Big book-like folding phones, which have a smaller screen on the outside and open up to become miniature tablets, have always felt like a fairly niche product. I’ve heard them described as the ultimate grandparent phone, yet I also know people who love using them for art and note-taking.

In Australia, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold has essentially been your only option for this kind of phone until this week, with the release of Google’s Pixel 9 Pro Fold. And while it’s not going to win over many people fundamentally opposed to the format, (or opposed to spending $2700 on a phone, which is what both go for) I think Google’s is a superior design.

The Pixel 9 Pro Fold feels like the most normal folding phone yet.Credit: Bloomberg

This is Google’s first foldable phone to make it to Australia, and so it’s the first one I’ve held in my hands. The thing that makes it most different from Samsung’s device was evident immediately: It looks and acts like a normal phone.

If you hold the new Pixel 9 in one hand and the Pixel 9 Pro Fold in the other, you can see that their screens are practically identical. Of course, the Fold is heavier, around half a centimetre thicker, and has a bit of extra metal on the right side that connects to the hinge. But in situations where you don’t need the bigger screen, it just feels like using an extremely nice regular phone.

The Pixel 9 Pro Fold and Galaxy Z Fold6, when folded.Credit: Tim Biggs

By contrast, even though Samsung has improved the cover display every generation, the Z Fold6 is a weird device when closed. Its tall and thin screen, combined with its very sharp edges, make it feel like a fancy TV remote, and there aren’t many applications........

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