Google may have leaked the design and some details for its latest foldable phone nearly a month ago, but after Made by Google 2024 it's official: The Pixel 9 Pro Fold is here, and it's looking better than Google's first crack at a foldable.
The phone isn't due to ship out until Sept. 4, but you can pre-order it already at the Google Store, Best Buy, and Amazon at a starting price of $1,799. Mashable's Alex Perry got a hands-on preview of the Pro Fold prior to its launch, and from his initial impression writes Google "has improved the device in almost every way that one could possibly care about," from the Pixel Fold released last year.
So what's different? Besides folding the phone into the Pixel 9 line, Google updated a few key design features. For starters, this phone is thin, which isn't exactly a given for a device that houses an internal and external display. Even though Google slimmed down the Pixel 9 Pro Fold, they sized up the displays: 2023's Pixel Fold had a 5.8-inch outer display and a 7.6-inch inner display. The 9 Pro Fold by comparison has a 6.3-inch outer display and an 8-inch inner display with 2,700 nits of peak brightness, a 1-120Hz adaptive refresh rate, and a 2076 x 2152 resolution — and the bezels are narrower than the older model.
That translates to a phone that's less cramped and clunky to use when it's not unfolded, while still feeling lighter than the previous Pixel Fold. In other words, the innovative design is becoming more practical.
Of course, these design upgrades don't mean much if you don't have the software to support them. The 16GB of RAM and Tensor G4 chip help power the host of Gemini AI features, plus help you maximize the experience of having more screen space. For instance, when using the internal display, you can run up to four different video streams in each quadrant of the display — or if that sounds a tad too overstimulating, you can open your texts right next to the YouTube video you're watching. Other features bring together the foldable's external display with AI, including the new "Made You Look" feature which is designed to get the attention of your little ones so you can capture the perfect shot.
If Google's upgrades have you ready to shell out at least $1,799 for a foldable phone, you can grab it in the colors obsidian or porcelain, with either 256GB or 512GB of storage.
Topics Google
