It looks like tech companies aren’t able to keep up with their competitors in terms of innovation anymore. Recent reports from CNBC suggest that Google might be about to launch a folding phone with a book-like form factor very soon. At its upcoming IO developer event on May 10, the tech giant is rumored to reveal the device and is slated to bring it to the market by June.
The foldable Pixel phone is said to have a 5.8-inch diagonal size when closed, which will expand to a 7.6-inch display when open. It is said to cost around $1,700, and will come with a Tensor 2 chip and could possibly be shipped with Google’s Pixel Watch. Google is joining the race with Samsung who has already released several foldable devices and is trying to gain a grip over the foldable phone market.
Samsung isn’t standing still either. To counter Google and other competitors, the South Korean company released a new mobile app called Samsung News, which is said to contain a variety of syndicated news stories such as those from Newsweek, Vice, Glamour, The New York Post, and Bloomberg Media.
Moreover, an AI company founded by two former Apple employees, Humane, revealed a wearable virtual assistant. According to Inverse, Imran Chaudhri wore the device during a TED Talk and used it to answer questions, translate speech, and project video calls onto his hand. The device is supposed to be “platform-agnostic” and will not require smartphone pairing in order to work.
It will be interesting to see how the competition plays out between Google, Samsung, and other tech companies. While foldabes are still a relatively new concept with just a small part of the global smartphone market, there is still a chance for Google to make its presence felt. We just need to wait a few weeks until Google reveals the details of its foldable phone.
