{"id":209625,"date":"2025-10-08T17:47:10","date_gmt":"2025-10-08T17:47:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/209625\/"},"modified":"2025-10-08T17:47:10","modified_gmt":"2025-10-08T17:47:10","slug":"google-pixel-10-pro-fold-review-finally-a-more-durable-foldable","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/209625\/","title":{"rendered":"Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold review: finally, a more durable foldable"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s one thing to know that the folding phone you\u2019re using is fully dust resistant. It\u2019s an entirely different thing to watch an $1,800 phone with delicate mechanical parts sink half an inch into the sand with the screen wide open.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s more to that story, but the short version is that the Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold was fine. That\u2019s probably thanks to its IP68 rating, marking full dust and water resistance, which is a first for a folding phone. Up to now, it\u2019s been hard to recommend spending nearly $2,000 for a less durable phone when basically every non-folding flagship, from the $500 Pixel 9A on up, is rated IP68.<\/p>\n

\"Google<\/a>\"Google<\/a><\/p>\n

$1799<\/p>\n

The GoodFull dust resistance! On a foldable!Qi2 support with built-in magnetsThe BadHeavy and chunkyCameras aren\u2019t as good as the other 10 Pro phones\u2019Pricier than a regular phone<\/p>\n

I took the 10 Pro Fold to Seattle\u2019s premier man-made beach<\/a>, intending to get some photos of the phone gently resting on the sand. I set it down, screen unfolded, thinking it would just rest on top of the sand without really putting the hinge in jeopardy. This is not how sand works, and it got everywhere immediately. I could see it in the hinge, around the borders of the screen \u2014 all the places it shouldn\u2019t be.<\/p>\n

Worse, the 10 Pro Fold got a baptism in saltwater a few moments later. I set it down for a photo at the water\u2019s edge, thinking I could snatch it out of the way if a wave came up far enough. This is not how waves work, and the phone got half soaked before I was able to grab it. Reader: I thought this phone was cooked. I could hear a crackling sound when I opened and closed the phone from tiny particles in the hinge. And saltwater is bad for any phone \u2014 that IP rating only applies to fresh water.<\/p>\n

\"Google<\/a><\/p>\n

Don\u2019t do this.<\/p>\n

\"Google<\/a><\/p>\n

Don\u2019t do this either.<\/p>\n

Aside from the crunching sound and some visible grains of sand wedged into the hinge, the phone wasn\u2019t acting up at all. I used some compressed air on the hinge when I got it back home, which took care of the unsettling sounds, at least. Five days later it\u2019s still working fine; you\u2019d never know it had a brush with death.<\/p>\n

I do not recommend trying any of this with the 10 Pro Fold, and it\u2019s hard to say for sure if the added water and dust resistance really saved the phone or not. It\u2019s also possible that it might suffer problems later from this accidental torture test. But for now, the Fold fared better than I expected. This gives me a lot of hope for its long-term survival in less harsh conditions, even knowing it won\u2019t be waterproof and dustproof forever<\/a> as sealants wear away.<\/p>\n

I thought this phone was cooked<\/p>\n

More good news: Battery life on the 10 Pro Fold is fine. But like with any other folding phone, it\u2019s wildly dependent on how you use the thing. On a lighter day mostly on Wi-Fi with minimal time spent on the big inner screen, I was down to about 60 percent by bedtime. A heavier day out and about with lots of time using the inner screen pushed the battery down into the 30s by bedtime.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s an adaptive battery setting, enabled by default, to \u201ccontinuously optimize how apps use battery,\u201d which does seem to help \u2014 though it warns that some notifications may be delayed. I discovered this setting later in my testing period, and I have a vague memory of some Threads notifications coming in slowly over the past week, but couldn\u2019t really say for sure if the adaptive battery was at fault. In any case, my more important notifications were all delivered on time and the battery consistently lasted all day, even on the days I was hard on it.<\/p>\n

\"Google<\/a><\/p>\n

The 10 Pro Fold\u2019s dimensions feel just right.<\/p>\n

I like the shape of the 10 Pro Fold. The screen is slightly wider than the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7\u2019s; it feels right for running a couple of apps side by side and makes the outer screen feel normal. But there\u2019s no denying that this is a heavy phone \u2014 especially having used the ridiculously slim and light Z Fold 7 earlier this year. (The Pixel 10 Pro weighs about 16 percent more than the Z Fold 7, and about 9 percent more than an iPhone 17 Pro Max.)<\/p>\n

But the 10 Pro\u2019s Qi2 support comes in handy here; in addition to tossing it on a Qi2 charging stand at the end of the day, I\u2019ve been using the magnetic ring stand<\/a> as a kind of PopSocket to help get a more comfortable grip when holding the phone for a long time. Using the ring\u2019s stand function with the phone unfolded is really handy, too, making it easy to prop up the phone to watch a video or follow a recipe. Google is definitely not the first<\/a> to make this kind of ring accessory, and previously you could use this kind of thing on a folding phone by adding a case with magnets. But having this kind of utility case-free is something I really appreciated while using the Fold.<\/p>\n

\"Google<\/a><\/p>\n

Good phone, better sandwich.<\/p>\n

Both the outer and inner screens get a little brighter than on the 9 Pro Fold, and the outer screen is a touch bigger thanks to a slimmer metal border on the hinge side. On a warm day using the phone in direct sunlight, I got a few minutes with the screen at its highest brightness setting before it got too hot and dimmed down. It was still usable, but I wouldn\u2019t count on getting peak brightness for too long in a warm climate.<\/p>\n

