Google will not launch the Pixel 4 smartphone, as well as its sibling the Pixel 4 XL, in the Indian market.
Interestingly, ahead of the Pixel 4 series launch, it was already known that Project Soli will not work in India. In fact, not just India, Project Soli as of now is not supported in Japan, Australia, New Zealand and Mexico as well. This means that the new Pixel 4 series will also not launch in these countries.
Nevertheless, Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL does come with a punch to fight the latest flagships from other companies.
Pixel 4, Pixel 4 XL specifications
For starters, there’s no notch in sight. This has been replaced by a thick top bezel, which is home to the front camera, face unlocks, and Soli radar sensor. The Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL are both powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 SoC.
The handsets boot Android 10 out of the box and sport dual sensors in iPhone 11 Pro-like camera module at the back. The camera setup includes a 12-megapixel primary sensor and 16-megapixel secondary lens on both Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL. The Pixel 4 series has with 90Hz refresh rate and Ambient EQ that “dynamically” adjusts its colour temperature and brightness. The smaller Pixel 4 smartphone flaunts a 5.7-inch full HD+ display and a 2,700mAh battery with wireless charging support. Meanwhile, the Pixel 4 XL comes with 6.3-inch QHD+ panel with a slightly bigger 3,700mAh battery cell. Apart from this, the Pixel 4 series also sports stereo speakers and Titan M security module..
Why Pixel 4 and Pixel XL not launching in India
The company says the decision to not launch Pixel 4 series in India was based on a variety of factors, including “local trends” and “product features.”
The bottleneck lies in the leading feature Project Soli, a radar-based motion-sensing chip baked into the new Pixel smartphones that relies on using 60GHz mmWave. The company failed to secure permission from the local authority in India to use this frequency band.
But simply disabling the chip and releasing the phone in India couldn’t be a solution. Since there’s no alternative to face unlock on the phone. The Pixel 4 doesn’t come with a fingerprint reader, so it’s completely dependent on face unlock for security.
As Soli is necessary for face unlock and there’s no other biometric authentication method available, Google had no recourse but to abandon its launch plans for the Indian market. In a statement, a Google India spokesperson said:
Google has a wide range of products that we make available in different regions around the world. We determine availability based on a variety of factors, including local trends, and product features. We decided not to make Pixel 4 available in India. We remain committed to our current Pixel phones and look forward to bringing future Pixel devices to India.
So, if you had been waiting for the Pixel 4 or Pixel 4 XL to launch in India for the superior camera performance and gesture control, you are in for some disappointment.
However, this doesn’t imply that Google will no longer launch Pixel phones in the country
India is among the first countries where the affordable Pixel 3a series was launched in May. And it seems, Google may stick to selling affordable Pixel handsets under the ‘a’ sub-series.
What do you think about the fact Pixel 4 series is not launching India any time soon? We would like to hear your thoughts in comments.