I can't speak for other people, but for me (and my friends that use Nexus devices), Pixel is more or less the next gen Nexus. Google was already throwing their 'skin' and apps on Nexus anyway (launcher, and GApps) - and most of the people were/are ok with that because it was not sucking up RAM, not slowing down the device, not taking up too much storage, and was useful.
What does the Pixel offer that is not there on Nexus? The assistant? (till Google blocks it, folk have figured out how to get it working on rooted Nexus). What am I missing? The Bezels? (LOL)
(ok, it has slightly better hardware than last year, but that would have happened even with Nexus).
I'm not disagreeing with you BTW. Google doesn't want the Pixel to be considered as the follow-up of Nexus program. But folks that loved Nexus because it was bloat free, are left with no other options but the Pixel, so they (including me) consider Pixel to be Nexus 2.0
The Nexus 6 was a flagship device - and except for the camera, it was worth the $699 cost (in my opinion) - even though I didn't want to pay that full amount! lol!
Same with the Pixel:
- Do I want to pay almost $900 for the 128GB XL version (since there is no 64GB option)? No.
- Is it worth 900? I don't know - maybe not.
- Would I have liked a lower price point - say 650? Absolutely!
- Will I get it? yeah, because the other options are Apple or Samsung/LG (that are priced about the same as Pixel- and I really don't see a point in getting those instead of the Pixel, and deal with the restrictions, or the bloat/skin). I hope I won't have buyer's remorse in a few months, and feel like I should have gotten the 6p instead
This is uncharted territory - let's see how it plays out.
Edit: Just thought of an analogy - In the US, car brands like Kia (or Hyundai) have traditionally been considered as economy versions, or mid-range. Not as luxury car brands. Is there anything wrong with them? Not really - on a recent trip, I ended up with a Hyundai Genesis rental - fairly powerful, good tech options, comfortable/spacious (, good warranty). If they priced it (on initial launch) similar to the luxury brands, they'd probably have issues. That's just the way the market behaves.