Whether AI is your thing or not, one of the best perks included with the purchase of a new Pixel series Pro phone in recent years has been the free subscription to a Google One plan. For both the Pixel 9 and Pixel 10, Google handed out 12 months of an AI plan to get you access to top AI features, but also more storage for our ever-growing Google Accounts.

For the launch of the Pixel 11 series, Google has cut this benefit in half and it might make upgrading to a Pixel 11 a tougher decision.

Backing up for a minute, Pixel 9 Pro purchases received a free year of Google One AI Premium, and for the Pixel 10 Pro, you were given a year of Google AI Pro. That’s $240 in subscription coverage that gets you access to many of the newest and best Gemini and AI features from Google, Google Health Premium, and it increases your cloud storage to 5TB for Gmail, Photos, and Drive. This plan normally costs $19.99 per month.

As a part of the Pixel 11 Pro and Pixel 11 Pro XL launch, Google is only giving customers 6 months of Google AI Pro. Should you buy a Pixel 11 Pro devices, you’ll have to start paying for Google AI Pro well before you’ve reached a year of ownership. So not only did we get price increases on several Pixel 11 models, you will have to factor in paying $20 per month after the first 6 months to keep the same level of Google One plan with access to its best AI features.

Google’s Pixel phones have certainly become little subscription machines now that Google has become an AI-first company and plans to make money by selling you access to AI. The thing is, when you bought their best phones (Pro models) in the past, we sort of expected to be given access since we were paying for the best and these were supposed to be showcases for all that is new in AI.

With the Pixel 11 launch, that’s no longer the case. Frequent upgraders could have gone from one phone to the next without ever having to pay for Google AI Pro. If you bought a Pixel 9 Pro and upgraded last year to the Pixel 10 Pro, you would have had 2 years of paid Google AI Pro access. Should you decide to get a Pixel 11 Pro, you’ll have to prepare to add a $20 monthly fee into your life.

On a related note, you can still buy a Pixel 10 Pro through October 31 and get 12 months of Google AI Pro. Make it make sense.