With Google I/O just around the corner, Google has given fans a sneak peek of the much-anticipated Pixel Fold. The announcement comes just ahead of the launch of the phone at the event tomorrow, giving fans the first official look at Google’s upcoming foldable.
Google’s official short video teaser showcases the phone’s folding mechanic in action, as well as a first look at the home screen.
But while it goes heavy on the overall form factor, Google hasn’t provided any specs or pricing details just yet, seemingly waiting until Google I/O before it reveals the full details.
If you’re eager to find out more about the phone, we’ve assembled this guide with all of the most credible rumours and reports, from pricing speculation to leaked specs. So keep reading for everything you need to know about the Google Pixel Fold right now.
Release date
- Pre-orders expected to open on 10 May 2023
- Rumours indicate a June 2023 launch window
During the sneak peek preview video of the Google Pixel Fold, which was published on 4th May 2023, Google confirmed that the Pixel Fold is “coming soon”.
It’s long been rumoured that the Pixel Fold could be unveiled during the Google I/O showcase on 10th May, and that now looks increasingly likely.
But when will you actually be able to buy the Pixel Fold? WinFuture’s reliable Roland Quandt pointed towards a possible June 2023 launch alongside the new budget-friendly Google Pixel 7a. That was further backed up by a CNBC report, also claiming that the phone will be released in June 2023.
Jon Prosser, another notable leaker in the smartphone space, has backed up these claims. While Google is set to reveal the Pixel Fold at Google I/O on 10 May 2023 alongside the Pixel 7a, Prosser claims you’ll apparently only be able to pre-order the Pixel Fold at this time, with an eventual release scheduled for 27 June 2023.
It’s important to take these reports with a pinch of salt until Google confirms the release date itself, but with all the leakers singing from the same hymn sheet, coupled with the recent tease from Google, it’s likely we’ll be seeing the Pixel Fold very soon.
Price
- Could cost as much as $1799 in the US
The attractive pricing of the budget-friendly Pixel 6a and even the flagship Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro might lead you to believe that Google wants to undercut the foldable competition with a flagship product that’s a little bit more wallet-friendly than other options available.
But, if current rumours are to be believed, that couldn’t be further from the truth.
In fact, the Google Pixel Fold could cost just as much as Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 4 at $1799 in the US at release in late June if recent rumblings from Jon Prosser are to be believed.
The leaker didn’t mention much in the way of UK pricing, but if Google wants to match Samsung’s big-screen tablet it’ll likely come in at around £1649.
Prosser clarified the pricing in a YouTube video days later, explaining that the $1799 price tag will get you 256GB of storage, while those who want 512GB of storage will have to pay $1,919. To sweeten the deal on what is a very expensive foldable, Prosser claims that Google will sweeten the deal by throwing in a free Pixel Watch if you pre-order the smartphone.
In a world where flip-style foldables are now available for less than £1000/$1000, it would’ve been nice for Google to follow suit with its big-screen foldable, but it obviously seems to think it can justify such a high price tag with the foldable experience on offer. It’ll be interesting to see how Google frames that at the launch event, whenever that might be.
Design
- Google has already shown off the design
- Can fold out like a book
- Available in silver, and maybe black too
Google has already given us a look at the upcoming Pixel Fold thanks to a video tease.
It looks very similar to the Pixel 7 Pro, but can be folded out like a book to reveal a larger internal display, like a Galaxy Z Fold 4, although with a shorter and wider display. We think it looks similar to the Oppo Find N2 or the Honor Magic Vs.
The phone has a block-shaped camera module similar to that of the earlier renders and other phones in the Pixel collection. It looks to have three camera sensors on the rear, which holds up with previous reports.
While Google hasn’t confirmed the weight of the device, CNBC claims that the Pixel Fold will be rather weighty at an alleged 283g, making it chunkier than even the 263 Galaxy Z Fold 4. The main reason? It’s said to be down to a reinforced hinge mechanism, which should give prospective buyers added peace of mind.
It’s also said to measure in at 158.7 x 139.7 x 5.7mm when unfolded or 8.3mm when folded if you include the protruding metal camera bar. It’s also said to be available in either black or silver, with the latter shown off during the tease.
It also looks like the crease is still visible in the centre of the screen due to the folding. It’s a shame that Google hasn’t been able to solve this issue, but that’s par for the course. It’s just something you’re going to have to accept if you want a foldable phone right now.
Display
- Reports indicate a 5.8-inch screen size
- Could have a 120Hz OLED panel
Google may have provided a look at the Pixel Fold display, but what are the exact screen specs?
Developer Kuba Wojciechowski claims that the inner display of the Pixel Fold will measure in at 7.6 inches and sport a decent 2208 x 1840 resolution. The leaker also suggests the possibility of a 120Hz refresh rate, but he isn’t certain about it right now.
Elsewhere, the leaker claims that the display will be able to hit 1200 nits of peak brightness with an average of 800 nits, which sounds a little low compared to 2023 flagships like the Xiaomi 13 Ultra’s peak brightness of 2600 nits, but it should still be usable in bright daylight – hopefully, anyway.
