Local contract manufacturer to make Google Pixel 8 smartphones

Dixon Technologies will manufacture Google Pixel 8 smartphones in India, competing with Apple and Samsung in the Rs 50,000+ price range.

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Google plans to increase its market share in India and is considering Foxconn as a manufacturing partner, despite import duties.

Dixon Technologies, a local contract manufacturer, will manufacture Alphabet Inc’s super-premium Google Pixel 8 smartphones in the country, according to two industry executives familiar with the plans. The first batch of made-in-India devices is expected to hit the market in September, with trial production just beginning, they said.

Alphabet announced in October of last year that it would produce Google Pixel smartphones in India. It is the only major global smartphone brand that has not participated in the make-in-India initiative for smartphones.

Dixon’s Pixel capacity will be 100,000 units per month, with 25-30% exported as it makes a new push for market share in India, the world’s second largest smartphone market. Executives reported that the Pixel 8 model accounts for nearly 80% of all Pixels sold in India.

The devices are currently manufactured in Asian countries, including China and Vietnam. The move comes after the Indian company’s wholly owned subsidiary, Padget Electronics, reached an agreement with Taiwan’s Compal Electronics to manufacture phones for the latter’s customers.

Compal is a global manufacturing partner for Google products, according to the executives mentioned above. Padget, which received a production-linked incentive (PLI) from the government for mobile phones, will manufacture the Pixel devices and has offered Google competitive production prices, according to an executive.