Nexus 4 India price irritation & release uncertainty
The Google Nexus 4 smartphone made by LG has been overwhelmingly successful since its release in November through the Google Play Store. In many regions it sold out within hours of becoming available and since then although new stocks have sporadically arrived they sell out just as quickly. However spare a thought for those in countries where the Nexus 4 hasn’t yet officially released. In India for example there is growing irritation about imported Nexus 4 pricing and release uncertainty.
At the beginning of December we discussed the situation for those in India who wanted to purchase the Nexus 4. Because the phone has not officially launched there the only way to get hold of the phone at the moment is through retail websites that have managed to get hold of imported units. We noted then that the prices were steep though with eBay selling the 8GB model for Rs. 23,490 and the 16GB model for Rs. 27,490. Other websites such as Tradus and Probus, were listing the 8GB Nexus 4 at a price of Rs. 34,500. Saholic was another online retailer in India that was listing the 16GB model but no price was available at that time although it was listing the availability date as January 15, 2013.
We asked readers if they were willing to pay these inflated prices. For instance the Tradus price of Rs. 34,500 works out as US $635 when in fact it sells for $299 there. We had plenty of comments about this from our readers in India and many of you were dismayed about the extremely high pricing for the Nexus 4 there. At least one reader said they would be willing to pay these prices to get the Nexus 4 in India but the vast majority said they would not buy it there unless LG launches it at a much more competitive price with many of you feeling between Rs. 18,000 and Rs. 23,000 would be reasonable.
The lack of information from Google and LG about an official launch in India hasn’t helped either as some people are unsure when or even if this will happen and so have begun paying the vastly higher prices. Because online retailers can get these amounts for the phone they are only too willing to carry on selling them for inflated amounts. Prices on eBay India for example have now risen from the amounts quoted above to Rs. 25,990 and Rs. 29,990 for the 8GB and 16GB models respectively, according to Ciol.
It’s understandable that some potential Nexus 4 customers in India are becoming frustrated with this situation and some of you seem to feel that Android enthusiasts in India are being ignored and even being treated disrespectfully by Google and LG. We’d really like to hear from our readers in India about this.
Are you willing to pay a higher price for an imported Nexus 4 just to get hold of it as soon as possible, even though you may not be happy about the pricing? Maybe you’re going to wait for an official launch and see how much it will cost then? Perhaps the whole saga has put you off and you’ve chosen a different new smartphone instead? Let us know by sending your comments.
Comments
11 thoughts on “Nexus 4 India price irritation & release uncertainty”
22K for 8 GB and 26k for 16 Gb ll be perfect price bracket for LG nexus 4 and about launching in india neither google care nor LG but all the gadget freak searching on google “LG nexus 4 launch in india” or any news related including me 😀
Definitely choosing a different phone is wise decision, rather then endlessly waiting & then paying exorbitant price for the same.. Really disappointed the way they (read LG) are treating there indian customers 🙁
Google is doing a big mistake..! Indian customers feel ignored and annoyed becos of this long wait, just to even announce the release. Im waiting for nexus 4, avoiding every other phone in the market for 2 months now. Its surely not fair to sell the phone at such high rates online when everyother country gets to have it at a reasonable price. This is seriously pulling down the indian customers. For heaven’s sake they should atleast go official if they are not going to release the phone here, AT ALL..
i would definitely but nexus 4 only. and yeah not just google or LG all these companies treats Indian markets with disrespect be it samsung or apple. I think they need to take Indian markets much more seriously…
it should be the same price as the nexus 4 in ameica it should be 17k for 8gb and 21k for the 16gb
they will be doing a big mistake by ignoring a vast market, instead if they keep the prices reasonable then even on smaller profit, the scale will compensate much more profit the n keeping it at higher price. Perhaps LG is trying to promote it’s Optimus over Nexus.
The same scenario happened with the Google Nexus 7 tablet. After about an year of wait it was launched around Rs.20,000 for the 8GB version that is double of its price in U.S. Google disappoints me every time. Indian Cellphone market can prove to be a boon to these companies (LG & Samsung) if they launch their latest products as early as possible and at their original U.S prices.
I don’t like this ignorance. I may not even buy if they (LG or Google) make it unrealistically expensive compared to $299 USD cost in US. If google really is making it for international market then this device should be available at cheaper rates. Else I would buy some other phone out there not because of the pricing, but mostly because of this awful act of Google & LG.
if the 16gb version is pricesd at 20,000(i know even the 8gb version will be more expensive, but in usa it costs around 19,000) then it will sell more than all the high end and the mid range smartphones india……
if the price is high,then no one will be interested in it……because its an LG phone, it doesn’t have a memory card slot and the phone can break easily, thanks to the glass back, and glass on the back is said to crack at high temperatures, there isn’t a headset inside the box and the people will always feel doped because they get a $300 phone for more than $600 in india……even the play store isn’t available
17k for 8 Gb and 20k for 16Gb would be good..
i am willing to buy a Nexus 4 with 8Gb memory once it is released in india, but if it is overpriced like as in the case of nexus 7 (more than double the price in US), i would definitely go for other android phones,..
Actually i planed to buy nokia lumia.. But i heard about this lg’s new nexus 4 and i am really inspired of if it because of its DESIGN and the INBUILT PROCESSOR.. So now i planned to buy this nexus 4.. But comparing the rate between the online websites in india and the real price in US.. It really makes me sad as they sell nexus 4 in india for high cost.. So now i am waiting for the launch by google & Lg.. If they keep on delay the release date in india….. Then there is no choice for me and for other customers too.. Only way we should move on to other products without wasting time…