OnePlus Open vs Google Pixel Fold

The OnePlus Open is OnePlus’ very first foldable smartphone which launched quite recently. Thanks to the expertise of its sister company, OPPO, this handset turned out to be truly compelling. Well, in this article, we’ll compare the OnePlus Open vs Google Pixel Fold. The Pixel Fold is Google’s first crack at a foldable, and it arrived back in May. It has been on the market considerably longer than the OnePlus Open, which will start shipping to consumers on October 27. We did already review it, though, so we do have a good basis for this comparison.

First and foremost, we’ll list the specs of both smartphones, side by side. Following that, we’ll compare them across a number of categories. We’ll compare their designs, displays, performance, battery life, cameras, and audio performance. Having said that, let’s get this party on the road.

Specs

OnePlus Open & Google Pixel Fold, respectively

– Screen size (main):
7.82-inch LTPO 3 AMOLED display (120Hz, Dolby Vision, 2,800 nits)
7.6-inch Foldable OLED display (120Hz, HDR10+, 1,450 nits)
– Screen Size (cover):
6.31-inch OLED (120Hz, 2,800 nits)
5.8-inch OLED (120Hz)
– Display resolution (main):
2268 x 2440
1840 x 2208
– Display resolution (cover):
2484 x 1116
2092 x 1080
– SoC:
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2
Google Tensor G2
– RAM:
16GB (LPDDR5X)
12GB (LPDDR5)
– Storage:
512GB (UFS 4.0)
256GB/512GB (UFS 3.1)
– Rear cameras:
48MP (wide, f/1.7 aperture, multi-directional PDAF, OIS), 48MP (ultrawide, 114-degree FoV), 64MP (periscope telephoto, 3x optical zoom, 6x “in-sensor” zoom, macro)
48MP (wide, f/1.7 aperture, OIS), 10.8MP (ultrawide, 121-degree FoV), 10.8MP (telephoto, 5x optical zoom, OIS)
– Front cameras:
20MP (main display, f/2.2 aperture), 32MP (cover display, f/2.4 aperture)
8MP (main display, f/2.0 aperture), 9.5MP (cover display, f/2.2 aperture)
– Battery:
4,805mAh
4,821mAh
– Charging:
67W wired (charger included)
21W wired, 7.5W wireless (no charger)
– Dimensions (unfolded):
153.4 x 143.1 x 5.8mm
158.7 x 139.7 x 5.8mm
– Dimensions (folded):
153.4 x 73.3 x 11.7mm
139.7 x 79.5 x 12.1mm
– Weight:
239/245 grams
283 grams
– Connectivity:
5G, LTE, NFC, Wi-Fi, USB Type-C, Bluetooth 5.3
– Security:
Side-facing fingerprint scanner
– OS:
Android 13 with ColorOS
Android 13 (upgradable)
– Price:
$1,699
$1,799+
– Buy:
Best Buy
Google

OnePlus Open vs Google Pixel Fold: Design

These two phones do look quite different, mostly. There are some similarities when you look at them from the front, but thanks to a different aspect ratio, they’re not that similar from that point of view either. The Google Pixel Fold is considerably shorter and wider than the OnePlus Open, and thus delivers a different user experience. It is also a lot heavier at 283 grams, while the OnePlus Open weighs 239 or 245 grams, depending on the model. The OnePlus Open is lighter despite the fact it has considerably larger displays, keep that in mind.

Now, the OnePlus Open is made out of metal and glass or vegan leather, both variants are available. The vegan leather model is slightly lighter than the glass variant. The Google Pixel Fold, on the flip side, combines metal with glass, that’s the only option. The two phones are equally thick when unfolded, but the OnePlus Open is slightly thinner when folded. If we flip them over, you’ll notice even more differences on the back.

The OnePlus Open has a large camera oreo on the back. There are three cameras included in there, with Hasselblad backing. The Google Pixel Fold has a camera visor on the back. In other words, it has a horizontal strip with three cameras, which does protrude quite a bit too. Both devices include a power/lock button that doubles as a fingerprint scanner. The OnePlus Open is also IPX4 rated for splash resistance. The Pixel Fold comes with an IPX8 rating for water resistance.

Both devices do fit well in the hand, but the OnePlus Open is a lot lighter, and you’ll easily feel that. Its vegan leather model is also a lot less slippery than the glass models from both phones. Both of these devices feel like premium products, that’s for sure.

OnePlus Open vs Google Pixel Fold: Display

There are two displays on each of these two devices, of course. The OnePlus Open includes a 7.82-inch main display with a 2440 x 2268 resolution. That is a foldable LTPO 3 AMOLED display, which can project up to 1 billion colors, and supports Dolby Vision. It offers a 120Hz refresh rate, and gets immensely bright at 2,800 nits of peak brightness. The second display on the phone is a 6.31-inch panel with a resolution of 2484 x 1116. That is also an LTPO 3 AMOLED display, and has the same brightness as the main one. This panel is protected by the Ceramic Guard. Both of these displays include a single camera hole.

