{"id":70169,"date":"2025-07-17T15:03:11","date_gmt":"2025-07-17T15:03:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/70169\/"},"modified":"2025-07-17T15:03:11","modified_gmt":"2025-07-17T15:03:11","slug":"its-too-late-for-a-google-pixel-flip-phone","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/70169\/","title":{"rendered":"It’s too late for a Google Pixel flip phone"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Samsung<\/p>\n

C. Scott Brown \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n

Just think about it: A Google Pixel Flip. Honestly, it sounds like my dream phone. It\u2019d combine my favorite form factor with my favorite Android skin, and I\u2019d never need to recommend anything else again. I\u2019d have Google\u2019s top-notch image processing to balance out the often-limited flip phone cameras, years of updates to look forward to, and a cover screen experience that only needs a proper app drawer to leap ahead of Samsung\u2019s Flex Window.<\/p>\n

And yet, I can\u2019t shake the feeling that Google has already missed its flip phone opportunity. It feels like it\u2019s given Motorola and Samsung too much of a head start, and I fear it means I won\u2019t see a Pixel Flip any time soon. Here\u2019s why.<\/p>\n

Would you buy a Google Pixel Flip?<\/p>\n

85 votes<\/p>\n

Google? Nailing first-generation hardware?<\/p>\n

\"google<\/p>\n

Rita El Khoury \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve reached a point where flip phones (and\u00a0foldable phones<\/a> in general) have attained\u00a0a level of maturity. Motorola and Samsung are making gorgeous flagships (and now sub-flagships) that are hard to put down or look away from, and it\u2019s led me to keep a Razr Ultra<\/a> in my pocket long after I finished my review. However, it wasn\u2019t always that way. I spent a few years complaining about Samsung\u2019s cover screen, and the less-than-flat hinge on the original Razr Plus was a huge issue. And now you want me to expect Google to come in and stick its first-generation landing?<\/p>\n

I\u2019m sorry. I know that was probably a little bit harsh to the Pixel\u2019s maker, but let\u2019s be honest \u2014 it\u2019s true. I\u2019ve used enough first-generation Pixel products \u2014 the Pixel Watch, the original Pixel Fold, the Pixel 6a \u2014 to know that Google usually needs a year or two to let things finish baking. Sometimes, like the Pixel Watch, the issues come from diving into a brand-new form factor, while others, like the Pixel 6a, come from fitting a white-hot Tensor chip into a smaller, plastic body. Then, in the third case \u2014 the Pixel Fold<\/a> \u2014 it\u2019s a case of a little of column A, a little of column B.<\/p>\n

I love the Pixel lineup, but I’ve used enough first-generation Google products to know a Pixel Flip would take time.<\/p>\n

In those cases, Google had the space to experiment and, at least, mostly keep up with its rivals. Its first Pixel Watch had to take on a Galaxy Watch 5 that felt a lot like the Galaxy Watch 4, and its Pixel Fold challenged a Galaxy Z Fold 5 that landed with a severe lack of innovation. Maybe the Pixel 6a faced the most formidable foe in a solid Galaxy A53 5G, but even that felt like little more than an annual update.<\/p>\n

In 2025, though, Google wouldn\u2019t have such breathing room, especially in the flip phone market. If it launched a Pixel Flip tomorrow, it would take on a Galaxy Z Flip 7<\/a> with a newly refreshed cover screen and an upgraded Exynos 2500 chip. Sure, it would have the benefit of Samsung sitting on its hands and keeping a battery and charging setup similar to what it\u2019s had for years, but I don\u2019t know if Google\u2019s expectations should be to clear the lowest bar. Even if it does settle for the lowest bar, Samsung\u2019s Galaxy Z Flip 7 FE offers the same excellent build quality as the Galaxy Z Flip 6 with years of development behind it.<\/p>\n

