What is happening
Samsung has just announced the Galaxy Z Flip 4, the new iteration of its foldable phone.
why does it matter
Flip phones have been widely available for about three years, but they still represent only a fraction of the smartphone market. The Z Flip 4 and the Fold 4 are Samsung’s attempt to change that.
What follows
Samsung will launch the Galaxy Z Flip 4 on August 26, starting at $1,000.
Samsung announced the Galaxy Z Flip 4 during its Unpacked event on Wednesday as part of its latest effort to popularize foldable phones. The Z Flip 4 has new software that takes advantage of its foldable design, improved cameras with better low-light photography, and a bigger battery. It goes on sale on August 26 and starts at $1,000 (£999, AU$1,499).
According to market research estimates, the Galaxy Z Flip has proven to be the most popular foldable to date. But in the industry, high prices, inferior cameras and battery life compared to standard phones, and a lack of compelling features have hampered the overall appeal of foldables. With the Galaxy Z Flip 4, Samsung addresses some of these concerns, but not all. More importantly, it’s also advancing the audience’s understanding of foldable devices like the Z Flip.
Samsung is trying to show that the appeal of the Z Flip 4 is beyond its compactness. That’s why it leans towards Flex mode — the feature that splits apps between the top and bottom of the screen when it’s folded in half. You’ll now be able to use the bottom half of the screen as a trackpad to navigate across the top of the screen, an update that should make it easier to manipulate apps in Flex mode.
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This feature is new to both the Galaxy Z Flip 4 and Z Fold 4, though Samsung said it would also evaluate bringing it to older foldables. In the short time I spent with the Z Flip 4, it seemed to work pretty smoothly after enabling the feature in the settings menu.
More from Samsung Unpacked
The cover screen of the Z Flip 4 will also receive some new features. You’ll be able to send quick replies to text messages, make phone calls and take photos in portrait mode from the outer screen.
Galaxy Z Flip 4 cover screen.
Lisa Eadicicco/CNET
All in all, these updates are a step in the right direction for the Z Flip 4. It’s unclear whether the expansion of Flex Mode and additional cover display functionality will be enough to convert those who aren’t already interested in phones foldable But it does show that Samsung is paying more attention to software in addition to hardware, which is crucial to demonstrating the promise of foldable phones.
Otherwise, the Z Flip 4 will receive a handful of routine updates that you’d expect to see in any new smartphone, foldable or not. It will be powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 processor, a slightly improved version of the chip that powers the Galaxy S22 line. While the resolution of the main camera is the same as in the Z Flip 3 (12-megapixel wide and ultra-wide lenses), the Z Flip 4 inherits the improved night photography of the Galaxy S22. This means it will have a brighter large lens and a larger pixel size, plus support for portrait mode shots in the dark. The Z Flip 4’s battery size also increases to a 3,700mAh capacity compared to its predecessor’s 3,300mAh battery.
These are all welcome changes that reduce the compromises you have to make when choosing between the Z Flip and Samsung’s non-folding Galaxy S phones. The previous Z Flip 3’s battery life was underwhelming, and the camera system felt like “the equivalent of the cameras you’d find on a $700 phone,” as my colleague Patrick Holland put it.
The design of the Z Flip hasn’t changed much, apart from a few refinements. The hinge is slightly smaller and now has a glossier finish than the Z Flip 3. The inner screen of the Z Flip 4 is 45% more durable while the outer is coated with Corning’s Gorilla Glass Victus Plus. Color options include the new bora purple, which Samsung just introduced for the Galaxy S22 along with rose gold, blue and graphite. These differences aren’t immediately noticeable when you hold the device, but you can see them when you look at the Z Flip 3 and Z Flip 4 side by side.
Lisa Eadicicco/CNET
The Z Flip 4’s $1,000 price tag is still too high for many people, especially since there are so many compelling standard phones on the market that cost hundreds of dollars less. With some new software improvements and routine upgrades to the camera, processor and battery, the Galaxy Z Flip 4 doesn’t feel like a monumental upgrade.
But it still represents a turning point for Samsung’s foldables. Samsung has gone from making apps to run smoothly on flexible screens. Finally, it’s trying to find new ways to interact with apps that you couldn’t get with a non-folding phone.