What you need to know
- Zack Nelson (JerryRigEverything) tests the Pixel 10 Pro Fold’s durability, resulting in explosive failure during durability tests.
- IP68 dust and water resistance is claimed, but hinge performance raises concerns after gritty tests.
- Unique bend test sees the device snap and even smoke, marking a catastrophic durability outcome.
Zack Nelson, the host of the JerryRigEverything channel on YouTube, put the Pixel 10 Pro Fold through his infamous durability test. And things got pretty intense, with Google’s latest Fold pretty much exploding and smoking during the bend test. If you remember, its predecessor snapped in half, and this time around, things just got worse.
At first, things seemed as usual. Pixel 10 Pro Fold’s cover screen (Gorilla Glass Victus 2) got scratches, on level 6 of the Mohs Hardness Scale, and ‘deeper grooves’ at level seven, much like the Pixel 9 Pro Fold.
The inner screen can be scratched with something as simple as a fingernail (a good reason to invest in a Pixel 10 Pro Fold screen protector), but the good news is that the inner screen is protected when folded, so you don’t really have to worry about accidental nicks. He also scraped the outer rims of the phone, which made the color coating come off.
Following this was the dust-resistance test, and the Pixel 10 Pro Fold prides itself on being the first smartphone to get an IP68 dust and water resistance. After throwing some sand and dust on the Pixel 10 Pro Fold’s inner screen, Nelson says the screen is definitely dust-proof. However, the phone’s hinge didn’t handle the sand well, with particles crunching within it.
Nelson also put the phone through his usual burn test; however, things get interesting when he gets to the bend test. Google says that its 10 Pro Fold can handle a decade’s worth of folding inward, thanks to its redesigned hinge mechanism. However, much like last year, the phone snapped in half when folded the opposite way; however, it didn’t break at the hinge but along the antenna lines on the left side of the phone.
Nelson noted how he wanted Google to change the placement of these antenna lines this time around and criticized the tech giant every chance he got for leaving them in the same place.
That said, things get worse for this foldable when Nelson tried to bend the device even more after it snapped, with the phone smoking up and essentially exploding on camera.
“The battery decides it’s had enough. Surprisingly, in the decade that I’ve been durability testing phones, I have never had a smartphone explode before,” Nelson added. The Pixel 10 Pro Fold became the first-ever phone to go up in smoke in his videos, and fails the durability test “catastrophically.” But despite one side of the device being charred, Nelson continued to test the device’s other panel with the camera array.
That said, we should note that if your phone is noticeably or excessively bent, you should stop using it and have it checked out before things get worse.
