Dear readers, I hear you: Plenty of you are making it loud and clear that you are frustrated with today’s smartphone prices, which are approaching the cost of a decent used car.

I’ve read your testy emails about skyrocketing prices for devices like Apple’s $1,100 iPhone XS Max and Samsung’s $2,000 Galaxy Fold. I’ve seen your anguish in the comments on our smartphone reviews. Sales of smartphones are slowing down worldwide, researchers say, partly because people are turned off by the escalating costs.

So this will probably come as good news. As of Tuesday, Google is selling the Pixel 3A, a new version of its popular Pixel smartphone, for about $400 — or roughly half the price of its high-end phones. It is the first time that Google is introducing its Pixel phones for the midrange and low-end market.

“We’re seeing the fatigue with some of the flagship pricing of smartphones going up and up and up, and people thinking, ‘You know, five years ago I could buy the best possible phone for half this price,’” said Brian Rakowski, a vice president of product management for Google.