Google is unveiling its new Pixel 5G devices today(September 30). Ahead of this, a report says that Google plans to produce only a limited number of the Pixel 4a, 4a 5G, and 5 5G this year.
A report from Nikkei says that less than 1 million Pixel 5 devices will be made this year. In fact, the numbers could be as low as 800,000 units as per its sources. While this is a shocker, the report adds that Google has set a moderate target of just 3 million devices for all the new Pixels combined. The pointed out reasons are a drop in sales and the effect of the pandemic on demand.
For instance, as of H1 2020, Google has reportedly shipped just 1.5 million devices. This is a huge drop from 4.1 million units when compared to last year. Besides, the US-China Trade war and the Global pandemic also has disrupted its migration plans. Apparently, Google decided to produce all the new Pixels in Vietnam. But only the Pixel 4a series is reportedly manufactured there while the Pixel 5 is still coming out of Shenzen, China.
Google had a rough year in 2019. As per IDC, It shipped 7.2 million units in 2019 falling behind the target of 8-10 million. Although it gained steam after Pixel 3a, the arrival of Pixel 4, 4XL stomped the figures. And now, Google is facing an ecosystem threat from Huawei. The latter is appealing to all of its Chinese colleagues to try and adopt the new HarmonyOS ecosystem.
That said, the report says that Google relatively gave conservative orders this year due to poor sales of Pixel 4 and COVID-19. This could be the reason for delays in Pixel 4a and shipment of the new Pixel devices. However, the situation might change once the new devices hit the stores. On the other hand, Google has already moved the major production of Nest Smart speakers, Nest Wi-Fi, and other home devices to Vietnam and Thailand. While Google is yet to officially comment on this, the phase-out plan is probably to end the dependency of China.
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