Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold Review: So Close to Being the Foldable I Want

I ’ve said it several times before . I wish big phone , and I can not lie . I ’ve been on the big earpiece bandwagon since the firstSamsung Galaxy Notelaunched right smart back in 2011 . Hell , I was even on control panel with Lenovo and Google ’s AR monstrosity , thePhab2 Pro . So you ’d cerebrate I would have encompass foldables with subject arm . But something is holding me back , a few somethings really .

There ’s the exorbitant $ 1,800 ( to start out ) toll tag end . That ’s a lot of money to ask for any telephone set . For that kind of money , it involve to be the most powerful smartphone , folding or otherwise , and with its Tensor G4 central processor , it ’s simply not . The Pixel 9 Pro Fold can have its own , but man , Apple , and Qualcomm extend to produce strong chipsets .

Performance aside , the Pixel 9 Pro Fold has so much kick the bucket for its gorgeous displays , some of the near AI features currently available , and some cracking cameras . I ’m just annoyed Google did n’t go as far with the camera upgrades as it did with other Pixels in the line . The Pixel 9 Pro Fold is n’t the folding for me , but there ’s a effective chance it ’s the one for you .

© Charles Anthony Davis / Dreamsmith LLC

Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold

The Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold is an telling smartphone , bringing Grade - A cameras , and stellar AI , but it can fall forgetful in the operation section .

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© Charles Anthony Davis

Cons

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Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold Review: Design

Still the thinnest and heaviest foldable

I love ostentatious tech . And when it fare to smartphones aright now , there ’s almost nothing more ostentatious than unfurling your machine . Because you do n’t open up the Pro Fold , you do n’t unfold it ; you unfurl it . And when you do , you ’re met by a flexible , ultra - thin shiny piece of glass for the show . Like its predecessor , there ’s a slight crinkle in the center of the panel , demarcating where the hinge meets . It ’s a little jarring at first , but crease - cecity quickly mark in .

The telephone ’s frame is made of aluminum , while the hinge is of “ multi - alloy blade with an Aerospace - degree , mellow - durability aluminium alloy ” cover . The exterior presentation has a Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2 cover . The rearward panel is also Gorilla Glass ; however , it ’s matte instead of slick magazine . The rear - put on photographic camera sensors jut out in a rectangular module with rounded corners . The only other matter on the back is the shiny g-force , designating this as a Google gadget .

Regarding buttons and interface , you have the mogul and book buttons on the right and the USB - C port and nano SIM slot at the bottom . Unlike the other phones in this batting order , the Pro Fold is devoid of fun colors as it ’s only available in Obsidian and Porcelain . This is a major job I have with a lot of OEMs . Does the fact that I ’m paying damn near $ 2,000 for a smartphone mean that I suddenly do n’t like color ? Does premium mechanically have in mind that the colour must be business casual ? Yes , it ’s a imposing and elegant gadget , but I need a Rose Quartz foldable !

© © Charles Anthony Davis

move on , the Pro Fold has a enduringness rating of IP8 for body of water resistance . As with most foldables , the Pro Fold lack a dust ingress rating due to the hinge . address of the hinge , it runs the length of the earphone ’s crease and bulge out ever so slightly . Due to its shiny finish , it ’s an rank fingerprint magnet .

While I appreciate the flexible joint ’s sturdiness , permit the gadget undecided and penny-pinching with a piano snap fastener , I wish well there was a divot somewhere along the sides to make the gadget well-off to open . As it stands , I almost need two hands — one to withstand it in place and the other to open it . sure as shooting , I can jam my ovolo in between and pull it spread out one - handed , but by the sentence I ’m finished , the screen will have unsightly smudge .

At 9.1 Panthera uncia , the 6.1 x 5.9 x 0.2 inches unfolded , the Pro Fold maintains Google ’s claim to be the thin foldable in the land . It ’s lighter and slim than last year ’s model ( 9.9 ounces , 5.5 x 6.25 x 0.23 inches ) . When compare to its contemporaries , theSamsung Galaxy ezed Fold 6(8.4 ounces , 6 x 5.2 x 0.22 inches open ) and theOnePlus Open(8.4 ounce , 6.04 x 5.63 x 0.23 inches unfolded ) , the Pro Fold still has a chonk broker .

© Charles Anthony Davis

Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold Review: Display

Three times the fun

What ’s better than one screen ? Three . I ’m never break down to turn down a bigger screen door ; that ’s part of the grounds I fell in passion with phablets in the first berth . The 8 - inch , 2076 x 2152 OLED Super Actua display has a lot to like . It ’s somewhat bigger than last year ’s model ( 7.8 inches ) and has an adaptative refresh rate , or as Google calls it , Smooth Display . look on the activeness , the earpiece will adjust the refresh rate to between 1 - 120Hz because you do n’t need 120Hz when you ’re just reading an article or comic .

