Tech enthusiasts ask for innovation, not déjà vu. That’s why watching JerryRigEverything’s latest video on the Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold felt like reliving a frustrating loop—except this time, it ended with literal fireworks.

As someone who’s followed the foldable smartphone evolution, I expected Google to finally crack the structural problems that haunted the Pixel Fold lineup. After all, the original snapped near the antenna lines by the hinge, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold repeated the blunder, and now, unbelievably, the Pixel 10 Pro Fold sticks with the exact same design choice. It’s tech’s answer to building a third Death Star with the same weak spot.

Google claims the Pixel 10 Pro Fold is both water and dust resistant, touting that much-hyped IP68 rating. All this for a phone pitched as ready for anything.

But the headline is the catastrophic structural weakness at those infamous antenna lines. During JerryRigEverything’s standard bend test, the phone fractured exactly where every Pixel Fold before it has failed. Worse, this time, the battery went into thermal runaway—a first in a decade of such tests. Watching a new flagship phone go up in smoke shouldn’t be part of the review experience.

What’s galling isn’t just the repeat failure, but the lack of meaningful change. Despite two years of feedback (and public durability disasters), Google refused to relocate or reinforce the hinge-side antenna lines. It’s as if customer feedback gets filed away with the instruction manuals—never actually used.

Google can hype IP ratings and new color finishes all it wants, but durability is the real test. A foldable meant to last a decade needs to survive more than lab conditions; it must endure sweaty pockets, accidental drops, and the general chaos of daily life. The Pixel 10 Pro Fold, sadly, didn’t make the cut.

If you’re eyeing the foldable trend, my advice is to wait. Not every innovation is ready for “prime time” just because a company says so at a launch event. As for Google, here’s hoping next year’s model shows they’ve actually learned something—other than where not to put their fire alarm.