It is no secret that Google has been working on its very own foldable smartphone, called the Pixel Fold. We already have a some basic information on what the Pixel Fold will look like and its rumored key specification. Today’s new leak hints that Google will finally start mass production of its foldable device in Q3 of this year.
The latest report came from South Korea via The Elec, Samsung Display who is said to be producing the display used on the Pixel Fold, will start making foldable displays in July or August.
The source claims that Samsung Display has received orders for the Galaxy Z Fold 5 as well as the Google Pixel Fold. Samsung Display is the largest foldable phone maker in the market, and they will be making a 7.57” foldable panel and a 5.78” panel for the cover display. That means the Pixel Fold will reportedly feature a tall 7.57 inch OLED primary display and a smaller 5.6 inch cover screen. This report is also indirectly implying that Google won’t be showcasing its first Foldable phone at Google I/O event (in Q2), as reported by previous rumors. It may be launched in the fourth quarter, along with Pixel 8 series of phones.
It’s worth mentioning that Google has opted for older foldable screen technology – pre-Galaxy Z Fold3. The Z Fold3 from 2021 disregarded a polarizer layer, which made the display thinner and lighter and easier to fold the device. Google finally managed to gather decent holding in the regular smartphone sales’area, but I feel Google is unnecessarily getting into the foldable phones fight with Samsung at this point.
The Korean manufacturer has completely dominated the US, UK, and global markets with its foldable devices, by becoming exceptionally refined over the course of now 5 years. Other smartphone makers such as Vivo, Xiaomi and Moto have already released folding mobile phones. Reports also claim that the Pixel Fold won’t support a stylus, which will remain exclusive to Samsung’s foldable flagship. It will be interesting to see how Google will convince a consumer to buy its Pixel Fold over a Galaxy Z foldable device.
Renders from last month gave us an idea of what the Pixel Fold looks like. it is rumored to sport a familiar design language inspired by the Pixel 7 series, with a camera bar on the back allocating a three camera setup just like on the Pixel 7 Pro, and it also reminiscent of the Oppo Find N in terms of dimensions. In other words, looks like a Pixel 7 Pro that had another display strapped to it.
Rumored specs are including Tensor G2 chipset with 12GB RAM as standard and Android 13 out the box (this report indicates it would run Android 14 OS). The phone is expected to be available in silver and black colors with a starting price of $1,799. We will learn more about this device in the coming months as we get deeper into 2023.
Source: TheElec