Last year, Google was released Pixel Fold — the company’s first flexible screen phone. But today at its latest Made By event, Google unveiled its sequel. But don’t call it the Pixel Fold 2, because along with the updated design, which is said to have the largest display of any phone on the market, it’s also getting a reworked name: the Pixel 9 Pro Fold.
Now I have to say that nickname is a real mouthful. But the idea behind it was to let people know that the new Fold is part of the larger Pixel 9 family. This means that this latest Fold has the same Tensor G4 chip as the rest of the line, a similar design and all the AI features. Plus, a few extras made just for this device.
But before we get to that, let’s start with its design, which is quite a big change from its passport-shaped predecessor. This time around, Google opted for more traditional dimensions with the Pro Fold, featuring a 6.3-inch external display that’s nearly identical to what you get on the standard Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro. With a peak brightness of up to 2700 nits for both indoor and outdoor displays, it’s mostly colorful and vibrant.
Then inside, you get an 8-inch flexible screen Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 (7.6 inches), OnePlus Open (7.82 in.) and Honor Magic V3 (7.92 inches). Its technical name is the Super Actua Flex display, and it’s absolutely gorgeous. For the Pro Fold’s chassis, Google has gone for a better design with a new aluminum alloy-coated steel hinge and Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on the front and back.
Now, I’ll admit that I’ve come to really appreciate the wide front display of the original Pixel Fold, as I’m a bit disappointed by the shape change. However, after playing with it, the dimensions of the Pro Fold are definitely growing on me. Moreover, if you remember from me An interview with Google’s design teamthe purpose of the first Fold’s shorter and sleeker design was to make the external display more usable than the long and skinny displays used in Samsung’s Z Fold line. By using the same size screen as the regular Pixel 9 on the Pro Fold, it’s clear they’re still sticking to that mantra.
Google has also slimmed down the phone and claims it’s the thinnest foldable phone you can buy today. Measuring 5.1mm thick when open or 10.5mm when closed, I think it’s fatter than both the Honor Magic V3 (4.4mm/9.3mm). Xiaomi Mix Fold 4 (4.6mm/9.5mm). However, if we’re talking about the US-only models, I think Google’s claim is correct.
There’s a big new camera module on the back with a 48-megapixel main camera and a 10.8-megapixel telephoto camera with 5x optical zoom, which is the same as what we got on last year’s phone instead of using new sensors. available on base Pixel 9 models. But I haven’t been able to confirm it yet. And finally, there’s a 10.5 MP ultra-wide camera.
I’ve saddled Samsung in the past for saddling the Z Fold line with cameras that aren’t quite as good as what you get on the main Galaxy S family, and it looks like Google is doing something similar with the Pro Fold. don’t love But seeing as last year’s phone offers better image quality than what you get on the new Z Fold 6, it’s not that big of a deal.
Of course, there are also many new features and photo modes. There are things like Add Me, which uses AR guides to help you take group shots so you don’t have to ask a passerby for help. There’s also a new and improved Video Boost tool that works in the dark and supports high-quality zooms. But my favorite addition is Made You Look, which puts a fun animation on the external screen so you can get a great shot of your kids or anyone who might otherwise be a little distracted. It even uses an algorithm to detect when someone is smiling, moving the animation, which is a really simple but effective way to get a genuine reaction when taking a photo. Google has also finally implemented the Zoom Enhance feature that it introduced during the Pixel 8 launch.
And of course, it wouldn’t be Google without a number of new AI features. There are a few new Magic Editor tricks for photos, like Autoframe, which can reframe your shots, or Reimagine, which can replace objects (usually the foreground and background of a shot) with anything you can put in the prompt box.
For more general use, there’s the Pixel Screenshots app, which lets you save screenshots and later use AI to find specific images or more detailed information, such as concert dates. Alternatively, if you want to create your own images from scratch, the new Pixel Studio app looks surprisingly powerful. Not only can you create themes and backgrounds, you can also create stickers of your friends, remove distractions, or combine things like party invitations using your custom artwork. There’s even a new Pixel Weather app that uses artificial intelligence to write a quick summary of what happened that day.
But the ML-powered tools don’t stop there, as Gemini Live lets you have more natural conversations with AIs, so you can get answers on a wide range of topics without having to say “Hey” every time you think of a question. . There are a few features I didn’t get to test, like the Pixel 9’s improved Clear Call, Call Logs, which uses AI to create call transcripts, and Google’s new satellite SOS system, which even lets you call for help. no mobile service. Finally, Google increased the amount of RAM in the Pixel 9 Pro Fold from 12 GB to 16 GB of RAM with 256 or 512 GB of storage.
So, while I’ve only had a short time with it so far, I really like what Google has done with the Pixel 9 Pro Fold — you know, aside from the new name. In many ways, Google delivers on what I want Samsung to do for the Z line. The Pro Fold is thinner than the Z Fold 6, but also has a larger main screen. Its cameras should also be better. Plus, thanks to Google’s leadership in artificial intelligence, we’re getting more fun and useful tools for editing photos or remembering those cool shoes you screenshotted weeks ago. Of course, Google still doesn’t have a real alternative to Dex mode or built-in stylus support. But for people who want a foldable phone with great screens, great cameras, and powerful software, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold looks like a great follow-up to the original. Oh, and it costs $1,800, which is $100 less than the Z Fold 6.
The Pixel 9 Pro Fold is available for pre-order today, with official sales beginning September 4. It will be available in two colors: porcelain and obsidian.
Get all the news Google’s Pixel 9 launch event is here!