Outside of that, I don\u2019t have any complaints about day-to-day performance. The 10 Pro Fold runs Diablo Immortal at the highest settings available on the phone (no ray tracing here) without getting uncomfortably warm or dropping frames. Most of the AI features available on the 10 Pro and 10 Pro XL are on the Fold, excluding the AI zoom mode<\/a>, which is probably for the best. I continue to find Magic Cue helpful for turning plans in my texts into actual calendar events, and I spent a decent chunk of time brainstorming with Gemini reasons why my cake batter was coming out lumpy. Don\u2019t expect anything life-changing from the AI on the Pixel 10 Pro Fold, or any phone really, but as far as intelligence goes it\u2019s starting to show some promise.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s weird that the Fold is the most expensive phone in Google\u2019s Pixel 10 series and yet has the worst camera specs, but that\u2019s been the folding phone conundrum from day one. The 48-megapixel main and the 10.8-megapixel 5x telephoto are shared by the base model Pixel 10. While it\u2019s nice to have an optical zoom at all, it\u2019s a smaller sensor than the one on the other 10 Pro phones and details look muddy even in decent light. The main camera is fine, but quality diminishes faster in low light compared to the bigger sensor on the other Pro phones. If image quality is a top priority, a slab-style phone is still your best bet.<\/p>\n

\"Google<\/a><\/p>\n

Small updates that are actually huge.<\/p>\n

Looking at it one way, the 10 Pro Fold is a minor update at best. It gained some magnets, a new IP rating, and not much else. From another angle, those updates are huge. The lack of dust resistance has been the number one reason I don\u2019t recommend foldables to more people. I don\u2019t want to declare this a breakthrough based on one week of use and a single experience at the beach, but also, the hinge was crackling and the phone is fine. That\u2019s one impressive data point, and I hope it spurs the rest of the industry to follow suit.<\/p>\n

Mostly, I\u2019m glad that something as basic as choice exists in this category, which is small to begin with, and even tinier if you live in the US. If you\u2019re easy on your tech and a slimmer, lighter folding phone is more appealing, then the Galaxy Z Fold 7 exists for you.<\/p>\n

If you want a little more insurance against dust damage and don\u2019t mind a bigger device, the 10 Pro Fold is your winner. It\u2019s still heavier and pricier than a regular phone, but that big inner screen is easier to celebrate when one of the device\u2019s major drawbacks is removed. And if you end up bringing this phone to the beach, you probably shouldn\u2019t set it down right on top of the sand \u2014 but it has a decent chance of surviving if you do.<\/p>\n

Photography by Allison Johnson \/ The Verge<\/p>\n

Agree to Continue: Google Pixel 10, 10 Pro, 10 Pro XL, and 10 Pro Fold<\/p>\n

Every smart device now requires you to agree to a series of terms and conditions before you can use it \u2014 contracts that no one actually reads. It\u2019s impossible for us to read and analyze every single one of these agreements. But we started counting exactly how many times you have to hit \u201cagree\u201d to use devices when we review them since these are agreements most people don\u2019t read and definitely can\u2019t negotiate.<\/p>\n

To use a Pixel 10 series phone, you must agree to:<\/p>\n

The following agreements are optional:<\/p>\n

Provide anonymous location data for Google\u2019s services\u201cAllow apps and services to scan for Wi-Fi networks and nearby devices at any time, even when Wi-Fi or Bluetooth is off.\u201dSend usage and diagnostic data to GoogleTalk to Google hands-free: \u201cIf you agree, Google Assistant will wait in standby mode to detect \u2018Hey Google\u2019 and certain quick phrases.\u201dAllow Assistant on lockscreen<\/p>\n

Additionally, if you want to use Google Assistant, you must agree to let Google collect app info and contact info from your devices. Other features like Google Wallet may require additional agreements.<\/p>\n

Final tally: five mandatory agreements and at least five optional agreements<\/p>\n

Follow topics and authors from this story to see more like this in your personalized homepage feed and to receive email updates.Allison JohnsonClose\"AllisonAllison Johnson<\/p>\n

Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n

PlusFollow<\/p>\n

See All by Allison Johnson<\/a><\/p>\n

GoogleCloseGoogle<\/p>\n

Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n

PlusFollow<\/p>\n

See All Google<\/a><\/p>\n

Google PixelCloseGoogle Pixel<\/p>\n

Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n

PlusFollow<\/p>\n

See All Google Pixel<\/a><\/p>\n

Phone ReviewsClosePhone Reviews<\/p>\n

Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n

PlusFollow<\/p>\n

See All Phone Reviews<\/a><\/p>\n

ReviewsCloseReviews<\/p>\n

Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n

PlusFollow<\/p>\n

See All Reviews<\/a><\/p>\n

TechCloseTech<\/p>\n

Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n

PlusFollow<\/p>\n

See All Tech<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It\u2019s one thing to know that the folding phone you\u2019re using is fully dust resistant. It\u2019s an entirely…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":209626,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[168,2635,21326,900,172,74],"class_list":["post-209625","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-technology","tag-google","tag-google-pixel","tag-phone-reviews","tag-reviews","tag-tech","tag-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/209625","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=209625"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/209625\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/209626"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=209625"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=209625"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=209625"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}