It’s official — Google confirms Pixel Fold is launching next week

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A teaser tweet confirms a foldable Google phone is on its way

Google Pixel Fold official image
(Image credit: Google)

No, this isn't a Jedi mind trick — Google just confirmed that the Pixel Fold is on its way.

In a tweet from the Google Pixel account, the phone maker shows off an image of a folding phone. "May the Fold be with you," the tweet reads in a shoutout to Star Wars Day, which is celebrated on May 4. (May the Fourth be with you, and all that.) The same message was posted on Instagram.

Leaving no room for misinterpretation the tweet is even hash-tagged with the words "Pixel Fold." There's a "May 10" hashtag as well.

Googleheads probably don't need a calendar to grasp the significance of that date — May 10 also marks the day of Google I/O 2023, the company's annual developer conference. So Google is essentially confirming that we're going to see its first folding phone live and in person at Google I/O.

The phone depicted in the Google tweet looks a lot like renders of the Pixel Fold that have leaked prior to today. We see a phone with an outer display that opens up to reveal a much larger screen — a design that looks an awful lot like the Galaxy Z Fold 4. Rumors have suggested that Google is coming up with a thinner version of the device for better portability.

Based on leaked specs the Pixel Fold is expected to feature a 5.8-inch cover display, with the phone unfolding to show off a 7.6-inch main screen with a 120Hz refresh rate. We'd imagine the Pixel Fold would run on a Tensor G2, the same chipset that powers Google's Pixel 7 flagship devices and that also appears headed to the Pixel 7a, which many expect to join the Pixel Fold on stage at I/O. 

Rumored camera secs include a 48MP main sensor, augmented by a pair of 10.8MP lenses for ultrawide and telephoto. There's expected to be a 9.5MP selfie lens on the outside of the phone, with an 8MP camera above the inner display.

With a launch date now set, the biggest remaining question is how much the Pixel Fold will cost. Early rumors suggested that Google might try to undercut the other foldable phones out there, but more recently,. we've heard that Google plans 4to charge $1,799, the save cost as the Galaxy Z Fold 4.

We'll be at Google I/O to go hands-on with the Pixel Fold, and we've got a guide on how to watch Google I/O 2023, which figures to have plenty of hardware to show off, following today's announcement.

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Philip Michaels
Philip Michaels

Philip Michaels is a Managing Editor at Tom's Guide. He's been covering personal technology since 1999 and was in the building when Steve Jobs showed off the iPhone for the first time. He's been evaluating smartphones since that first iPhone debuted in 2007, and he's been following phone carriers and smartphone plans since 2015. He has strong opinions about Apple, the Oakland Athletics, old movies and proper butchery techniques. Follow him at @PhilipMichaels.