Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold Review: Durable, Polished, and Built for a Niche Audience

Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold combines Pixel software with foldable durability. Read our full review covering design, display, performance, cameras, and battery life.

Google’s Pixel series is known for its clean Android software, reliable camera system, and long update support. With the Pixel 10 Pro Fold, Google continues its push into the foldable category, aiming to merge its trademark Pixel experience with foldable versatility. Priced at Rs 1,72,999, this flagship competes directly with the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7, the current standard for premium foldables.

This third-generation foldable brings meaningful upgrades: IP68 dust and water resistance, a gearless hinge, and magnetic charging. It’s durable and refined, but its bulk, mid-tier camera system, and less powerful chip make it a selective buy rather than an all-rounder.

Design: A Foldable That Finally Feels Tough

Google has improved build quality dramatically. The gearless hinge is a major innovation that reduces wear and prevents dust buildup, extending long-term durability. Combined with IP68 protection, the Pixel 10 Pro Fold can handle exposure to dust, sand, and water better than any other foldable phone on the market.

It also introduces built-in magnets for PixelSnap accessories and Qi2 wireless chargers, improving convenience for daily use.

However, this toughness comes with trade-offs. At 258 grams and 10.8mm thick when folded, it’s bulkier than the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7 (215g, 8.9mm). The extra weight makes it harder to use one-handed or fit comfortably in pockets.

Design-wise, it still looks like last year’s Pixel 9 Pro Fold. The Moonstone and Jade finishes are minimal, but not striking. The outer design remains boxy and less refined than competitors from Samsung and Vivo.

Display: Bright, Wide, and Smooth

The Pixel 10 Pro Fold features an 8-inch OLED main screen and a 6.4-inch outer display, both with 120Hz refresh rates. The main screen hits 2,500 nits of peak brightness, offering excellent outdoor visibility and smooth visuals.

The inner display’s wider aspect ratio makes multitasking and watching videos comfortable. Both displays show accurate colors and crisp contrast, with Google’s adaptive color calibration performing well across lighting conditions.

However, the visible crease down the middle remains noticeable to the eye and touch, lagging behind Samsung and Vivo’s near-flat foldables.

Cameras: Good, but Not Great

The Pixel 10 Pro Fold uses a 48MP main sensor, a 10.5MP ultrawide, and a 10.8MP telephoto (5x optical zoom) setup. While it delivers balanced and accurate shots, image quality falls short of the Pixel 10 Pro.

Daylight shots are crisp, with realistic colors.
Low-light photos show softness and reduced detail.
Video is capped at 4K/60fps, lacking the 8K option available on rivals.

You can unfold the phone to use the main cameras for selfies, producing better results than the front-facing 10MP camera. Still, this system is tuned for consistency, not excellence.

For everyday users, it’s reliable. For photography enthusiasts, it’s underwhelming at this price.

Performance: Smooth but Outpowered

Powered by the Tensor G5 chip with 16GB RAM, the Pixel 10 Pro Fold performs well for daily use, multitasking, and media consumption.

Yet, benchmarks tell a different story:

Device	Chipset	AnTuTu Score	Geekbench Multi-core
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7	Snapdragon 8 Elite	2,008,157	9,443
Vivo X Fold5	Snapdragon 8 Gen 3	1,985,189	6,413
Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold	Tensor G5	1,553,009	6,503

In heavy gaming and video editing, the Tensor G5 lags behind Snapdragon-powered foldables. Frame drops occur in graphics-intensive games, making it less ideal for power users.

Still, for productivity, browsing, and casual gaming, performance remains stable and efficient.

Software: Pixel Simplicity on a Foldable

Running Android 16, the Pixel 10 Pro Fold benefits from Google’s latest Material You design and Pixel-exclusive features like Now Playing, Magic Cue, and Pixel Journal.

Multitasking, however, remains limited. You can run only two apps side by side, and the absence of floating window multitasking or dock pinning restricts productivity. Competing foldables like the Galaxy Z Fold7 and Vivo X Fold5 handle multitasking far better.

Some minor software bugs were observed, including biometric errors and wallpaper selection glitches. Google promises long-term stability, backed by seven years of OS updates.

Battery Life: Dependable All Day

The 5,015mAh battery offers a full day of use with 4–5 hours of screen time. Battery optimization is solid, helped by efficient software tuning.

Charging speeds:

30W wired charging (0–100% in 76 minutes)
Qi2 magnetic wireless charging

Battery endurance slightly exceeds that of the Galaxy Z Fold7, but both offer similar wired charging times.

Verdict: Built to Last, but Not for Everyone

The Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold stands out for durability, long battery life, and pure Android experience. It’s the most rugged foldable on the market today, and its gearless hinge and IP68 rating set a new standard for longevity.

However, it falls short in three key areas:

Heavier and bulkier than competitors
Cameras not on par with the Pixel 10 Pro series
Limited multitasking and mid-tier processing power

If you want a foldable that can survive daily wear and tear while offering a clean, reliable Pixel experience, the Pixel 10 Pro Fold is an excellent pick.

If you value photography, slim design, or raw performance, the Galaxy Z Fold7 remains the better all-round choice.

For die-hard Pixel users, this foldable offers something unique: rugged reliability paired with long-term software support. For most others, a traditional flagship like the Pixel 10 Pro XL provides better balance at a lower cost.

Editor’s Rating: 8/10

Pros: