Samsung Galaxy Z Flip: Flipping Heck

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip: Flipping Heck

A bunch of foldable phones have hit the scene, from the flamboyant Huawei Mate Xs which may be a true smartphone/tablet two-in-one, through to the Motorola RAZR reprise; the last word reincarnation of old school style with new-age tech.

Beyond the folding screens, something of these phones have in common is their fragility. We’ve borked our Mate Xs already after the screen was dented while it had been in our pocket. Meanwhile, reports have surfaced round the web of the RAZR’s folding mechanism notwithstanding real-world use. Available on major networks, including Vodafone within the UK, however, Samsung is gunning for mainstream glory with its latest foldable, the Z Flip.

This clamshell seems robust, shiny and capable on the primary impression, with fewer compromises than the RAZR because of more power, more cameras and ultimately better specs. After living with Samsung's latest foldable for every week, however, are we convinced?

DESIGN: FLIP IT GOOD

The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip is that the first foldable phone we’re really comfortable using without mollycoddling it. Don’t get us wrong; the Z Flip still packs a fragile screen which is plastic (despite what Samsung says), and can’t handle anything more abrasive than a finger prodding it.

That said, unlike the Huawei Mate Xs, the screen is on the within of the phone, and is therefore protected. Additionally, unlike the Motorola RAZR, the screen itself doesn’t actually move.

On the surface may be a shiny Gorilla Glass 6 shell, available in Mirror Black, Mirror Purple, Mirror Gold or a flowery Thom Browne Edition. Closed, it’s a squat 87.4 cm tall, and a chunky 1.7 cm thick. Unfolded, the Z Flip’s dimensions match up with other phones just like the Samsung Galaxy S20 Plus, with a 6.7in screen and a slender 7.2mm thickness.

All the phone’s buttons are on the proper, and this includes an influence button which doubles up as a fingerprint scanner, and there is a volume rocker too. At the bottom, there’s a USB-C port, and a mono speaker, while the SIM slot’s on the left.

DISPLAY: THE LONG GLASS

On the fingerprint loving shell of the Flip may be a dinky screen clocking in at 1.1 inches, with a resolution of 112 x 300. This is often full-colour and may double up as a second viewfinder when taking snaps with the most camera.

Day-in-day-out, however, it is a clock and a notification ticker. As for the folding centrepiece, the Z Flip’s main display measures 6.7 inches, delivering a good bezel and a screen to bezel ratio of 82.5% - about an equivalent as that of the iPhone 11 Pro. Just like the iPhone, all foldable screens are OLED technology, so blacks are deep and inky, while colours pop.

The Z Flip's resolution of 1080 x 2636, put it on-par with the iPhone-series when it involves clarity, and HDR credentials pile up comparably too, so on paper, from a top quality point-of-view, this foldable hits the mark. In real-world use, it is not quite as rich looking, but it still does an honest job in comparison to the bendable competition. The Z Flip’s hinge is analogous thereto found on the Galaxy Fold. This mechanism leads to the foremost pronounced crease of all the foldables, as you'll figure out from the photographs during this review.

It definitely isn’t a deal-breaker, and isn’t something Samsung pretends doesn’t exist. That said, image purists who need a phone for watching on will consider it an excessive amount of a compromise. From a functionality point of view, however, the screen ticks all our boxes. It’s aware of the touch, gets as bright because it must and packs ample punch. Even when gaming, it works well - just don’t go stabbing it with sharp objects (or an excessively assertive finger.

CAMERA: OLD FAITHFUL

The Galaxy Z Flip’s camera may be a solid 8/10; nothing sensational, but a reliable setup nonetheless. It starts with a 12MP main camera that sports the precise same sensor as that found on the Galaxy S10; only this point around there’s none of that dual aperture witchcraft. Instead, Samsung keeps things simple with a hard and fast f/1.8 aperture, Dual-Pixel Autofocus and optical image stabilisation (OIS).

There’s no telephoto camera here, just a 12MP ultra-wide alongside the most snapper, and on the front may be a 10MP selfie camera, which is that the same as found on the whole S10 and S20 line. The phone’s foldable design makes for a handy self-standing camera when taking an extended exposure photo, and Samsung has customised the interface to require advantage of this.

