Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6: A Leap Forward in Foldable Technology

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 Review

The $1,899.99 Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 picks right up where the Z Fold 5 left off: It's an exceptionally versatile phone with enough power to handle most any task you throw its way. The improvements over its predecessor aren't groundbreaking, but its refined cover screen experience, increased durability, and reduced weight all help give it a premium feel in line with its price. The fantastic camera system, seven years of software support, and innovative Galaxy AI features are highlights, too. Our main complaint centers around the Z Fold 6's underwhelming charging specs, but that's not enough of an issue to prevent it from earning our Editors' Choice award. It's simply the best big foldable phone phone on the market. Design: A Familiar But New Bend The Galaxy Z Fold 6 measures 6.04 by 2.68 by 0.48 inches (HWD) when closed, spans 6.04 by 5.22 by 0.22 inches when open, and weighs 8.43 ounces. It's shorter, wider, thinner, and lighter than the Z Fold 5, which measures 6.10 by 2.64 by 0.53 inches closed, expands to 6.10 by 5.11 by 0.24 inches unfolded, and tips the scales at 8.92 ounces. The aging $1,799.99 Google Pixel Fold is downright hefty by comparison. It comes in at 5.50 inches by 3.10 inches by 0.50 inches closed, folds out to 5.50 by 6.24 inches by 0.23 inches, and weighs 9.98 ounces. All three of these devices fold flat when closed, a must for all foldable phones these days. The Z Fold 6 and Fold 5 have the same layout of buttons and ports. The volume rocker and power button/fingerprint sensor are on the right edge. The fingerprint sensor works well, with few errors. Thankfully, Samsung now allows you to input your fingerprint while the device is still closed. (This was not possible on the Z Fold 5.) Face Unlock is also an option, but it's less secure. A USB-C 3.2 port for charging and data transfer is at the bottom right of the opened device, while dual speaker grilles are at the left top and left bottom of the frame. Whereas the grilles for the latter have a sleek, slit-like appearance here, those on the Z Fold 5 have nine distinct holes. The SIM tray on the left frame accepts one physical nano-SIM; the Z Fold 6 also supports eSIM. Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2 covers the front screen and the back panel; this is the same material that protects the Galaxy Z Flip 6. According to Corning, this glass handles drops on rough surfaces better than the original Victus. The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra uses a newer material called Gorilla Armor, which resists scratches, protects from drops, and reduces screen reflections by 75%. I would like to see the Galaxy Z Fold series adopt the same options as the S24 Ultra in light of their higher starting prices. Samsung uses an enhanced Armor Aluminum for the Z Fold 6's frame, which is 10% stronger than the Armor Aluminum on the Fold 5. Also new for this model is official dust resistance. The Galaxy Z Fold 6 gets an IP48 rating, an improvement over the Galaxy Z Fold 5's IPX8 rating. Both can survive submersion in water, though the Z Fold 6 can also resist ingress of materials 1mm or larger. For comparison, the Pixel Fold has an IPX8 rating. The build quality of the Z Fold 6 is superb, with great attention to detail. The squarish corners and increased width are the biggest design changes. Galaxy Note and S24 Ultra fans will be familiar with the pressure of the corners, but some people might find them uncomfortable. I was aware of the corners at first, but they became normal to my hands after a few hours. Holding the closed Fold 6 on the hinge side is more forgiving, thanks to the hinge's curves. I found the Z Fold 6 more comfortable to hold while open than closed, thanks to the difference in weight distribution. The hinge operates smoothly with the right amount of resistance. The Z Fold 6 holds its angle from about 45 to 135 degrees; otherwise, it snaps shut or open. Like previous models, the device should survive 200,000 folds. OnePlus claims its foldable phone, the OnePlus Open, can withstand a million folds. Three cameras are on the rear in a raised, pill-shaped