- Google’s latest foldable puts up a decent fight, but folds under the pressure — pun intended.
- The redesigned hinge itself may be quite durable, but the rest of the phone’s body presents weak points.
- Dust resistance, or the lack thereof, continues to be a pain point for foldables.
The fact that so many of us are able to carry around smartphones — these fragile glass and metal sandwiches barely thicker than a magazine — without accidentally snapping them in half at least once a day is something of a small miracle. And if that weren’t incredible enough, foldables exist on just another plane entirely, openly mocking the gods. Google’s new Pixel 9 Pro Fold is quite the achievement for the company, and shows just how much was learned the first time around. But is it a phone that can survive a little use and abuse, or will it fail to withstand punishment?
Zack from JerryRigEverything is putting the Pixel 9 Pro Fold quite literally under the knife in one of his latest durability tests. Things start out strong, and like we’ve seen ourselves, Google really stepped up its engineering game with this second-gen model, crafting a folder that looks and feels better than many standard phones. Even initial durability trials go well, with the exterior screen resisting scratches up to a Mohs rating of 6. But once we get to the actual folding display, reality sets in, and even fingernails leave permanent scars in the finish. That’s not surprising, but still a good reminder of where your expectations need to be when you’re picking up a foldable, even in 2024.