Foldable phones are now popular in the smartphone industry, with nearly every smartphone manufacturer experimenting with foldable phone designs and promising to release new foldable phones in the future years. Google is one of the manufacturers that are likely to debut a new foldable smartphone. The Pixel 6 series was expected to be accompanied by the company’s first foldable smartphone. While this did not occur, rumours eventually circulated that Google had postponed its intentions to release a foldable phone next year. According to a fresh claim by Ross Young of Display Supply Chain Consultant (DSCC), Google has cancelled plans to release the Pixel Fold next year.
“DSCC has confirmed with its supply chain sources that Google has decided not to bring the Pixel Fold to market. Not in 2021 and reportedly not in the first half of 2022,” Young said. One of the reasons for not launching a foldable Pixel is that Google felt it would not be as competitive to succeed in the market dominated by the likes of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3, Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3, etc. Young believes that the price of the Google foldable smartphone would have been higher than Samsung in the US and Europe.
If the report is indeed true, It would be quite surprising to see Google dropping the project weeks after the Android 12L launch. The tweaked version of Android 12 is optimised for larger screen devices and foldable smartphones. It was expected that the Pixel Fold will be among the few devices that would feature Android 12L.
Previous leaks suggested that the Pixel Fold will be similar in size to the Galaxy Z Fold 3, with LTPO and a variable refresh rate of up to 120Hz. It was not expected to have colour on the encapsulation or an under-panel camera, unlike the Z Fold 3. Furthermore, there were rumours that the cameras would not be cutting-edge.
The Pixel Fold was said to have the same 12.2 MP IMX363 sensor used in the Pixel 3 as the main sensor, as well as the IMX386 12MP ultra-wide camera and two 8MP IMX355 sensors for the inner and outer displays, according to reports.
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