area, with a flash to the right. Otherwise, the back is a showcase for the colored panel. The Z Fold 6 comes in Pink, Navy, or Silver Shadow (the last the color of my test unit). Samsung also sells two exclusive colors on its website: Crafted Black or White. The matte finish on the back, frame, and hinge gives the Z Fold 6 a sophisticated look, though the back of my test unit was a smudge magnet. The Galaxy Z Fold 6 is compatible with the S Pen stylus on the inner screen, though it's an optional accessory. Samsung says that any S Pen that works with older Z Fold models will work on the Z Fold 6. Displays: Excellence on the Outside and Inside The outer display of the Galaxy Z Fold 6 measures 6.3 inches and has a resolution of 2,376 by 968 pixels. It also features an adaptive refresh rate of 1Hz to 120Hz, and a peak brightness of 2,600 nits, both specs it shares with the inner screen. This consistency between displays makes the experience feel cohesive. Additionally, the brightness of the screens makes them visible even in harsh sunlight. When I was taking photos on a sunny day, I was impressed that I could see both screens in vivid color. The front of the Z Fold 6 is more symmetrical than the Z Fold 5, the face of which is more like an exaggerated "D." That refinement makes the Z Fold 6 look more like a regular phone instead of a specialty one. Its larger cover screen is more comfortable to use than the 6.2-inch panel of the Z Fold 5 and doesn't add significant width to the device. Fold fans should enjoy this change, but it may still feel narrow to people coming from traditional slab phones like the Galaxy S24 or users of the wider Pixel Fold. The OnePlus Open is an attractive alternative since its 6.31-inch outer screen falls between the ones on the Z Fold 6 and the Pixel Fold. The inner screen measures 7.6 inches and has a resolution of 2,160 by 1,856 pixels in an almost square 20.9:18 aspect ratio. The Z Fold 5's main display is also 7.6 inches, though it has a resolution of 2,176 by 1,812 pixels in a slightly more widescreen, 21.6:18 aspect ratio. Because of those dimensions, the Z Fold 6 shows larger black areas when 16:9 video is letterboxed, and the video window is slightly narrower in width. The difference in viewing area is in the millimeter range, however. I think it's a fair trade-off for a wider front screen and a lighter overall weight. The under-display camera is unobtrusive and virtually disappears unless you seek it out. The crease area for the Z Fold 6 seems even shallower than that of the Z Fold 5, with less distortion, reflection, and rippling. You can still see the crease if you look for it, however. It's most visible when the display is off or very dark. If the crease bothers you, switching to Light mode (go to Settings > Display) can help mask the area. Performance: As Fast as Ever Samsung equips the Z Fold 6 with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy system on a chip (SoC) and 12GB of LPDDR5x RAM. This is the same amount of RAM in the Z Fold 5, the Galaxy S24+, and the Pixel Fold. 12GB is a great amount, but considering the high price of the Fold 6, I would have liked to see even more RAM on board. For comparison, the $649 Redmagic 9 Pro gaming phone ships with 16GB of RAM, while the $1,499 Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro Edition has 24GB. As for storage, three options are available: 256GB ($1,899.99), 512GB ($2,019.99), and 1TB ($2,259.99). All have UFS 4.0 storage for fast access and transfer speeds. Like many modern smartphones, there is no microSD card slot for expansion, which is something I will complain about forever. I tested the 512GB version. In day-to-day usage, the Z Fold 6 offers blazing performance. Apps launched quickly, multitasking worked seamlessly, and app switching was fast. The device never froze during testing and didn't require any restarts. To keep things cool and improve performance, Samsung says it has increased the size of the vapor-chamber thermal hardware by 1.6 times compared with the Z Fold 5. With normal usage, the Z Fold 6 never felt hot. We use a host of standardized benchmark tests to provide objective numbers for comparison's sake. On Geekbench 6, a suite of tests that quantifies raw computing power, the Z Fold 6 scored 2,231 on