Samsung says the first two generations of the Galaxy Z defined the foldable category, the third generation Z Fold focused on improving the S Pen’s durability, multitasking and support. Now the fourth Fold in the series has arrived with improved ergonomics, even more productivity features and noticeable camera improvements.
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold4 is 3.1mm shorter than its predecessor, but no wider: closed it measures exactly the same 67.1mm. However, thinner bezels allowed Samsung to widen the lid’s display by 2.7mm. This changes its aspect ratio from a lanky 24.5: 9 to a more reasonable (if still tall) 23: 9.
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 has larger displays, but overall it is smaller than its predecessor
Once opened, the new model is 2mm wider, but once again a bezel diet allowed the company to mount a 3.1mm wider display. The fold is also thinner, measuring 6.3mm open and 15.8mm closed (vs 6.4mm and 16mm) and is 8g lighter, dropping to 263g.
Let’s keep it open for now. The display still has a 7.6 “diagonal, but the aspect ratio is now 6: 5 (vs 6.2: 5). As before, this display has an adaptive refresh rate of up to 120Hz and a typical brightness of 1,000. nits The area above the camera below the display has a higher pixel density, which makes it less visible.
We’ll go back to the internal display because there are a number of productivity and entertainment features to cover, but first let’s take a closer look at the rest of the phone.
The frame is made of Armor Aluminum, the cover display and back panel are now protected by Gorilla Glass Victus +. The phone is IPX8 rated for water resistance (can be submerged in 1.5m of fresh water for up to 30 minutes). Both new Z phones have been independently certified to fold up to 200,000 times.
The triple camera on the back borrows from the Galaxy S22 and S22 +. It features a 50MP main module with a larger sensor that captures 23% more light. Camera improvements also include improved OIS and EIS.
The new 10MP telephoto lens brings things closer with 3x optical magnification (up to 2x), digital “Spatial Zoom” goes up to 30x. The 12MP ultrawide camera hasn’t seen many changes. For reference, the Z Fold3 had a triple 12MP camera setup.
The camera on the cover display is a 10MP (f / 2.2) unit, and the camera below the display still relies on binning to produce 4MP (f / 1.8) images.
The foldable form factor allows for some unique shooting modes. For example, when you zoom in you will see a “zoom map” across half of the display, making it easier to frame the shot. The two displays for Dual Preview both you and your subject can see the shot before pressing the shutter button.
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold4 is equipped with the powerful and efficient Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset, paired with 12GB of RAM. The storage capacity is 256GB or 512GB, a 1TB option is available in some regions exclusively from Samsung.com.
Battery capacity is the same as before at 4,400mAh. While the charging system has the same 25W, it’s actually faster than last year’s model – now a 30-minute charge gets you from a low battery to 50%, the Z Fold3 only climbed 33% in ours test. 15W wireless charging is also supported.
Samsung has teamed up with its partners and alone to provide a much improved software experience. There is now a PC-like taskbar at the bottom (similar to DeX), which gives you instant access to your favorite apps, recent apps, and even combinations of apps.
The new taskbar speeds up multitasking
For example, you can have Facebook and Facebook Messenger side by side (or even three or more apps at a time). Facebook itself has been optimized for the 7.6-inch screen and will show the full history plus the menu.
Facebook has been optimized to make the most of the large display
YouTube, Netflix, Disney + and Microsoft Teams are optimized to make the most of the foldable format. Some apps, particularly like the large internal display, such as Microsoft Outlook, Office, and Teams, as well as Google Meet, offer tablet-like functionality.
Popular streaming services and video conferencing apps have been optimized for the large 7.6 “display.
There is Flex mode: folding the phone in half into a position similar to a laptop. This supports the camera for video calls, no tripod is required (although there is a case with a built-in tripod). Apps that don’t natively support Flex Mode will instead take advantage of the TouchPad Flex Mode, which turns the bottom half of the screen into a touchpad and shortcut bar.
The S Pen has also learned a new trick, text extraction. Let’s say you’re viewing someone’s contact information and their address is stored – just highlight the address with the stylus and drag it to Google Maps to quickly start navigating. It’s like copying and pasting, but with the ease and precision of the S Pen.
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold4 will be available on August 26, starting at $ 1,800 / € 1,800 for the 12/256 GB drive (the 12/512 GB unit costs € 1,920, the 12 GB / 1 TB unit costs € 2,160) . Pre-orders are already open and advance orders for the Z Fold4 will include a free memory upgrade. Plus, you can lower the price up to $ 1,000 with the right trade-in. Samsung will also be launching a standing case with pen case.
There are three colors available at launch: the faithful Phantom Black, the new Beige and Graygreen, which is the distinctive color of this generation.
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold4 is available in three colors: Phantom Black, Beige and Greygreen
Head this way for our hands-on review of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold4.
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