\"Motorola\"Samsung<\/p>\n

A year or two ago, I might have said that I thought Google could hop in and catch Motorola immediately. As much as I love the look and feel of the Razr, it spent a few years lagging behind Samsung\u2019s build quality, offering a better software experience but making me nervous about just how well the original flip phone would stand the test of time. Then, the Razr Ultra happened. It went unabashedly flagship with Gorilla Glass Ceramic<\/a>, a brilliant AMOLED cover screen, and funky materials like wood and Alcantara, and captured a place in my heart.<\/p>\n

When Google finally tries its hand at a Pixel Flip, at least it won\u2019t start from scratch. I hope it will simply port over the hinge from its Pixel 9 Pro Fold<\/a> and shrink it, but I can\u2019t say. I\u2019m unsure how the camera bar (or camera island, or camera square) would fit onto the cover of a flip phone, nor can I imagine whether or not the temperature sensor would make the cut. But, knowing how Google has struggled in the past, I wouldn\u2019t be surprised if there were a hiccup or two to scare Android fans away.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m just not sure I can trust a Tensor chip in a flip phone<\/p>\n

\"google<\/p>\n

Rita El Khoury \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n

Honestly, I can usually look past some hardware hiccups. I kept using the Pixel Fold for a while after our review \u2014 thick bezels and all. I also wore that original Pixel Watch to a wedding or two, simply because it looked like a better casual pick than a Garmin on my wrist. I\u2019ve even looked beyond a few creases on the displays of foldable phones in my day, mainly to keep my favorite form factor in my pocket.<\/p>\n

However, if Google is determined to make a flip phone and pack it with a Tensor chip, then I have to say I\u2019m nervous. Yes, the Tensor G4<\/a> has come a long way since Google first brought its chipmaking in-house \u2014 it runs more efficiently, stays cooler, and supports a full stock of new AI-powered features \u2014 but it still falls behind Qualcomm\u2019s best. It doesn\u2019t put up quite the same numbers, which is fine, but I worry that Google still hasn\u2019t worked out its last few thermal kinks.<\/p>\n

And when I say that I worry it hasn\u2019t, I know it hasn\u2019t. I\u2019ve used the Pixel 9 Pro<\/a> nearly every day since its launch (it still controls bits of my apartment, what do you expect?), and I\u2019m painfully aware of how warm the Tensor G4 can still get at times. When it does, the phone\u2019s battery drops like a rock, sending me scrambling for a charger when I\u2019d like to play more of my chosen few games. If that\u2019s happening with a traditional form factor, I can only imagine what it would feel like in a compact, complicated flip phone.<\/p>\n

\"made<\/p>\n

Rita El Khoury \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n

Who knows, though \u2014 maybe I\u2019m wrong. Perhaps the same space-saving tricks that gave the Pixel 9a a bigger battery will work for the eventual Pixel Flip. Maybe Google will find a way to pack more cooling technology into a notoriously tricky footprint, or maybe its next few Tensor chips will fix the thermal issues that have troubled me since the days of the Pixel 6. But, if our leaks are anything to go on, then the Tensor G5<\/a> won\u2019t change too much, and that will leave me worried about the prospect of putting it in a flip phone.<\/p>\n

Then again, Google has proven me wrong in the past. It\u2019s made massive hardware leaps from the Pixel 8 series to the Pixel 9 series, and the change from the original Pixel Fold to the Pixel 9 Pro Fold elevated the latter to sit among the best foldable phones that money can buy. I\u2019m not holding my breath, and I still think that Google has missed its window, but I\u2019d be happy to add this to the list of times I\u2019ve underestimated the maker of Android.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"C. Scott Brown \/ Android Authority Just think about it: A Google Pixel Flip. Honestly, it sounds like…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":70170,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[2160,2722,15882,611,158,67,132,68],"class_list":{"0":"post-70169","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-mobile","8":"tag-foldable-phones","9":"tag-google","10":"tag-google-pixel","11":"tag-mobile","12":"tag-technology","13":"tag-united-states","14":"tag-unitedstates","15":"tag-us"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/114869187561873934","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70169","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=70169"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70169\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/70170"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=70169"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=70169"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=70169"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}