the single-core test and 6,821 on the multi-core test. Whether the phone was closed or open didn't have an effect on the scores. For comparison, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy-equipped Z Fold 5 scored 2,058 on the single-core test and 5,477 on the multi-core one. The Pixel Fold, which uses the Google-designed Tensor G2 SoC, fared much worse than both, with scores of 1,098 and 3,031. Just keep in mind that Tensor SoCs usually don't perform well on benchmarks; they are tuned for AI and machine-learning applications. On the PCMark Work 3.0 test, which evaluates general mobile tasks, the Z Fold 6 scored 17,214, which far exceeds the results of both the Z Fold 5 (15,742) and the Pixel Fold (11,921). To evaluate gaming performance, I ran GFXBench's Aztec Ruins test with the phone open. The Z Fold 6 pushed out 63fps at a resolution of 2,160 by 1,817 pixels. That's just a hair better than the Z Fold 5, which managed 61fps at 2,176 by 1,668 pixels. Both devices are worlds better than the Pixel Fold's 19fps output at 2,209 by 1,769 pixels. Next up: games! I played the resource-intensive Genshin Impact on the inner screen to evaluate real-world gaming performance. At the default low settings, the game ran smoothly. Ramping things to medium-quality graphics at 60fps posed no problem for the Z Fold; I enjoyed silky-smooth animations and no lag. At the highest graphics settings and 60fps, detail looked even better, and the animation remained fluid. A 20-minute game session caused the back of the device (the non-screen part) to become mildly warm, but never uncomfortable. Casual games like Alto's Odyssey ran perfectly. Battery Life: Long Runtimes, But Lagging Charging Speeds Like the Z Fold 5, the Z Fold 6 uses a 4,000mAh battery. For our rundown tests, we stream a full HD video on the device at full brightness. In this case, I tested the battery with the phone fully open. The Fold 6 survived 11 hours and 30 minutes in this scenario. That's 10 minutes better than for the Z Fold 5 and well beyond the 8-hour mark of the Pixel Fold. Charging the Z Fold 6 with a fast charger (you don't get one in the box) took the battery from 0% to 100% in 1 hour and 35 minutes, which is about 10 minutes longer than for the Z Fold 5. A 15-minute charge brought the Z Fold 6 up to 24%, while a 30-minute session got it to 42%. With the Z Fold 6, you get 25W fast wired charging, 15W wireless charging, and reverse wireless charging. I would prefer faster wired charging at a minimum, since the Galaxy S24+ and S24 Ultra both support up to 45W. Even the Pixel Fold can charge at 30W. The Samsung Fold line has been stuck on 25W charging for too long. This is something that must improve if Samsung continues to keep the phone's pricing this high. Connectivity and Calls: Superfast 5G and Good Sound The Galaxy Z Fold 6 supports 5G (sub-6GHz including C-band and mmWave), Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3, and NFC. On T-Mobile's 5G UC network in New York City, the Z Fold 6 reached a maximum download speed of 1.02Gbps (or 1,023Mbps) and an upload speed of 46.6Mbps. For comparison, the Z Fold 5 pulled 1.10Gbps down and pushed 26.6Mbps up on the same network and in the same location. The download speeds for both are excellent. When I connected it to a Wi-Fi 6 access point, the Z Fold 6 reached peak speeds of 282Mbps down and 14.8Mbps up. The Z Fold 5 fared better, with 338Mbps down and 15.0Mbps up. When I took the phones as far away as possible from the access point in my apartment, the Z Fold 6 dropped to 178Mbps down and 13.2Mbps up, while the Z Fold 5 hit 255Mbps down and 11.7Mbps up. These speeds are fine, though I would have liked the Z Fold 6 to include Wi-Fi 7 for the future. The Galaxy S24 Ultra supports that standard, for comparison. On a test call, the Z Fold 6 reached volumes of 69.1dB and 81.2dB, respectively, with the speakerphone and earpiece speaker. I find that volumes around or above 70dB are easy to hear in a room with moderate noise, for reference. The Z Fold 6 did a great job of rejecting background noise and isolating my voice for the call recipient. The stereo speakers of the Z Fold 6 sound good but can't output deep bass loudly. The lowest notes of The Knife's "Silent Shout" are difficult to hear, for instance. When I