Hear me out: Google should have refined the Pixel Fold, not give it a redesign

If you’re tuned into the Google Pixel leaks or even the company’s own teasers, you’ll notice that the successor to last year’s Pixel Fold is getting a complete redesign. While many are jumping for glee, I am slightly disappointed by the change.

Last year’s Pixel Fold design had some issues: it was bulky, it had large bezels, and it couldn’t lie completely flat. Despite this, it had a cute notebook-like appearance. It easily fits in my pocket, and that led me to use the Fold like one should use a foldable. I would use the cover panel for my normal day-to-day smartphone needs and open up to the larger one for entertainment purposes, like watching content, reading books and taking incredible selfies using the cover as the viewfinder and capturing photos with the primary camera,

I’m not saying you won’t be able to do this with the Pixel 9 Pro Fold (yeah, they’re actually calling it this) but the design is now more similar to the OnePlus Open and even the Galaxy Z Fold 6.

I wish Google would stick to its original design and make the phone thinner, cut down on the bezels and make it lie completely flat. So far, my favourite foldable has been the Oppo Find N2. Its cover display was only 5.54 inches with an 18:9 aspect ratio — in a similar ballpark to the original Pixel Fold. I liked the idea of the smaller display, as it’s a throwback to phones like the HTC U12+, the Pixel 2 XL, the LG G6 and other older devices. However, as we grew to need larger screens for entertainment, social media, and other use cases, our displays got taller and bigger altogether. However, if your smartphone has a folding 7.6-inch display, why would you also need a large display on the front?

I’ll probably love the Pixel 9 Pro Fold, especially with the Pixel user interface, but I wish Google stuck with the close-to-18:9 aspect ratio and kept the device very pocketable.

Anywho, I should just be happy that the Moutain View Tech giant is actually bringing the Pixel Fold to Canada this time around. Google will officially unveil the Pixel 9 Pro Fold and the other Pixel 9 devices at its Made by Google event on August 13th.