Google may have canceled the uncompetitive Pixel Fold
Google is no longer planning to release a foldable phone anytime soon. At first, it was believed that the Pixel Fold would arrive alongside the Pixel 6 series, and later rumors pointed to a Q4 2021 release. It now appears that Google thinks it doesn't stand a chance against Samsung, which released its first bendable device in 2019, and currently makes one of the best foldable phones.
Display Supply Chain Consultants' Ross Young says that the Mountain View company has canceled orders for parts that would have been required for the Pixel Fold and currently, it's not expected until at least the first half of 2022.
Since Google plans to release the stable version of Android 12L, which is meant for tablets and foldable phones, in March, it was being assumed that the Pixel Fold would be announced the same month. Code found in the Google Camera app had also indicated that the device would be released in 2022.
Pixel Fold is not good enough to go up against the Galaxy Z Fold 3
Apparently, Google doesn't think the device is competitive enough to go head to head with Samsung Galaxy Z series phones. Unlike the Galaxy Z Fold 3, the Pixel Fold was not expected to support a stylus or flaunt an under-display front camera.
Still, the rumored specs were anything but disappointing. Reports had said that the phone would come with a 120Hz 7.57-inches internal screen and would be fueled by the Google Tensor chip. Camera specs may have been a bit of a letdown, but respectable nonetheless.
Cost was another concern the report has cited. Samsung makes many of the parts itself and may now be experiencing economies of scale, but for a new entrant like Google, a foldable phone might not make much of a profit at first.
While this news is bound to disappoint fans who were excited about Google's first foldable device, it's probably better to delay it than rush out a half-baked phone. Young had previously said that Apple might release the first foldable iPhone by 2025.
That means that the field is mostly clear for Samsung to expand its market share in the US and Europe, but it will likely face new challengers in other regions.
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