Extra display screen, extra battery however one thing’s lacking

Samsung’s annual foldable refresh features a trio of units this 12 months. Whereas the Z Fold 7 comes with a top-tier processor and cameras, the Z Flip 7 carries over many technical particulars from its predecessor. The truth is, essentially the most important improve this 12 months is a extra expansive entrance show, or Flex Window, as the corporate prefers to name it.

Samsung has additionally, in some way, added an excellent larger battery to a slimmer foldable, which is technically spectacular. Nevertheless, the corporate made minimal software program additions and modest enhancements in locations. The upgrades are good, however are there sufficient of them?

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Samsung has caught as much as certainly one of its few foldable rivals by considerably rising the entrance show from 3.4 inches to 4.1 inches. The 2 digital camera cutouts are the one issues interrupting this brilliant, vivid show.

Regardless of larger screens (and battery), the Flip 7 can be thinner than final 12 months’s mannequin. It measures 6.4mm (0.25 inches) thick, down from 6.9mm (0.27 inches). That is equal to the Galaxy S25 edge, the place the most important promoting level is its thinness. I shouldn’t must say this, however that thickness doubles once you fold it away: Samsung says it’s 13.7mm (0.54 inches) when closed. Nevertheless you measure it, that is the thinnest Flip but.

Samsung / Engadget

The Z Flip 7 has respectable battery life, larger screens and extra AI smarts. Nevertheless, the cameras are dated and Samsung isn’t providing sufficient utility on this foldable’s second display screen.

Professionals

• Larger entrance display screen
• Higher battery life
• Slimmer design

Cons

• Cameras are dated
• Entrance display screen utility remains to be restricted
• Sluggish cost pace

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The Flex Window now has a 120Hz refresh price, can attain peak brightness ranges of two,600 nits (matching the S25 Extremely) and options the thinnest bezel but (1.25mm) of any Samsung smartphone show. The brightness improve is an important improve on a display screen that’s used primarily to look at your system from throughout a desk or exterior in daylight. Samsung mentioned it was in a position to additional lengthen the show to the sides by making use of a water-resistant coating on elements beneath the AMOLED show. This meant much less bezel is required across the display screen’s perimeter.

Samsung additionally expanded the foldable’s principal display screen to six.9 inches — a notable step up from the earlier mannequin’s 6.4 inches. The corporate additionally properly shifted nearer to a extra typical smartphone show ratio of 21:9. Whereas it’s not fairly the identical as, say, the Galaxy S25 or iPhone 16, video content material now matches higher.

Earlier Z Flips had extra elongated screens, making it laborious to achieve the higher corners when utilizing one hand. Whereas the Z Flip 7 has a greater side ratio, it’s additionally larger, which sadly means it has the identical challenge. If Samsung had modified the side ratio whereas maintaining the display screen measurement, it might need struck the ergonomic candy spot.

Not for the primary time, Samsung says it’s additional strengthened the Flip’s hinge mechanism. Whereas I can not attest to its longevity, the Flip 7 does shut with a beefier ‘thunk’ than its predecessors.

I like that it takes just a little bit extra energy to open as a result of it makes the entire system really feel extra stable. When you’re hoping that is the 12 months the place the show crease disappears, I’m afraid that isn’t occurring. For individuals who have by no means owned a foldable although, the Flip 7’s crease is basically unnoticeable.

The cameras

The story of this 12 months’s Flip’s cameras? Extra of the identical. The Flip 7 has the identical 50-megapixel f/1.8 major setup with optical picture stabilization (OIS) and a 12MP ultra-wide lens with a 123-degree subject of view. There’s a 10MP digital camera on the within, too, however with the Flip’s improved entrance display screen, you actually ought to be utilizing the first digital camera duo.

