Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold: A Closer Look at Google’s $1,799 Foldable

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When Google unveiled the Pixel 10 Pro Fold on August 21, 2025, one number stood out immediately: $1,799. It’s the same starting price as the company’s earlier foldable, signaling that Google isn’t backing down from premium positioning even as competition grows fiercer. But price was just the headline. What drew most attention were the durability claims, AI-driven software features, and bold design decisions that set this foldable apart.

Foldables have struggled to balance futuristic appeal with practical reliability. Hinges that wear down, fragile screens, poor battery life, and eye-watering costs have kept them niche.

With the Pixel 10 Pro Fold, Google is betting that a combination of stronger materials, smarter AI integration, and an uncompromising design language can finally push foldables closer to the mainstream.

This is the first dust-resistant foldable in the world, carries the brightest displays ever in a Pixel, and ships with the company’s new Tensor G5 chip, a processor designed to push AI into everyday use. The big question: does this device offer enough to justify its place in a crowded, skeptical market?

Key Takeaways:

The Pixel 10 Pro Fold was unveiled on August 21, 2025, starting at $1,799.
It’s the world’s first IP68-certified foldable, resistant to dust and water.
Features dual OLED displays: 6.4-inch cover screen and 8-inch folding display, both reaching 3,000 nits brightness.
Runs on Google’s Tensor G5 chip, built on TSMC’s 3nm process, optimized for AI performance.
Introduces AI-driven tools such as Magic Cue, Camera Coach, Best Take, Add Me, and Daily Hub.
Equipped with a triple rear camera system and up to 20x Super Res Zoom.
Ships with a 1-year Google AI Pro subscription, offering Gemini 2.5 Pro and 2TB of storage.
Positions itself as a direct rival to Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 7.

Rethinking Durability in Foldables

Durability has always been the Achilles’ heel of foldables. Hinges that crack, dust that seeps into the folding mechanism, and fragile inner screens have made even the boldest buyers hesitate.

Google appears to have listened carefully. The Pixel 10 Pro Fold arrives with an IP68 rating, making it resistant to both dust and water, something no other foldable has yet achieved.

The hinge has also been redesigned. Google calls it a gearless, ultra-durable hinge, engineered to withstand over a decade of folding. Paired with the Super Actua Flex Display, which uses ultra-thin glass layered with dual anti-impact films, the phone promises resilience without compromising on flexibility.

Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold: A Closer Look at Google’s $1,799 Foldable — Photo Credit: Google

Add to that the 100% recycled aluminum frame (matte on the standard models, glossy on the Pro line) and Gorilla Glass Victus 2, and you get a foldable that isn’t just stylish but deliberately built to outlast its reputation for fragility.

This emphasis on durability addresses one of the biggest psychological barriers consumers face: trust. A phone that folds needs to feel like it will last years, not months, and Google is positioning this as a foldable built for the long haul.

Display Technology and Design Choices

Google has doubled down on brightness and usability with the Pixel 10 Pro Fold’s displays. The cover screen measures 6.4 inches, an OLED panel designed for quick interactions and one-handed use. Open it up, and you’re greeted by an 8-inch OLED folding display, pushing brightness up to 3,000 nits, a figure usually reserved for professional monitors.

Brightness matters more than people realize. Foldables often suffer in outdoor settings, where glare can make inner screens nearly unusable. By hitting such high peak brightness, Google has removed one of the lingering frustrations of earlier models.

The design is also intentionally familiar. The folded form factor mimics a standard smartphone, avoiding the bulky feeling of early-generation foldables. The bezels are slimmer, and the matte-metal finish offers a sturdy grip without slipping into gimmickry.

While Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 7 continues to define much of the market, Google’s decision to keep its design sleek and its displays practical suggests a bet on usability over novelty.

Powering the Experience: Tensor G5

At the heart of the Pixel 10 Pro Fold lies the Tensor G5, Google’s latest in-house chip. Built on TSMC’s 3nm process, it represents the company’s most advanced processor to date.

Performance has never been the sole purpose of Tensor chips; instead, they’ve been designed to prioritize AI capabilities. With the G5, those ambitions reach a new level. Voice recognition, translation, real-time video editing, and photography enhancements are not just faster, they’re designed to work directly on the device, minimizing reliance on cloud servers.

