What you need to know
- As expected, the interior display of the Pixel Fold's display cannot handle the sharp scratch test.
- The Pixel Fold had utilized a safety function to JerryRigEverything's heat test when conducted on its interior display.
- During the flex test, the Pixel Fold cracked terribly and it was found that there is nothing stopping it from going the wrong way.
The fabled durability test for the Pixel Fold is upon us and the device is struggling in more places than one.
The teardown (literally) man himself, JerryRigEverything, put Google's Pixel Fold to the test to see just how durable the company's latest craft is. On the Moh Scale of Hardness, the Fold's exterior display can hold strong against scratches up until level 6 with much deeper grooves showing at level 7. However, opening its interior display, the device scratches quite quickly at level 2, though, it is a plastic display to bend.
The Pixel Fold took on the heat check and its exterior display held out for about 16 seconds before it encountered problems. The larger screen was a little more sensitive, only withstanding the heat for about 8 seconds before shutting down entirely — a first, as Jerry mentioned.
The most notable test for a folding phone like this is the crucial flex test. JerryRig attempted to flex the Pixel Fold backward and the device cracked in heartbreaking fashion with a prominent fissure down its center. The display ended up in shambles with each displaying varying states of disarray.
As Jerry noted, "there's no lockout or stoppage of that backward motion that we see on Samsung's Fold and Flip series."
Considering how bad of a state the Pixel Fold was in after the flex test, the device would no longer close due to the screen's disappointing shift in alignment. Although, some further inspecting of the device unearthed that the true culprit behind the Fold's flex test damage is not Google's hinge design but the hardware of the phone around it.
Google's first foldable hasn't had the greatest start out of the gate. New owners a week ago started reporting severe display problems after having the device for a few hours. From gaps in the gutter, allowing dust and debris into the exposed display, to the display laminate beginning to peel and the appearance of cracks.
You can watch JerryRigEverything's full video to see his reactions to everywhere the Pixel Fold faltered in his durability test.
