics and old movies. Follow him at @PhilipMichaels.