The foldable market has been moving fast, with hardware and software we saw just a few years ago having been completely rethought and drastically improved. In the middle of it all, the Pixel 11 Pro Fold feels like a concerted effort to make the best of a tough situation – Google’s new foldable tries its darndest to keep up with the competition, and it does just enough to deserve your attention, save for a couple of sore points.
Hardware |
Quiet refinements eclipsed by bigger upgrades elsewhere
The Pixel 11 Pro Fold was never going to be revolutionary. It basically has the same design, recycled for year three. That said, it’s a good design and there are some welcome refinements here.
For one thing, it’s thinner. At 10.1mm when closed, Pixel 11 Pro Fold is Google’s thinnest foldable to date, and moving back in the right direction after the last generation put on a couple of millimeters. The “how” is a little wild, though, as Google opted to make one side thinner than the other, leading to an awkward profile and a little ridge you can feel when the device is opened. This is a complete non-issue – a visual oddity, sure, but a problem in no sense of the word. Anyone seriously looking at this phone who is put off by this is being far too petty in my opinion, and while I do wish the halves were symmetrical, I’m happy to accept this trade-off for a thinner overall device.
