Google Pixel Fold Once Again Tipped to Launch This Year

Google Pixel Fold will take on Samsung's lienup of foldable smartphones.

By Nithya P Nair | Updated: 20 September 2021 19:03 IST

Google Pixel Fold Once Again Tipped to Launch This Year

Pixel Fold will take on Samsung's lineup of foldable phones (pictured)

Highlights

Google Pixel Fold may launch in the fourth quarter of 2021
Google Pixel Fold is reported to have LTPO OLED display
Google Pixel 6 Pro is expected to launch later this year

Google Pixel Fold, the first foldable smartphone from the tech giant, may launch in late 2021. Google's foldable smartphone under the Pixel lineup has been in rumours for quite a while and new leaks suggest that the handset will make its debut by the end of this year. The foldable Pixel smartphone is reportedly codenamed “Passport” and is speculated to feature a low-temperature polycrystalline oxide (LTPO) OLED display. Samsung has tapped the market for foldable screens with its foldable devices, including the Galaxy Z Flip 3 and the Galaxy Z Fold 3. However, foldable smartphones are becoming a more common form factor for premium smartphones it seems. Brands such as Vivo and Xiaomi are also reportedly working on new foldable smartphones.

As per a tweet by tipster Evan Blass, the upcoming foldable Pixel smartphone, which is codenamed as “Passport” will be launched by the end of this year. He said that Google has been working on this new smartphone for more than two years.

This is not the first time that Google Pixel Fold's launch timeline has been hinted at. David Naranjo, Senior Director, Display Supply Chain Consultants, tweeted on the development of Google Pixel Fold as well. His tweet indicated that the handset may launch in the fourth quarter of 2021 (October 1 to December 31). It also suggested that the Google Pixel Fold will use an LTPO OLED display. The analyst also adds that Google Pixel 6 Pro will launch in the same quarter.

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In 2019, Google disclosed that it had started working on foldable smartphone prototypes. The company also provided support for foldable displays in Android 10 that was leveraged by companies including Samsung to develop their in-house foldable phones. There is certainly scope for Google to challenge Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2, and the recently launched Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3 with the upcoming Google Pixel Fold. Huawei with its Mate X and X2 foldable smartphones marked its presence in the space. Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi has also unveiled the Mi Mix Fold as the company's first foldable smartphone in China in March this year. Other companies such as Oppo and Vivo are also eyeing to launch their foldable smartphones. It is expected to launch in India in the remainder of this year too.

Google has not yet announced any details on whether it is planning to launch a foldable phone or if it is just testing prototypes for making Android more optimised for existing and new foldable devices in the market. Once unveiled, the Pixel Fold could take on these foldable smartphones.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3 First Impressions

Are the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Z Flip 3 still made for enthusiasts — or are they good enough for everyone? We discussed this on Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.

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Google Pixel 6 Pro

KEY SPECS
NEWS

Display 6.70-inch

Processor Google Tensor

Front Camera 11.1-megapixel

Rear Camera 50-megapixel + 12-megapixel + 48-megapixel

RAM 8GB, 12GB

Storage 128GB, 256GB

Battery Capacity 5003mAh

OS Android 12

Resolution 1440x3120 pixels

More Google mobiles Google mobiles price in India

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Large, vibrant folding display
Intuitive software for multitasking
Top-tier performance
Great-sounding speakers
Water-resistant design

Bad
Average battery life
Cameras could do better in low light
Heavy, bulky when folded
Expensive

Read detailed Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 review

Display (Primary) 7.60-inch

Processor octa-core

Front Camera 10-megapixel + 4-megapixel

Rear Camera 12-megapixel + 12-megapixel + 12-megapixel

RAM 12GB

Storage 256GB, 512GB

Battery Capacity 4400mAh

OS Android 11

Resolution 2208x1768 pixels

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Huawei Mate X2

KEY SPECS
NEWS

Display (Primary) 6.45-inch

Processor HiSilicon Kirin 9000

Front Camera 16-megapixel

Rear Camera 50-megapixel + 16-megapixel + 12-megapixel + 8-megapixel

RAM 8GB, 12GB

Storage 256GB, 512GB

Battery Capacity 4500mAh

OS Android 10

Resolution 1160x2700 pixels

More Huawei mobiles Huawei mobiles price in India

Huawei Mate X

KEY SPECS
NEWS

Display 8.00-inch

Processor HiSilicon Kirin 980

Front Camera Unspecified

Rear Camera 40-megapixel + 16-megapixel + 8-megapixel

RAM 8GB

Storage 512GB

Battery Capacity 4500mAh

OS Android 9.0

Resolution 2200x2480 pixels

More Huawei mobiles Huawei mobiles price in India

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Vibrant folding display
Very good build quality, easily pocketable
Top-tier performance
Water-resistant design

Bad
Main screen washes out under sunlight
Cover screen could be more functional
Weak battery life, slow charging
Low-light video could be better

Read detailed Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 review

Display (Primary) 6.70-inch

Processor octa-core

Front Camera 10-megapixel

Rear Camera 12-megapixel + 12-megapixel

RAM 8GB

Storage 128GB, 256GB

Battery Capacity 3300mAh

OS Android 11

Resolution 1080x2640 pixels

More Samsung mobiles Samsung mobiles price in India

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2

KEY SPECS
NEWS

Display (Primary) 7.60-inch

Processor Qualcomm Snapdragon 865+

Front Camera 10-megapixel + 10-megapixel

Rear Camera 12-megapixel + 12-megapixel + 12-megapixel

RAM 12GB

Storage 256GB

Battery Capacity 4500mAh

OS Android 10

Resolution 1768x2208 pixels

More Samsung mobiles Samsung mobiles price in India

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Further reading: Google Pixel Foldable Phone, Google Pixel 6, Google Pixel Foldable Phone launch, Foldable Phones, Samsung Galaxy Flip 3

Nithya P Nair

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Nithya P Nair is a journalist with more than five years of experience in digital journalism. She specialises in business and technology beats. A foodie at heart, Nithya loves exploring new places (read cuisines) and sneaking in Malayalam movie dialogues to spice up conversations. More