Battery performance, another foldable weakness, also gets an upgrade. The Pro Fold houses the largest battery in any Pixel foldable so far, supporting 30W wired charging (50% in about 30 minutes) and 15W Qi2 wireless charging. A new Pixelsnap magnetic charging system simplifies wireless placement, reducing the fidgeting common with older models.

In short: Tensor G5 is the backbone that makes the Pro Fold more than a folding screen gimmick. It transforms the device into a hub for AI-driven functionality, powered locally and securely.

Cameras Built Around AI

Google has long defined itself as a photography-first brand, and the Pixel 10 Pro Fold doesn’t shy away from that legacy. The triple rear camera system includes a 48MP main lens, an ultrawide sensor, and a telephoto camera with 20x Super Res Zoom capabilities.

What stands out more, however, is the way AI is woven into the shooting experience:

Camera Coach offers real-time guidance, helping users frame shots better.
Best Take uses multiple exposures to assemble an image where everyone has their best expression.
Add Me allows remote inclusion of the photographer into group photos, solving the “who takes the picture” problem.
Rear Camera Selfie mode gives users high-resolution self-portraits using the main cameras rather than a smaller front-facing lens.

Photography has always been central to Pixel branding, but here it feels like Google is pushing cameras as part of an AI ecosystem.

The AI Suite

The most ambitious part of the Pixel 10 Pro Fold may not be its design or durability, but its software. Google is weaving AI into nearly every corner of the user experience.

Some examples include:

Magic Cue: Context-aware prompts that help with writing, presentations, and messages.
Daily Hub: A personalized dashboard aggregating schedules, tasks, and real-time information.
On-device translation: Powered by Gemini AI, offering translations in the speaker’s own voice for natural interaction.

These are meant to redefine how people interact with their phones. By embedding Gemini 2.5 Pro at the heart of the device, Google is pushing the Pixel 10 Pro Fold as not just a communication tool but a productivity and creativity platform.

Even more compelling: Google is bundling a 12-month subscription to Google AI Pro, normally a separate service. This includes advanced AI features, 2TB of cloud storage, and early access to video generation tools. Only the base Pixel 10 misses out.

Competing With Samsung

No discussion of foldables is complete without mentioning Samsung. With the Galaxy Z Fold 7 launched earlier this year, the rivalry is direct and unavoidable.

Samsung’s strength lies in its established foldable ecosystem and years of iteration. But the Pixel 10 Pro Fold brings advantages Samsung doesn’t yet match:

Dust resistance (IP68), an industry first for foldables.
Brighter displays, which could tip outdoor usability in Google’s favor.
Deeper AI integration, tied directly to hardware.

However, Samsung continues to lead in app optimization for foldable layouts, global distribution scale, and brand trust in the foldable space. Google’s challenge isn’t just to deliver innovation but to convince users that this is more than a niche experiment.

The Price Question

At $1,799, the Pixel 10 Pro Fold sits squarely in premium territory. This raises the inevitable question: who is it for?

Tech enthusiasts will appreciate the AI-first approach and durability.
Professionals may see value in the productivity features powered by Gemini.
Casual buyers, however, may hesitate when the Pixel 10 or 10 Pro offers much of the same AI power at far lower cost.

By pricing it at parity with Samsung, Google avoids appearing underconfident. Yet it also risks alienating the broader audience that might adopt foldables if pricing dipped further.

This suggests Google isn’t chasing mass-market adoption with this generation. Instead, it’s refining the concept for those willing to pay for the cutting edge.

What the Pixel 10 Pro Fold Represents

The Pixel 10 Pro Fold isn’t just another gadget release. It’s a statement about where Google sees smartphones heading. Foldables are no longer novelties, they’re platforms for experimenting with the blend of AI, durability, and design.

By offering the first dust-resistant foldable, Google is tackling skepticism head-on. By bundling a year of AI Pro, it’s seeding its ecosystem with users who will likely stick around for subscription renewals. And by keeping the design practical, it avoids the trap of creating a futuristic but impractical showcase device.

What remains to be seen is whether consumers will accept the price tag in exchange for a device that feels like a bold leap rather than a cautious upgrade.