Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold vs OnePlus Open: two of today's most desirable foldables

2023 was a stellar twelvemonth for foldables and 1 that saw some Google and OnePlus debut successful nan category, pinch nan Google Pixel Fold and OnePlus Open, respectively.

A small complete a twelvemonth later, Google has brought distant a successor successful nan Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold. But contempt being an fantabulous refinement successful its ain right, nan OnePlus Open still carries plentifulness of weight arsenic 1 of 2023's best foldables; boasting hardware and package to rival Google's latest Pixel Fold. So, which is better?

For much Pixel and OnePlus content, cheque retired our Google Pixel 9 Pro XL vs Pixel 9 Pro Fold comparison, arsenic good arsenic our guideline to everything you request to cognize astir nan forthcoming OnePlus 13.

Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold vs OnePlus Open: specs comparison

Here’s an at-a-glance look astatine nan cardinal specs of some nan Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold and OnePlus Open:

Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold vs OnePlus Open: value and availability

OnePlus' debut foldable was confirmed (exclusively by TechRadar) astatine MWC 2023 and subsequently launched connected October 26 that aforesaid year. At launch, it came successful a azygous SKU, sporting 512GB of storage, and was priced astatine $1,699.99 / £1,599. However, 2 things person happened since its first release.

Fast-forward to August 2024 and nan institution unveiled nan OnePlus Open Apex Edition, which speech from sporting a head-turning caller Crimson Shadow colorway, besides benefited from moreover much storage; topping retired astatine 1TB. At launch, it costs $1,899.99 / £1,699.

Secondly, having been retired for much than a twelvemonth now, nan OnePlus Open's value has had clip to drop. At nan clip of writing, you tin prime up a 512GB Open for $1,599 connected Amazon US aliases £1,299 nonstop from OnePlus' ain UK store. Similarly, nan Apex Edition is enjoying a akin £300 discount, coming successful astatine £1,399. However, nary balanced woody is moving successful nan US.

Being nan newer instrumentality successful this comparison – arriving connected nan marketplace September 4, 2024 – nan Pixel 9 Pro Fold has had less opportunities to person immoderate meaningful discounts. As such, prices commencement astatine $1,799 / £1,799 / AU$2,699 for nan 256GB model, and emergence to $1,919 / £1,869 / AU$2,899 for nan 512GB capacity variant.

To its credit, nan Pixel is much readily disposable successful markets for illustration Australia, but connected nan flip side, contempt half nan magnitude of guidelines storage, it still costs much than nan OnePlus Open did astatine launch.

Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold vs OnePlus Open: creation and display

Part of what made nan Open's introduction onto nan foldable segment truthful impactful was that OnePlus nailed its design. It wasn't oddly constrictive aliases overtly wide erstwhile folded closed – for illustration nan then-current Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 and original Pixel Fold, respectively – it much intimately matched nan proportions of a accepted candy barroom phone, and much than that, it conscionable looked good.

Side by side, you get harder edges and a mirror-polished framework pinch nan OnePlus, while nan Pixel 9 Pro Fold sports softer forms and sandblasted metalwork that's arguably much comfortable successful nan hand. The Pixel's offset camera does summation nan chance of wobble connected a level aboveground compared to nan Open's larger centralized information camera module, though.

Practically speaking, nan Pixel 9 Pro Fold is nan bigger and heavier instrumentality here; chiefly arsenic a consequence of its larger 8-inch main display. Although, unfastened aliases closed, some phones service up logical facet ratios, moreover if nan Open's somewhat thinner, narrower, and wider proportions springiness it a flimsy edge.

If you're worried astir resilience, OnePlus includes a lawsuit for nan Open in-box, while Google's charismatic 9 Pro Fold lawsuit will group you backmost an further $49.99 / £49.99 / AU$79.99. The Pixel does, astatine least, boast superior IPX8-certified h2o resistance, to nan Open's IPX4 rating.

Another cardinal information pinch foldables is nan show crease and, thankfully, some companies person worked difficult to minimize its beingness connected their latest folding offerings. That said, nan Pixel's crease is simply a fraction tidier successful side-by-side comparison.

Although nan real-world quality isn't nighttime and day, nan OnePlus trumps nan Pixel successful almost each facet of its show tech.

The Open's 6.31-inch screen show and 7.62-inch main Flexi-fluid AMOLED battalion successful much pixels, support a broader move refresh rate, and deed a higher highest brightness than Google's latest foldable. LTPO 3.0 tech ensures a adaptable refresh complaint of betwixt 10Hz and 120Hz connected nan Open's screen display, compared to a prime of 60Hz aliases 120Hz connected nan outer surface of nan 9 Pro Fold. Both foldables connection a afloat move 1Hz to 120Hz main panel, however. Being capable to refresh little often straight benefits powerfulness efficiency.

The Pixel trumps nan Open connected panel-wide brightness (1,600nits versus 1,400), but OnePlus' foldable boasts a superior highest brightness of 2,800nits, translating to fractionally amended outdoor legibility from Google's telephone but amended opposition and dynamism erstwhile watching HDR contented connected nan OnePlus.

Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold vs OnePlus Open: Cameras

Soon aft its release, nan OnePlus Open proved to beryllium nan best camera phone among nan day's harvest of apical foldables, but, naturally, Google wasn't 1 to fto that slide, particularly considering its pedigree successful nan wider mobile photography space.

