Google has started local manufacturing of its smartphones in India. The Google Pixel 8, which was launched in October last year in the country, is the first Pixel smartphone to be locally produced in the country. This has come after Rick Osterloh, Senior Vice President of Devices and Services at Google confirmed in October last year that the company would start the assembly of its current Pixel 8 in India by 2024. Here are all the details you need to know.
Made in India Google Pixel 8
On X (formerly Twitter), the official Google India account confirmed that production of the Pixel 8 has begun in India, with the first batch of handsets being rolled off the production line. The series includes three models: Pixel 8, Pixel 8 Pro, and the recently introduced Pixel 8a.
However, according to TechCrunch, only the base model Pixel 8 has commenced local manufacturing. Google's global manufacturing arm Compal has partnered with local electronic manufacturing services (EMS) company Dixon Technologies for its production, and the plant reportedly has an initial capacity of 100,000 units monthly, with 25-30 percent of those destined for export.
This announcement precedes Google's launch of its latest flagship smartphone, the Pixel 9 series. The global Made by Google event is scheduled for today (August 13), with a launch event in India set for tomorrow (August 14).
It is currently unknown if local production will affect the pricing of the Pixel 8. The Google Pixel 8 price in India starts at Rs. 75,999 and is available in two storage options: 128GB and 256GB. The handset is sold through Flipkart, Google's only authorised seller in the country. However, Google is expected to begin offline sales of the Pixel 9 series via retail stores like Croma and Reliance Digital.
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