Galaxy Z Fold4 and Flip4: Samsung's folding phones go into the next round

At its Galaxy Unpacked event, the Korean tech company unveiled this year's foldable phones alongside new smartwatches and Earbuds: The Galaxy Z Fold4 and the Galaxy Z Flip4. Only the Fold line is actually the fourth generation of the device. For the Flip line, it's only the third iteration, as it was launched a year later.

Galaxy Z Fold4

So the Fold is the older sister of the two. It is also the larger model, opening lengthways and offering plenty of surface area when unfolded: Namely, a 7.6-inch Dynamic Amoled display with a refresh rate of up to 120 hertz. The outer display measures 6.2 inches and is also Dynamic Amoled and also manages up to 120 hertz. The displays and the back of the Fold4 are covered with Gorilla Glass Victus.

Compared to last year's version, the Fold4 is 17 grams lighter, weighing 254 grams. This is despite the fact that the new Fold4 still has a 4400 mAh battery. This still charges quickly with a maximum of 25 watts. The Fold4 has not forgotten Reversed Wireless Charging either.

Inside, a Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 with 4nm technology computes - one of the few noticeable changes to the Fold3, which installed the Snapdragon 888 5G with 5 nm technology. The new processor enables 5G, Wi-Fi 6e and Bluetooth 5.2.

The Fold4's new lenses

The second important change on the Fold concerns the cameras. There are different ones emblazoned on the back than on the predecessor: now you'll find a main camera with 50 megapixels, an ultra-wide-angle camera with 12 megapixels and a 3x zoom lens with a 10-megapixel sensor. So the camera hump of the Fold4 now houses the same lenses as the Galaxy S22 and S22+.

The resolutions of the other cameras have not changed. The under-display lens again takes selfies with four megapixels and the cover lens with ten megapixels. The Fold4 continues to record video in 4K at 30 fps.

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The S Pen also comes into play on the Fold4. But it has to be purchased separately and has no place in the device itself. For this, there is the Standing Cover with Pen. This cover contains the S Pen Fold Edition. Apart from it, only the S Pen Pro is compatible with the Fold4.

A USB-C port, the side fingerprint sensor and NFC are still on board. In addition, the Fold4 is just as waterproof as its predecessor with an IPx8 certification. It comes with Android 12 and Samsung's OneUI 4.1 from the factory. The Fold4 comes in the colours Phantom Black, Beige and Graygreen. When it comes to storage, you can choose between 256 and 512 gigabytes as well as a terabyte.

Galaxy Z Flip4

The Galaxy Z Flip 4 comes with less storage to choose from: 128, 256 or 256 gigabytes. Fittingly, it's the handy model with a smaller screen. At least when both folding smartphones are unfolded. At 6.7 inches, the Dynamic Amoled display of the Flip4 is larger than the touchscreen of the folded Fold4. Samsung also offers a maximum refresh rate of 120 hertz on the smaller Flip and uses Gorilla Glass Victus front and back
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With the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1, the Flip4 has received the same processor update as the Fold 4.The Flip4 weighs 187 grams and is thus 5 grams heavier than its predecessor. This could be due to the battery, among other things, which now has 400 mAh more capacity at 3700 mAh. Samsung has also increased the fast charging function for the Flip4 from 15 to 25 watts. This is possible via the familiar USB-C port.

Cameras remain the same

Unlike the Fold line, Samsung has not treated this year's Flip devices to new cameras. That means the dual camera setup on the outside remains: Both the main sensor and the ultra-wide lens take photos at twelve megapixels. You can still take selfies on the front with a 10-megapixel lens. As with its big sister, videos are recorded in 4K at 30 fps.

Bluetooth 5.2, NFC and Wi-Fi 5 are brought to the Flip in this year's edition. The Flip phone is available in Graphite, Bora Purple, Pink Gold and Blue.

Available from the end of August

Samsung plans to start selling the Galaxy Z Fold4 and Galaxy Z Flip4 from 26 August. Pre-orders are said to be available now. The recommended retail price starts at 1799 Swiss francs for the Fold4 and 1099 Swiss francs for the Flip 4.