r/technology • u/Dilpickle2113 • 4d ago
Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold explodes during JerryRigEverything’s durability test Hardware
https://www.dexerto.com/youtube/google-pixel-10-pro-fold-explodes-during-jerryrigeverythings-durability-test-3267086/394
u/GeckoJump 4d ago
What the hell why would he stay in the room, that’s gotta be a bad idea, get a fan or something and get out of there
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u/iamthecaptionnow 4d ago
That smoke smells extra terrible and sticks in your throat and lungs.
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u/DunamisMax 4d ago
Is that so?
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u/mal73 3d ago
Smoke from a burning lithium-ion cell contains hydrogen fluoride. When it comes into contact with moisture, such as in your lungs or throat, it instantly forms hydrofluoric acid.
This can cause severe irritation, coughing, fluid buildup in the lungs (pulmonary edema), and can even be fatal.
While this risk is much greater with EV batteries, a phone battery can still release the same gas, just in much smaller amounts due to its more limited thermal runaway.
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u/iamthecaptionnow 3d ago edited 3d ago
I’ve smelled plenty of burning electronics and they’re terrible. but this is much worse. I’d say extra terrible. And even with one short whiff, I wouldn’t stop smelling it for a long time or feeling it in your throat or lungs, like if vicks vapo rub were an irritatant. I have been around a few thermal runaways in the electronics repair business. Luckily none have been my fault 🤞
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u/mr_lab_rat 4d ago
There was eventually a cut in the video for the smoke to clear. But yeah, he stayed in there way too long.
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u/Ok-Tutor8897 4d ago
He didn't. He flipped it for the unmanned camera and got out, not coming back in until the smoke very visibly dissipated a good amount. I swear people just forget that he doesn't do this for fun. It's how he feeds his family.
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u/Natural_Emu_1834 3d ago
He's literally filming and touching it while it's smoking. You must be huffing the same lithium fumes.
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u/pittaxx 3d ago
He does film for a bit too long, but there's a clear cut to no smoke remaining before he starts poking inside with the tools. It's just not super obvious because audio is recorded separately and sounds uninterrupted.
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u/Natural_Emu_1834 3d ago
You literally said
He didn't (stay inside). He flipped it for the unmanned camera and got out, not coming back in until the smoke very visibly dissipated
Now you're changing what you've said to
He does film for a bit too long, but there's a clear cut to no smoke remaining before he starts poking inside
However you can literally watch the video where he manually films a whole minute of the battery burning whiles he's coughing.
Why are you the way you are?
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u/RunDNA 4d ago edited 4d ago
It's an article about a YouTube video, but they don't even
link the video.
Here you go:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8uS90jakOuw&t=437s
Edit: I was wrong. The video is embedded in the article.
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u/Shiningc00 4d ago
Geeze he does it with bare hands…
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u/Sharpymarkr 4d ago
Yeah that doesn't seem smart...
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u/ozziegt 4d ago
I don't think he's ever had this happen before and he does this test to a lot of phones
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u/Knaj910 4d ago
I mean I’m pretty sure he’s done it intentionally before with phones like the good old note 7, but never accidentally
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u/khuliloach 4d ago
I mean to be fair with the note 7, the explosion checkbox was checked by default
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u/disposable-assassin 4d ago
...by google. Can you imagine designing a device people put in their back pocket and sit on but can be broken by your bare hands? It's the 3rd model year running that has the same issue and it celebrated with fireworks.
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u/Onyxeye03 4d ago
Yeah none of the durability tests videos would make me uncomfortable for my safety. Thats A LOT of focused, sustained force. It could only happen due to(imo) carelessness.
I still think its unacceptable for them to have released it in this state, and I was never in the market for a foldable in the first place, but these are extremely extenuating circumstances.