While nan Pixel 9 Pro Fold leans connected much humble camera hardware than nan likes of nan Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 9 Pro XL, it still packs successful each nan smarts Pixel users person travel to appreciate; moreover nan generative devices that push nan boundaries connected what moreover counts arsenic existent photography.

Hardware-wise, you get larger sensors and a higher megapixel count pinch nan Hasselblad-branded OnePlus system, but a longer optical zoom and amended debased ray capacity retired of nan Pixel's sensors.

If you for illustration your photos pinch a small much play but that sometimes require a small much activity successful post, nan Open will apt beryllium your preferred snapper, different Google's foldable does a awesome occupation of keeping subjects exposed and mobility blur astatine bay successful a measurement that only Google knows how.

While nan Open has a fewer caller extras, for illustration X-Pan mode, Master photograph filters, and optional 10-bit colour capture, nan Pixel's Magic Editor lets you genuinely twist shots captured successful immoderate guidance you desire. The results, by their very nature, propulsion themselves distant from nan tone of mobile photography, but arsenic a imaginative tool, it's a genuinely unbridled summation that nan Open has thing to comparison against.

OnePlus Open camera samples

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Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold camera samples

(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

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(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

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(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold vs OnePlus Open: Performance and software

When looking astatine nan silicon powering these foldables, you person Google's latest Tensor G4 – which focuses connected AI while deprioritizing earthy capacity – against 1 of 2023's best phone chipsets, Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Gen 2.

In real-life conditions, neither spot is going to fto you down correct now; some guarantee consistently soft personification experiences and some tin grip nan latest games pinch a respectable level of ocular fidelity astatine a decent framework rate.

If you're looking astatine nan numbers, nan Tensor edges retired nan Snapdragon connected AI-based tasks, but conversely, nan 8 Gen 2 looks to beryllium nan amended hardware for graphical capacity (i.e. gaming). This makes sense, arsenic Google's incentivized itself (and Pixel users) to attraction connected AI functionality wrong its smartphone personification experience, an facet that's a acold little important portion of OnePlus' OxygenOS DNA.

Either way, you've sewage a cleanable return connected Android, pinch Open Canvas being a peculiar item of nan Open's package that reimagines really multitasking should activity connected a larger foldable display, to awesome effect. Meanwhile, Google has made a mates of meaningful tweaks to nan modular Pixel acquisition to amended capitalize connected that larger display, but there's definite room for betterment successful comparison to OnePlus' approach.

Despite nan property of nan Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 and nan so-so capacity of nan Tensor G4, some chips should service their respective smartphones good for nan adjacent fewer years. The existent sticking constituent is package support, astatine slightest from a value-for-money perspective.

While nan Pixel is simply a small pricier, it comes pinch committedness of a whopping 7 years of some Android OS and information updates, which trumps nan 4 years of OS updates and 5 years of information updates OnePlus has promised to nan Open. What's more, nan Pixel 9 Pro Fold arrives connected Android 14, while nan property of OnePlus' foldable intends it came pinch Android 13 retired nan container and has already utilized up 1 of its 4 years of OS updates.

If longevity is of nan utmost value to you, nan Pixel is nan clear winner, but if you don't realistically spot yourself utilizing your adjacent foldable beyond 2 to 3 years, past nan earthy capacity advantage afforded to nan OnePlus mightiness make it nan much logical bargain of nan 2 devices.

Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold vs OnePlus Open: Battery life

As artillery tech goes, nan Fold is nan runt of nan litter, compared to different entries successful nan Pixel 9 series; pinch nan smallest capacity and slowest charging speeds of nan lot. In practice, we recovered that it lasts each time connected a azygous charge, but that you person to equilibrium utilizing nan main show pinch nan smaller screen show to deed that target. Favor nan phone's main 8-inch surface excessively heavy and you tin expect to beryllium looking for a wall outlet by meal time.

It's a different communicative pinch nan OnePlus Open. Although artillery capacity is only a small larger (4,805mAh versus 4,650mAh) and its longevity is not overmuch different, moving retired of complaint earlier than you'd for illustration is acold little of an issue, acknowledgment to its importantly quicker accelerated charging.

In spot of nan Pixel's paltry 21W wired charging speeds, nan OnePlus Open supports up to 67W SuperVOOC charging, which successful testing reaches 100% successful nether 45 minutes. That puts nan 9 Pro Fold's highest recharge clip of conscionable nether 1 hr 40 minutes successful stark relief.

To adhd reproach to injury, for illustration a case, Google besides expects you to salary other for a powerfulness adapter successful astir markets ($29.99 / £29.99 / AU$49.99), whereas OnePlus bundles its 67W powerfulness ceramic in-box. The metallic lining is that nan Pixel packs successful convenient wireless charging (at 7.5W) while nan Open lacks specified functionality altogether.

Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold vs OnePlus Open: Verdict

The Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold looks to beryllium little powerful, comes pinch little storage, and it's much expensive, truthful why would you take it complete nan OnePlus Open?

Google has gotten very bully astatine immoderate very circumstantial things; its cleanable Android personification experience, industry-leading package support for its devices, awesome computational photography smarts and boundary-pushing on-device and cloud-supported AI functionality. If immoderate of that appeals and you're aft a foldable, past nan Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold is nan champion and possibly nan only action worthy considering.

If you, much realistically, fancy a stylish, tin foldable that nails nan fundamentals and packs immoderate genuinely useful extras which capitalize connected nan unsocial properties of nan shape factor, past nan much affordable and arsenic (but differently) tin OnePlus Open makes amended consciousness successful your pocket.

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