The Google Pixel 11 Pro Fold Is A Solid Foldable In Need Of New Tricks
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While I don’t see this as a must-have upgrade, the Google Pixel 11 Pro Fold remains a solid, formidable foldable. But if Google plans to compete in the foldable space, I think it's time to bring more to the table on the software side—regardless of whether the company reverts to its original Pixel Fold form factor.
As Apple is about to release its first foldable, Google is on its fourth, and Samsung enters its eighth iteration of foldables, the landscape is shifting here in the US. The short, wide folding phone design is all the rage. Interestingly enough, Google’s first foldable, the Pixel Fold, arrived in the same style, albeit much thicker, three years ago. Afterwards, the company pivoted to a longer, narrower layout. Fast forward to the present, Google is continuing to perfect its folding phone with its current iteration: the Pixel 11 Pro Fold.
Google sent the 11 Pro Fold shortly after it went on sale for us to test. It brings several hardware upgrades along with a few software ones in this minor refresh. We already delved into most of the new features in our review of the Pixel 11 phones, so we won’t spend as much time on them here. However, we will dive into what’s new and exclusive to Google’s foldable and how every aspect of it performs—from its screens to its battery and camera. Can Google’s latest foldable compete in a landscape where every other company is changing its design? We aim to answer this and more in our Pixel 11 Pro Fold review.
Unlike the Pixel 11 non-foldable phones, the 11 Pro Fold offers several minor yet noticeable hardware changes compared to its predecessor. The first thing you notice is the thinner profile, though not by much. Google made small yet significant design changes that make it 10% lighter, nearly 1 mm thinner, and feature a redesigned rear camera module, an updated hinge, and a new composite matte rear. All of this gives Google’s foldable a more premium feel without getting heavier.
Google’s latest foldable is thinner, has brighter screens, and feels more premium.
The screens on the 11 Pro Fold got a noticeable upgrade when in direct sunlight. Both the inner and outer screens received a bump from 3,000 to 3,600 nits of peak brightness. The smaller bezels on its outer screen increase its size to 6.5 inches, while the inner panel gets thicker glass for a less visible crease. As with the Pixel 11 Pro phones, it also got the company’s newest HiLight LED custom light that doubles as the camera flash. It doesn’t offer much at launch, as it only glows when calls come in from your favorite contacts and when Gemini is processing while interacting with the AI. All Pixel 11 Pro owners are waiting for more functionality.
Outside of that, Google retained its outstanding OLED panels with variable 1 to 120 Hz refresh rates that produce bright, punchy colors, deep blacks, and superb contrast. It also kept its IP68 dust and water-resistance rating, which keeps dust out to prevent damage and has yet to be matched in the US—save for the Apple iPhone Duo.
Powering the 11 Pro Fold might just be Google’s best chip to date: its Tensor G6 processor. It is more powerful than previous models while using less energy. Paired with 16GB of RAM, it makes for a speedier overall performance over its predecessor for day-to-day navigation, web browsing, multitasking, and Google’s AI features.
However, it isn’t powerful enough to play high-end games effortlessly. While it can play Call of Duty: Mobile, the Tensor chip still can’t compete against the seamless gaming experience of Snapdragon silicon. I’ve also noticed a few times that web browsing and opening the screen require a refresh to reformat the page to the appropriate width.
The Tensor G6 is a mild improvement but doesn’t help the 11 Pro Fold’s smaller battery last as long as last year’s model.
Our testing for the 11 Pro Fold:
I had the Pixel 11 Pro Fold for nearly two months using a loaned Verizon eSIM. My testing parameters include keeping the Always-On Display on, along with the 120 Hz Smooth Display and a 5-minute screen timeout. I would use Google Maps for a 30-minute commute, play Call of Duty: Mobile for 30 minutes to an hour, stream YouTube content, or listen to music via YouTube Music, messaging, and the occasional phone call here and there.
Unfortunately, the Pixel 11 Pro Fold’s battery gets a considerable reduction to a 4,806 mAh cell from last year’s 5,015 mAh battery. Despite the smaller-sized cell, I still managed up to two days on a single charge with light to moderate usage (up to five and a half hours of on-screen time), while heavier usage (over seven hours of on-screen time) got me just over 36 hours.