tried playing Metallica's "Enter Sandman," the speakers reached a volume of 92.6dB, which is good enough to fill a small room. Sound is clean and free of distortion even at the highest volume, though I still suggest you grab a pair of Bluetooth headphones to get the most detail out of your music. Cameras: Still Impressive Don't expect to see many major differences between the cameras for the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Fold 5. That's not a bad thing, since both phones take excellent photos. Samsung cameras tend to produce vivid, mildly oversaturated images, and the Z Fold 6 continues that trend. The phone does introduce improvements for low-light photography, however, with pictures showing more vibrant colors and brightness. Of course, the clarity of images in the Night mode depends on how steady you keep your hands. The Z Fold 6 uses a 50MP f/1.8 main camera with dual-pixel autofocus, optical image stabilization (OIS), and an 85-degree field of view. By default, the Fold employs pixel-binning to produce 12MP images with great clarity and vivid color. Full 50MP images show more detail and less contrast. A 12MP f/2.2 ultra-wide camera with a 123-degree field of view is also on board. Images from it show colors and detail consistent with those from the main camera. Samsung applies distortion correction to these photos, but some warping is still visible at the edges. The company says this camera has new low-light noise reduction capabilities. Low-light photos from this lens appear brighter, and with better color accuracy, than the equivalent from the Z Fold 5, though colors can still sometimes look splotchy. The 10MP f/2.4 telephoto camera has 3x optical zoom, phase-detection autofocus, OIS, and a 36-degree field of view. Photos from it show crisp detail and distinct (though oversaturated) colors with no muddiness. You get two dedicated front-facing cameras. One is a 10MP f/2.2 imager in the cover screen that captures excellent detail. This camera also has a portrait mode that performs well. Many other devices' cameras tend to partially blur out my glasses, but the Z Fold 6 properly separated me and my glasses from the background for a realistic bokeh effect. You also get a 4MP under-display camera in the inner screen. Pictures from it show very dark black levels with inconsistent clarity. Odd starburst patterns appear on reflective surfaces, too. I appreciate that Samsung includes this camera, but it's not great. As for video, the main rear camera maxes out at 8K/30fps. Clips show tons of details and more accurate color than stills. The image stabilization is the best part; recordings I took while walking around look natural and very steady. The 10MP front-facing camera also produces clean video with great color and detail, though it tops out at 4K/60fps. The video is not as steady as that from the rear cameras, but it's still pretty smooth. The under-display camera captures video at 1080p/60fps; recordings from it look a little blurry with dark colors and muddier details compared with all the other cameras. It should be fine for Zoom meetings, but don't shoot your first film with it. Software and Support: A Top-Notch Experience Samsung ups the ante this year: The Android 14-powered Galaxy Z Fold 6 will receive seven years of OS updates and security fixes. This support window is longer than the Z Fold 5's (four years of OS update, five years of security update) and in line with Samsung's commitment for the Galaxy S24 series. The Pixel Fold will get just three years of OS updates and at least five years of security patches. If you want a foldable phone for the long run, Samsung makes a good case. One UI 6.1.1, Samsung's custom software, runs atop Android with a light touch. It adds features like the Edge Panel (a dock you can hide), three-app window tiling instead of the standard two, gesture control, and Dex (Samsung's desktop interface). One UI does a good job of augmenting Android with productivity tweaks and otherwise staying out of the way. There aren't any changes to how the Z Fold 6 handles home screens and apps. By default, the home screens for the front and internal screens are separate. If you want the screens to mirror each other, you can set that up In Settings > Home Screen. The first two home screens