If you'll find a surface, therefore, there’s an honest chance you won’t need a tripod if you’ve got a Z Flip. Despite the very fact we’ve seen this sensor before, the Z Flip’s pictures look mighty, with crisp clarity and ample dynamic range.

The trademark Samsung processing zing makes a return, but it doesn’t feel as full-on as that of the S20 Ultra, and therefore the OIS means it doesn’t bombard in the dark in automatic mode. The phone’s night mode can’t pile up to champs just like the P40 Pixel 4, but it definitely helps brighten things up well.

The Galaxy Z Flip's ultra-wide camera also does an honest job, grabbing plenty in-frame for sweeping landscape photos. While it’s a smidgen softer than we’d love it to be, with phones just like the OnePlus 8 and Oppo Find X2 Pro packing 48MP ultra-wide cameras - sharper by comparison, photos taken on the Flip are still rich and printable - just don’t pixel peep an excessive amount of.

The Galaxy Z Flip shoots 4K video at up to 60fps, and it’s held together beautifully because of the combined powers of OIS and bitmap stabilization (EIS). In turn, while Samsung’s latest foldable isn’t the simplest at anything, it's a minimum of middling to excellent at everything.

INTERFACE AND PERFORMANCE: UNFLAPPABLE

Running OneUI, Samsung’s custom spin on Android, the Galaxy Z Flip delivers a stable experience with excellent app support, albeit with a couple of too many apps pre-loaded for our tastes. The core Android experience is extremely familiar; virtually just like that found on the Galaxy S10 and S20.

Apps are often installed using the Google Play Store or Samsung’s own Galaxy Store, and therefore the phone comes pre-loaded with support for Samsung’s proprietary solutions, from white goods and connected living through to quick file sharing across Samsung devices.

If you’re sold into Samsung’s ecosystem, it’ll be a dream. If not, you'll need to ignore a couple of the UI elements. As far as UI elements that cash in of the flexible screen go, they're limited to Flex Mode, which segments the interface into the highest and bottom portions of the Flip’s half-folded screen. Handy for things like video calls, but nothing too mind-blowing and it only works with a couple of apps at the instant, with limited real-world use.

Powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 855+ processor, combined with 8GB RAM, the Z Flip isn’t rocking the newest and greatest specs (Realme’s X3 packs similar internals and costs £469). That said, it significantly outperforms its main competition - the Motorola RAZR, and does a fine job day-to-day. What Samsung’s clamshell lacks during a memory card slot, it makes up for in internal storage, with an ample 256GB inside.

We were concerned that the three ,300 mAh battery inside wouldn’t deal with each day of normal use, given the screen size, but it delayed , likely right down to the very fact the phone’s mini display saved us having to open it up once we needed basic information just like the time.

With 15W charging and wireless charging too, you've got options when it involves ways of powering it up. There’s no headphone jack on the Z Flip; neither is there a stereo speaker. Instead, a sole mono speaker sits at the bottom . It’s plenty loud and doesn’t sound too shabby - we made it through a few of episodes of Drag Race with the phone partly folded and propping itself up.

Overall, the sound quality was decent, and that we were living for the novelty-factor of a phone that would be its own kickstand.

SAMSUNG GALAXY Z FLIP VERDICT

When it involves real-world recommendations, the Galaxy Z Flip is our top foldable pick. Unlike the Huawei Mate Xs or Motorola RAZR, its screen isn’t exposed or sliding, so is a smaller amount susceptible to damage. Meanwhile, the durable Gorilla Glass clamshell protection on the surface is as hardy as we'd like it to be.

While the Flip doesn’t pack the utility of a phone that turns into a tablet, just like the Galaxy Fold, when it involves wow-factor, the Z Flip still has it decidedly . Is it well worth the hefty asking price? Definitely not if you would like maximum bang for buck; but if you'll afford it and crave a compact clamshell that unfurls into a full-screen smartphone, it’s the sole phone worth considering immediately .

GOOD STUFF

• Great design
• Nippy performance
• Novelty factor

BAD STUFF

• Front screen too small
• Main screen is fragile
• Mono speaker