Comparing Google Pixel Fold and Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4

Google has taken a page from Samsung’s book and made its own foldable phone. In fact, the newly announced Google Pixel Fold, shown alongside the Pixel 7A and Pixel Tablet at Google I/O 2023, appears to have borrowed a few chapters from Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 4. The foldables from Google share quite a striking resemblance. Opting for a phone-unfolds-into-tablet approach design philosophy and an equally lofty $1,799.99 starting price. However, when you look a little closer, you will notice some clear differences.

Here, we’re pitting two foldable ultra-flagships against each other to compare their specifications and features on paper. While Samsung is on its fourth iteration of the Galaxy Fold, Google will be the first player in the world of foldable phones when it launches the Pixel Fold in late June. But can Google really compete with a first-gen product?

Until we get a chance to fully review the new Pixel Fold, let’s see how they perform, at least on paper.

Some of the biggest things that set these Android phones apart are their sizes and proportions. The Galaxy Z Fold 4 starts out quite tall and thin, unfolding as an almost square device. The Pixel Fold, on the other hand, has a wider, smaller outer screen — giving it a more standard phone feel before you even open it. Once unfolded, the Pixel has a wider, more squat stance.

Their internal screens are actually 7.6-inch OLEDs, but the difference in feel and size comes down to that scale. The Pixel Fold’s 6:5 aspect ratio provides a wider 5.8-inch outer screen, while the Galaxy Z Fold 4’s 21.6:18 aspect ratio offers a taller 6.2-inch cover screen. It’s about half an inch larger, but the Pixel Fold is more usable on the outside than a regular phone.

Staying in the size department for a moment, the Galaxy Z Fold 4 is a bit thinner – but not when folded. The Pixel Fold has a very narrow gap between its folded parts, which helps it look pretty good (for a Pixel device), at least in pictures.

Now, like other important specs, the two biggest deciding factors for most people to buy a new phone are cameras and battery life. While the camera performance is something that exceeds the specs, there’s no denying that the Galaxy Z Fold 4 has a much larger main sensor – which generally means better low-light performance. But, as far as battery life is concerned, the Pixel Fold has a larger, 4,821mAh capacity. Of course, if software optimization isn’t up to snuff, it may not be as big a benefit as it seems.

As for other features, the two phones differ the most in the processor department; The Galaxy uses a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1, while the Pixel Fold uses Google’s own Tensor G2 (the same chip as the Pixel 7 generation). Another stark contrast between the two is the Galaxy Z Fold 4’s stylus support, as the Pixel Fold only fits your fingers with the Samsung S-Pen Fold Edition (an additional $50 purchase). Differences aside, the phones have a lot in common when it comes to ports, fingerprint sensor location (both are on the power button), water resistance, RAM and initial storage capacity.

Here’s an in-depth look at all the specifications of the two devices side-by-side:

what you do think Does the Pixel Fold look like Google’s first attempt? Would you rather drop $1,800 on it, or would you rather get the Galaxy Z Fold 4 on sale? Samsung’s flagship foldable has seen its share of discounts, though none of the deals are more consistent and deep than what we’ve seen on the Pixel 7 generation. Perhaps the Pixel Fold will follow suit. Let us know what you think in the comments.