Foldable telephone nirvana (for a worth)

After a number of generations of iterative updates, it looks like Samsung tossed the Galaxy Z Fold 7 right into a Hyperbolic Time Chamber to create a surprising gadget that is leaner, stronger and extra highly effective than earlier than. The perfect half although is the telephone appears to be like and capabilities similar to an everyday handset now that there’s much less bulk to lug round. However at a second’s discover, it might go Tremendous Saiyan by opening as much as reveal a good bigger 8-inch show to grow to be a real multimedia Raidboss. Sadly, it is nonetheless extraordinarily costly at $2,000. Although in the event you can deal with the worth, in loads of methods, Samsung has lastly achieved foldable telephone nirvana with the Galaxy Z Fold 7.

Design: Chef’s kiss

When Samsung debuted its up to date tremendous smooth design language on the Galaxy S25 Edge, it felt like a novel technique to reimagine the S25+ as a extra participating gadget. However when the corporate gave the identical remedy to the Z Fold 7, that engineering turned one thing really transformative. In comparison with its predecessor, Samsung’s large foldable for 2025 is 10 p.c lighter at simply 215 grams. The larger drop is available in thickness with Galaxy Z Fold 7 measuring a whopping 26 p.c thinner (simply 8.9mm when folded). This represents the largest generation-over-generation lower for the whole Z Fold line, which is form of stunning contemplating it is occurring seven years in. The result’s a foldable that’s mainly the identical measurement and weight because the Galaxy S25 Extremely (it is really a bit narrower), which is not any imply feat for a category of devices that has been tormented by additional heft since they first got here out.

What is likely to be simply as spectacular is that Samsung hasn’t actually minimize corners to ship the Z Fold 7’s streamlined dimensions. You continue to get an IP48 ranking for mud and water resistance (which might deal with submersions of as much as 5 ft for half-hour) together with Gorilla Glass Ceramic 2 in entrance and Gorilla Glass Victus 2 in again. Samsung additionally fully re-engineered its Armor FlexHinge, which glides open and closed like a dream. Samsung even says that Z Fold 7’s ultra-thin glass is 50 p.c thicker than earlier than whereas additionally sporting a brand new titanium lattice that provides further assist and sturdiness to the telephone’s versatile show.

Inside, Samsung has switched away from the under-display sensor used on earlier fashions in favor of a extra conventional hole-punch digital camera. This can be a little bit of a disgrace because it provides a small blemish to that in any other case attractive display. Nonetheless, with the panel now measuring 8 inches throughout (up from 7.6 on the Z Fold 6), there’s extra of it to get pleasure from even after you account for the small cutout. Plus, the transfer to a higher-res 10-megapixel sensor for this digital camera ends in considerably higher picture high quality than any of Samsung’s under-display modules.

The one small design quirk is that generally the telephone would not unfold all the best way, usually stopping simply brief at 179 levels — very like the unique Pixel Fold. That stated, you may all the time make it go absolutely flat with a bit of additional stress, although more often than not I do not even hassle as a result of that is the form of factor that you do not actually discover except you are particularly in search of it.

Shows: Now even greater, each in and out

As for brightness and picture high quality, Samsung’s panels are nonetheless unmatched. Along with a bigger fundamental show, the Z Fold 7’s exterior Cowl Display screen is barely greater at 6.5 inches. Extra importantly, it is noticeably wider too whereas sporting even thinner bezels, which makes the entire telephone really feel extra usable. The sensation of holding a thin baton I obtained on earlier fashions is totally gone. Each screens additionally assist a 120Hz refresh charge and might hit a peak brightness of two,600 nits. And when in comparison with rivals just like the Pixel 9 Professional Fold, the Fold 7’s shows simply pop a contact extra due to barely richer colours and saturation.

After introducing S Pen integration on the Z Fold 3, Samsung has eliminated stylus assist for this mannequin — a giant downgrade which will anger longtime Z Fold followers. The corporate claims it made this choice after seeing “very low” S Pen utilization on earlier generations, which frankly is not all that shocking. However, as one of many spotlight options that separated Samsung’s large foldables from virtually all of its rivals, it is nonetheless unhappy to see it go.

Efficiency and software program: The quickest large foldable telephone

The Galaxy Z Fold 7 unquestionably packs top-tier efficiency. It is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy chip together with 12GB or 16GB of RAM and as much as 1TB of storage. All the pieces feels quick and snappy whereas OneUI 8 and Android 16 convey app optimizations that assist profit from the telephone’s large show.

