Foldable without the extra

Review: Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold - Foldable, heavy and durable

Google's strength when it comes to phones is their ability to smartly integrate features, but in most areas the Pixel 10 Pro Fold lags behind competitors.

Published 9 December 2025 - 16:35

If it hadn't been for Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7, the Pixel 10 Pro Fold would have been at the forefront. Now, it impresses instead on individual points but fails to quite reach the finish line. One area where Pixel surpasses many competitors is durability. While many regular phones have long been water and dust resistant, it's more challenging to make a foldable phone with its hinge equally durable. Google is one of the few that has now succeeded. With an IP68 rating, the Pixel 10 Pro Fold should withstand both water and small dust or sand particles without damage.

Screens that interact

Pixel 10 Pro Fold is durable according to IP68 for both water and dust, unusual for foldables.

When we look at the Pixel family of phones, they have different characteristics and strengths. In the Pixel Pro, the extreme zoom with AI support is something of a main feature. We do without it in the Pixel 10 Pro Fold, despite the Pro name. Here, we should instead be primarily impressed by the basic function, that you have a large outer display that works pretty much like a regular phone and a larger foldable display to use when you want to run multiple apps side by side or have more space to consume or create content. A foundation here is how the interaction between the two screens works. Google succeeds there, but it's nothing unique. If I start using an app on the outer screen and open the phone, the content follows. On the other hand, if I start on the large screen and close the phone, I can choose to swipe from the bottom on the outer screen to resume the app there.

On the large, inner screen, you have the icon row at the bottom with apps available even when you're using other apps by swiping up from the bottom of the screen. This makes it easy to both switch between apps and manage split screen and which apps should be visible there. With the slider at the edge between the apps, you can freely adjust the size for each app. So far, the Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold works like Samsung's foldable, but there is no possibility to have windows in smaller formats floating over the two. I don't feel that this is a major shortcoming. Already with two apps, the screen size sets the limitations in these portables.

Google includes few unique things

For better or worse, Google integrates many services directly into the system. It's positive because services appear when you need them, but it can be frustrating because it makes it difficult to find specific services. You may notice, for example, when you've accepted it, that the phone listens to music playing in the background and informs you of the artist and song title. I also get upcoming flights and weather warnings directly on the home screen, everything is integrated. In the same place, information about charging on my Pixel Watch and Pixel Buds appears.

Just like other Android manufacturers, Google offers AI in its own app Gemini, Gemini Live, Circle to Search and in Google Photos. One difference, however, is that with the Pixel 10 Pro Fold you get a free one-year subscription to Google AI Pro, including 2 terabytes of cloud storage in Google Drive. Several other manufacturers offer shorter free trials, so Google's offer here can save you money if this is something you otherwise intended to pay for. Looking at the interface as a whole, it is of course focused on Google's own apps and you avoid unwanted third-party apps.

Unique camera app that stands out

A particularly interesting app in the Pixel 10 Pro Fold is the camera app. It has a number of unique features, perhaps most notably the photo tips. I don't find them at first, because they need to be activated. I won't claim that it adds any value. The whole point is that I point the camera at something and the phone interprets the content and suggests parts of the subject that I can focus my image composition on. The flower, the view through the window, the desk. Simply nothing that I couldn't easily have suggested myself.

Looking at the cameras in the phone, they are good, but it is clear that we still have to live with certain compromises. The Pixel 10 Pro Fold cannot compete with the sister model Pixel 10 Pro, let alone with the best camera phones on the market. Comparing with the main competitor Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7, the two phones are relatively equal. In the dark, I notice that today's flagship phones that are not foldable beat the Pixel 10 Pro Fold and provide better contrasts and dynamics in the images, especially when it is a bit dark. In daylight, the Pixel handles colour reproduction and dynamics well and with its 5x optical zoom, I can take pictures up to about ten times magnification that are still usable. Compared directly to the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7, they compete to be the better one and even though they often perform very similarly, it is usually the Pixel that provides the best details in challenging situations.

Google Pixel 10 Fold Pro is not a bad phone at all, it is a competent offering overall, but it is also clear that Google has little truly unique to offer. We get the wireless charging with the Pixelsnap magnetic mount like Apple's Magsafe, we get complete protection against moisture and dust (IP68), which no other foldable has today, but the phone is noticeably heavy and bulky compared to especially Samsung's alternatives. The interface runs smoothly on the phone even when I play more demanding games, but comparative tests show that the performance is significantly lower than, for example, Samsung's foldables and Pixel 10 Pro Fold shows the compromises you have to accept.

Questions and answers

How bulky?

Yes, it is clear when you compare it with Samsung's latest Fold, which is significantly thinner and more convenient and feels more like a regular phone when folded. 258 grams compared to 215 grams and a thickness of 10.8 mm instead of 8.9 are the actual figures. Yet Samsung is several thousand kronor cheaper.

What does Google specifically offer that I don't get from other manufacturers?

Very little. You have a couple of unique features in the camera app. The focus here is on Google Gemini and you get a very generous offer of AI Pro worth several thousand, but the features themselves, Gemini and Gemini Live, are available on all Androids. Many of the unique features Pixel introduces, such as call screening and other smart AI features, are missing in the Swedish market.

How does Pixelsnap work?

It is based on the Qi2 standard, which means that Pixel has built-in magnets that hold the phone in the correct position for the most efficient wireless charging and that it thus works with Apple's Magsafe charger and equivalents from third-party manufacturers, as well as of course with Google's own Pixel Snap accessories.

An alternative

The obvious alternative is Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 7. The same number of years of system updates, significantly cheaper, more convenient format, better performance.

Camera example

Optical zoom up to 5x and often good pictures in most situations, but it is noticeable that it falls short in darkness compared to the best camera phones.

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