The 11 Pro Fold retains its 30W wired charging speeds, which live up to Google’s claims of delivering up to 50% of juice in 30 minutes and charging to 100% in nearly 90 minutes. On the Pixelsnap side, Google’s newest foldable gets a notable boost in wireless charging to 25W Qi2.2 speeds from last year’s 15W Qi2 speeds.
Google returns with a rear triple camera system for its foldable, with an updated main sensor and returning wide and zoom sensors. The 11 Pro Fold has an updated 48MP main-wide sensor at the helm and is accompanied by last year’s 10.5MP ultra-wide and 10.8MP telephoto lenses, with the latter capable of up to 5x optical zoom. The new Pixel 11 foldable also gets a boost in digital Super Zoom from 20x up to 30x.
The main camera gets closer to the rest of the Pixel 11 Pro lineup but is not quite equal to it. The new 48MP does a good job handling color and detail, though it doesn’t match the sharpness of the other 11 Pro phones. However, it will easily suffice as your main shooter to capture precious moments as well as food, landscapes, low light, etc., with Google’s AI processing picking up some of the slack.
Similar to Google’s foldable from last year, you get a drop in quality in the ultrawide, telephoto, and selfie cameras. This results in an increase of noise within low-light shots, not as accurate colors, and a bit of a reduction of depth. I would love to see at least a higher-resolution sensor for the ultrawide and especially the telephoto for a better overall image. But despite its shortcomings, it’s still the best camera on a foldable, but the non-foldable Pixel 11 Pro phones do provide better quality and versatility and save hundreds in the process.
While it still doesn’t match the Pixel 11 Pro cameras, Google still offers the best shooters on a foldable—for now.
My favorite camera feature, Made You Look, which Apple has replicated for its iPhone Duo, returns with two new animations: a pink dragon wearing a birthday hat and a bear with a jar of honey. For those unfamiliar, the feature uses the phone’s exterior screen when it’s open to show animations that capture little ones’ attention and help them take a picture.
The camera app introduces “Camera Looks” presets (like Shadows and Vanilla) with customizable grain, alongside Magic Capture to automatically or manually save HDR photos while recording video. Additionally, the new Creator Suite adds a social media grid, an audio visualizer with speech enhancement, an auto-scrolling teleprompter, separate media folders, and a storyboard layout for quick edits.
Despite the superb Pixel cameras, I would love to see future Pro Fold cameras get closer to matching the Pixel Pro cameras. If Google needs to make things a little thicker in exchange for a mildly larger battery and larger camera sensors, I’m sure interested buyers won’t mind.
The 11 Pro Fold runs Android 17 out of the box, which includes the usual seven years of software, security, and OS upgrades. Google’s standout foldable software feature this year is Live Transcribe with ASL, as a part of Gemini Intelligence. This feature leans into inclusion by using the camera on the outer screen to transcribe sign language into text. Unfortunately, I don’t know anyone who signs, so I’m curious to see how accurate this is.
The new software also includes new features, such as Proactive Assistance, which creates AI-based suggestions before you need to ask in Google apps like Calendar, Gmail, Messages, etc.; Rambler, which is Google’s superior AI-based voice typing that removes filler words and long pauses with the ability to edit via your voice; Circle to Search support, which arrives within the camera app; and Live Translate, which arrives on media apps, including YouTube.
As far as exclusive software features for the 11 Pro Fold, unfortunately, it’s the same story as last year. There’s the taskbar, running two apps side-by-side, and Made You Look, which Apple copied, but that isn’t enough to compete. It might be time for Google to start borrowing competitors’ features, including advanced multitasking, the ability to open more than two apps at once, or the ability to move the taskbar to the left or right side of the display.
Despite being an iterative update and its $1,900 price tag, Google’s Pixel 11 Pro Fold remains a solid and formidable foldable. Its IP68-rated body, slim build, Qi2 magnetic charging, and Pixel cameras are features the competition in the US doesn’t yet offer. And speaking of which, Apple, Samsung, and soon-to-be Motorola are all offering shorter, wider foldables. This begs the question: will Google return to its original Pixel Fold roots? I don’t see the company selling both options like Samsung does with the $1,900 Galaxy Z Fold 8 and the $2,100 Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra.
However, I can’t see the 11 Pro Fold as a must-have upgrade, especially with the Pixel 10 Pro Fold still on sale for less, along with the rest of Google’s foldable competition. But if Google plans to compete in the foldable space, I think it’s time to bring more to the table on the software side—regardless of whether the company reverts to its original Pixel Fold form factor or not.
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