After 15 months, Google put this must-have feature on the Pixel 9 Pro Fold

I had reservations about the original Google Pixel Fold. Instead of including a Tensor G3, which came out soon after, the company opted for the older Tensor G2 chipset, hamstringing the Pixel Fold. I didn’t mind the phone’s design, but Google made odd choices. The outer display was fantastic, with a wide-open canvas for your thumbs, which contrasted the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold devices. When unfolded, you couldn’t lay the Pixel Fold flat, leaving an awkward crease running through the content. There were other problems, including a prominent software feature that went missing for over a year.

I couldn’t believe it

How was this missing?

I remember my confusion when I started using my Pixel Fold. I liked the idea of the larger, landscape-dominant inner display. I figured it would lead to a great multitasking experience. However, my confusion turned to frustration and disbelief when I discovered app pairs weren’t available on the Google Pixel Fold. If you used pairs a few times together, you could favorite them, but you couldn’t combine apps and have them on your home screen. It was unbelievable that a feature Samsung had on phones since 2017 wasn’t available on Google’s first folding phone.

I heard it wasn’t available in Android 13 but was in beta and would be added when Android 14 was released. Google includes app pairs in the Android 14 beta, but they never made it to the final version, leaving Pixel Fold owners in the cold. When rumblings started of the feature being included with Android 15, I didn’t hold my breath.

Better late than never

App pairs for some

Even though Android 15 hasn’t been released, Google must have realized that a second generation of folding phones without app pairs would be unacceptable. The company backported the feature to Android 14 on the Pixel 9 Pro Fold. Original Pixel Fold owners are still waiting, but it’s a step in the right direction. It’s a standard multitasking experience where you pair and launch two apps on your Pixel 9 Pro Fold. It’s better than nothing, but I was hoping we’d get a bit more as a reward for waiting.

The OnePlus Open established what should be the standard for multitasking on folding phones with Open Canvas. It allows three apps to be open simultaneously without feeling cramped on the screen. After waiting 15 months, I hoped Google was cooking up something more interesting than the multitasking experience we’ve been used to for over seven years.

Part of a bigger problem

Folding phones aren’t just tablets

Google stalled after the release of Android 12L with large-screen UI experiences. Android 12L helped us use tablet-sized displays, giving us a taskbar and other valuable features. Still, it was a beginning, not a destination. It feels like the company gave up after that, ignoring obvious improvements that it could have made on the Google Pixel Fold. It felt like pulling teeth to get the company to provide a Good Lock-esque solution to app stretching, opting to let us toil with awkwardly sized apps for months.

Google has done better over the last few years. It listened to our complaints about devices and addressed them, especially with the Pixel 9 series. I hope that trend continues with the company’s folding phones.

All to play for

The Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold is an opportunity for the company. Folding phones feel like a solution in search of a problem. Manufacturers struggle to convince people they are worth the extra bulk, price, and durability concerns. If Google could apply its software savvy to making the folding phone experience unique, instead of just a smartphone tablet, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold could set itself apart, especially with Samsung’s snail-like design pace with the Galaxy Z Fold series.