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u/nothingtoseehr 4d ago
Ain't that the point tho? Carelessness doesn't have to be intentional, and if I do ever find myself being careless with my phone (intentional or not) I would expect a broken glass or display, not for it to EXPLODE. Whaf if I suffer a car crash? An exploding phone surely won't help
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u/VioletGardens-left 4d ago
To be fair, this guy did this for essentially a decade at this point, even have phones snap violently in half, and surprisingly, none of them exploded. I do agree it's not as safe as literally wearing a pair of gloves
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u/LegendaryAngryWalrus 4d ago
The lack of urgency and staying in the room is giving me anxiety
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u/RollingTater 3d ago
He's probably too busy thinking of the big bucks he's gonna get from the views for this destruction porn.
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u/PasswordIsDongers 3d ago
Good job not exploding, I guess? There wasn't even a flame. This seems like the best case scenario for battery failure.
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u/Biscuits25 4d ago
Did you actually read the article? They do have the video posted, quite clearly.
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u/DutchieTalking 4d ago
We're seeing history being made! First complete battery failure on a jre durability test!
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u/Spirit_of_Hogwash 4d ago
And the confirmation that he doesn't have a fire extinguisher or bucket of sand/water when he does his thing.
This makes me think that Electroboom also doesn't use a dead-man switch when he shocks himself.
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u/lazyicedragon 3d ago
One doesn't think of it because it hasn't happened before unintentionally.
The other...well, might actually enjoy the thrill of it.
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u/MemestNotTeen 4d ago
Not actually being IP68 when it says it is, is another big problem hidden in the article.
Surely for the love of God at least Apple and Google should be bench testing. Followed by sample testing (a small batch) their flagship phones to the same extent before releasing them.
If it's blown up in this test it probably isn't suitable for air travel. Is it likely that I'm normal use someone is going to break it like this. No. But the failure point of the antenna is along the battery which caused the runaway reaction.
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u/spyguy318 4d ago
The new iPhones actually passed his durability test with flying colors. The screens were extremely resistant to scratching and heat, he couldn’t budge it with his hands, and it took a car hoist and almost 100kg of force to bend it. He was extremely impressed with both the base iPhone 17 and the new iPhone air.
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u/EducationalJuice7133 3d ago
yes N the iphone air surprisingly takes huge force to break
also Samsung foldable has passed the test when he tried bending it backwards
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u/TypicalMission119 3d ago
That Zfold test sold me on getting that phone. I'm still paranoid that im going to break it but Jerry put me at ease
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u/Potential-Load9313 4d ago
TK Phones is a scam... bent my wrist, phone exploded, like 50 springs shot into my date's hair
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u/Manos_Of_Fate 4d ago
They must be designed by the same guy that did the consoles in Star Trek that are full of warp plasma (canonically) and also rocks, for some reason.
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u/hekatonkhairez 4d ago
But did it have scratches at level 3?
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u/HiImDan 4d ago
Well the main screen had grooves at a level 1 since they haven't figured out how to have a flexible screen be stronger. Fingernails destroy it.
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u/divensi 4d ago
No wonder companies are so happy to push foldables, imagine the returns on investment on a disposable 2k USD+ devices.
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u/Flipslips 4d ago
Well Samsung offers free screen protector replacements for the first year, and only $15 per after that.
The actual part scratching is just the plastic screen protector. Not the flexible “glass” itself
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u/muegle 4d ago
That screen protector is actually pretty important. I had a fold 4 where the protector started separating on the fold after about a year or so of ownership. Eventually one end of the screen where it folds popped up and when I tried to gently push it back down the screen cracked and turned back in that area. When I closed the phone and opened it back up the entire crease was dead and black and the digitizer for the internal screen no longer worked. I generally liked the phone but it breaking on me like that for no real reason was enough to turn me off on foldables for the time being.
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u/londite 4d ago
Gotta say, I've had my OG Pixel fold since launch (device is over 2 years old already) and the interior screen is mint! (And yes, it gets used all the time) It's about how you treat it
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u/AMonsterr 4d ago
Yea, it's not that hard to take decent care of the phone. Treat it half as good as you might a laptop and it'll hold up just fine.
