Foldable phones are still unique when you see one out in the wild, which is an opportunity for different brands to assert a form of leadership in the still nascent category. Google’s second attempt in the Pixel 9 Pro Fold makes for a much better sequel, even if it’s not the best the industry can offer.

The original Google Pixel Fold never made it to Canada because the device launched with limited availability in select markets. Not so with the Pixel 9 Pro Fold, its latest foldable that came to market as part of the Pixel 9 rollout of four new devices (Pixel 9, Pixel 9 Pro, Pixel 9 Pro XL). It’s expensive at a range between $2,100-2,400, as of this review, but is it worth opening it up?

Design and hardware

Google chose to reconsider what it wanted this device to look like, and it shows when comparing it to its predecessor. When folded, the external OLED screen is 6.3 inches (2024 x 1080 resolution) with a 60-120Hz refresh rate and 2,700 nits of peak brightness. Unfold it, and you get an 8-inch Super Actua Flex OLED display (2152 x 2076 resolution) with 1-120Hz adaptive refresh rate. A newer stainless steel hinge adds additional strength to the Fold’s stability however you choose to open or close it.

I must admit, there’s something immensely satisfying about clapping the device shut. Part of it is because I’ve been around long enough to remember pre-smartphone flip phones, though it’s also a reflection of how using a foldable feels different. It’s not thin enough at 10.5mm to feel like a standard smartphone slab but it’s not terribly heavy or as cumbersome as it may initially seem. The fingerprint sensor is built into the power button and proves responsive much of the time.

This phone differs from its Pixel 9 brethren in some aesthetic choices, like how the rear camera module is simply a cutout rather than the strip that runs across the back panel. A matte finish proves an excellent design decision for warding off at least some of the fingerprints, while IPX8 protection offers some solace that water won’t fry the thing. The lack of dust resistance, however, is a concern given that debris can find its way into exposed crevices.

Google currently only offers the phone in obsidian black and porcelain white in either 256GB or 512GB configurations. It runs on Google’s Tensor G4 processor with 16GB of RAM, and the ability to run two apps simultaneously on the inner screen.

Two screens, two apps, two options

There’s excellent brightness in both screens, visible indoors and out. The inner screen has a crease in the middle but it’s not all that noticeable when viewing something on it, so becomes less of a factor the longer you use the device.

Running two apps on it in split-screen is fairly easy, and can be done a couple of ways. With an app open, you can slide up slowly from the bottom dock and select an app to drag into into either half of the screen. Another is to tap and hold on an app and choose Split-Screen in the pop-up menu to start the action.

The best part is you can save app pairs as icons on your home screen to open them together going forward. It’s a big addition from the previous Pixel Fold, though also a feature long offered from competing foldables.

You’re just fairly limited beyond that. For example, while you can resize an app in split-screen, you can only adjust its ratio laterally. There’s no way to turn an app into a floating window and position it where you like. Yet another missing feature that’s been available from competitors. The only exceptions are video windows from apps supporting that feature, which can appear over split-screen setups, but that’s it.

For general multitasking, what’s available here can still work, but it would inevitably feel constraining if you ever got a taste of what the likes of OnePlus and Samsung deliver. Never mind Chinese brands, like Xiaomi, Vivo and Honor, which are miles ahead in many respects.

 

Google AI features abound

Instead, Google is resting on its AI feature set as a key difference maker. This comes from a few angles, so it takes time to learn them all. For example, Circle to Search is a common one that’s not exclusive to Pixel devices. Tap and hold on the bottom of either display and you can circle anything you want to search. This could include taking a photo of an object (even if someone’s wearing it) and see what it is and where you might buy it.

The Gemini app is another that’s available on other Android devices (and the iPhone), an AI that could one day supplant Google Assistant in every way. With it, you can type or voice a prompt to brainstorm ideas or summarize text from email or websites.

Then there are all the photo-related AI ones. There’s even a separate app for that called Pixel Studio that lets you generate images based on the prompt you type in. Google has put up more guardrails compared to when it first launched, removing some of the offensive or questionable images users were able to initially create. It goes as far as helping you generate logos for sports teams, complete with uniforms.

Google Photos also offers an entire suite of AI-driven editing options. Some will be familiar, like Magic Eraser, whereas others, like Magic Editor are newer and more expansive. Not only can you remove people or objects, but also swap out the sky or make a photo into a piece of art. If you want to isolate a subject and move it to a different part of the frame, there are ways to do that too. Reimagine lets you use prompts to add or alter a photo, be it turning the photo into a vintage black and white shot or changing the entire mood of the image.

All of these features are neat but results can vary pretty randomly, so it’s hard to predict what you’ll get. Even when you get a handful of options to choose from, none may fit what you have in mind. That partly shows how new a lot of this stuff is, yet also piques enough curiosity to see what’s possible. Repeat attempts aren’t unusual.

Camera performance

There is nothing all that special going on with the cameras. The main 50-megapixel lens is easily the best, though it captures 12.5-megapixel photos using a process called pixel binning, where four pixels merge into one larger one — a better way to gather more light for low-light and night shots. The settings let you take full-resolution photos when you select High Pixel, though best results turn out with ideal lighting conditions.

The telephoto and ultra-wide cameras are a mixed bag as well. If you’re not overly keen on taking photos, you may not care as much about what results look like. Google’s software computation plays a key role as it often does on any Pixel device. You will able to take a good photo with this phone but nothing of the calibre on the other Pixel 9 devices. Despite all that, it’s better than the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6, which uses two-year-old camera hardware.

There’s some AI going on here, too. Add Me is a new one introduced throughout the Pixel 9 lineup, allowing the photographer taking a group shot to enter the frame and be added into a single photo including everyone. It’s a cool feature that works best when the photographer enters the frame from the side or right in front of everyone.

Battery life

While the 4650mAh battery is actually smaller than the previous Fold, Google claims the same or better battery life. That’s not necessarily the case in most circumstances but my experience seems to at least represent an improvement over the previous Pixel Fold. More often than not, there will be charge to spare by the end of the day, though you’ll likely need to charge it on a daily basis.

Conclusion

The Pixel 9 Pro Fold isn’t a conventional phone, so it needs to be judged by different criteria. It’s fun to use, there’s no doubt about that. The screens are slick and the overall feel of the device is better than Google’s first attempt. I can see many liking what it can do if they’ve never tried a foldable before.

Except jumping into the fray with this one may not be the right move. The OnePlus Open may be a year older but it’s cheaper at $1,700, has better multitasking features, longer battery life and clearer photos. It may not have the full suite of AI features, but that may only matter if you plan on using them regularly. Others, like Circle to Search, are available on the Open as well.

If you insist on going with this foldable because you like Pixel devices, be sure to do it knowing that you may have to hang onto it for two years or more to justify the price. Google is promising seven years of Android and security updates, and that’s worth something too.