Discounts and gifts for bugs: Google trying to trick people into buying new Pixel phones?
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![Discounts and gifts for bugs: Google trying to trick people into buying new Pixel phones?](https://m-cdn.phonearena.com/images/article/142020-wide-two_350/Discounts-and-gifts-for-bugs-Google-trying-to-trick-people-into-buying-new-Pixel-phones.jpg?1661101371)
In case some of you have missed it, Google's been… very generous lately.
Because… it was too good to be true.
Google will pay you $200 and give you a Pixel 6A for your iPhone 13 Pro Max or $300 for an old iPhone 7, iPhone 8
![Google will pay you in order to exchange your iPhone for a Pixel. - Discounts and gifts for bugs: Google trying to trick people into buying new Pixel phones?](https://m-cdn.phonearena.com/images/articles/392156-image/pixel6atradein.jpg)
Google will pay you in order to exchange your iPhone for a Pixel.
The initial idea for this story was sitting in a document for many months, and the reason I decided it was a good time to bring up the topic was another "too good to be true" set of deals that Google made available.
This time the incredible deals concern the newly-launched Google Pixel 6A. Let's take a look at some trade-in deals across Europe and the US. As of now, Sundar Pichai & Co allow you to trade in your:
- iPhone 7, iPhone 8 for up to $300 (US)
- Galaxy S10 for $300 (US)
- iPhone 4S for €90 (Europe)
- iPhone SE 2016 for €150 (Europe)
- Galaxy S9 for $175 (Europe)
- iPhone 8 for €250 (Europe)
This by itself is unbelievable value, as a phone like the iPhone 4S is worth virtually nothing right now. The most impressive trade-in deals are for the old iPhone 7 and iPhone 8, though. These phones are over five years old at this point, and Google is ready to give you up to $300 if you were to switch to the Pixel 6A, bringing the price of the excellent mid-range phone down to just $150. But that's not all…
1. Hilarious
2. Almost suspiciously amazing
Did Google always know the Pixel 6 series was going to be problematic, and are the gifts trying to buy your happiness and patience?
![Too good to be true or just good enough to make up for the bugs? - Discounts and gifts for bugs: Google trying to trick people into buying new Pixel phones?](https://m-cdn.phonearena.com/images/articles/392157-image/pixel-6-trade-in-deals-bose-pixel-buds-a-gifts.jpg)
Too good to be true or just good enough to make up for the bugs?
All these suspiciously amazing deals bring me to the original question I had. Are Google's incredibly generous deals and gifts a way to compensate for what the company knows to be buggy devices, or is Google just ready to sell some phones at a loss on the way to establishing itself as a serious player? Xiaomi's known to do the latter.
The first one is my perspective as a Pixel 6 Pro owner who also happens to be a tech enthusiast. I think the pair of Bose 700 headphones I received absolutely doesn't make up for the buggy phone I bought for €900, which stayed buggy for 10 whole months (things seem to be getting better with Android 13, but we'll talk about that in a future story).
My cousin, on the other hand, who, as I mentioned, paid €650 for a Pixel 6 and a pair of the latest at the time Bose QC II, was more than willing to tolerate the totally broken fingerprint reader on his Pixel 6, which Google took about a month to fix. He loves his Bose headphones and uses them all the time, so whatever Google's intention was, it seems like the gifts bought his happiness and patience. I told him he could return the phone, but he didn't want to. Despite the inconsistent performance from the Pixel 6, he thought he was getting good value.
Pixel 7 series: Is it worth pre-ordering a potentially buggy phone in exchange for a pair of earphones and a good trade-in deal?
![I wouldn't risk pre-ordering another Google phone again. - Discounts and gifts for bugs: Google trying to trick people into buying new Pixel phones?](https://m-cdn.phonearena.com/images/articles/392154-image/google-pixel-7-watch-pixel-tablet-pixel-buds-pro-io.jpg)
I wouldn't risk pre-ordering another Google phone again.
I know that's a very personal and even a family-centric story, but I actually like the fact that I can work with practical examples here.
Of course, they aren't up to date with the latest and greatest on smartphones, which means I had an important decision to make on behalf of them: Do I recommend a Pixel 6A, which they could effectively get for as low as €200 (Galaxy S9 trade-in and the free Pixel Buds A) and €120 (iPhone 8 trade-in and the free Pixel Buds A), or do I make the wiser choice of not repeating a potential Pixel mistake again?
I chose the latter.
Things that are NOT allowed: