First impressions of the ultra-slim foldable

Design and screens

• Ultra-slim dimensions
• Lighter than the Galaxy S25 Ultra
• Larger internal and external screens

Samsung’s big-screen Galaxy Z Fold has had a bit of a reputation for being thicker and chunkier than foldable alternatives from the likes of Honor, Oppo and Huawei over the past few years – but the new Z Fold 7 does away with that entirely.

Compared to last year’s Galaxy Z Fold 6, this is a huge leap forward in terms of design and foldable technology, with the Z Fold 7 now comfortably able to sit alongside ultra-thin alternatives like the Oppo Find N5 and Honor Magic V3 (and soon to be Magic V5!) and no longer stand out like a sore thumb.

In terms of numbers, the Z Fold 7 now measures in at 8.9mm thick when closed, and a delightfully thin 4.2mm when unfolded. That is still slightly thicker than the Galaxy S25 Ultra’s 8.2mm when folded, but it is 3g lighter than the candybar phone at just 215g. 

For context, Samsung has shaved about a quarter of the weight and thickness compared to last year’s Galaxy Z Fold 6 – and it’s immediately noticeable when picking it up. 

It’s also available in some seriously attractive colour options this year, including my personal favourite, Blue Shadow, alongside Jetblack and Silver Shadow, while Mint is a Samsung Store exclusive. 

This year’s Fold, based on my hands-on experience ahead of launch, is an absolute joy to handle, both in its folded and unfolded forms. The thin, lightweight nature of the foldable means it no longer feels bigger or bulkier than the Xiaomi 15 Ultra I’m using as my daily driver at the moment, and as such, there’s no real compromise in terms of design. 

In fact, putting the phone next to the Oppo Find N5 – the world’s thinnest foldable until very recently – there’s very little between them. Both measure in at the same 8.9mm when closed, and there’s only 0.01mm between them when unfolded. Seriously, this is Samsung foldable tech at its very best, and it’s what I’ve been waiting for from the company.  

Despite the ultra-thin dimensions, Samsung has doubled down on durability with the introduction of a new Armor FlexHinge system that the company claims disperses stress and protects display integrity, while a combination of Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on the rear and Ceramic 2 on the front screen should protect the panels from scratches and the like.

It’s also still IP48 rated, like its older sibling. That would’ve been great if Honor hadn’t just announced that its upcoming Magic V5 will offer improved IP58 and IP59 resistance. Still, that is a rarity, and among non-Honor foldables, it’s still some of the best around. 

That’s also helped by smaller improvements, like a wider cover screen and a more regular 21:9 aspect ratio as a result. I’ve always found that the Z Fold cover screen has been a little too tall and narrow for my liking, and though Samsung has slowly tweaked the shape over the past few years, this is the first year where it feels like it has really nailed it. 

It’s much easier to type on the 6.5-inch cover screen as a result, and there’s slightly more screen real estate to take advantage of compared to the Fold 6. It’s also comfortably packed with high-end screen tech, including an LTPO-enabled 120Hz refresh rate, AMOLED screen tech and a boosted 2600nit peak brightness for HDR viewing. 

Combined with the cover screen’s ultra-slim bezels, it definitely has an air of the S25 Ultra screen experience – even if it’s not quite as technically accomplished.

Unfold the slimline foldable and you’ll be faced with a new, larger 8-inch screen than the 7.6-inch alternative from last year – another benefit of making the cover screen that little bit wider.  

As you’d expect, the high-res 8-inch screen is packed with flagship tech, matching the exterior panel in most respects – both are AMOLED screens with smooth 120Hz refresh rates and even the same peak brightness – but the screen just feels more solid this time around. 

It’s largely due to a new grade 4 titanium lattice that sits beneath the foldable screen, which, when combined with 50% thicker ultra-thin glass, has significantly less flex when tapping and swiping on the screen. I remember Honor doing something similar with the Magic V3 last year and being similarly impressed – it’s one of those elements that’s hard to quantify, but makes all the difference to the everyday experience. 

Yes, there’s still a bit of a crease despite the use of a new waterdrop-style Armor FlexHinge system, but it’s nowhere near as egregious as it has been in the past. It’s much easier to look past this time around, with a shallower dip when running your finger past the central crease, but it is still there if you’re hunting for it.  

