Google has given a sneak peek at its first foldable smartphone, the Pixel Fold, which features a vertical hinge and opens to reveal a tablet-like display.
The product was teased in a video posted to Twitter and YouTube ahead of the company’s annual developer conference, which is due to take place in California next week. While Google did not reveal any specific specs for the Pixel Fold, the phone is expected to come with a high price tag of $1,700.
The market for foldable phones remains relatively small, with Samsung currently dominating the category followed by others such as Motorola/Lenovo, Oppo, and Huawei. According to ABI Research, foldable and flexible displays made up around 0.7% of the smartphone market in 2021 and are expected to rise to just under 2% in 2022.
Michael Inouye, an analyst at ABI Research, suggested that Google has waited to launch its own version until the technology became more advanced and software had been developed to create better user experiences.
