The Pixel 5 is likely to be a different kind of flagship phone, with more modest specs to achieve a lower price than Google's previous premium devices. We have known this for some time, but we did not know exactly how much cheaper the Pixel 5 would be compared to, say, the Pixel 4 and Pixel 3, which launched at $799 each.

The good news is that we may potentially have the answer. According to leaker Jon Prosser, the Pixel 5 will be priced at $699. Moreover, Prosser is "100%" sure of this.

While $699 is certainly one of the cheaper prices in the realm of recent flagship smartphones, the Pixel 5 does not look attractive, especially when compared to rival devices that will be released at the exact same time.

The recently announced Samsung Galaxy S20 FE is also $699, but this device has a legitimate high-end processor, the Snapdragon 865, unlike the Pixel 5's expected Snapdragon 765G. The Galaxy S20 FE has an optical zoom telephoto-only camera, which the dual-lens Pixel 5 is not expected to have; the Pixel 5 is rumored to have a smaller battery and slower peak refresh rate than Samsung's latest Galaxy. [But the Galaxy S20 FE is not the only competing device that Google should be worried about; there is also the OnePlus 8T, which will be announced on October 14 and is likely to rival the Galaxy S20 FE in many of these respects, especially performance. And let's not forget the entry-level 5.4-inch model of the iPhone 12. This could be as low as $699, despite being destined to feature Apple's pacemaker A14 Bionic silicon.

All of this is to say that we don't know how Google can expect to get away with selling the Pixel 5 at the same price as these devices; the Snapdragon 765 series CPUs are very good, but according to this rumor, they are $200 less than the Pixel 5 It is regularly found in devices that cost $200 to $250 less than the Pixel 5. I am currently reviewing the Motorola One 5G for $449.

Another device that Google is expected to announce on September 30, the Pixel 4a 5G, must also be considered. This handset will have the exact same chipset, but will ditch some of the Pixel 5's more luxurious features, such as IP68 water resistance, wireless charging, and a 90Hz refresh rate for the display. And Google has already confirmed that the phone will be priced at $499.

Unless these three differentiating features are worth $200 to you, and I doubt many would argue that they are, I don't see why you would turn down the Pixel 4a 5G or the even cheaper $349 Pixel 4a and opt for the Pixel 5. If it's $599 or For $649, that case might stand. But at $699? I haven't seen it, I really hope Prosser's info is wrong.

Over the past year or more, Google has provided excellent affordable phones very good and very quickly. Mountain View clearly understands what people on a low budget really want in a smartphone, but at the same time shows that they have no idea why some people buy flagship models. Maybe they don't bother to make them anymore.