Google Pixel Fold may have a 7.67-inch foldable display

Tech influencer Dave Lee, who goes by Dave2D on YouTube, has released a video of a plastic dummy that he claims is a mockup of the upcoming Pixel foldable smartphone by Google. Lee estimated that the Pixel Fold will have a 7.67-inch foldable screen and a 5.79-inch outer screen, which looks wider than Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 4 device. 

Sharing dummy units of upcoming phone models in advance with accessory makers is a common practice in the smartphone industry as it allows them to design and ready phone cases by the time of the launch. Lee didn’t mention his source but it’s likely that he got the dummy from one of the accessory makers. 

It is usually hard to estimate what features a phone might have based on a dummy except for the dimensions and possible screen size. The Pixel Fold dummy has a wide camera bump on the back just like the current Pixel smartphones. Lee also believes that the hinge used in the Pixel Fold is designed more like the Oppo Find N and allows the screen to curve more gently than the Galaxy Z Fold Z4’s sharper curves. This makes it less likely to leave a folding mark on the screen. 

Google is believed to be working on a foldable screen smartphone called Pixel Fold. According to some of the earlier leak reports, Google was likely to unveil it in May-June during the Google IO developer conference. However, a January report by the South Korean publication, The Elec, claims the foldable display to be used on the Pixel smartphone won’t be ready for unveiling in May. It said that Pixel Fold is likely to be launched with Pixel 8 series in October. 

Samsung is the only brand to have launched successive foldable smartphones and claims to have sold millions of foldable devices. Oppo also launched its foldable device called Find N2, last week, but unlike Samsung, Oppo’s foldable are available only in fewer markets such as China. 

Apple too is working on foldable iPhones to rival Samsung, according to Mark Gurman of Bloomberg. According to a Patently Apple report, Apple was granted a patent for a foldable smartphone by the US Patent and Trademark Office. 

Shipment of foldable smartphones is expected to grow at 52% year-on-year (YoY) in FY2023 to 22.7 million units, according to a December report by Counterpoint Research. In India, it is likely to grow by 20-30%.