Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 boasts a faster chipset, 120Hz screen, and 50MP camera (Image: SAMSUNG)
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 is here. As the name suggests, this is the fourth-generation of Samsung’s innovative folding phone, which opens like a paperback novel to reveal an expansive tablet-like display while still fitting in your pocket. The Galaxy Z Fold 4 arrives with a faster processor, new colours, and support for the S Pen stylus to boost productivity. It’s also the first handset to ship with an all-new version of Android, dubbed Android 12L, which is specifically designed for large screens and foldables.
Galaxy Z Fold 4 arrived alongside a new version of the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4, Galaxy Watch 5, and Galaxy Buds Pro during the latest Galaxy Unpacked announcement. Pre-orders for all of the latest Samsung kit are already live and there are some seriously generous deals. Galaxy Z Fold 4 and Galaxy Z Flip 4 pre-orders arrive in exclusive colours, 12-month subscription to Disney+ for free (worth £79.90), one-year of Samsung Care+ cover (worth up to £109) for any accidental drops, and up to £580 off with a supercharged trade-in value for your existing Samsung, Apple, Google or other brand smartphone.
The South Korean firm has tweaked the dimensions of the phone. While the width of the Cover screen remains the same as last year, Samsung has increased the height by a few millimetres. That boasts the folding display to a whopping 7.6-inches and changes the aspect ratio, which Samsung says will be more conducive to productivity and gaming on-the-go.
To really maximise the expansive main display, which boasts a 120Hz high refresh rate, Samsung has worked hard to ensure the under-screen selfie camera is more invisible than previous generations. From a normal viewing distance, this small camera, which peers out from beneath the pixels of the display, should be almost invisible. This 10MP camera is perfect for selfies or video calls on the larger screen.
Powering the Galaxy Z Fold 4’s bigger screen is the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1, the latest system-on-a-chip from US brand Qualcomm. This should improve processor-intensive tasks, like running multiple resource-hungry apps side-by-side on the main display. Switching between the two screens should also be a little snappier. Galaxy Z Fold 4 also supports 5G, so you can enjoy faster downloads over these upgraded mobile networks for stutter-free video calls, speedy file transfers, and buffer-free boxset binges.
Protecting the Cover screen on the Galaxy Z Fold 4 is Gorilla Glass Victus+, the toughest glass available from Corning. This is the same strengthened glass found on almost all flagship Android smartphones, including the Galaxy S22 series earlier this year. Like these handsets, Samsung has also used its strongest aluminium armour frame on its latest Galaxy Z Fold.
On the subject of durability, Samsung says its new Fold 4 is rated to withstand 200,000 fold and unfolds. To put that number in perspective, if you unfurl the main display 50x every day …the strengthened hinge mechanism and folding screen should last over 10 years.
The Galaxy Z Fold 4 is IPX8 rated, which means that it can endure a swim in fresh water up to one-metre in depth. That means your shiny new phone will be able to shake-off a drop into the sink or, heaven forfend, the toilet. Knocking over a drink on the folding phone won’t require you to lock away the Galaxy Z Fold 4 in a box of rice for the next three days. Unfortunately, the Samsung handset isn’t rated against solids, so we don’t know how the hinge mechanism will deal with small particles, like pocket lint or sand.
Fold 4 arrives with a larger, more durable 7.6-inch display with a hidden under-screen camera (Image: SAMSUNG)
Flip over the Galaxy Z Fold 4 and you’ll find a new trio of cameras. The 50MP main sensor, which should provide plenty of detail in your shots, is accompanied with a 12MP ultra-wide lens to squeeze in skyscrapers and a 10MP Space Zoom camera that offers up to 30x zoom. Samsung says its improved cameras will offer 25% brighter images. Better Optical Image Stabilisation, OIS, on all three cameras will remove hand-shake and offer sharper shots in low light and using the dedicated night mode.
The Galaxy Z Fold 4 is the first device to hit store shelves with Android 12L, a special version of Android created by Google for large-screen experiences, including foldables.
Android 12L carries a few software tweaks that should make it easier to take advantage of the bigger screen fitted to the Galaxy Z Fold 4, including a new MacBook-like taskbar that shows all of your open apps in a single row. Tapping on app icons will enable faster switching between open apps – boosting productivity on the main 7.6-inch screen, Samsung says. Multitasking is also now controlled with new swipe gestures.
With the foldable closed, the 6.2-inch AMOLED screen takes centre-stage (Image: SAMSUNG)
The Galaxy Z Fold series remains the only folding phone in Samsung’s lineup that supports its S Pen stylus. A custom-designed variant with a softer tip – to avoid damaging the supple, folding screen – has been engineered for the new handset.
With the S Pen stylus, Galaxy Z Fold 4 owners will be able to annotate webpages, sign PDFs, jot down handwritten notes, doodle, and tap around spreadsheets on the expansive main screen. DeX is still supported out-of-the-box, enabling Galaxy Z Fold 4 owners to plug the handset into an external monitor to use like a laptop.
Prices start from £1,649 for the Galaxy Z Fold 4 with 256GB storage built-in. Samsung also sells models with 512GB for £1,769 and 1TB maxing-out at £2,019. The Galaxy Z Fold 4 is available in Greygreen, Beige, and Phantom Black. Samsung has reserved one final colour – Burgundy – as an exclusive for its own online and high street stores.