This wasn't on my radar at all.
But I guess since ~2016 or so I have completely stopped being excited by mobile tech, so maybe that shouldn't be a surprise.
They all do what I need them to. (email, web) and I don't want any of their new features (cloud, AI). To me these features are actually
negatives. I am less likely to buy any product if it has anything AI or cloud on it. On my current Pixel 7 Pro I have everything assistant disabled wherever I can disable it in settings (I've gone through every setting, and if it says either assistant or cloud, or reasonably seems related to either, it gets disabled). I also replace the launcher with something that doesn't integrate with either googles search bar, or assistant, so I never have to see that garbage.
I use my phone like I use my computer. If I want to search for something, I'll open a browser and point it at my favorite search engine. And guess what,m I'm neither using Chrome as my browser, or Google as my search engine
Google keeps emailing me about how I am eligible for an upgrade. Years ago I would be refreshing the upgrade page for weeks and maybe even months before I was eligible, and these days I just don't care.
I got my previous phone (Pixel 5a) because my phone before that (Pixel 3) went EOL, and I don't use devices without active security patching.
I got my current phone (Pixel 7 Pro) because I had a protection plan on my Pixel 5a and it died. They didnb't give me an option what to receive as a replacement, but when the box arrived it contained a 7 Pro. It was a little bigger than I preferred, but I went with it without complaining as the 5a was getting closer and closer to the EOL date.
I probably would have kept the 5a, and just put an alternate ROM on it to continue receiving security patches but instead I am now all set phone wise until the 7 Pro security patching EOL date in October 2027.
If it dies before then, and they send me something else, I'll probably use that. If it doesn't die before then, I'll probably just try to put a still supported ROM on it.
Either way I'm all set until October 2027. After that, I'll only pay for anything newer if I can't get a reputable 3rd party ROM to work on it.
I'll also never buy wireless earbuds or a smart watch.
So, the chances of them getting any more than the bare minimum amount of money out of me is remote, especially since I'll never pay for any of the freemium services.
I just wish they would take all of this AI and cloud **** and shove it.
Heck, if I could, I'd still be using my old Nexus devices.
