Joe Maring / Digital Trends
The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip had a giving class in 2023 . Last year ’s speech sound bring out the Flip series ’ largest covert screen , a new hinge that closed fully shut , and other worthwhile spec rise across the board . After a year where the Galaxy Z Flip 4 felt like it was coasting by , theGalaxy Z Flip 5showed why Samsung was still one of the best in the folding stage business .
But now it ’s 2024 , and for this year , we have theSamsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 . Where last year ’s Z Flip was sheer and exciting , this yr ’s example is … not . That ’s not needfully a speculative thing , as the change Samsung did make — while subtle — are very bright . But in a year when competing foldables are better than ever , aggregate with some linger issues Samsungdidn’taddress , I also have some reservations .
Joe Maring / Digital Trends
Here are my five big takeaway after going hands - on with the Galaxy Z Flip 6 .
It looks and feels fantastic
We ’ll start with some positives , begin with the aim . The Flip 6 weighs the same as the Z Flip 5 ( 187 grams ) and is ever so slimly thinner when it ’s fold up shut — 14.9 mm this year versus 15.1 mm last year . The Flip 6 does n’t find noticeably thinner than its predecessor , but I still appreciate Samsung ’s pursuance to keep make the Flip diluent and thinner .
A change I found much more detectable , and one I ’m a big buff of , is the lustrelessness aluminum frame on the Z Flip 6 . It ’s a big variety from the calendered and shiny one on the Z Flip 5 , and in my belief , it ’s infinitely better . It appear nicer , feels better , and does n’t appeal fingerprints and smear the mode last year ’s telephone did .
I alsoreallylike this year ’s people of color for the Z Flip 6 — for the most part . It ’s usable in Silver Shadow , Yellow , Blue , and Mint . If you order the Flip 6 online from Samsung ’s website , you get a few additional undivided shades to choose from : Crafted Black , White , and Peach .
Of the “ veritable ” colors , yellow and passel are my personal favorites . The yellowness is nicely saturated and it ’s very clearly a yellow earphone — much more so than the “ yellow ” iPhone 15 . The mint is also really gracious . It ’s a bit more dull , but it ’s still a lovely , very pleasing color . For the online exclusive colors , peach is well the way to go . It ’s not a colour we see on phones very often , but I care we did . merge with the eloquent stress , it ’s quite the peach .
The rest of the colors also look very squeamish , minus the “ Crafted contraband ” option . It has a kevlar - like textured pattern on the back that ’s resonant of a Motorola Droid Razr . To my eye , it looks and feels a bit cheap . I clap Samsung for trying something different , but I ’m not a sports fan .
Finally! The crease is gone!
You know what I am a fan of , though ? The Galaxy Z Flip 6 ’s crease . Or , should I say , the deficiency thereof . Samsung ’s folding phones have had a very prominent and very noticeable creese on their display since the commencement , even including last year ’s model . This time around , at least on the Galaxy Z Flip 6 , the crease is barely there .
I played around with multiple Z Flip 6 fashion model during my hands - on time with the earpiece , and sure enough , the flexure is basically fit . It ’s stilltechnicallythere in the sense that you’re able to see the deformation in the display under sealed lighting condition , but there ’s a nighttime and day difference compared to the Z Flip 5 . Where you’re able to very easily feel the Flip 5 ’s crease any time you run your finger over it , it ’s barely perceptible on the Z Flip 6 . It ’s not quite as adept asMotorola ’s newest folding phones , but it ’s pretty darn closely .
Promising spec upgrades
look under the strong-armer , the Galaxy Z Flip 6 is n’t a drastic divergence from the Z Flip 5 . However , there is a honest share of upgrades that sound really promising .
For starters , the phone now has a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset . It ’s the special “ For Galaxy ” rendering of the chip , just like we view on the Galaxy S24 series , where it proved to be a rattling piece of silicon that cede excellent performance and great might efficiency . I was n’t able to put it under too much striving during my hands - on time , but the Flip 6 felt just as tight and jaunty as I could have hoped for while I used it .
talk of power efficiency , you also get a bragging battery this twelvemonth — specifically , a 4,000 mAh barrage fire , up from a 3,700 mAh cell on the Flip 5 . That ’s a pretty solid increase , and immix with a more efficient chipset , I ’m hoping it all makes a noticeable difference of opinion . The Flip 5 is a pretty mediocre one - daytime headphone , and the Flip 6 is in a secure place to ( hopefully ) change that .
And that ’s not all ! RAM has increased from 8 GB to 12 gigabit , there ’s now an IP48 rating instead of IPX8 , and both of the rear cameras — a 50 - megapixel independent sensor and a 12MP ultrawide one — are new .
I don’t like the cover screen
Now , onto a more negative note . The Galaxy Z Flip 6 ’s cover screen is completely unaltered from last year — and it shows . It ’s still just a 60Hz refresh rate , it ’s still a bare 720 x 748 closure , and it still has the uncanny folder - like form at the bottom .
Not only is the cover screen ’s hardware less impressive than the competition ’s , but the computer software is also still plagued with the same issues it had on the Flip 5 — specifically when it comes to break away apps . Once again , Samsung only countenance you to run a prize few apps on the screen screenland by nonremittal , such as Google Maps , Samsung Messages , and YouTube . If you desire to run other software , you need to go through the sameconvoluted process of download and setting up Good Lock . It was a bad and frustrating experience last year , and it ’s just as frustrating ( if not more so ) this class . specially in a year when Motorola go all out with the cover displays on its newest folding telephone set , Samsung is lagging behind more than ever before , and it really shows .
It’s more expensive than ever
There ’s another problem with the Galaxy Z Flip 6 : the price . After a few years of sticking with the $ 1,000 price shred for the Z Flip series , the Z Flip 6 is now $ 100 more expensive and starts at $ 1,099 . That ’s not ahugeincrease , but it ’s an increase even so .
If Samsung had made drastic change to the Z Flip 6 — such as tot a third rear camera , upgrading the covering screen , improving charge speeds , etc . — I ’d have an easier meter understanding the price hike . But Samsung did n’t make those drastic upgrades . The Z Flip 6 is certainly good than the Z Flip 5 , but not in a way where I can get behind it being $ 100 more expensive . You ’re trammel to get it for cheaper through various lot and promotions , both from carriers and Samsung itself , but it still does n’t feel great .
The Z Flip 6 has a lot to prove
After spending around two hours with the Galaxy Z Flip 6 , I ’m not entirely sure what to think about the earphone . On the one mitt , it does n’t appear to do anything instantaneously bad . The computer hardware is bully , the specs are solid , and the changes to the crease and design are very promising .
At the same meter , the cover screen — one of the most authoritative aspects of a foldaway like this — has n’t changed at all . combine with slow charge speeds ( 25W cable ) , the important but admittedly small specification bumps , and the increase price , the Z Flip 6 is a frustrating telephone . What drives that manoeuvre home even more so is theMotorola Razr Plus 2024 — which has more meaning upgrades over its predecessorandstill cost $ 1,000 . It ’s my current recommendation for the flip phone foldaway you should purchase in 2024 , and as much as I enjoyed my clock time with the Galaxy Z Flip 6 , I ’m not certain if it has what it ingest to change my mind .