in closed mode will become your inner screen layout. Changes to the cover screen reflect on the inner screen and vice versa. Generally, apps open on the cover screen continue to the inner screen when you unfold the device. Apps you open on the inner screen don't continue to the outer screen unless you change that behavior via Settings > Display > Continue apps on cover screen. You can select all apps to continue to the front screen or choose individual ones. This default setup shows how Samsung thinks you will use your device: The cover screen is for small tasks, and opening the phone means you want to do more with that same app; when you close the phone, you are essentially done with your interaction. If this isn't the way you use a Galaxy Z Fold, you can adjust the experience in the settings. Like some other Samsung phones, the Z Fold 6 features Dex productivity mode. Connecting the Z Fold 6 to a display over HDMI or wirelessly to compatible devices (like a Roku Soundbar) gives you a desktop-like interface for Android with resizable and moveable windows. While the internal display is 7.6 inches, you can't launch Dex in a standalone mode directly, like on some of Samsung's tablets; this seems like a missed opportunity. One feature, Notes Assist, is available in the Notes app; it can organize or summarize your notes. I found that Notes Assist can't analyze long handwritten notes in testing, so you must do portions at a time. Once the analysis is complete, you get the option to copy the new text or add it to the bottom of your note. Notes Assist provided mostly useful organization suggestions and summaries, though it didn't always turn my handwritten notes into text correctly. (I partially blame my handwriting for its troubles.) Notes can also translate PDFs by changing text in place. I tested this with a car manual and had the app translate from English to Spanish. The new text appears first on the page you are viewing, while the rest of the translation happens in the background. This feature keeps the layout of a PDF intact, though it's not perfect. For example, on a page that explains what car dash symbols mean, Notes translated the symbols to text. Nonetheless, this is a promising feature that I hope gets further development. The AI features that are the most fun are photo-based. Sketch to Image takes your drawings and uses AI to create interpretations of them. You can also use it to draw on existing images. The easiest way to use the feature is to open an image using the Gallery app, tap the Galaxy AI stars icon, and then select Sketch to Image. I drew a crown on my dog and was pleased with the somewhat realistic results. There is a watermark on the bottom left saying "AI-generated content," though it's subtle and easy to crop out. Portrait Studio is a Galaxy AI feature that debuts on the Z Fold 6. With this, your phone can create an image of a person in one of four styles (Comic, 3D Cartoon, Watercolor, or Sketch). I don't think this feature is fully baked yet, considering the results. I found the software turned my brown skin peach, while some of my features didn't look quite right. The image thumbnails looked fine, but the illusion broke down once I viewed the full versions. Samsung does a good job of balancing productive and fun uses of Galaxy AI. These are features that make the Z Fold 6 easier to use while even providing a laugh or two. Verdict: This Foldable's a Cut Above the Rest The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 offers high-end hardware, genuinely useful AI features, a great camera stack, two excellent screens, and enough horsepower to satisfy almost anyone. It's a worthy successor to the already excellent Z Fold 5, though we wish Samsung had pushed further on aspects like charging speeds and Wi-Fi support. Regardless, it earns our Editors' Choice award for large folding phones, thanks to its unbeatable flexibility and undeniably sophisticated experience. Just be ready to unfold a big bunch of bills to get it.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 -- 6 reasons to buy and 3 reasons to skip