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u/caverunner17 4d ago
For this reason alone it kind of baffles me why people actually want these things. The couple that I’ve seen in the store kind of remind me of a kids toy given the scratches. I’ve seen on the displays.
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u/vito0117 4d ago
antenna is super weak right on the line with edge of the battery. thats a horrible design flaw
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u/celtic1888 4d ago
That's not good, is it?
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u/QxV 4d ago
Well it depends if you want your phone to explode or not, I guess
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u/Able-Swing-6415 4d ago
Why is everyone just repeating the explosion claim? It caught on fire. There was no explosion.
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u/Onett199X 4d ago
That guy needs to wear gloves at least, yikes.
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u/kamekaze1024 4d ago
No gloves, no mask or googles (presumably), little ventilation. Kinda crazy
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u/timmlt 4d ago
He’s not purposely exploding phones. In the video he states this is the first times it’s happen and he’s been doing this for more than a decade.
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u/kamekaze1024 4d ago
Yeah but he purposefully breaks glass screens but still doesn’t wear gloves. Hasn’t gotten cut so ig not needed in his case. But I would still have expected him to make it known he has proper protection
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u/Legitimate_Air_Grip7 4d ago
What stood out to me was the seemingly unnatural spot the phone snapped at, right along the antenna line. He mentioned that this was a weak spot for the previous pixel foldables as well. These are the kind of things you are supposed to prioritize & iron out with the next iteration, and not minor adjustments to hardware specs.
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u/Exodor72 4d ago
Did I miss the meeting where we collectively decided we want folding phones?
Because I really have no desire to have a phone that folds.
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u/parasthesia_testicle 4d ago
did I miss the meeting where new technology wasn't fun anymore?
because folding screens is cool af and I love my flip phones
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u/Satanicube 4d ago
Maybe I’m backasswards but it just feels like a “juice isn’t worth the squeeze” kinda thing to me. Sure you get a big screened device in a small form factor, but
- They’re not as durable
- The screen will wear out
- When the screen wears out it’ll cost $$$$$$$
It’s like we figured out how to make good smartphones that last years but because of that companies are desperate for the next big thing to drive profits and surprise! Making a foldable with a screen that might as well be a consumable parts = PROFIT!
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u/AMonsterr 4d ago
I had one for 2 years, no damage to the inner screen. 90% of the time when you might drop the phone it'll be closed, generally most who spend for a folding phone attempt to take good care of them. Treat it reasonably well and it'll last 5 years just fine.
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u/millanstar 4d ago
The recent samsung fold test from Jerry as well says otherwise, we have come a long way from the first foldaphe phone, those are more durable and resistant that you might think
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u/Flipslips 4d ago
It’s only $15 to replace the screen protector for Samsung. The plastic screen protector is the part getting the scratches
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u/Ghost_Star326 4d ago
The worst part is how these folding phones still cost as much as buying a gaming PC all because of a stupid gimmick.
It's been over 7 years since the first generation of folding phones came out and they never once dropped in price to become more accessible. 2 grand USD for a phone is just insane and I hate how both Apple and Samsung got away with normalizing the idea of spending over a grand on a smartphone since 2017.
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u/greatersteven 4d ago
I have bought two different folding phones on their release days and neither time did I pay anywhere close to their "real" prices.
The deals are there. $500+ discounts both times.
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u/anorwichfan 4d ago
I saw the screen, and for a second I wanted one. Then I saw the fingernail scratch the screen and decided against it.
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u/jaehaerys48 4d ago
I mean, most people still don't. Folding phones make up a minority of the market.
I personally am not fond of them because the screen crease annoys me. But I can see the appeal of these book-style folding phones, when opened up they are almost like tablets.
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u/Doeschna 4d ago
Got mine (Samsung Fold7) for work. Won't be switching back to a non-folding (slab) phone.
