While the rumors recently suggested that Google is also one of the many companies working on a foldable smartphone, we have not heard anything about it from the Mountain View giant. And now, if reports are to be believed, Google has canceled its Pixel Fold project and will not launch any foldable smartphone this year or in the first half of 2022.
The initial report comes from display specialist Ross Young, who recently cited various sources, suggesting the cancelation of the Pixel Fold device that Google was planning to launch next year. Young shared a tweet to report the development and you can check it out right below.
Furthermore, Young’s tweet pointed towards an official blog post on the Display Supply Chain Consultants (DSCC) forum that suggests that Google has decided not to bring the Pixel Fold to the market. As per the post, sources aware of the matter said that Google believed that the device would not be as competitive as it needed to be.
The report also states that Google might have understood that it would be inconvenient to compete against industry giant Samsung in the US and Europe for such a niche product right now. Moreover, Young also mentioned that as Chinese giants like Oppo, Xiaomi, and Honor are also planning to launch their foldable devices, it would also be difficult for Google to establish a market for a foldable smartphone in China, where Samsung’s foothold is not that strong.
Also, it is also worth mentioning that the alleged Pixel Fold device was rumored to be an inferior smartphone to what Samsung offers with its Galaxy Z Fold device. Although it was supposed to feature an LTPO display with support for a 120Hz refresh rate, a 9to5Google report previously stated that Pixel Fold would feature an inferior camera setup than the Galaxy Z Fold 3 that Samsung launched earlier this year. Moreover, it was unlikely that the Google foldable would have featured an under-display camera like the Galaxy Z Fold 3.
So, if you were waiting for Google to launch a foldable phone in the market, unfortunately, that is not happening anytime soon. However, as the foldable market continues to expand, chances are Google might reconsider its plans to launch a Pixel Fold sometime later in the future.
