Pixel 9 Pro Fold

 A little back story. When Apple announced the iPhone 15 at their keynote, it was the first time in years where I was like no, I cant justify purchasing this phone. Not because of the price, but because the difference between it and it was basically the same phone. So I switched to Android. Which to many may seem like a bit weird, considering the fact that apps are integrated to the Apple ecosystem, including Instagram and Snapchat. Due to the screen size ration being uniform in all of their models, unlike Android phones who range due to the fact that a number of companies utilize their operating system to run their phones and tablets.

With folding phones catching my eye, even after my terrible experience with the first generation Samsung Fold. The phone on paper seemed like an awesome idea, but its form factor and the fact that applications at the time were not ready to implement software updates to ensure the use of their applications on both a tablet format and phone format. I decided to get the OnePlus Open back in January or February of 2024, and I fell in love with the phone immediately! The foldable phone had gone through years of upgrades and now its reached the pinnacle. The phone was sized as a normal slab phone, but it opened up to reveal a tablet sized screen on the inside. Let alone the cameras on the phone were a collaboration effort between OnePlus/Oppo and Hasselblad made the perfect phone. It was for almost a year until boredom overtook me and the hype behind the new Google Pixels caught my eye.

So what would any rational person do? Trade in! But I got two Google Pixel 9 Pro XL phones, the Porcelain color for my wonderful wife, and the Hazel for myself. With a 6.8in. display, 16GB of RAM and the new Google Tensor G4 chip, I was set! The phone has a triple camera setup with a 50MP main sensor, and an ultrawide and 5x telephoto lens at 48MP. But if you watch the Google keynote when they announced the new Pixel phones you’d think that the phones were the afterthought and the Google’s AI called Gemini was what was being released and that it was attached to the phone not the other way around. The whole AI thing wasn’t really what count my attention nor was it the reason I switched, it was just an added bonus, because AI makes me uneasy, especially right now with every tech giant pushing AI down our throats. Have they not learned from any of the Terminator movies?

Anyway, the Google Pixel 9 Pro XL, changed in design, now looking more like a high end phone with aluminum frame, and sleek matte glass back. The camera pump went from the traditional visor look to an island look, which in my opinion looks a lot better. I kept the phone for almost two months, but something didn’t sit right with me. I missed having a folding phone. So what was the plausible solution? I went out and traded in my Pixel 9 Pro XL and got the Pixel 9 Pro Fold!

Unlike the previous generation of the Google Pixel Fold, the form factor has changed. The previous generation had a passport form factor unlike the new one which resembles the OnePlus Open. So it seemed like a no brainer! I went and got the porcelain color.

With a 6.3in. external display and an almost square inner display with a size of 8in. The phone comes with a 4650mAh battery and the same RAM and G4 tensor chip as the Google Pixel 9 Pro XL. The camera’s sadly are different than its slab form brother, with a 48MP main camera, a 10.5MP ultrawide and telephoto lenses. Unlike the Google Pixel 9 Pro and Pro XL the camera layout is also different, instead of the island its more of a cluster on the top left corner. The fingerprint sensor like the OnePlus Open is mounted on the side unlike the under screen fingerprint sensor on the Pixel 9 Pro XL. The Pixel 9 Pro Fold is a lot thinner than the OnePlus Open, and thinner. Yes the OnePlus Open is now almost a year old, but the phone is still considered as the best foldable that has ever been released.

Battery life lasts me almost a whole day, with me watching shows when I work out, using it as a mobile hotspot, and constantly scrolling social media. The camera’s are honestly are as bad as the specs make it out to be due to the fact Google’s image processing is unbelievable! I am loving the fact that is pocket friendly, considering tis dimensions and weight.

For me having a foldable makes my life easier, but to many the slab form is something that they prefer. I can edit images on a bigger display watch movies and shows on that bigger display and still be able to pocket the phone, but to many its cumbersome and people do fear the durability of the foldable form factor. Do I regret getting the Pixel 9 Pro Fold? No, I honestly don’t! Will the phone be my main phone for the whole year? I can’t give you a definitive answer because if OnePlus do release a successor to their OnePlus open, I will definitely go for it and trade my Pixel for it!