One of the best photographs come from well-lit scenes. Samsung’s Night time Mode is just a little aggressive, but it surely’s nonetheless nice for nighttime pictures, even when it leaves an over-processed look on pores and skin tones and faces. The Flip 7 defaults to 12.5-megapixel photographs, however you may change to 50MP stills if you’d like all of the element — and you’ve got a gradual hand. There’s no devoted telephoto digital camera, which implies the zoom is restricted to a 2x crop, hindering the Z Flip 7’s versatility. As soon as once more: if you’d like a foldable with the perfect cameras, you’ll must go along with the Fold collection.

In regard to video seize, the Flip 7 can file video in 10-bit HDR, up from 8-bit, for extra coloration accuracy and element. And you’ll nonetheless maintain the Z Flip 7 like a retro camcorder, which stays way more fulfilling than it ought to be.

Software program

Regardless of the larger display screen, Samsung hasn’t actually advanced its Flex Window’s software program this 12 months. There are a number of enhancements, although. When utilizing the entrance show to take selfies and movies, interface icons and mode buttons will float across the show to get out of the way in which of what it detects you’re making an attempt to take photographs of. When you’re wanting to make use of a particular filter in your pictures, the Z Flip 7 can present a reside preview of every filter earlier than you apply them.

Two different software program additions to the Flip collection are the Now Bar and Now Temporary, introduced in this year’s S25 series. The Now Bar is Samsung’s spin on the iPhone’s Dynamic Island, displaying pertinent ongoing or time-sensitive data that isn’t fairly a notification, however one thing you would possibly need to find out about. This consists of health metrics, climate or reside updates from ride-share apps like Uber.

You may faucet into the Now Bar with out opening the cellphone, and you will not must unfold it should you’re seeking to work together with Google’s Gemini Stay both. It’s one other Android characteristic that appears well-suited to foldables, as you may speak to Gemini with minimal bodily interplay on the Z Flip 7.

To make use of most different apps, you’ll nonetheless want to put in the Multistar launcher (which is made by Samsung) as a way to view and use fundamental software program like Gmail and Chrome. That is the workaround for now, as Samsung hasn’t expanded the authorized record of six apps which might be allowed to run on the Z Flip 7’s Flex Window — a brief record which bafflingly consists of Netflix.

Battery life and efficiency

Regardless of being even slimmer than final 12 months’s mannequin, the Flip 7 has a 4,300mAh battery that’s 300mAh bigger than its predecessor’s. That, together with a brand new processor (its do-it-yourself 3nm Exynos 2500), has led to a leap in longevity.

In our customary battery rundown checks, the Flip 7 performed steady video for 18 and a half hours. That’s an enormous bounce from the 13-hour rundown I bought from the Flip 6. I used to be so shocked I ran the check two extra occasions to verify and bought comparable outcomes.

The brand new chip by no means felt significantly sluggish, both, whether or not I used to be gaming, utilizing Galaxy AI options or finishing different taxing actions. That mentioned, the cellphone would get heat, each in my hand and in my pocket, throughout digital camera testing and location-based duties, like utilizing Google Maps and CityMapper.

In my day-to-day use, with heavy testing, I’d get by way of a stable day and a half earlier than I had to consider recharging. Sadly, the Galaxy Z Flip 7’s wired charging speeds nonetheless high out at 25W, which Samsung has the gall to name Tremendous Quick Charging. It’s the identical pace because the Z Flip 6 (and the bottom S25), however when different telephones are utilizing 45W cost speeds (or larger), it’s just a little underwhelming, particularly on a premium system like this.

Wrap-up

By refreshing the design and additional slimming down the Z Flip, Samsung has made its smaller foldable simpler to deal with. On the identical time, it’s achieved an engineering marvel by squeezing in bigger screens and a extra substantial battery. Nevertheless, sure features of the Flip 7 are missing, most notably the cameras, which haven’t been modified since final 12 months.

Samsung additionally must put extra work into its Flex Window. Whereas the power to make use of most apps on the smaller entrance show is right here, it’s nonetheless a fussy implementation and most of them aren’t tailor-made for the tinier display screen. There’s untapped potential right here and the Z Flip 7 doesn’t push its class of foldables ahead by a lot.