I can’t overstate how good it feels to make use of the Pixel 9 Pro Fold’s internal display. I’ve by no means felt so smug utilizing all my little apps on the espresso store on an enormous display, folding it in half, and placing it in my pocket.
Google nailed the {hardware} this time round. The entrance display seems to be like, effectively, a standard cellphone display. I can’t say the identical concerning the earlier Pixel Fold’s entrance display or six generations of Samsung’s Z Fold. The Pixel 9 Pro Fold can be mild sufficient that I can neglect I’m utilizing a folding cellphone for entire stretches of time. Imagine!
Google solved quite a lot of the primary Fold’s issues, however it hasn’t solved all of them. Thankfully, those which might be left are simply folding cellphone issues. The cameras aren’t pretty much as good because the cameras on the common Pixel 9 collection. It’s nonetheless thicker and heavier than even the largest slab-style telephones. It received’t be as straightforward to restore, and it’s twice the value of a garden-variety flagship cellphone. If you’re searching for causes to speak your self out of a $1,799 buy, you’re welcome.
But for somebody who’s feeling adventurous and isn’t involved with the drawbacks of folding cellphone life, I’m sorry to say, you need to in all probability spend $1,800 on this cellphone. It’s that good.
Google took precisely the suitable cues from OnePlus, splitting the distinction between the earlier Pixel Fold and the Open. The entrance display seems like utilizing a standard display. It’s not a lot heavier than a standard cellphone. The internal display is massive. Everything is the way in which it must be.
This Pixel Fold could also be a “Pro” cellphone, however it shares display specs with the usual Pixel 9 and never the Pixel 9 Pro. All three units have a 6.3-inch OLED, however the common 9 and the 9 Pro Fold have 1080p resolutions and high out at 1,800 nits in peak brightness mode. The 9 Pro’s display is just a bit sharper and brighter, in order that’s a tradeoff you’ll have to make in order for you the Pixel that folds in half.
The outer display isn’t fairly as “Pro” because it might be, however the internal display is the place the cash’s at, and it’s a lot brighter this yr. That’s an necessary enchancment on a tool that’s imagined to, you understand, go exterior with you on a regular basis. What’s the enjoyable in flexing that massive show sitting exterior of the espresso store if it’s important to squint at it? The boosted peak brightness of two,700 nits makes it rather more comfy to make use of exterior than the earlier era’s display.
There are some digicam {hardware} tradeoffs. The common Pixel 9 telephones all have a nicer 50-megapixel predominant digicam with an even bigger sensor in comparison with the 9 Pro Fold’s 48-megapixel digicam. There’s not an enormous distinction, however you possibly can squeeze just a little extra element in low-light pictures out of the common Pixel 9’s digicam. The foldable Pixel’s telephoto lens isn’t fairly pretty much as good, both, and low-light photographs in comparison with the usual Pixel 9’s 5x zoom are noticeably softer.
It’s a minor characteristic, however “Made You Look” — which makes use of the outer show to point out an cute animation to catch a child’s consideration — works precisely as marketed. Yet it makes use of the outer display’s selfie digicam, which isn’t nice in low mild. Don’t get me mistaken, this can be a good digicam system general. But it’s an space the place mainly all foldables lag behind slab telephones, what with all the interior area wanted for shifting elements. We can’t have all of it — no less than not but.
And sorry to maintain being a bummer, however you’ll need to think about sturdiness in the event you’re shopping for a folding cellphone versus a slab cellphone. Its IPX8 ranking means the 9 Pro Fold can face up to water immersion, however you’re by yourself if a grain of sand works its manner into the hinge. Best to determine within the additional $279 for Google’s prolonged care plan with the acquisition value of this already expensive cellphone.
Now, sufficient of the much less enjoyable stuff! Let’s discuss the very best a part of this cellphone: utilizing the massive display. The cellphone’s new, taller format — together with improved rendering from some apps — makes for a a lot better internal display expertise. You can view two apps on the display without delay, which is nice for cross-referencing Google Maps and Eater, however that’s the restrict.
I get why Google does this, and also you type of should be a weirdo like me to need to run three or 4 apps without delay in little tiles. But Samsung’s foldable UI permits you to do that, and I’m just a bit unhappy that I can’t have a tiny Spotify participant within the nook of the display whereas I run two different apps like I can on the Galaxy Z Fold 6.
Still! Using the massive display is a pleasure. I’m extra inclined to make use of the 9 Pro Fold for advanced duties that might be annoying on an everyday cellphone. Opening Chrome and seeing all my tabs in a row on the high of the display fills my coronary heart with pleasure. I can seek advice from a web page on Icy Veins whereas I organize my paragon factors in Diablo IV, slightly than squinting at just a little display. Those little issues add up.
I’ve additionally been impressed with the 9 Pro Fold’s battery life. It’s not fairly as strong as the usual Pixel 9 fashions, however it comfortably lasts via a reasonable day with plenty of Location Services navigation, hotspot use, and time on the internal display. Even on these days, I at all times had no less than 40 % left within the tank by bedtime.
The Pixel 9 Pro Fold makes folding telephones make sense to me. It’s extra like a standard cellphone than ever, however it’s additionally not fully like utilizing a standard cellphone. By choosing a cellphone that folds, you’re nonetheless making tradeoffs, notably within the digicam {hardware}. The cellphone’s long-term sturdiness can be an unknown — actually nobody has owned a Pixel folding cellphone for greater than a yr at this level. Foldable possession isn’t for the faint of coronary heart.
But the Pixel 9 Pro Fold is probably the most rewarding folding cellphone I’ve ever used. Using the cellphone whereas it’s closed feels manner much less cumbersome and rather more regular than the earlier Pixel Fold or a Galaxy Z Fold. That makes utilizing the massive internal display really feel that rather more rewarding; I don’t really feel like I’m placing up with a cumbersome cellphone the remainder of the time to get that have.
This foldable comes with its tradeoffs: the downgraded digicam {hardware}; sturdiness issues; and oh yeah, the eighteen hundred US {dollars} it prices. But I believe Google made the suitable tradeoffs right here to optimize the internal display expertise. It’s an expertise that I’ll miss after I swap again to the subsequent slab-style cellphone that I check — one which foldable followers and the foldable-curious will discover very rewarding, too. Because god rattling, this can be a good cellphone.
Photography by Allison Johnson / The Verge
