Google’s Pixel 10 Pro Fold is a thin, foldable phone

Google’s third foldable device features a lot of improvements over the second, from a world-first IP68 rating to Qi2 magnetic charging, brighter displays, and a larger battery. But one area that hasn’t improved is size and shape – actually Pixel 10 Pro Fold It’s a gram heavier and a fraction of a millimeter thicker than last year’s 9 Pro Fold.

In fairness, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold It was noteworthy how thin and light it was by folding standards. But the industry is moving quickly, leaving its successor as one of the thickest new foldable phones on the market.

Over the past year, Oppo, Honor, and, most importantly, Samsung have traded blows in pursuit of the title of “world’s thinnest foldable phone,” while Google has never entered the ring. But I’ve used all those ultra-thin foldables and reviewed some of them, and after a week with the Pixel 10 Pro Fold, I’m happy to say: It may be the thickest, but it’s still thin enough.

The thickness of Google’s new foldable phone is 5.2 mm when opened, and 10.8 mm when closed. That’s enough to feel undeniably thin — it’s thinner than all but the thinnest tablets — but the question is how the phone feels when it’s closed.

One criticism that foldable devices have had from the beginning is that they look like two phones taped together. The 10 Pro Fold certainly isn’t that bad, but it’s thicker than almost every phone on the market. This is where competitors love it Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 Make the difference felt – At 8.9mm thick, this phone is just a hair thicker than 8.8mm iPhone 17 Pro Max And it’s less than a millimeter thicker than leading Google and Samsung phones. It’s a feature that the Pixel 10 Pro Fold simply lacks.

Over the past week or so, I’ve been using my new foldable Pixel device as is and in Google’s official Pixelsnap case, a thin, easy-to-install plastic protector that adds a little extra depth to the device. Either way, I can’t say the size really bothered me. When held side by side with a phone like the Honor Magic V5, which is the thinnest foldable phone on the market currently, the difference is clear. But day after day, with the phone in my jeans pocket or in one hand on the bus, I never thought it became so heavy.

The only thing that stops me is the weight. The Pixel weighs 258 grams, which is about 50 grams heavier than the Z Fold 7 Which Gets on my nerves a little. It’s just enough to make the phone uncomfortable after a train ride holding it in one hand, or for my arms to drop half an inch when I lift it above my head in bed.

Of course, the trade-off between size and weight is the same on both counts: battery size. The Pixel’s 5,015 mAh battery comfortably outperforms the Z Fold 7’s 4,400 mAh battery and has saved me from worrying about battery altogether — I’ve got 40 percent sleep left most nights, leaving enough wiggle room for days of heavy use and inevitable degradation. This still isn’t a correction to the battery capacity of Oppo and Honor’s thinner phones, but they do take advantage of the energy-dense silicon-carbon batteries that were present in the US market. Much slower in adoption.

I’ll be the first to admit that before using a phone, I got this wrong. Honor Magic V5 review A couple of months ago, I criticized the 10 Pro Fold’s design for feeling “outdated” even before its launch, but I’ve since changed my mind. Phones like Honor, Oppo, and Samsung certainly look like the future of foldable devices, but the fractionally thicker Pixel looks good at the moment. Partly because I stand by my claim Thin phones will give us diminishing returns — We’ve reached the endpoint, at least until we’re all ready to ditch USB-C and go portless. Google may not have reached that goal yet, but it’s not too far behind.