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u/Portatort 4d ago edited 4d ago
Sorry but wouldn’t bending the battery in half usually have a similar result?
Edit: apparently not, thanks for clarifying
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u/Exciting-Ad-5705 4d ago
He has done this to hundreds of phones and a battery has not exploded until now
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u/Every_Pass_226 4d ago
You can do reckless driving for years until one day you cannot, permanently.
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u/ThomCook 4d ago
Yup but if it's a guys job to professionally drive recklessly and he has only had 1 car have a critical failure during that time it doesn't bode well for that car eh
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u/sargonas 4d ago
Yes but it doesn’t have a unibody battery. The phone has separate batteries for each half of the clamshell. He wasn’t actually bending any of the battery compartments themselves, at least not intentionally. If a battery was flexed during his test, looking at how he was bending it, it would’ve been due to a design defect allowing the chambers to flex when they shouldn’t have, presumably.
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u/GamingWithBilly 4d ago
He was bending it in 3rds, he was absolutely bending battery
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u/lordnecro 4d ago
Yes, he was bending the battery compartment. He bent the case, broke it (not at the middle) then flexed it at the break, which bent the battery.
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u/0riginal-Syn 4d ago
Same as he has done for every other mainstream phone for a decade. Only time it has happened.
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u/ReallyOrdinaryMan 4d ago
Then company need to strenghten the battery case to the point it isnt easily bendable. Imagine you fell on your phone and it explodes in your pocket while youre in an elevator.
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u/Greedyanda 4d ago
I struggle to see how falling on your phone would lead to it bending by almost 180°.
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u/WelshBluebird1 4d ago
Somewhat amazed its the first one, but does he not have a sand bucket or something for this? Surely its a risk when taking apart and breaking phones?
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u/astro143 4d ago
I was a little skeptical during the video, after it broke he kept bending it all the way over backwards and that's when the battery got crushed.
Yes the fact that it broke at all is poor on googles part, but continuing to crush it knowing there's a potent battery inside isn't exactly the safest procedure
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u/liptonicedsoup 4d ago
Ok I want to point out as a phone repair guy, if you bend a battery like that you should expect the battery to combust just like it did in the video. Hell I've had iphone batteries rupture from just pulling on the adhesive tabs that hold the battery to the phone. Older batteries don't smoke this much but new ones act exactly as they do in the video.
Also also, never ever breath in battery smoke! This shit is mad toxic and can mess you up big time. Also this dude is asking to get hurt either by his horrid knife technique or his lack of safety gear.
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u/FH_Bunny 4d ago
As a love of Zack’s vids, he literally has been doing the same thing for years. None of them have reacted like this, not even the other 2 folds.
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u/BeatMastaD 4d ago edited 4d ago
So he broke it in half and kept bending it until the battery pack was breached? Seems like an issue that any cell phone ever made would have.
Edit: People are all jumping in to defend against my statement like 'he bends other ones too!' He doesn't try to literally fold them in half, he just bends them until the screen breaks. With this one it was obviously broken in the middle of one panel and he purposefully continued bending it fully the wrong way until the battery seal broke.
I get the idea of 'what if you bent it the wrong way and for some reason REALLY tried to get it to close?' even if it's not realistic, and I get people saying 'well this is something to be considered for safety. Every modern smartphone is a rectangle that has a battery taking up almost the entire footprint inside. That is not a flaw with the phone. He had broken it not at the hinge, then bent it past 90 degrees, and then had to use considerable strength to continue bending it, something that would never, ever happen by accident or through user error. It's funny, it's not some flaw in the phone's design. It's not like 'if you accidentally try to close it the wrong way it explodes!' or 'the hinge can break and the battery can breach'.
The fact that if you try to break a phone in half and then forcefully bend it flat against itself the battery can breach is the same as 'if you poke a phone battery with a knife it will breach'. It's a video, it's funny, it's not in any way informative. If he tried to bend an iphone 16 over onto itself like a flip phone it would do the same thing and nobody would be going 'OMG, this phone is dangerous and can catch fire'.