The largest eye-opener for me was after I in contrast how lengthy it took the Z Fold 7 to launch my present favourite cellular sport, Sword of Convallaria, in opposition to the Pixel 9 Professional Fold. Even with the elevated efficiency of Google’s latest Tensor chips, Samsung’s foldable loaded the sport in 13 seconds in comparison with 18 seconds for the Pixel. Which may not sound like a ton, nevertheless it’s round 25 p.c sooner and when it is one thing you do a number of occasions a day, shaving off even a couple of seconds provides up quick..

Cameras: A significant decision bump

Whereas the Z Fold 7’s ultrawide and 3x telephoto cameras are largely unchanged, the telephone encompasses a large picture improve due to a brand new 200MP sensor for its fundamental digital camera. That is primarily the identical element Samsung used within the S25 Extremely and S25 Edge, and it delivers a much-needed bump in picture high quality.

In vibrant mild, the Z Fold 7 simply retains tempo with the Pixel 9 Professional Fold. In sure conditions like when snapping pics of meals, some might desire its pictures due to Samsung’s hotter shade profile. The telephone nonetheless tends to oversharpen issues, however colours are vibrant. For individuals who wish to maximize decision, you may choose the telephone’s full 200MP mode (pictures are captured at 12MP by default). At evening, the Fold 7’s pictures remained surprisingly sharp. I nonetheless desire the Pixel 9 Professional Fold resulting from its extra correct white stability and infrequently sharper focus, although Samsung’s telephone is not far behind.

Doubtlessly the largest shortcoming on the Fold 7 is that its 3x optical zoom cannot fairly match the 5x telephoto cam on the Pixel 9 Professional Fold. However for followers of group pictures, Samsung added a brand new selfie digital camera with a wider 100-degree subject of view.

Battery life and charging: Strong longevity, however nonetheless solely Qi 2 prepared

Whereas the Z Fold 7’s 4,400mAh battery is identical measurement as its predecessor, you’ll get barely elevated longevity resulting from improved energy effectivity from its processor. In our native video rundown check, the Z Fold 7 lasted 20 hours and 50 minutes when utilizing its fundamental 8-inch show and 26 hours and 22 minutes with its exterior display. Relying on which show you employ, that is between 45 minutes and an hour longer than what we obtained from the earlier mannequin, which is good to see contemplating battery life was already fairly stable.

Sadly, Samsung hasn’t modified a lot relating to recharging. The Z Fold 7 helps wired charging at as much as 25 watts — which is relatively common for a contemporary flagship — alongside 15 watt wi-fi charging. And like the remainder of the 2025 premium Galaxy line, this telephone is merely Qi 2 prepared, which implies there is no built-in attachment system for magnetic equipment like charging pucks, card holders and battery packs. So if you wish to use peripherals like these, you may have to get a case with full assist for Qi 2.

Wrap-up

I’ve all the time stated that Samsung is at its greatest when it focuses on {hardware} design, and the Galaxy Z Fold 7 could also be among the finest examples of that. With its newest flagship foldable, Samsung has eliminated one of many remaining obstacles stopping folks from making an attempt out the brand new breed of telephones: extreme measurement and weight.

By widening its cowl show, the Z Fold 7 appears to be like and acts similar to an everyday smartphone, which is nice for checking messages, wanting up instructions or snapping a photograph. If you wish to get actually immersed in a present, film or sport, you may open up that stunning versatile show, which is now even bigger to your viewing pleasure. The telephone’s higher-res fundamental digital camera additionally brings upgraded picture high quality whereas its Snapdragon 8 Elite chip offers it a efficiency edge over rivals just like the Pixel 9 Professional Fold.

I do not love how Samsung is backtracking on options by eradicating S Pen assist and reverting to an old-school digital camera cutout as an alternative of an under-display sensor for its fundamental show. However at the very least within the case of the latter, that change comes with a lot improved picture high quality, which is a giant improve for video calls.

With the Galaxy Z Fold 7, you actually do get the perfect of each worlds. Its new design is simply as smooth as comparable conventional flagships whereas hiding a bigger show that makes the necessity for small tablets out of date. Sadly, with a beginning worth of $2,000, Samsung hasn’t addressed the final roadblock stopping folks from making an attempt out a tool which may fully change the best way they use their telephone.