Leaker Jon Prosser also believes that the inner display will measure in at 7.6 inches, though he went a step further by claiming it’ll be an OLED panel with a 120Hz refresh rate and a 2209 x 1840 resolution. Similarly, the outer display is said to measure in at 5.8 inches with a 120Hz OLED panel, though at a lower FHD+ resolution.
Interestingly, the Pixel Fold is said to make use of Samsung’s latest M13 foldable display despite Samsung keeping its own next-gen Z Fold 5 and Z Flip 5 on the slightly older M12 display tech.
Performance
- Likely to be powered by Google Tensor G2
- Probably not as fast as Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
For the past few years, Google has preferred to use its own in-house designed Tensor chipset not only for its flagship line, but the budget-friendly A-series too. With that in mind, it’s almost a certainty that the Pixel Fold will also sport a Tensor chip – likely the Tensor G2 used in the Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro.
As we noted in our reviews of the phones, the performance isn’t quite enough to beat even the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, let alone the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 found in 2023 flagships, but it’s still plenty powerful, especially when it comes to AI processing.
That has seemingly been backed up by recent benchmark leaks, detailing the Pixel Fold running a chipset with eight cores and a clock speed ranging from 1.8GHz to 2.8GHz. If that sounds familiar, it should; it’s the same setup as the Tensor G2 chipset.
That’s allegedly paired with a Mali G78 GPU and a pretty decent 12GB of RAM. A score of 3257 in Geekbench 5’s multi-core benchmark is pretty decent if true, narrowly beating the 3203 of the Pixel 7 Pro, but it’s far behind the 4527 of the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra and 5136 of the Xiaomi 13 Pro.
Cameras
- Triple-lens camera confirmed
- Rumoured 48MP + 10.8MP + 10.8MP setup
- Possible 4K @ 30fps video recording
If there’s one thing Pixel phones are known for, it’s the exceptional camera quality. There’s a reason why many call the Pixel 7 Pro the best phone for photography, and as such, expectations for the Pixel Fold are very high.
There are plenty of rumours about the camera offering of the upcoming foldable, but it seems leakers can’t quite agree with one another about how exactly it’ll be specced.
Take Jon Prosser’s Front Page Tech, for example. A late 2022 report from the site claims that the Pixel Fold would sport the same 9.5MP cameras on both the outer and inner displays, while the rear camera offering could closely match that of the Pixel 7 Pro with a 50MP main lens, 12MP ultrawide and 48MP telephoto camera.
However, Prosser updated his claims in April 2023, now suggesting a slightly different – though still as impressive – setup consisting of a 48MP main lens, a 10.8MP ultrawide and a matching 10.8MP telephoto lens. The latter lens is said to offer up to 5x optical zoom, impressive for a foldable, with the ability to jump to 20x using Google’s Super Res Zoom tech. It’s also said to cap out at 4K@30fps in terms of video recording.
The selfie camera has also been upgraded to include both a 9.5MP and an 8MP camera across the two displays.
That sounds tantalising – especially for a foldable – but don’t get too excited just yet.
You see, a slightly older rumour claims that the foldable will sport slightly lower-res 8MP selfie cameras on the external and internal displays, with a single 12MP camera on the rear. Considering competing foldables like the Galaxy Z Flip 4 and Huawei Mate Xs 2 all sport a multi-camera setup, this seems like an odd move. That’s especially true when rumours suggest the foldable will be just as expensive as Samsung’s foldable, so there shouldn’t be any need to drop cameras to make the price more competitive.
A third source is a little more exciting. Developer and leaker Kua Wojciechowski tweeted about the hardware we’re likely going to see on the Pixel Fold, including a 50MP main camera, two unnamed 12MP sensors and an additional 8MP lens. This seems to closely match Prosser’s updated claims, lending more credence to the multi-camera setup.
Separately, a snippet of code from the Android 14 developer preview seems to point towards the addition of Face Unlock on the Pixel Fold – though only the external camera. It seems that the interior camera won’t have the dual pixel tech needed for secure facial recognition.
Battery life
While there’s not much in terms of specific numbers, CNBC has seen “internal documents and images” that suggest the Pixel Fold will have a larger battery than the 4,400mAh cell found within the competing Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4.
It could match the Oppo Find N2’s 4,520mAh cell or even 5,000mAh, further bringing the foldable closer to typical flagship smartphone specs.
That should hopefully translate to improved battery life, especially when using that large internal display, but it’ll also depend on elements like chipset power efficiency.
Those leaked documents point towards 24 hours of use on a single charge or 72 hours in low-power mode, but we’ll see how that translates in real-world use.
The Trusted Take
As someone who often uses their phone to watch Netflix and play Game Pass, I’m quite fond of the idea of buying a foldable phone. But given the high prices and rough edges, I’ve been biding my time for the right moment.
I was hoping the Pixel Fold would be the right phone for me, especially since I’m so smitten with the Pixel 6. But if rumours are to be believed, it’s still too expensive for my liking.
There’s a lot to like here if rumours are accurate though. The Tensor chip and camera combo will likely deliver top-class photos, and that 120Hz OLED panel sounds promising. But that price is going to have to come down to make it a viable option for the average person.
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We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.