Facing a more competitive market for foldable phones than ever before, Samsung has responded with the Galaxy Z Fold 6 -- a thinner, more durable device that's also more expensive than its predecessor. It's an interesting approach to the stepped-up competition to say the least. We're still in the process of evaluating the new phone for our full review, but we do have some first impressions in our Galaxy Fold 6 hands-on. We've found plenty to like about Samsung's latest book-style foldable -- and also a few things that disappoint us. Does the good outweigh the bad? Well, that's for our Galaxy Z Fold 6 review to decide. But if you're considering whether to get the phone whether as an upgrade to your current Fold or your first foldable smartphone purchase, we can share some insight on where the Fold shines and where it stumbles. With Galaxy Z Fold 6 preorders now available ahead of the phone's July 24 release, here's a look at reasons to buy and skip this new Samsung foldable. Samsung has tweaked the design of the Galaxy Z Fold 6 to make it easier to tote around than its predecessor. When folded, the new phone is 0.05 inches thinner than the Galaxy Z Fold 5, and while that may not sound like much, you can feel the difference tucking the Z Fold 6 into a pocket. The phone has a slimmer profile when unfolded, too, though it's a more subtle difference. Samsung's slimmed down approach also applies to the phone's weight. The Galaxy Z Fold 6 tips the scales at 8.4 ounces, which is half an ounce lighter than the Z Fold 5. You're still not going to confuse this foldable with a more conventional-looking phone, but the Galaxy Z Fold 6 is definitely more portable than any of its predecessors. In addition to slimming down, the Galaxy Z Fold 6 also toughens up. No, you don't get the titanium frame that Samsung used on the Galaxy S24 Ultra, but the Z Fold 6 does boast more durable glass layers than previous models. A dual rail hinge combined with a reinforced folding edge helps distribute the shock of external impacts better than before, and the Samsung also coats the phone with Corning's Gorilla Glass Victus 2. And the Galaxy Z Fold 6 now lists water and dust resistance ratings for greater durability. When it comes to displays, much of the attention will fall on the slightly larger 6.3-inch cover display, which has a wider aspect ratio than before. That should make the Galaxy Z Fold 6 easier to use without having to open the phone -- one of the ways Samsung's foldable didn't compare favorably to rival devices such as the OnePlus Open and Google Pixel Fold. We'll have to test that outer display to see how big an improvement is, but the change is certainly welcome news. Still, to our eyes, the biggest display development with the Galaxy Z Fold 6 involves its 7.6-inch inner display. Samsung says that screen is now rated for a maximum brightness of 2,600 nits. Our tests registered a reading of 2,317 nits on a light meter -- definitely brighter than the 1,535=nit reading we got with the Galaxy z Fold 5. Phone makers are turning to brighter panels for their devices, and it's good to see the Galaxy Z Fold 6 jump on that trend. Because of the brighter display, any time you unfold this device, you should have no problem making out details on the screen no matter what lighting conditions you find yourself in. Upgrading the system-on-chip that powers a phone is one of those improvement you expect to see from one year to the next. Still, don't underestimate how big an upgrade the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 silicon inside the Galaxy Z Fold 6 could prove to be. This is Qualcomm's top-of-the-line chipset, and it powers many of the best Android phones. Even better, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 outperforms Apple's top silicon in some benchmarks, especially graphics test. The Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 also excels at power management features, so we'll see some improvement in Galaxy Z Fold 6 battery life, even if battery size is unchanged from the 4,400 mAh power pack in the Galaxy Z Fold 5. (Unfortunately, the Galaxy Z Fold 6's time on the battery test still doesn't catch the impressive 11.5 hours the OnePlus Open posted.) Earlier this year, the Galaxy S24 and Galaxy S24 Plus used either a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 or Exynos 2400 chipset depending where in the world they were released. Galaxy Z Fold 6 shoppers don't have to worry about that -- buy this