The Google Pixel Fold, on the other hand, includes a 7.6-inch main display (1840 x 2208), and this is a foldable OLED panel. It has a refresh rate of 120Hz, and supports HDR10+ content. This panel goes up to 1,450 nits of brightness at its peak. The second panel on the phone is a 5.8-inch one, with a fullHD+ (2092 x 1080) resolution. This is an OLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate, and it’s protected by the Gorilla Glass Victus. It has a 17.4:9 aspect ratio, and goes up to 1,550 nits of brightness at its peak. The outer display includes a camera hole, while the inner one does not, a camera is embedded into the bezel.

Now, all four of these displays are really good, that’s for sure. They’re not only vivid and have good viewing angles, but they’re also plenty sharp. The thing is, the OnePlus Open’s displays have several advantages. First and foremost, they’re a lot brighter than both panels on the Google Pixel Fold. On top of that, the OnePlus Open’s outer display has a regular 20:9 aspect ratio, and the phone’s main display is a lot less reflective than the one on the Pixel Fold. The OnePlus Open definitely has the upper hand in this category.

OnePlus Open vs Google Pixel Fold: Performance

Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC fuels the OnePlus Open, the best Qualcomm has to offer at the moment. In addition to that, OnePlus also included 16GB of LPDDR5X RAM inside of this phone, and 512GB of UFS 4.0 flash storage. On the other hand, the Pixel Fold is fueled by the Google Tensor G2 processor. It includes 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM and up to 512GB of UFS 3.1 flash storage.

The OnePlus Open not only has a more powerful processor, that is also more power efficient, but it also has more modern RAM and flash storage units. That gives it the upper hand from the get-go, along with more RAM in general. Is the performance difference noticeable? Well, yes, at least we did notice it. The OnePlus Open felt snappier during daily usage, and it also ran cool at all times. The Pixel Fold did not get hot, but it was warmer than OnePlus’ handset. When it comes to gaming, both do a good job, but the OnePlus Open does have the upper hand in that regard too.

Either one of these two phones will do the trick when it comes to performance, though. The OnePlus Open is more future-proof, though, due to more modern internals.

OnePlus Open vs Google Pixel Fold: Battery

The OnePlus Open includes a 4,805mAh battery, while the Pixel Fold comes with a 4,821mAh battery. The Pixel Fold does not only have a larger battery, but smaller displays too. Does that mean it has better battery life? Well, it all depends. There are a lot of variables included here, especially considering that both smartphones have two displays. Your battery life will vary considerably depending on what display you use more.

From our experience, both smartphones do offer really, really good battery life, though. We were able to cross the 8-hour screen-on-time mark on both, with mixed display usage. They were usually at around 7+ hours when we were using the main display more intensively. Do note that gaming was not a part of our usage on those days. Playing games will impact battery life considerably. Your mileage may vary when it comes to battery life, of course, due to different usage, different apps, signal strength, and so on. They both do provide really good battery life, though, in general.

What about charging? Well, OnePlus’ handset has the advantage in every way, except one. It supports 67W wired charging, and comes with a charger in the box. The Pixel Fold supports 21W wired charging, and has no charger in the box. The thing is, the Pixel Fold also supports 7.5W wireless charging, while the OnePlus Open does not support wireless charging at all.

OnePlus Open vs Google Pixel Fold: Cameras

The OnePlus Open has a 48-megapixel main camera (OIS, multi-directional PDAF, f/1.7 aperture), a 48-megapixel ultrawide unit (PDAF, 114-degree FoV, f/2.2 aperture), and a 64-megapixel telephoto camera (OIS, PDAF, 3x optical zoom, f/2.6 aperture). The Pixel Fold, on the other hand, has a 48-megapixel main camera (f/1.7 aperture, OIS, Dual Pixel PDAF, Laser AF), a 10.8-megapixel ultrawide unit (f/2.2 aperture, 121-degree FoV), and a 10.8-megapixel telephoto camera (f/3.1 aperture, OIS, Dual Pixel PDAF, 5x optical zoom).

Both smartphones offer great camera performance. In fact, at the moment, these two devices probably have the best cameras on any foldable phone. The Pixel Fold has that cooler tone that you’re used to when it comes to Pixel devices. It offers great HDR performance, and makes the pictures look processed, but great at the same time. The OnePlus Open offers great colors in its photos, and that goes for low light images too. It provides very sharp pictures that are well-balanced.

We prefer the telephoto performance of the OnePlus Open, as the images do tend to look more lifelike, and quite detailed at the same time. The Pixel Fold does a good job too, but when you zoom in, you see the differences. Both smartphones do a great job when it comes to ultrawide shots. Video recording is good on both, but it’s not on the same level as camera stills.

Audio

The OnePlus Open includes three speakers, while the Pixel Fold has two. Both phones do provide good sound output. It’s well-balanced, and both sets of speakers are loud enough, though not nearly the loudest we’ve heard.

You will not find an audio jack on either phone. You can always use their Type-C ports for wired audio connections, though. If you prefer to go wireless, Bluetooth 5.3 is on offer on the OnePlus Open, while the Pixel Fold supports Bluetooth 5.2.