Google has been synonymous with the Android smartphone market, but much more so now due to its own Pixel lineup of phones. The most recent releases, the Google Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro, have been a success with most buyers, despite some minor flaws. For those who’re searching for a pure Android experience, then the Pixel is the option to go. Even I, as a longtime iPhone-only user, prefer the Pixel to this point over other Android smartphones based on my testing.
Now, it looks like 2023 stands out as the yr we get the primary foldable Pixel device, which can aptly be called the “Google Pixel Fold.” This might be a highly anticipated smartphone, and up to date leaks have given us a greater idea of what Google’s first foldable phone will seem like. Though nothing has been officially announced yet, listed here are some things we’re hoping to see on the Google Pixel Fold.
High-quality camera with photo-editing features
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Though there are quite a couple of foldable phones already available on the market straight away, similar to the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4, one thing that is usually a hit-or-miss is the camera. But when there’s one thing that Pixel phones are great at, it’s photography.
With the Google Pixel Fold, we hope that it has a high-quality camera system, very similar to the few generations of Pixel phones before it. We’ve especially grown to like the unique camera bar design on the Pixel because the Pixel 6 series, so I need to see that camera bar land on the Pixel Fold too.
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From the rumors already out, we should always expect a reasonably good camera system on the Pixel Fold — not less than 64 megapixels for the first, with a 10MP telephoto and 12MP ultrawide sensors. The telephoto is a little bit of a downgrade from the 48MP camera on the Pixel 7 Pro, but with the folding design, that won’t be too surprising. Since this might be a three-camera system, it’s likely the camera bar will return, and from the leaked renders, this appears to be the case (with some minor differences). But Google could also change things on the last minute too, as nothing is confirmed.
On top of the foremost three-camera system, reports suggest the addition of two more 9.5MP cameras, with one as a hole-punch cutout on the outer screen, and one other in the highest bezel of the foremost inner display when the Pixel Fold is open.
If these reported rumors are true, then the Pixel Fold must be expected to have certainly one of the higher camera systems on a foldable phone. And once you mix that with the Pixel’s excellent photo-editing features, like Magic Eraser, then the Pixel Fold has a number of potential as a super-portable photo studio.
A display crease that’s barely visible
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Ever since foldable devices began to hit the market, there was at all times one big, glaring problem: a crease on the screen where it will fold from the hinge. Whilst the folding screens improved from the disaster that was the primary Samsung Galaxy Fold, you may at all times still see a slight crease across the middle. Some are higher than others, but there’s no denying that it’s a difficulty.
Google is probably not exactly like Apple by way of perfection, however it’s come a great distance by way of the Pixel lineup. Personally, I hope that Google figures out a option to make the display crease as subtle as possible, and that could be realistic because the Pixel Fold is probably going closer in design to the Oppo Find N as a substitute of the Z Fold 4.
Split window mode Andy Boxall/Digital Trends
From the leaked renders, the Pixel Fold has a wider outer screen than the Z Fold 4, making it closer to what could be considered a “normal” smartphone. Once the Pixel Fold is opened, it has a bigger screen that is ready to horizontal landscape orientation, and thus, the crease mustn’t be as noticeable when in use.
Regardless, I just hope that the crease won’t be protruding like a sore thumb once the phone is opened. In any case, if I’m going to primarily use a folding phone and spend a lot of the day taking a look at it, I don’t need a crease to distract me from what I’m doing.
Google’s Tensor chip with AI features
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Starting with the Pixel 6 series, Google went the route of Apple and commenced making its own chipset, Google Tensor. With the Pixel 7, we saw the introduction of Tensor G2, which is the newest iteration of Google’s own in-house system on a chip (SoC), and it’s done wonders for the Pixel lineup — though battery life may very well be higher.
While the benchmarks for Tensor won’t beat similar chips from Qualcomm and MediaTek, it makes all the machine learning and artificial intelligence on the Pixel lineup possible, and we hope to see this proceed with the Google Pixel Fold.
Because the Pixel Fold is predicted in May 2023, we’ll likely see it get the identical Tensor G2 chip contained in the Pixel 7/7 Pro. Nevertheless, it’s at all times possible Google ramps up production of Tensor G3 for the Pixel Fold. Only time will tell what happens there.
Because Tensor is the brains behind all the AI features of the Pixel devices, I’m excited to see the advantages users will find a way to reap from a Tensor-powered foldable. Immediately, we already have a good time and useful features like Magic Eraser and other AI enhancements for photo editing, background noise removal on phone calls, emoji suggestion based on the context of a conversation within the Messages app with Google Assistant, audio transcription for audio files, and more. Tensor even improved the already impressive Direct My Call feature by skipping the automated directory message on calls and showing all of the possible options immediately. Google could harness the larger size of the Pixel Fold with additional Tensor AI tricks, and that’s immensely exciting.
Stylus support, please
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Though it hasn’t been rumored at this point, I might like to see Google add stylus support for the Pixel Fold. I mean, it just is sensible, right? As a foldable device that opens as much as a bigger screen, it will be perfect for things like taking notes and even drawing, and each of those might be done a lot better with a correct stylus. Heck, sometimes I prefer to use a stylus simply to navigate around on my devices, because it means fewer fingerprint smudges everywhere in the screen.
After all, this might be an enormous if situation. Thus far, there haven’t been any rumors that the Pixel Fold could have stylus support. Also, adding a slot for an included stylus would definitely mean adding somewhat extra bulk — Samsung ditched plans for a built-in stylus slot on the Galaxy Z Fold 4 in favor of a more compact size, in spite of everything. As much as I would really like to personally see the Pixel Fold include a stylus, this may occasionally just be wishful considering.
Optimized Android software for larger screens
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If Google is dipping its toes into the foldable market, then Android as an entire must be higher optimized for these larger screens. Immediately, a number of apps are only optimized for phones — finding apps which are best-suited for the larger screens of foldables and tablets is a chore.
Since Google is the first developer of the Android operating system as an entire, and Pixel devices get the pure no-strings-attached version, hopefully, Android becomes better-suited for larger devices just like the Pixel Fold. There are many good examples of such apps on iPadOS, like Scrivener, which isn’t available on Android, that will work best on a bigger screen.
I like the thought of foldable phones typically — compact more often than not, but it will probably expand and provide you with more room to work with when need be. But when Google is entering the market with the Pixel Fold, it has to enhance and optimize the software to make full use of the larger screen real estate. In any case, what could be the purpose of getting a foldable device if all the apps will look and work best for smaller screens? Google is making progress on this front with Android 12L and Android 13, but with the Pixel Fold, Google needs to actually prove it’s serious about big-screen devices.
Numerous potential for Google Pixel Fold
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Because the yr winds down, it looks like there are a number of exciting latest things to stay up for in the approaching yr, especially with the Google Pixel Fold. Though I’m primarily an iPhone user, I’ve been having fun with my time with the Google Pixel 7 as I test out various Android devices.
I’m wanting to see how Google will do with the primary foldable Pixel, especially after we have already got strong competition from Samsung, Oppo, and even brands similar to Honor. A few of this stuff I’d prefer to see could also be more of a pipe dream, but most of them must be more realistic to realize.
Either way, the Google Pixel Fold is certainly one to maintain a watch out for in 2023.
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