When it comes to Samsung’s folding devices – the Galaxy Z Fold7 and Galaxy Z Flip – are aimed at completely different users. While the Fold7 is the flagship high end device the Flip7 is sleek and built for fun.
The Galaxy Z Flip7’s unique form factor means you’ve got a large screen fully-fledged smartphone that literally folds in half to easily fit in your pocket or purse.
The inner display is 6.9-inch and the device is ever so slightly taller and wider than the Flip6 but the difference is hardly noticeable.
The Flip7 is 1.2mm thinner when it’s in the folded position which again is hardly noticeable.
The Fold7 went on a more radical diet and shed a few millimetres whereas the Flip7 basically stayed in shape.
The biggest change you’ll see is the front display which at 4.1-inches takes up the entire front cover with remarkably thin bezels.
The camera lenses are also inside the screen.
What we really like was fact you could do a lot on that front screen with the Flip7 closed including answering calls and messages.
It possible to install a few widgets to see your activity tracking, the weather and battery levels at a glance.
If you answer a call, it automatically turns in the speaker so you can carry on with the call handsfree.
And of course you can take your photos, videos and selfies through the front screen and, of course, you can see yourself on that front screen.
To take the shot hands-free simply hold up an open palm and a three-second countdown begins.
This means you’re taking your selfies with the better main cameras which are 50-megapixel wide-angle and 12-megapixel ultrawide. The inside camera is 10-megapixel.
We’d say if taking and sharing photos is more your jam then the Flip7 would be the preferred Samsung foldable.
The Flip7’s ability to open halfway and be positioned to take your photos is another advantage in the photo game.
The images taken with the main cameras are excellent quality and it even punches above it weight in low light conditions.
The only downside with the Flip7’s camera is the lack of telephoto zoom due largely to the folding form factor which could not fit this feature like a regular smartphone.
That might be a deal breaker for some customers who view the camera as one of the most attractive features of a device.
Under the hood the Exynos 2500 3nm processor which offers slick performance when opening apps and switching between apps.
The device is running Samsung’s One UI 8 which is a clean and easy to navigate interface.
And all that sits above Android 16 which brings Gemini AI and Google Assistant to the table.
Of course, there’s Galaxy AI at your fingertips to help you with writing tools and to boost your creativity and productivity.
The device has a 4,300 mAh battery, the largest ever for the Z Flip, which Samsung says can handle 31 hours of video playback on a single charge.
We got a full day out of the battery – it was on its last legs when it was time for bed so it was a no-brainer charging the device overnight.
The Flip7’s 4,300 mAh capacity is just 100 short of the Fold7’s battery. The Fold7 powered a front screen and an 8-inch internal screen and we got a day and half out of that battery.
So for the Flip7 to just make it to the end of the day powering smaller screens was surprising. But we were never stranded with no battery so it wasn’t really an issue.
The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7 is available now and is priced at $1,799 (256GB) and $1,999 (512GB).
VERDICT
The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7 has made the flip phone cool again. It is a sleek and fun smartphone that can do everything a regular smartphone can do but the Flip7 just does it in its own unique style.
