Google Pixel 5 Gives Up on Main Feature, Lowers Price

The more time passes and leaks show up, the more questions we have about the Pixel 5. Like why is Google ditching their phone line’s best feature and main differentiator?

No, we are not talking about a photography feature, something low-light camera-related, but Motion Sense, the feature based on Google’s special Soli radar. 

This is a thing they’ve spent years developing and proudly brought up last year. Project Soli – even the name carried some weight. After years of research and tests, this feature came with bold promises.

A radar capable of tracking every twitch of your hands from 49 feet away! It’s almost a Jedi thing, with the phone not really close to you, not in plain sight. Instead, what we got with the Pixel 4, was gesture control – Motion Sense.

True, it did make Face Unlock a lot easier and faster! All the other things we dreamed of though, well, they weren’t exactly possible after the launch. But hey, the tech was there and Google told us to wait, that the system would evolve. 

So all of us waited. Now, though, it seems we’ve waited for nothing. Motion Sense is out of the picture. Everything points to a Pixel 5 without this radar system. Why? Probably to reduce costs and grow sales globally, even in countries where because of this radar, Pixel 4 wasn’t sold, like India.

Can we blame Google for giving up on Motion Sense?

On one hand, they should have fought harder to bring their vision to reality but at the end of the day, numbers count. Google is a business and they probably have serious reasons to ax Motion Sense. 

Thing is, this is gonna lead to an even more downgraded device. Besides skipping on their special technology, Google is set to go with the Snapdragon 765 or 765G for Pixel 5. 

No, they aren’t trying to fight in the major league anymore, or at least not this year. The price reflects that, too – which, is not a bad thing for the end consumer.

Find out more in the video above!