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Google’s SVP, Rick Osterloh, is in charge of the company’s hardware division. Though we mainly see him for Pixel announcements, he is also in charge of Nest and other hardware at Google. Following the Made by Google event on Tuesday, Osterloh spoke with Stratechery, and talked about a number of things. Including how hard it is to build a phone.
Osterloh says that “to make a phone is probably one of the hardest things to do, it is so hard, you’re trying to put in so much technology into a small form factor, it’s got really complicated regulatory authority and certification work.” And this only scratches the surface, because you also have to “hit your targets for timing, hit your targets for cost and price points, but also nail quality and have to be innovative enough at the same time that people are interested.”
Osterloh also gives props to Samsung and Apple, saying that they’ve “been making hardware for a very long time and doing a good job with it all along, so it takes a long time to build the capabilities just for the fundamentals.” He continues by saying, “We want to have excellent silicon, we want to have excellent hardware and devices, we need to have an excellent OS that goes to everyone, and then we need to have excellence in AI.”
Google’s Pixel prices have increased as their capabilities have increased
In the same interview, Osterloh also talks about pricing. Since Pixel devices started at around $400 to $500 back in 2016, and now we have devices that are $1,800. He states that this is a “reflection of our increase in capabilities”. A big part of this was the acquisition of HTC’s smartphone division back in 2018. With that acquisition, Google got a number of people that were steeped in the industry.
With Osterloh taking charge of the Android division as well as the Pixel division, that also could create some friction with partners like Samsung. Osterloh said he told Smausng that it doesn’t mean anything with respect to a change in strategy. Osterloh says that when they work with Samsung, it’s very close and the same as they always have. This is evident from Samsung launching the first devices with Circle to Search earlier this year.