Google’s Pixel Fold one year later: I can’t wait for the sequel

I wasn’t sold connected the epoch of foldable smartphones until I tried the Pixel Fold. For one, we get a reasonably constricted enactment of folding phones to take from successful the US compared to China. And the cramped, too-narrow outer show of Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold bid has ne'er worked for my ample hands. So Google grabbed my involvement instantly erstwhile it introduced a squat, passport-shaped folding phone.

I’ve utilized Pixels for years, truthful I’m good acquainted with Google’s strengths and weaknesses. The bundle is clean, you get immoderate genuinely useful Pixel-only features (the Recorder app is simply a blessing successful my enactment of work), and the camera show is unbeatable — astatine slightest for inactive photography. But connected the flip side, show ne'er measures up to Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon chips, the devices thin to tally a small warm, and determination are sometimes unusual hardware quirks. (Did you cognize that each Pixel 8 and 8 Pro has tiny bumps nether the display lone disposable successful conscionable the close light? Now you do.)

Going into the Pixel Fold, I knew determination would beryllium further tradeoffs. Foldable phones are heavy. Their cameras don’t measurement up to the champion accepted phones. And respective years into this signifier factor, they often stay wildly expensive. Samsung and Motorola connection lower-priced flip versions, but nary specified luck if you’re a Pixel fan.

However, it took practically nary clip astatine each for the Pixel Fold to flooded those corporate downsides. It’s acold from a cleanable gadget, but this is simply a lawsuit wherever the full is greater than the sum of its parts. I’ve grown to similar a batch astir the first-gen Pixel Fold, but determination are besides immoderate nagging frustrations that I anticipation to spot rectified successful the upcoming Pixel 9 Pro Fold.

It’s casual to disregard the bigger screen

The archetypal happening I learned was that erstwhile you’ve got an capable telephone connected the outside, you won’t unfastened the interior show arsenic often arsenic you mightiness expect — astatine slightest erstwhile the honeymoon signifier wears off. The Fold’s exterior surface is perfectly usable for astir of what I bash with a smartphone. I usually unfold it erstwhile I privation to ticker YouTube, Netflix, oregon cheque the quality with The New York Times app. Sure, I’ve multitasked with 2 apps astatine erstwhile connected juncture — and Google has made that workflow easier with bundle updates — but it’s not a communal scenario. I’m inactive mostly utilizing the ample canvas to absorption connected 1 happening a a time, albeit with acold greater immersion.

This happening desperately needs a brightness boost

From time one, my superior gripe with the Pixel Fold has ever been its show brightness — oregon deficiency thereof. Only a fewer months aft its merchandise past year, the $1,700 instrumentality was outshined by the importantly much affordable Pixel 8 bid and Google’s caller Actua / Super Actua displays. They get highly agleam and are nary occupation to usage outdoors. With the Fold, I’ve perpetually got the brightness slider up implicit 80 percent, which doesn’t bash its artillery beingness immoderate favors. It tin beryllium a conflict to spot this telephone erstwhile the prima is shining, and the precise reflective interior surface lone makes things worse.

If there’s 1 weakness I’m comparatively assured Google is going to hole the 2nd clip around, it’s this deficiency of pop. All indications are that the institution volition bring its latest (and brightest) show tech to its second-gen foldable.

The different cardinal betterment I anticipation to spot is simply a lighter frame. The Pixel Fold is 1 earnestly hefty phone, adjacent for maine — a 6’1” antheral with large hands — and tin get taxing to clasp implicit time.

The artillery beingness has gotten maine by

I wasn’t expecting miracles from the Pixel Fold’s artillery endurance. Is it just to privation that from immoderate foldable? Plus, Google’s Tensor chips person ne'er been known for efficiency. But adjacent connected days erstwhile the ample show hardly got immoderate use, the Fold did... fine. It wasn’t ever a fastener that determination would beryllium overmuch foodstuff remaining erstwhile I got location aft a agelong day, but the telephone astir ever made it. Like different Pixels, the Fold tin sometimes complaint astatine a snail’s gait erstwhile you’re actively utilizing it portion plugged in. Overall, its stamina is trounced by the much accepted Pixel 8 Pro, but that’s to beryllium expected erstwhile you’re pitting 2 screens against one.

Many apps aren’t optimized for the wide display

The Pixel 9 Pro Fold is rumored to beryllium going successful the absorption of the OnePlus Open, with a taller design. You’ll fundamentally beryllium getting a regular telephone connected the outside. That means the facet ratio of the interior show volition besides beryllium changing, which is simply a bully happening since I recovered that galore apps had achromatic bars connected some sides erstwhile I held the Fold open. This is Android, truthful you truly can’t number connected developers rapidly embracing an idiosyncratic device. Google yet added an enactment to unit apps to spell full-screen successful software, but the caller dimensions of the 9 Pro Fold should theoretically mean that much apps volition bash that by default.

Plenty of apps do play bully with the Fold. Editing photos from my mirrorless camera successful Adobe Lightroom has been a large acquisition from the leap — adjacent if the instrumentality sometimes gets a small lukewarm portion doing so. If I’m not traveling with my iPad, this is the adjacent champion happening for making immoderate adjustments connected the move.

Durability, camera, speakers, etc.

I’ve utilized 2 Fold reappraisal units implicit the past year, and neither of them has breached oregon had immoderate catastrophic surface problems. But not everyone has been truthful lucky, and having immoderate foldable repaired oregon replaced nether warranty tin beryllium an ordeal. The glossy camera barroom inevitably shows deterioration and tear, and scratches connected the brushed interior show are unavoidable. But they’re besides casual to hide astir erstwhile the surface is lit up — arsenic is the crease.

The speakers connected this $1,700 telephone are decidedly mid. They’re blown distant by Apple’s iPhone 15 Pro Max, the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, and Google’s ain Pixel 8 Pro. Give maine thing with a small much oomph, Google. Please!

The Pixel Fold’s camera(s) bash the job. They’re reliable, arsenic Allison wrote in her review. But they’re thing to constitute location about, either. Google’s computational photography magic tin assistance beauteous up your shots, but you’re dealing with a smaller sensor than what’s successful mean flagship phones, and bundle can’t afloat compensate for that.

Google is acceptable to denote the Pixel 9 Pro Fold (and a batch more) astatine its August 13th event. The archetypal Pixel Fold got capable close to marque maine a believer successful foldables. Now the institution conscionable needs to beryllium that it tin instrumentality that imaginable and versatility to the adjacent level — and hopefully the surface brightness, too.

Photography by Chris Welch / The Verge