Google's Pixel Fold can't open all the way, here's why

After months or rumors and leaks, Google has finally announced the Pixel Fold during the Google I/O event yesterday. It also showed off the Pixel 7a for the first time and finally told us all when the Pixel Tablet will go on sale. But the real star of the show was that foldable Pixel. But it has a rather interesting secret.

Well, it isn't a secret now. But it was. That secret is that it can't actually open all the way. That is, it won't lay flat on a table because the hinge doesn't actually go all the way to allow the phone to open through 180 degrees. And it all seems a bit strange.

The news was confirmed by a few people who visited Google to see what the Pixel Fold had to offer before it was announced but Mr Mobile was one who explained it particularly well on Twitter. According to him, the hinge can be forced to get to 180 degrees but ti requires too much effort and, presumably, makes the user feel like something will break. That isn't something you want to happen to your new $1800 foldable.

Mr Mobile, otherwise known as Michael Fisher, says that it was a Google engineer who provided the answer as to why this is. Apparently, the Pixel Fold uses a high-friction hinge fir rigid positioning of the displays and this was a trade-off Google was willing to make.

That sounds like something that probably took a few meetings to agree upon during the development of the Pixel Fold. And while it looks strange in the photos shared on Twitter and above, we're not sure whether it will really matter during use.

Let's hope not, anyway.