There aren’t many smartphones that can do what the Pixel 8 does at this price. | Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge

If you’re in need of a solid smartphone upgrade without the bill creeping into mortgage territory, there aren’t many better options than the Google Pixel 8. When you can get one for under $500? Even better. The 128GB unlocked model is down to $499 ($200 off) at Amazon, Best Buy, and the Google Store. That’s $50 cheaper than the price we saw during Black Friday last year. The 256GB model is also $200 off at those retailers, bringing it down to $559.99. Both are down to the lowest prices we’ve seen so far.

The Pixel 8 is really solid, especially if you’re not interested in the gimmicky extras that can bloat the user experience on other devices. Google has optimized the software specifically for its custom Tensor G3 chipset, which offers…

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