Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold

Impressively vibrant displays, a durable design and strong battery life, but it's a chunky beast

- MARK SPOONAUER

Talk about a tough act to follow. The Pixel 10 Pro Fold arrives in the wake of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7 (see issue 372, p48), a phone so thin and light that it comprehensively raised the bar for foldable phones. Yet in my testing of Google's new foldable, I've found it beats Samsung's in several ways. It's also cheaper.

There's no hiding from the fact that the Pixel 10 Pro Fold is chunkier than the Galaxy Z Fold7, but there's a definite advantage to its design. Google's new gearless hinge provides excellent protection against water and dust intrusion, making it more rugged than rivals: it’s the first foldable with an IP68 rating. The Z Fold7 only bears an IP48 rating, which means small particles of dust can get in there, and you definitely shouldn't take it to the beach.

Fine displays

The big attraction of the Pixel 10 Pro Fold is its foldout 8in OLED display. And it looks stunning, whether you're surfing the web, streaming Netflix or running two apps side by side. The Pixel 10 Pro Fold literally outshines the Galaxy Z Fold7: in our testing its peak brightness exceeded 2,500cd/m², versus 2,000cd/m² for the Galaxy. The front 6.4in screen is brighter than the Samsung's, too: I could easily see the difference when watching the trailer for The Mandalorian & Grogu film outside, although the action was still clearer on the interior 8in panel.

Strictly speaking the Z Fold7 has a larger cover display, with a 6.5in diagonal, but I prefer the Pixel 10 Pro Fold because it’s a wider shape that’s easier to type on. I also like the light green Jade colour that my review unit came in, while the slate blue Moonstone option looks professional. Samsung's rich Blue Shadow still wins for wow factor, though.

Battery and charging