Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold: bigger and mostly better

All credit goes to Samsung for inventing and popularizing the foldable device. As for the form, I had loads of doubts – I admit I used to be skeptical – when the primary Galaxy Fold hit the market in 2019. It was the primary Galaxy Flip, released a 12 months later, that taught me to actually appreciate foldable devices.

When the unique Pixel Fold debuted in 2023, it quickly became my favorite foldable. Google has shown how just a few tweaks to the proportions could make a foldable phone much less bulky. But despite all of the impressive technology on this device, I discovered that it also worked as a fantastic e-reader.

The Pixel Fold was a formidable competitor that, for my part, only the OnePlus Open could compete with. The addition of those products, in addition to other products from firms like Oppo, has opened up the sphere in a pleasant way. Instead of letting Samsung rest on its laurels, the competition pushed innovation.

By the time Google was able to announce a successor to the Fold, Google had enough confidence within the product to totally integrate it into its flagship product line. There won’t ever be Pixels 2 to eight. Instead, Google gave the world the Pixel 9 Pro Fold, positioning the device as a type of ultra-premium sibling to the Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro. It’s, truthfully, just branding. Ultimately, it doesn’t matter to consumers.

What matters is that Fold is back, bigger and better than before. I admit that the “larger” part initially made me think. One of the things I liked most in regards to the original Pixel Fold was that it was easier to make use of than Samsung’s versions. I suppose it’s inevitable that foldable devices will join the remainder of the smartphone space in the nice screen expansion.

Fortunately, Google has managed to make progress on screen size without constructing a bulky phone around it. The front screen has increased from 5.8 to six.3 inches and is consistently getting closer to the sting. This will likely be good enough screen space for many of the stuff you do each day.

More impressive is the jump in the inner display from 7.6 to a full 8 inches AMOLED 120 Hz. For comparison, the iPad mini’s screen is barely 0.3 inches larger. When unfolded, it’s actually a tablet. Google also selected nice proportions. When you are done replying to emails on the front display, you’ll be able to open it and watch a video.

The Pixel 9 Fold has grown and grown while reducing weight from 283 to 257 grams. Unfortunately, shedding about 100 extra grams comes with a smaller battery, all the way down to 4,605 ​​from 4,821 mAh. Google largely bypasses any issues there through the use of a more power-efficient SoC, skipping the generation from the Pixel Tensor G2 to the G4. It’s value noting that despite the striking $1,000 price difference between the Pixel 9 and 9 Fold, Google has opted to make use of the identical chip across the whole line.

One of the most important upgrades you’ll be able to get from the foldable standard Pixel is the wonderful three-camera system. Don’t tell Connie, but I exploit the 9 Fold to take product photos for the web site. It’s so good. For example, all of the photos within the Snap Spectacles story were taken with a foldable camera.

The numbers have not modified much from the Fold’s original configuration, going from 48MP wide, 10.8 ultrawide, 10.8 telephoto, 8MP to 48MP wide, 10.5 ultrawide, and 10.8MP telephoto. However, Google is consistently improving its computational image processing, so the standard is consistently improving.

The Pixel 9 Fold had quite a bit to supply when the primary Pixel Fold entered the world fully formed. The recent phone is a worthy successor and among the finest foldable phones in the marketplace.