foldable and you're getting the best Android silicon out there. AI features have been a particular focus for Samsung this year, so you'd expect the Galaxy Z Fold 6 to see its share of Galaxy AI capabilities. But you may be surprised at how well some of those features take advantage of the Fold's unique design. Google Gemini is a simple swipe away, even on the cover display, ready to answer any questions that you might have. A Note Assist feature provides translation, summary and auto-formatting features, adding a transcription feature that turns voice recordings into text. And the Interpreter Mode that translates conversations real time really benefits from the Galaxy Z Fold 6's form factor, as both interior and exterior displays can show transcripts of the conversation in different languages. A particularly eye-catching Galaxy AI feature is Sketch to Image in which you can use the optional S Pen to draw sketches in Samsung's built-in Notes app; generative AI then turns that sketch into a watercolor, illustration or cartoon, sprucing up the look of your drawing in your process. The Galaxy Z Fold 6 may cost a lot -- more on that very shortly -- but Samsung at least wants you to get the most out of your investment. Like the Galaxy S24 lineup, Samsung's latest foldables can count on seven years of software support and security updates, which should help you hang on to the Galaxy Z Fold 6 for a very long time. I told you we'd get to the Galaxy Z Fold 6's price. The new foldable starts at $1,899, which is $100 more than the starting price for last year's Galaxy Z Fold 5. It's the msot Samsung has charged for this particular foldable since the original Galaxy Z Fold. It's true that pre-order deals can bring that price down. At Samsung, you can save up to $1,200 on the phone with an eligible trade-in and get your storage upgraded at no cost. Throw in a year of Samsung Care Plus, and the savings approach the $1,500 mark. As generous as that offer is, we'd like to see prices trend downward not upward. If foldables are ever going to become more widely used, it's going to take a price drop to convince more people to give these phones a try. And that's something the Galaxy Z Fold 6 simply doesn't provide. We should note that the ultrawide camera on the Galaxy Z Fold 6 uses a new sensor that supposedly performs better in low-light settings. That's good news, even if the megapixel rating remains the same 12MP that the Galaxy Z Fold 5 offered. In fact, apart from that change in ultrawide sensors, the camera setup on the Galaxy Z Fold 6 is unchanged from its predecessor. You get a 50MP main camera, 10MP telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom and that 12MP ultrawide shooter. Selife cams include a 10MP front camera on the cover display and a 4MP camera underneath the interior screen -- again, matching what the Galaxy Z Fold 5 brought to the table. Those are essentially Galaxy S24 camera specs for a price tag that's $600 higher than what you'd pay for the far superior cameras on the Galaxy S24 Ultra. The Galaxy Z Fold 6 may be one of Samsung's most premium phones, but you wouldn't know that from the way it treats the device's cameras. The Galaxy Z Fold 6 is one of two devices in Samsung's current lineup that works with an S Pen. Yet, the Galaxy S24 Ultra remains the only device that actually ships with the stylus. For the Galaxy Z Fold 6, the S Pen is an optional accessory that adds another $55 to your purchase. You'll also need to add a case with a slot to stash that stylus since there's no built-in holder on the Galaxy Z Fold itself. That's a trade=off Samsung is likely making to make the device thin and light, as we praised it for earlier. But with Galaxy AI features that now directly tap into the S Pen, it seems counter-intuitive to treat this accessory as an add-on when it comes time to sell people on the Fold. Stay tuned for our full review of the Galaxy Z Fold 6. But based on what we've seen so far rom the phone, the Galaxy Z Fold 6 is a good upgrade if you're currently using a foldable that's a few years old, and you can stomach the higher cost. If cameras are important to you or you find the Galaxy Z Fold 6's price tag too astronomical, you'll want to consider alternate devices, even if their screens can't fold in two.

