Exclusive: This could be the Google Pixel Fold 2

Google’s Pixel Fold last year was a turning point for foldable phones, showing that the company was serious about improving how Android works on foldable phones. Google’s decision to use a wider form factor than other foldable devices was widely praised as it improved multitasking and made the cover screen more convenient.

In this case, the appearance of the second generation model is inevitable. However, there is a question whether Google will continue to use the same form factor in his 2024. To answer this question for our readers: Android permissions A leaked photo of the Google Pixel Fold 2 has been sent to us, and it reveals some surprising design changes that could be coming.

Yesterday, we reported that a source contacted us with information regarding the Pixel Fold 2’s hardware specifications. Today, our source (who still wishes to remain anonymous) was able to share photos of the device in action, as shown above and below. .

All we received was a heavily censored and blurry photo of the Pixel Fold 2, but it’s easy to see that Google’s next foldable phone has a narrower cover screen . We don’t know the exact dimensions, but if you compare this photo to a photo of the original Pixel Fold taken from a similar angle, the difference is clear. Check it out for yourself below.

According to our sources, the screen on the cover is now narrower, but more importantly, the aspect ratio of the inner screen is closer to square. This suggests that the Fold 2’s overall form factor could be similar to the OnePlus Open, which has a screen that’s between the Pixel Fold and the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 in terms of size.

The narrow form factor of the Pixel Fold 2 may surprise some people, but there’s a reason why most other foldable phones aren’t as wide as Google’s first-generation foldable phone. . Many Android apps are not yet optimized for tablets. . Having made his first-generation Pixel Fold the same width, Google had to employ software workarounds to deal with apps refusing to run in landscape mode. The company has also developed a brand new OS feature in his Android 14 QPR1 that allows users to force apps like Instagram to go full screen. If Google had chosen to make his first-generation Pixel Fold narrower, it wouldn’t have had to resort to such tricks. Because the slimmer form factor means that most apps will display a regular smartphone-optimized UI instead of a tablet-optimized UI (if it exists).

The new form factor isn’t the only change you can see in this leaked image. The photo also reveals that the camera bump on the back could be redesigned. The Pixel Fold 2 appears to have a separate camera island in the top left. It consists of four sensors, including a main wide-angle lens, a second ultra-wide-angle lens, a third Perisco telephoto lens, and an unknown his fourth lens. It’s unclear from this photo whether the fourth sensor is a far-infrared (FIR) sensor that can measure the temperature of skin or objects like his Pixel 8 Pro, or another sensor entirely such as spectral or flicker. . ToF sensor. Apart from his four camera sensors, the island also has an LED flash and a microphone.

The Pixel Fold 2’s camera island design is very different from previous Tensor-powered Pixel phones with the iconic visor-like camera bar. However, while it’s somewhat in line with the rumored Google Pixel 9 design, it no longer has a full edge-to-edge camera bar.

According to our sources, the Pixel Fold 2 will also share some other design similarities with the upcoming Pixel 9 series, including more rounded inner and outer displays and a more premium-looking aluminum frame. doing. Our sources said that this phone is similar to the first-generation Pixel in terms of feel and materials.

There are no photos showing the internal screen, but sources say the Pixel Fold 2 will have a display cutout in the top right corner for the internal screen camera. This is in contrast to the first generation of his Pixel Fold, where the inner screen camera was hidden in the top bezel. Our sources also said that while the Pixel Fold 2 is still quite thin, the creases are still quite noticeable.

Given all this information, it’s worth noting that the device featured here is still at the beginning of the Engineering Verification Testing (EVT) phase of the product cycle. This means it will be several months before the device goes into production, so the design may still change. As such, what we see here could change significantly in the coming months, so we highly recommend waiting for further leaks of this phone before drawing any conclusions.