Cameras

• 200MP main camera from Galaxy S25 Ultra
• Tweaks to auxiliary lenses
• No more under-display selfie camera

Camera tech is an area that foldables in general tend to fall behind in compared to regular candybar phones, typically because there simply isn’t enough space to fit larger components, particularly sensors, into an ultra-thin chassis – but Samsung has made strides in this generation.

It has ditched the 50MP main camera of the Z Fold 6 for the same 200MP main camera as the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra. I actually suspect it’s closer to the compact 200MP sensor used in the Galaxy S25 Edge as that’s also suitably slimline, but either way, Samsung promises a 44% uptick in brightness and a 4x boost to overall detail. 

That’s paired with a 10MP 3x telephoto and 12MP ultrawide. The spec is identical, but Samsung says these are new lenses, with the ultrawide now offering macro photo capabilities, while its larger pixel size allows for a 56% boost to overall brightness. Considering the Z Fold 6’s ultrawide was the weakest of the trio in low-light settings, this is a much-needed upgrade.  

I couldn’t exactly put the lenses through their paces in a well-lit indoor hands-on environment, but the few snaps I did take showcased plenty of detail and vibrant tones, especially from the new main lens – but I’ll have to wait until I spend more time with the phone before I comment on raw camera performance. 

As with the auxiliary lenses, Samsung claims that the 10MP cover and internal selfie cameras are also new, with a wider 100-degree FOV making it a better option for group selfies and video calls, particularly if you’re doing any kind of presentation. 

The bigger change for most, I suspect, will be Samsung finally ditching the under-screen camera tech, reverting instead to a regular cutout. Samsung’s UDC was never that great – it was both clearly visible and had hugely negative effects on the camera quality – so it’s a change I welcome with open arms. 

Performance and software

• Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy
• OneUI 8 with updated Galaxy AI smarts
• Relatively small 4400mAh battery

Samsung went left-field with the new Z Flip 7 by offering its own Exynos 2500 chipset rather than the Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy found in the S25 collection – but don’t worry, the Z Fold 7 does feature the top-end Qualcomm chipset. It makes sense, given its focus on performance and productivity.

Either way, that’s paired with either 12GB of RAM if you go for the 256- or 512GB variants, or a whopping 16GB of RAM if you go for the top-end 1TB model. It’s safe to say that the phone absolutely flew during my hands-on time, with instant app opening, smooth scrolling and lag-free multi-window use – but given we’ve seen a similar spec on the S25 Ultra, it’s not exactly a surprise.

The chipset, more importantly, powers the phone’s Galaxy AI smarts, some of which have been upgraded as part of the new OneUI 8 experience. Yep, we’re skipping OneUI 7 and headed straight to 8, based on the new Android 16. Samsung certainly doesn’t want a repeat of last year’s delayed OS upgrade debacle, it seems…  

Improvements include boosted Circle to Search smarts that can now help you get gameplay tips without actually leaving the game you’re playing, as well as a foldable-optimised layout for Gemini that appears in a smaller window on the larger internal screen – though as it’s a Google-powered feature, I expect this will also come to other phones in the near future. 

You can also drag and drop AI results from one app to another app using the split-screen technology, while editing a photo on the internal screen will provide a new side-by-side preview to see exactly what has been changed. There are also improvements to existing elements like audio eraser tech and photo editing capabilities. 

None of these are exactly revolutionary features, but they all add to the already solid Galaxy AI featureset available, including features like Now Brief, which made their debut on the Galaxy S25 collection earlier this year.

And, as always, Samsung has committed to a market-leading seven years of OS upgrades for the Z Fold 7, so it should continue to improve with age like a fine wine. 

If the Z Fold 7 has one single flaw, I’d wager it’d be battery life. Of course, this isn’t something I’ve been able to test just yet, but with the same 4400mAh cell, bigger screens and a beefier chipset, it doesn’t look great – especially when you consider the much smaller Z Flip 7 has a 4300mAh battery. You need more than an additional 100mAh to power those larger screens… 

It’s once again down to Samsung’s reluctance to adopt silicon carbon battery technology – an issue that also presented itself with the Galaxy S25 Edge earlier this year. 

Samsung could have mitigated that somewhat with faster charge speeds, but it appears that the charging speed will remain at 45W, the same as last year’s model. Considering the Find N5 offers 80W, it’s one of the few elements of the Z Fold 7 experience that still feels slightly dated.