All credit goes to Samsung for inventing and popularizing the foldable smartphone. The form factor had its share of skeptics—I was one of them—when the first Galaxy Fold hit the market in 2019. It was the Galaxy Flip, released a year later, that taught me to genuinely appreciate foldables.

When the original Pixel Fold launched in 2023, it quickly became my favorite foldable device. Google showcased how slight adjustments to its aspect ratio could make a foldable much more manageable. Beyond its impressive technology, I found that it also served as an excellent e-reader.

The Pixel Fold was a strong contender, rivaled only by the OnePlus Open in my opinion. The introduction of these products, along with others from brands like Oppo, has expanded the market in a positive way. This competition has driven innovation, preventing Samsung from becoming complacent.

By the time Google was ready to announce the successor to the Fold, it had enough confidence in the product to fully integrate it into its flagship lineup. There will never be Pixels 2 through 8; instead, Google introduced the Pixel 9 Pro Fold, positioning it as an ultra-premium counterpart to the Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro. Ultimately, this is more about branding than anything else, as it doesn’t significantly impact consumers.

What truly matters is that the Fold is back, bigger and better than before. I admit that the “bigger” aspect initially gave me pause. One of the features I appreciated most about the original Pixel Fold was its manageable size compared to Samsung’s offerings. However, it seems inevitable that foldables would follow the broader smartphone trend of larger screens.

Fortunately, Google has managed to increase the screen size without creating an unwieldy device. The front display has grown from 5.8 to 6.3 inches, inching closer to an edge-to-edge design. This provides ample screen real estate for everyday tasks.

Even more impressive is the interior display, which has expanded from 7.6 to a full 8 inches of 120Hz AMOLED. For comparison, the iPad mini has a screen that is only 0.3 inches larger. When unfolded, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold effectively becomes a tablet. Google has also chosen a favorable aspect ratio, so when you finish responding to emails on the front display, you can easily open it up to watch a movie.