How much does the Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold cost in Australia?

Australia missed out on Google's first iteration of foldable phones, but the Pixel 9 Pro Fold remedies this snub when it arrives on Australian shores next month.

Google is selling two storage variants of the Pixel 9 Pro Fold: a 256GB base model and a 512GB model. As is typical for foldables, you can expect to pay a premium price for the unique form factor. The Australian pricing is:

• 256 GB: $2,699
• 512 GB: $2,899

The Pixel 9 Pro Fold will be available to buy outright at JB HiFi, Harvey Norman and Officeworks. It's also set to be available on a plan through Telstra, Optus and Vodafone.

The Pixel 9 Pro Fold is set to be available on plans through Optus, Vodafone and Telstra. As with most handset plans, you'll be able to pay the device off over 12, 24 or 36 months.

Optus is currently offering a pre-order promotion that knocks $800.64 off the Pixel 9 Pro Fold's RRP if you stay connected for 36 months. This brings your device repayments down to $52.72 per month. You'll have to pre-order before 3 September 2024 to take advantage of the promotion.

Here's a full look at Optus' Pixel 9 Pro Fold plans.

Vodafone will take $200.16 off the Pixel 9 Pro Fold's RRP if you stay connected for 36 months. This will bring your device repayments to $69.41 per month over 36 months.

Here's a look at Vodafone's range of Pixel 9 Pro Fold plans.

Telstra, like Optus, is running a pre-order promotion on the Pixel 9 Pro Fold. If you pre-order before 9 September 2024 and stay connected for 36 months, you'll get $800.28 off the RRP.

Here's a look at Telstra's Pixel 9 Pro Fold plans, though it's worth keeping in mind that Telstra has flagged that it will be raising SIM-only plan prices by $3-4 from 27 August.

The Pixel 9 Pro Fold is a separate beast to the rest of this year's Pixel lineup. Here, it's all about the form factor, with some significant downgrades in camera specs from the rest of the lineup.

The outer display ranges from 60-120Hz, with 2700 nits of peak brightness, while the inner display can drop from 120Hz down to 1Hz to save battery in low light conditions.

One of the big features Google is touting across its Pixel range this year is Gemini, its AI virtual assistant. Google will give all Pixel users access to a range of AI features in Gemini, but will give customers who purchase a 9 Pro, 9 Pro XL or 9 Pro Fold a yearlong subscription to its premium AI offering, which includes AI features in Gmail and Docs, as well as 2TB of cloud storage.

Given Google's first foray into foldables never arrived in Australia, it's hard to compare this second iteration to its predecessor. But, Google seems to be leaning into the "Pro" element here, with a bigger screen and its new Tensor G4 processor.

The outer screen, a 6.3-inch Actua display, goes up to 2700 nits peak brightness, up from 1550 nits for the original Fold. 

Of course, the inner screen is the main attraction of any foldable. This is where the Pixel 9 Pro Fold seems to have made its biggest leap: an 8-inch Super Actua Flex display, also capable of 2700 nits peak brightness, which is a marked improvement on the 1450 nits on the original Fold.

The phone features fingerprint and face unlock, with face unlock available on both the external and internal screens.

As with last year's Pixel 8 lineup, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold comes with extended software support. The entire Pixel lineup, including the 9 Pro Fold, comes with seven years of OS updates, feature drops, security updates and customer support.

The Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold is powered by the new Google Tensor G4 processor, a significant step up from the Tensor G2 that powered the original Pixel Fold.

The phone has 16GB of RAM, and comes in two storage variants: 256GB and 512GB.

The Pixel 9 Pro Fold is powered by a 4650mAh battery, and supports wireless charging and fast charging. Google claims the device will have 24-hour-plus battery life, which can be extended to 72 hours with Extreme Battery Saver.

There always seems to be a trade-off when it comes to unique form factors, and here, it's noticeable in the camera specs. While the Pixel 9 Pro and the Pixel 9 all boast 50MP wide and 48MP ultra wide lenses, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold has a 48MP wide lens and only a 10.5MP ultra wide. The device's telephoto lens is 10.8MP versus the Pro and Pro XL's 48MP telephoto lenses. And, while the Pro and Pro XL have beefed up the front-facing cameras to 42MP, both the external and internal front-facing cameras of the 9 Pro Fold are 10MP.

The difference these specs make in practice remains to be seen, but Google tends to lean into its software innovations when it comes to photography, rather than focusing solely on hardware.

Here, the 9 Pro Fold will share the same features as its Pixel 9 brethren, with Google touting new software features such as improved Night Sight for video, and "Add Me", which allows users to composite themselves into group shots.

The Pixel 9 Pro Fold gets a bit of a step up in 5G connectivity compared to the rest of this year's Pixel lineup. While the 9, 9 Pro and 9 Pro XL lose mmWave 5G in favour of sub 6, the Pro Fold supports mmWave.

In practice, that means potentially faster 5G speeds for the Pro Fold. Of course, this relies on providers to have towers that support mmWave coverage. At present, Telstra, Optus and Vodafone all have a limited number of towers supporting mmWave, and these are mostly in high density areas in capital cities.

To see where 5G is available in Australia, use the coverage map below.

Click the big orange button, and select your desired network provider from the dropdown (e.g. Telstra, Optus or Vodafone). Then, find out if you have 5G coverage in your area by using the (+) and (-) icons in the top-left corner of the map to navigate to your local area.