How to preorder the Google Pixel Fold and Pixel 7A

After the rumors, leaks, and an early tease, Google has now properly introduced both its new flagship foldable and midrange slab phone offerings: the Pixel Fold and the Pixel 7A. These were some of the showcase device announcements at the tech giant’s Google I/O 2023 keynote, accompanied by other Android and AI-related news.

The Pixel 7A continues Google’s formula of taking some of the best features from its latest generation of flagship phones, leaving out extras that cost a premium and dropping the cost to a more budget-friendly price. And speaking of premium, the Pixel Fold is a new ultra-flagship addition to the Pixel lineup, one that represents Google’s first attempt at a foldable phone and takes a page from Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 4 in the “it’s a regular-ish phone that also unfolds into a small tablet” department.

The Pixel 7A costs $499 and is available today, while the Pixel Fold runs a whopping $1,799 and is due out in June. Here’s what you need to know and where you can order / preorder them.

Starting with the budget option, the Pixel 7A promises a lot of value if you prefer Google’s version of Android, want a phone that isn’t too big, and don’t want to spend a ton of money. The 7A maintains a 6.1-inch OLED display — the Goldilocks size, if you will — though it now reaches a higher 90Hz refresh rate for smoother scrolling, which is a first for the A-series. The Pixel 7A also offers support for wireless charging, which, though limited to a slower 7.5W speed, has been a glaring omission of the A-series for far too long.

In the past, the usual highlight of a Pixel A-series phone was a camera that matched the quality of the higher-end models. The Pixel 6A changed that by keeping the 5A camera in favor of using the same Tensor processor as the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro. Now, the 7A gets the best of both worlds by using the same Google Tensor G2 chip found in the Pixel 7 and 7 Pro and pairing it with a new 64-megapixel main camera and 13-megapixel ultrawide. The main camera actually packs more resolution than the Pixel 7, but it’s on a smaller-size sensor.

All of these new features sound great, but the phone also costs more than its predecessor. The Pixel 7A retails for $499, a price increase of $50 over the 6A (which has seen frequent discounts to $299). It still seems like a fairly good value, one you can preorder now directly from Google. Doing so also lands you a free case (while supplies last) and a $100 credit, which you can put toward your choice of Google Pixel Buds. The Pixel 7A is shipping now.

Google is taking its first real stab at the ultra-premium smartphone market by making its first non-slab smartphone. The Pixel Fold is a foldable phone much akin to the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold line, and as such, it unfolds from an outer phone-size screen to reveal a tablet-size display within.

The Pixel Fold shares some design aesthetics with the Pixel 7 and 7 Pro, but it goes beyond its lesser flagship cousins with its two screens and a slew of added features. It actually starts much smaller than other Pixel phones, with a 5.8-inch outer display and opens to a bigger 7.6 inches. And what’s particularly interesting about the Pixel Fold compared to Samsung’s offering is that it has a wider aspect ratio, so the outer screen doesn’t feel so tall and narrow. The Pixel’s hinge is also designed to allow secure positioning across its 180 degrees of motion, allowing it to more easily be used at different angles.

Inside the Pixel Fold is the same Tensor G2 as the Pixel 7, 7 Pro, and now, the 7A. And its triple-camera array offers close specs to the Pixel 7 Pro, with a 48-megapixel main sensor compared to the 7 Pro’s 50 megapixels, but the main sensor is slightly smaller. So what’s on offer still feels quite Pixel 7-generation, with the exception of that slick-looking foldability and size.

We’ll have to see how the Pixel Fold fully stacks up in our upcoming review, but if what you see excites you, you can already preorder from Google ahead of its launch in late-June for a pricey $1,799. Stepping up from the base 256GB storage to 512GB costs $1,919 and that configuration is also available for preorder (in black only) at Google. Preordering the Pixel Fold directly from Google also gets you a free Wi-Fi or LTE-connected Pixel Watch (a $349.99 to $399.99 value).