The Pixel 11 Pro is a slap in the face to Android enthusiasts everywhere

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The Pixel 11 announcement felt like watching a car crash in slow motion. For months, we’ve heard rumors of Google price hikes, but I hoped that would be the only significant change. We already witnessed Samsung raise prices on some models, but with decent upgrades. Motorola kept the specs relatively unchanged but raised the price. Unfortunately, Google opted for the worst of both worlds, raising prices while giving buyers a RAM downgrade.

The battle for the soul of Pixels was lost by enthusiasts years ago, but they refuse to leave the field. It’s why there is always so much noise surrounding the devices. There are still enough buyers around who remember the Nexus phones and the early stock Android experience on Pixel phones, and there was a time when Google devices were a haven for enthusiasts.

In case it wasn’t already obvious, the company is shouting it in your ear with the Pixel 11 Pro and 11 Pro XL. Google’s moved on from enthusiasts, and it’s time they move on, too.

By chance, I watched an old Jeremy Clarkson car review on the Bugatti Chiron last night. Clarkson made a phenomenal point about Bugatti as a company. It knew precisely who the customer it was targeting was, and it acted accordingly. Clarkson pointed out that if you told a Chiron buyer that the car generated 2G of force in the corners, they wouldn’t care. However, if you told them there were $3,000 worth of diamonds in the speaker grilles, their ears would perk up.

Google’s been making this shift for the last few years, ever since the Pixel 9 series, and the Pixel 11 is the most blatant example. The company hopes that if you tell a Pixel 11 Pro buyer that the phone comes with 12GB of RAM this year instead of 16GB, they won’t bat an eye. However, Google fully expects them to be excited by features like HiLight and Quick Share compatibility with Apple’s AirDrop.

Unfortunately for enthusiasts, Google’s strategy seems to be working. Sales figures have improved in recent years, and anecdotally, whenever I come across Pixel buyers, I never hear any talk of Tensors, overheating, or modems. Their phones work, and they are pleasant to use — period.

While I don’t think 12GB of RAM will noticeably impact the Pixel 11 Pro’s performance, it does bring the phone in line with a familiar and formidable foe — especially at the same price. In previous years, I could defend Google’s flagship phones against Samsung’s best in several ways. It’s easy enough to highlight Google’s fantastic user experience, excellent cameras, and more RAM. The phones even came in at a touch cheaper than Samsung’s flagship devices.