The Google Pixel Fold will not be available until June, but that does not mean the company is not considering other types of foldable phone designs. In fact, Pixel Fold product managers seem very open to the idea, so don't be surprised if at some point a Pixel Flip appears.

The advantage of a flip-style fold is that the phone would be very compact enough to fit in a pocket, yet when opened, the phone would reveal a full-size flagship display. Another important point is that this type of device tends to be more affordable than the book-style foldable designs available.

Both the Pixel Fold and Galaxy Z Fold 4 start at $1,799, while the Galaxy Z Flip 4 is available for $999. The upcoming Galaxy Z Flip 5 will probably be priced the same as the previous model. Motorola is reportedly working on a new Razr 40 Ultra and possibly a more affordable Lite version.

To be clear, Google has not announced any official intentions to produce a foldable flip phone, but in an interview at Google I/O 2023, Google Pixel product manager George Huang expressed interest in this form factor.

"We're always looking at different types of devices, different types of technology, which is really interesting. We are definitely looking at that," Hwang said.

At the same time, Hwang said that Google is now very focused on getting the Pixel Fold execution right.

"What's important to us is that for everything we can bring, we want to focus specifically on the form factor of this [book] so that we can solve some key user issues, from the design to the apps to the camera," Hwang said.

For now, Hwang wants to make sure that the first Pixel Fold is something that users will want to carry around and use. And a big part of that is Google's decision to make the front display wider than competing products and to make the Pixel Fold thoroughly thin when open.

"When we started this, I challenged my team to carry this device and make sure that this wasn't just a luxury device, that this was a device that you wanted to use every day," said Google's CEO, David Harris. And with that kind of mindset, you can actually change the way you think about it and the tradeoffs you make."

The Pixel team also worked diligently to make the continuity between the outer and inner displays as seamless as possible; the Pixel team also wanted to make Fold's side-by-side multitasking as intuitive as possible by making it easy to discover They wanted to make Fold's side-by-side multitasking as intuitive as possible by making it easily discoverable.

But don't think for a minute that the Pixel Fold will be the only foldable to come from Google.

"We're pretty confident in what we're doing [with the Pixel Fold]. But we're always exploring other types of devices and other types of technology."