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Intro
The Pixel 10 Pro Fold has just been announced as Google's third-gen foldable phone, scoring some vital improvements over the Pixel 9 Pro Fold. The device scores brighter displays, a new chip, a larger battery with faster charging, and the Pixelsnap system that is likely the biggest improvement here.
However, it doesn't look as if Google is beating Samsung for the top spot on the foldable market this year. The Galaxy Z Fold 7 seemingly has the upper hand in pretty much every way and it aims to reassert its spot as one of the global leaders in the foldable phone market.
As usual, these two phones will be the main foldable competitors vying for their rightful place in consumers' pockets, but which one will come out on top?
Pixel 10 Pro Fold: pre-order at Amazon
The Pixel 10 Pro Fold brings an improved foldable experience, featuring the latest Tensor G5 chip, Android 16 out of the box, and two gorgeous screens. You can pre-order the phone at Amazon without discounts. Shipping is set to begin on October 9.
Samsung has introduced a ton of design changes with the Galaxy Z Fold 7. We get a significantly thinner book-style foldable with zero panel gap, fully clad in super-premium materials and styled after Samsung's latest Galaxies.
We get tougher materials all around: Gorilla Glass Victus 2 at the rear and Gorilla Glass Ceramic on the cover screen, while the frame is made of Advanced Armor Aluminum. The phone is IP48-rated, which gives it some protection against dust particles larger than 1 mm, but does not make it completely dust-proof.
Oh, and Samsung has finally addressed the display crease seriously: there's a titanium lattice beneath the screen, with 50% tougher ultra-thin glass protecting the display, greatly reducing the crease and finally catching up with the competition. The main screen is now adorned with a punch-hole, as the under-display selfie is finally gone.
Galaxy Z Fold 7 looks super-alluring (Image by PhoneArena)
The thickness, or the lack of it, is definitely the highlight here. While it's technically not the thinnest foldable in the world (it's tied with the Oppo Find N5), the Galaxy Z Fold 7 is exceptionally thin at just 8.9 mm folded and 4.2mm when unfolded. Easily the thinnest foldable phone you'll be able to get officially in the US in the foreseeable future.
Meanwhile, the Pixel 10 Pro Fold kept the same design language as the Pixel 9 Pro Fold, with little to no changes at all aside from the available colors. This foldable is actually thicker at 10.8 mm folded and 5.2 mm unfolded.
Google's third foldable phone is also one gram heavier at 258 gr, a far cry from the super-light 215 gr Samsung phone. Tipping the scales at just 215gr, the phone is lighter than, say, a Galaxy S25 Ultra, making it the lightest foldable we've seen, an exceptional achievement.
Galaxy Z Fold 7
Pixel 10 Pro Fold
Dimensions 158.4 x 143.2 mm
Dimensions 155,2 x 76.3 mm
Thickness 4.2 mm unfolded 8.9 mm folded
Thickness 5.2 mm unfolded 10.8 mm folded
Weight 215 gr
Weight ~258 gr
One thing that separates the Pixel 10 Pro Fold and the Galaxy Z Fold 7 is the water and dust resistance. The Google foldable is an IP68-rated device, a first on a foldable phone and on par with most regular flagship devices out there. With foldables in particular, dust resistance is crucial, as it ensures no dust will be able to enter the hinge mechanism and hurt it in any way.
The Galaxy Z Fold 7 only boasts an IP48 water and dust resistance, which doesn't protect against dust.
In terms of colors, the Galaxy Z Fold 7 is available in Blue Shadow, Silver Shadow, Jet-black, and Mint, which will be exclusive to the Samsung.com store. The Pixel 10 Pro Fold is available in Jade and Moonstone.
The Galaxy Z Fold 7 arrives with a slightly larger 6.5-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X cover screen, which now boasts a more sensible 21:9 aspect ratio. That's a great move in comparison with the narrower 22.1:9 screen on most previous Folds. This makes the Galaxy Z Fold 7 more suited for regular everyday use.
As a result of the aspect ratio reshuffle, the inner screen has also grown to 8 inches in size, a pretty sizeable change in comparison with the 7.6-inch internal screens of most previous Fold phones.
Aside from that, the core specs of the Galaxy Z Fold displays are mostly similar. This means dual Dynamic AMOLED 2X panels with a smooth 1-120Hz refresh rate, excellent sharpness, and a peak brightness of 2,600 nits on both panels. We love that.
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Galaxy Z Fold 7
Pixel 10 Pro Fold
Cover screen 6.5 inches
Cover screen 6.4 inches
Main screen 8.0 inches
Main screen 8.0 inches
In the other camp, the Pixel 10 Pro Fold has scored a 6.4-inch outer screen with a higher 3,000 nits of brightness. The internal screen is an 8-inch one, and it has also got the 3,000-nit peak brightness upgrade. Both displays will be OLED ones, of course, with up to 120Hz refresh rate.
We hope that Google has nailed the internal screen crease, which plagued previous Pixel foldables. The Samsung foldable has mostly done away with the crease, so the ball is in Google's court.