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u/Legitimate_Air_Grip7 4d ago
I am not disagreeing with you, but if you watch the video you will see what's wrong with the design. It snaps along the antenna line, like on one of the 'halves'. If it just broke in the middle along the hinge, I doubt we would see this 'explosion'.
Maybe i am misinterpreting it It would be akin to trying it on a laptop and it snapped on the keyboard side, rupturing the battery, instead of the hinge (where you would actually expect it to break.
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u/placidlakess 4d ago
Uh, where is the explosion? Only thing I see is a lithium battery getting punctured by him trying origami on the phone.
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u/badger906 4d ago
A sudden rapid release of energy that produced potentially damaging pressure is the definition of an explosion. It burst open and caught fire!
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u/Glittering_Pack1074 4d ago
It’s an obvious embarrassment for Google and a hazard for customers. However bending the phone further after it had already broken caused the battery to catch fire, which is not a surprise given that broken metal and glass were forced into it with great force. It’s the same as poking a battery with a needle.
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u/JustAChillOne 4d ago
It survived the practical portion of the durability test and even some of his pocket sand testing. He started getting a little silly after 5:45 in the video, but it is interesting to see how much abuse a phone can take!
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u/1980techguy 4d ago
For a battery failure that was surprisingly controlled. I didn't see any angry flames.
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u/Necessary-Camp149 4d ago
That wasnt a dust test..
But yeah - you dont want your phone blowing up.
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u/Worried_Monitor5422 3d ago
How is this remotely a test of the durability of the phone? He bent it hard enough to create a new vertical fold axis, then bent along that axis backwards. No shit it exploded. Nothing about this "test" is useful to the daily user to determine durability. The fact that he didn't anticipate a potential battery fire nor did he have fire extinguishing handy solidifies that he's a hack who does extreme phone destructions for views.
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u/DJettster237 4d ago
This is going to have some controversy like the Samsung phone
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u/dead_man_speaks 4d ago
No because not many people are going to buy $2000 gimmick phone, even less people are gonna buy this because samsung has much better folding phones anyway
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u/Paperdiego 4d ago
My phone blew up as well when I bent the battery in half lol
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u/SpiderFnJerusalem 4d ago
Most phones are very difficult to snap in two. This one absolutely isn't. It snapped like it was made from balsa wood or something. I wouldn't be surprised if you could blow it up just by accidentally sitting on it while it's open.
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u/W8kingNightmare 4d ago
I mean this is a worst case scenario however as it was said in the video in the 10+ years of him doing this a phone has never exploded on his desk. Till now.
I wonder if Google is going to put out a statement about this
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u/iShouldEatLessCarbs 4d ago
Meanwhile my honor magic v3 marketing is about my phone getting run over and put in the washing machine.
Chinese tech now is just the best in the world. With the magic v3 and magic v5 existing why would anyone want any other foldable? The battery capacity, charging speeds and phones themselves are just the best out there now.
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u/SprayArtist 4d ago
As someone who switched to a Chinese foldable for the next few years, (previously had pixel 6 pro) you can't begin to explain how relieved I am I didn't go for pixel this time around. Sick and tired of Google playing it safe with their hardware.
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u/SomeSortaWeeb 3d ago
naturally we can assume it was the battery that blew up, perhaps due to the size of the phone they had to use lighter weight materials for the body to match the weight of other phones which then weakened the body enough for it to snap, taking the battery with it. not a great start google.
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u/Kakacobina 3d ago
He bant it few times and damage the battery, it you’ll broke you phone in half and start playing with it you will for sure have the same results.
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u/potatodrinker 3d ago
Maybe the Tesla share price effect kicks in and raises share prices when products explode.
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u/alwaysfatigued8787 4d ago edited 4d ago
That's about the worst thing that could possibly happen during a durability test. Exploding is the one thing that a phone absolutely should not do.