To the naked eye , the control board is an plosion of colour . I watched a 4 K Dolby Demo video recording , and it was stunning . From iridescent blue peacock feathers to crisp wintertime whites and mysterious emerald greens , the screen was a joyfulness to look at . My only squawk are the bezel , which are a bit too duncish for my tastes , and the letterboxing when observe a video or looking at flick . Of course , you may blow up whatever you ’re looking at , but you ’d often fall back big character of the picture .

Gaming , however , is another tarradiddle . No matter what I fiddle , whether it wasHonkai : Star RailorDiablo Immortal , the game took up the entirety of the filmdom . While I expectedStar Railto be bright and beautiful with hatful of neon - hue effect , I was really impressed with how well the telephone set deal withDiablo Immortal ’s morose ambiance . Although the atmosphere was gloomy , I could see every disgusting crevice of a monster as it unhinged its crashing maw to ptyalise brackish material my path . It was a grisly , beautiful sight .

© © Charles Anthony Davis

I used the headphone to show a few comics and the early a few chapter of “ Children of Virtue and Vengeance . ” I also say through some of my pet intelligence site and watch out more than a few game theory videos . Multitasking was a blast with two large screens to work on instead of the half CRT screen I ’m relegated to with mySamsung Galaxy S23 Ultra .

verbalize of which , as decent as the Pro Fold ’s monolithic screen , it ’s missing something – a pen . As a huge S - Pen user , the Pixel 9 Pro Fold is begging for a stylus . All I wanted to do was to launch one of my discolour book apps and let loose . And while I could employ my finger , this eccentric of body process would be better answer with a style with 4,092 layer of pressure sensibility . It seems only natural as foldables lean to target heavy productivity uses .

But enough about the monumental interior screen . There ’s a gorgeous screen on the front of the Pro Fold that ’s begging for some attention . At 6.3 inches , the front Actua display is only slimly less monumental than its internal counterpart . But that does n’t intend it ’s less pretty with its 1080 x 2424 OLED control board and 20:9 aspect proportion . And just like the large interior projection screen , the front filmdom is enough bright . Google take all three display support up to a uttermost of 1,800 nits for HDR content with a apex luminosity of 2,700 nits for everything else .

© © Charles Anthony Davis

Walking around the region , the front video display was my independent driver . And what I can say is that it worked just like a regular phone touchscreen because , well , it is a regular screen . Sure , it has some fancy features it can employ , including Made You wait , a camera feature article that summon an interactive picture designed to make a grumpy fry or adult stop out into a grin for that perfect blastoff .

Next up you have Dual Screen Preview and Rear Cam Selfie . The former allows the issue of your next guessing to see how they look before you snap the shot , while the latter will enable you to use the rear - facing camera for a higher - res selfie . It can also be used during Google Meet Calls . And finally , there ’s a double screen Live displacement fashion so both parties can have an unstilted conversation .

Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold Review: UI and AI

Kind of like the iPhone

I ’ve always been a close Android owner ; before that , I was all about Palm . Needless to say , I ’m pretty well versed in Android and all its ins and out . And then come the Pro Fold with its iPhone - esque gesture control instead of my beloved home , recent , and back buttons . For a few second , up was down , left was right , and I was straight - up bemuse . But even this sometime dog can learn some new caper .

It only took a minute to acclimate myself to the fresh universe order . shortly , I was filch up to can apps to the estimable of my abilities . And as unseamed as the gesture controls are , I was relieved to see my ripe old button hiding out in the Display options carte . What I did n’t see , and wo n’t until October , is Android 15 . Although this is a novel Pixel phone , I can get at the beta version of the operating organization . For this reappraisal , I am stuck with Android 14 .

Since it ’s a Google Phone , the fellowship has promised seven years of OS and security update . That ’s much longer than OnePlus , which only turn over the Open , the company ’s foldable , which only buzz off four age of Android updates and five years of security updates .

© © Charles Anthony Davis

But the star of the show has to be Reimagine . Using one of your photos , Generative AI , and a couple of well - reckon - out words , Reimagine can swap out the scope to just about whatever you want . And for the folks that are always get hold of the word-painting but never in it , try the Add Me feature , which lets you take the picture , shift place with someone in the original moving picture , and have them snarl another picture show with you in it . From there , Add Me sew the two range into one group shot .

I used Pixel Studio to create some prospective logos for an upcoming projection and was impressed by the consequence . They ’ll be a good reference distributor point for a pictorial fashion designer .

Google is also using Pixels to continue make the case for Gemini Advanced . Although free , Google project to rouse $ 20 / month to access its AI . So , what will $ 240 / year get you ? A chattier digital helper . After you pick your preferred voice , you may gab it up with Gemini in genuine - sentence .

© © Charles Anthony Davis

Gemini can help you organize screenshots and calls by transcription and summarizing them via the Pixel Screenshots and Call notation characteristic . And while that ’s all well and skilful , there ’s the issue of concealment . For Gemini to lick its conjuring trick . You have to consent to Google keeping a disk of your calls , screenshots , and other user - give content . It ’s going to be something to consider in the derive months .

Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold Review: Performance

I expect more from such a premium product

Another of my on-going issues with foldable phones is that OEMs are n’t differentiating us from their high - grade gadget . It ’s even worse with Google , as even the entry - level Pixel 9 has the same C.P.U. as thePro XLand the Pro Fold . I mean , come up on , guys , work with me here . For a $ 1,800 phone , give me the most powerful chipset you may and at least set the clock speed , especially since the processor has to support three screens — Le sigh . I ran Geekbench 6 on the Pro Fold to get some concrete routine . The single - thread score was 1,939 , and the multithread grievance was 3,601 . Compare that to the Pro Max ’s 2,975 and 7,438 .

Still , the folding run my abuse and emerge relatively unscathed . I launched nearly every app on the phone and opened 30 tabloid on Google Chrome , and I did n’t notice any veridical slowdown . I played about an hour ofHonkai : Star Rail , and while I did n’t get any stammer , the phone ’s rear panel only take 10 minutes to heat up .

Cameras

An incremental bump

The Pixel line has made a name for itself in the smartphone camera arena . So much so the company felt up prosperous hold launch the 48 - megapixel main photographic camera ( ƒ/1.7 aperture ) and 10.8MP 5x telephotograph ( ƒ/3.1 aperture ) rearward tv camera . However , the ultrawide camera catch a bump to 10.5MP ( ƒ/2.2 aperture ) from last year ’s 10.8MP sensing element . It ’s overnice , but it ’s kind of a disappointment seeing that Google outfitted the other Pixel niner with 48MP ultrawide cameras . On another note of hand , the front and internal television camera were upgrade from 8MP to 10MP .

For my pic testing with the Pro Fold , I walk around my locality , catch some of the art . The Pro Fold occupy great pics without using Google ’s prodigious editing tools . The Pro Fold ’s paradigm looked more natural than those of other cameras , such as the iPhone 15 Pro Max . They did n’t have that lurid gleaming from an oversaturated HDR guesswork .

I hire a few unaired - up shot of my puppies napping on a lazy Sunday afternoon . Once you get over their sheer prettiness , you ’ll notice the fine item , such as their whiskers and individual brindle patterns . In an alert shot of Natasha , you may see her scant grey eyes .

I used the all-encompassing and ultrawide camera to capture some street art around the neck of the woods ; as expected , the ultrawide captured more scene than a steady across-the-board shot . However , no matter the lens , I got plenteous coloring material and crisp details . In one of my preferent snap , you may see the jagged edges of the peeling paint . In a nip of a door with designs sculpted around the arch , you could see pockmark and small fissures throughout the structure . you may see plenty of particular in most of my plant lifespan shots , such as leaf veins and spines .

Although I would have love a more powerful telephoto sensor , the Pro Fold can snatch pretty in effect injection in the correct condition . The shot of the train reach by was film two city pulley-block away . Once the power train passed , I took another few shots of the nontextual matter on the side of the building and was impressed with the level of item the camera captured . The camera did n’t do as well from further distance or at night , as my stab of the Manhattan apparent horizon was blurred in position . The individual building Christ Within looked like shiny blob .

I fascinate three selfies : one with the rearward camera , one with the outside front shooter , and one with the internal camera . The rear selfie slam was the skillful , as my cutis and hoodie looked the best . you’re able to even see one of the safety bands holding one of my locs in a twist stick out .

Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold Review: Battery

Will it fold on battery life?

Google ’s promise all - day battery life from the Pro Fold and its 4,650mAh battery ( we ’ll see about that ) . It ’s worth noting that the other Pixels in this generation have turgid shelling . The Pro XL has a 5,060mAh battery , while the Pro and Pixel 9 have 4,700mAh .

When I ran the Gizmodo stamp battery tryout ( continuously spiel a 24 - hour YouTube television with screen brightness set to 200 nits while filming the results ) , the Pro Fold last 15 and 22 minutes . Although I ’m pleasantly surprised by the event , the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 finished with a time of 20 time of day and 35 minute , But the iPhone 15 Pro Max is still the king , tapping out after 27 time of day and 43 minutes .

Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold Review: Verdict

The Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold is a great foldable that improves and builds on the instauration set by its predecessor . It ’s thinner and clear , but it ’s still one of the intemperate foldables on the market . The AI features for exposure and picture editing are impressive , as are the unity design for productiveness and organisation . I ’m unsure if people will pay $ 20 / calendar month for the joy .

Each of the show is vibrant and dazzlingly smart . And although the Tensor G4 processor ca n’t hang with the iPhone 15 Pro Max , it can still handle your body of work and play load . Just be aware of that rearward board ’s potential to get noticeably warm . As usual , the tv camera are one of the best thing about the Pixel gimmick . I wish we could have gotten a more substantial upgrade on the telephoto camera . And as a selfish want , foldable Jehovah need to start seriously thinking about adding pen to the premix .

The Pixel 9 Pro Fold is a great selection for anyone looking for a bully tv camera , compelling AI , and multiple beautiful screen capable of so much multitasking . But I ’m not ready to make the $ 1,800 investment funds . mayhap next year .

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