One will crush the benchmarks, the other probably not
The Galaxy Z Fold 7 comes with the Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset, the first Qualcomm chip built on a 3nm manufacturing node. As usual with Samsung, it's a slightly tuned-up version of the Snapdragon 8 Elite, which carries a higher clock speed along with the "for Galaxy" suffix.
Samsung phones equipped with this chip are proper powerhouses that are among the better-performing ones on the market right now, so we are certain that from a pure performance perspective, the Z Fold 7 will be the superior device.
The Pixel 10 Pro Fold comes equipped with the Tensor G5 chip, built by TSMC on a 3nm manufacturing node. That's similar to the Snapdragon 8 Elite, but we doubt that the Tensor would be able to match the Snapdragon in terms of raw power.
In terms of memory, the Galaxy features 12GB of RAM with the 256 and 512GB versions and 16GB with the 1TB one, while the Pixel packs 16GB of memory in all of its three storage versions (256GB, 512GB, and 1TB). This should give some decent legroom for on-device AI and multitasking.
The Galaxy Z Fold comes along with Android 16 and One UI 8 (the first Samsung device to do so), while the Pixel 10 Pro Fold arrives with Android 16 out of the box as well.
In terms of new features, the Galaxy Z Fold 7 brings the best of Gemini, Circle to Search, as well as key improvements to Galaxy AI. The latter scores a so-called AI Results View, which displays results from AI searches in a separate split view tab or in a floating window, thus not obstructing your original content.
The Pixel 10 Pro Fold arrives with the full suite of Gemini features. There's also the Magic Cue feature, which intelligently suggests relevant information when the need arises. Say someone texts you about a dinner reservation, Magic Cue will scan your Gmail account for reservation confirmations and display the relevant details to you.
In terms of software support, both devices will be supported for seven years.
Camera
Big improvements for the Samsung foldable
The Galaxy Z Fold 7 finally addresses one of the sore points with most previous Galaxy Z Fold devices and scores a higher-res 200MP main camera. In case you're wondering, yes, it appears to be the same one that graces the Galaxy S25 Ultra, judging by the specs alone. At long last, a camera upgrade on Samsung's most important foldable!
The rest of the cameras will be pretty familiar to anyone who has inspected a recent Galaxy Z Fold specs sheet: a 12MP ultrawide and a 10MP telephoto with 3X optical zoom. Not a particularly exciting camera setup, but then again, foldables aren't really about the camera prowess. Still, the latest foldables from Oppo, Vivo, and Honor put stronger emphasis on the camera performance.
A surprising development is the under-display selfie camera on the inner screen, which is gone! It's been substituted for a standard punch-hole 10MP camera, which is honestly the right way to go. Much more usable than the peculiar under-display one, that's for sure.
Galaxy Z Fold 7
Pixel 10 Pro Fold
Main camera 200MP
Main camera 48MP
Ultrawide 12MP
Ultrawide 10.5MP
Telephoto 10MP 3X
Telephoto 10.8MP 5X
Cover selfie 10MP
Cover selfie 10MP
Internal selfie 10MP under-display
Internal selfie 10MP
The Pixel 10 Pro Fold features the same camera setup as its predecessor. It comes with a 48MP main camera, a 10.5MP ultrawide, and a 10MP telephoto with a longer 5X zoom. This setup sounds slightly more capable, and Google's software optimizations might squeeze out a better image quality out of the existing hardware. Google prides itself on the improved video stabilization, for example.
One new feature here is called Camera Coach. It will intelligently guide and nudge you into taking better photos by giving you on-screen cues and suggestions.
Battery Life and Charging
Lagging way behind other foldables
The Galaxy Z Fold 7 features a fairly lackluster 4,400 mAh battery, and the Pixel 10 Pro Fold comes with a 5,015 mAh battery, which is an improvement over the Pixel 9 Pro Fold.
The Galaxy Z Fold 7 comes with 25W wired and 15W wireless charging, which is apparently the best Samsung could do for its $2,000 foldable. The Pixel 10 Pro Fold has scored 30W wired and 15W wireless charging with Qi2 support.
One new feature of the Pixel 10 range is the Pixelsnap system, which features embedded magnets and allows you to magnetically attach accessories to the back of the device. Pixelsnap is compatible with MagSafe, so your iPhone accessories, phone stands, and battery banks will work with Pixelsnap. Google also has a selection of Pixelsnap accessories readily available for the Pixel 10 series.
The Pixel 10 Pro Fold and the Galaxy Z Fold 7 are the two highest-profile foldable phones released in the US this year.
However, the win is almost certainly going Samsung's way, which has arguably delivered the better foldable device. Google is seemingly stuck in place with the Pixel 10 Pro Fold, which doesn't move the overall experience much forward and is barely a slight refresh of last year's Pixel 9 Pro Fold.
Although the Galaxy Z Fold 7 is the more expensive device, starting at $2,000 in comparison with the Pixel 10 Pro Fold which is technically more affordable at $1,800, it still feels that getting the Samsung foldable is better value.
Peter, an experienced tech enthusiast at PhoneArena, is captivated by all things mobile. His impartial reviews and proficiency in Android systems offer readers valuable insights. Off-duty, he delves into the latest cryptocurrency trends and enjoys sci-fi and video games.
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