Google kills Pixel Pass without ever upgrading subscriber’s phones

@jossbo

@anemomylos

from reading the comments, it sounds like the pixel pass bundle was just a convenient way to bundle, paying for the device as well as other Google services. It wasn’t an upgrade program. At the end of two years, you still would have to buy a new phone if you wanted to upgrade.

from the description, it originally sounded to me like you paid a little extra every month to get a free upgrade every two years, and presumably you would have to trade in the old device. that’s apparently not the case. The stuff about being on the newest pixel device every two years was apparently telling you that after two years, you could buy a new bundle, linking your phone payment and other Google services. The benefit seems like it was very dubious to begin with- basically just a promise that you could buy a new pixel phone a google service bundle after you pay off the first one.

from what I’m understanding about the announcement, people who have purchased a pixel pass, will continue paying the same price for their bundle until the phone is payed off, but once the phone is payed off the promise of being able to do it again is broken. They can still buy a new phone, but they can't bundle the payment with Google services. So, at the very least, they did break their promise. But they probably can't be sued for much of anything since there wasn't a free upgrade being offered down the road, the promise was just, if you buy this today, you can buy it again later. No discount or special deal for buying it later, everyone who would have bought a pixel pass for the pixel 8 had it been offered would pay the same price, regardless of whether they purchased a pixel pass previously. so that promise has very little monetary value since pixel pass owners weren’t accruing any future benefit with respect to upgrading.