This summary of the video was created by an AI. It might contain some inaccuracies.
00:00:00 – 00:10:16
The video reviews Google's Pixel Fold, priced at $1,800, with a focus on its durability and design. Google's claim of the most durable hinge on a foldable smartphone is scrutinized, showing it supports various postures up to slightly beyond 180 degrees but doesn't naturally fold flat. The reviewer highlights the dual-screen setup: a 5.8-inch exterior display with Gorilla Glass Victus and a 7.9-inch interior, ultra-thin glass screen that scratches easily.
The phone features five cameras, including a 9-megapixel front and an 8-megapixel internal bezel camera. Its aluminum frame includes a problematic button layout where power and volume controls are hard to distinguish. The Pixel Fold shows resilience in water (IPX8) but not in dust. A significant issue arises when the phone shuts down due to heat during testing, and it fails a bend test, breaking the internal screen while the hinge stays intact. Despite this, the fingerprint scanner remains functional despite scratches.
Additional commentary includes a failed attempt to fit a dbrand grip case on the damaged phone and hints at a future teardown for a closer inspection of the hinge. The review points out both the strengths and weaknesses of Google's ambitious entry into the foldable smartphone market.
00:00:00
In this part of the video, the reviewer examines the Pixel Fold, highlighting Google’s claim that it has the most durable hinge ever on a foldable smartphone. Priced at $1,800, durability is a significant concern. The package includes a USB-C cable and adapter but no charger. The reviewer appreciates the Pixel Fold’s form factor but notes it doesn’t naturally fold flat, aligning with comments from MKBHD. Google’s custom-engineered hinge supports various postures up to slightly beyond 180 degrees, although it prefers around 178-179 degrees straight out of the box.
The hinge design resembles that of a dual-screen Windows folding phone, with hinge pivot components in both the upper and lower bezels. The durability claim is yet to be fully verified. The exterior screen sports a 5.8-inch display with Gorilla Glass Victus, showing scratches at level 6 and deeper grooves at level 7 on the Mohs scale. The interior screen, a 7.9-inch display with ultra-thin glass, scratches more easily at level 2, indicating plastic material, which is expected for a flexible screen. The Pixel Fold collapses flat without a visible gap, which may help keep dirt out but can also trap debris. Screen protectors are not advisable for the inner display, but the outer screen remains suitable for additional protection.
00:03:00
In this part of the video, the reviewer discusses the various features and components of the Pixel Fold phone. They start by mentioning the phone’s five cameras, including the 9-megapixel front camera protected by glass. The phone’s frame is made from aluminum, including the volume rocker. The placement of the power and volume buttons makes it difficult to differentiate between them, suggesting a textured modification for better identification. The power button also functions as a fingerprint scanner.
At the top of the phone, there is a loudspeaker grille and what appears to be, but isn’t, a SIM card tray; it’s actually the 5G antenna and microphone hole. The actual SIM card tray, found at the bottom, is metal with a rubber ring around it. The rear panel is made from Gorilla Glass Invictus, with a polished metal camera bump housing four cameras and a dual LED flash. The fifth camera, with an 8-megapixel sensor, is located in the top bezel of the middle screen.
A burn test on the external and internal screens showed that the 120 Hz OLED display on the exterior turns white and doesn’t recover after 16 seconds, while the inner display shows a similar reaction after about 8 seconds.
00:06:00
In this part of the video, the reviewer encounters an unexpected issue with the Pixel Fold phone turning off due to heat, a first in their 10 years of phone durability testing. The Pixel Fold is water-resistant (IPX8) but not dust-resistant, although it performs well when exposed to dust. The phone’s fingerprint scanner, integrated into the power button, remains functional even after significant scratching, unlocking quickly each time. However, the phone fails the bend test when folded in the wrong direction, causing the inner screen to break along the crease. Notably, the failure is attributed to the phone’s structural design rather than the hinge itself, which remains intact.
00:09:00
In this part of the video, the speaker discusses issues with Google’s first folding phone, which failed a durability test and has a kinked internal battery. The speaker intended to showcase dbrand’s new grip case for the pixel fold, but it doesn’t fit the phone in its damaged state. Despite this, the grip case offers notable features like protection, a kickstand, and customization with various dbrand skins, including a Robot City line with unique designs. The speaker hints at an upcoming teardown video to examine the phone’s hinge, which remains intact, and encourages viewers to subscribe for future content.