Don't buy the Galaxy Z Fold 6. Five reasons to wait for the Fold 7 | Digital Trends

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 has arrived. With Samsung's newest top-tier foldable, you get blazing-fast performance with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy chip, along with 12GB RAM and a ton of new Galaxy AI features to maximize your productivity. And with up to 1TB of storage, there's plenty of space for all of your photos and video taken with the triple-lens rear camera system. Contents The cameras barely changedIt's still a narrow cover screenWe've seen this design beforeThe crease is still thereWhat about the Galaxy Z Fold Ultra? But as great as the new Galaxy Z Fold 6 sounds, there are a few reasons to hold off and wait for next year's model, especially considering the expensive $1,900 price tag. Here are some reasons why waiting for the Galaxy Z Fold 7 might be a better idea. Recommended Videos The cameras barely changed Before Samsung unveiled the Galaxy Fold 6, rumors circulated that the camera could be significantly upgraded this year -- there were even whispers about a 200-megapixel main camera. Unfortunately, none of that came to fruition, and the cameras remain almost entirely unchanged. This means that the Galaxy Z Fold 6 still has a triple camera system on the rear featuring a 50MP main camera, a 10MP telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom, and a 12MP ultrawide lens. The cover display selfie camera is 10MP, and the inner under-display camera is a measly 4MP. All of these specs are the same as its predecessor, the Galaxy Z Fold 5. However, Samsung says that the sensor used for the ultrawide camera is new and technically an "upgrade" over last year's model. Still, the numbers are the same, which is a big letdown if you were hoping for some bigger improvements. Hopefully, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 will give us a better camera system. This one is getting long in the tooth. It's still a narrow cover screen This is the sixth iteration of the Galaxy Z Fold series, and one thing has remained constant through the years: the tall and narrow cover display. This also means that the keyboard is smaller and a bit cramped compared to your typical glass slab smartphone. This year, Samsung made some slight adjustments to the aspect ratio of the cover display, which helps provide a more natural viewing experience. However, it's still quite narrow compared to other phones, so if you don't care for that form factor, then this isn't a particularly big improvement. While nothing is confirmed, it's certainly possible that Samsung could make some changes to the Galaxy Z Fold 7's cover display, which could certainly make it worth waiting for if that's the case. This one may be more wishful thinking than anything, but we can dream. We've seen this design before Sometimes, it feels like we've plateaued on overall smartphone design, and that applies heavily to the Galaxy Z Fold 6. Aside from having some flatter edges on the frame, the overall design aesthetic is the same as the Z Fold 5 -- which was also very similar to the Z Fold 4 ... and the Z Fold 3. It feels like Samsung is going with the "If it ain't broke, don't fix it"strategy with the Galaxy Z Fold 6. After all, it has done well in the past few years, so why not continue with it? It's a fair argument, But on the other hand, if you're not a fan of that tall and narrow cover display, or even the flat edges and boxy look, then waiting another year may be an option. After all, a lot can change in a year -- or at least we hope. The crease is still there A common denominator with foldable phones is always the crease. For some people, the crease is a reason why they aren't interested in a folding phone in the first place. After all, you want the main screen of your device to look good, with no imperfections. A crease can be mighty unsightly. Samsung seems to have improved the crease on the Galaxy Z Flip 6 to be much less noticeable, which is a big leap forward from last year's model. Unfortunately, the Galaxy Z Fold 6 didn't get the same treatment. In fact, it appears that the crease on the Galaxy Z Fold 6 is the same as on last year's Galaxy Z Fold 5, which was pretty prominent. If you didn't like the crease on the previous generation, you definitely won't like that nothing has changed this year. Hopefully, Samsung will improve the crease on the Galaxy Z Fold 7 to match the "barely there" feeling of the Galaxy Z Flip 6. Something has to change sooner rather than later, and the Fold 7 seems like the time to finally make the crease disappear. What about the Galaxy Z Fold Ultra? This year was an interesting one for the Galaxy Z Fold 6, as there were rumors floating around that seemed to contradict one another. Some of these rumors pointed to the possibility of an "Ultra" version of the Galaxy Z Fold 6, but alas, that did not happen. However, it could still happen, and maybe it will with the Galaxy Z Fold 7 series. Some of the rumors were pointing to the possibility of a much-improved 200MP main camera, similar to the Galaxy S24 Ultra, along with a higher price tag and a much slimmer design. Either way, we did not get an Ultra variant of the Galaxy Z Fold 6, so it may have just been ahead of its time. We can only hope to see a Galaxy Z Fold 7 Ultra next year, which would make the wait well worth it -- as long as you can afford it.