Editor’s Notice
• Authentic assessment date: July 2023
• Launch value: $999.99 / £1,049 / AU$1,649
• Goal value now: $899.99 / £999 / AU$1,434
Replace: April 2024. The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 has now been accessible for the most effective a part of a yr, which means it is nearly time for the launch of the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6. That telephone is rumored to make an look at Galaxy Unpacked 2024 in July, however the Galaxy Z Flip 5 remains to be value contemplating – particularly because it’s solely getting cheaper. On the time of writing, Amazon is providing sturdy offers on the Galaxy Z Flip 5 within the US, UK and Australia (it is at the moment priced at $899.99 / £999 / AU$1,434), so everytime you’re studying this, that is value making an allowance for. What’s extra, Samsung’s large One UI 6.1 replace – which brings Galaxy AI options to older Galaxy telephones – is now accessible for the Galaxy Z Flip 5. In some ways, then, this telephone is a greater purchase than ever. The remainder of this assessment stays as beforehand printed.
Axel MetzSenior Employees Author
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5: Two-minute assessment
Whereas it was Motorola that popularized the clamshell kind issue when it appeared again within the mid-Nineties, within the smartphone period it has been Samsung that has steered the ship with regard to what a clamshell foldable smartphone ought to appear like and be able to.
Within the three quick years by which the Galaxy Z Flip line has cemented its place among the many greatest foldables, we have seen the speedy evolution of each the shape issue itself and Samsung’s particular strategy, with the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 providing some overdue refinements to fight fresh-faced competitors in a area which Samsung as soon as needed to itself.
Trying on the evolution of its foldable strains up up to now, you actually could not name the corporate complacent, however the primary upgrades that the Z Flip 5 brings to the desk give us the impression that – for the primary time – Samsung is taking part in catch-up to newcomers to the foldable house corresponding to Oppo and the aforementioned Motorola. However caught up it has.
The Z Flip 5 – just like the Galaxy Z Fold 5, which launched alongside it at July’s Samsung Unpacked occasion – gives one necessary and overdue improve over its folding forebears: whenever you shut the telephone, its two halves lastly fold completely flat in opposition to each other, with no hole. Regardless of the near-wizardry that telephones with folding shows corresponding to these are seemingly imbued with, to ensure that previous Flips and Folds to bend in two, Samsung has at all times needed to make an allowance for the radius of the bend on every gadget’s primary display screen, and that resulted in a wedge-shaped profile, with a visual hole by the center of their folded types.
Now, each the Flip 5 and Fold 5 echo the quite a few rivals that already boast such a silhouette, making them markedly thinner with out compromising on what nonetheless stays a rarity within the foldable house – IPX8-certified water resistance.
Past its new slimmed-down profile, the Flip 5 arguably has a much bigger improve to shout about than its transversely-folding sibling, courtesy of a considerably bigger cowl display screen that now dominates the outside of the telephone. A extra expansive show on the surface permits for extra performance with out the necessity to open to telephone up, which means that e-mail triage, quick-reply messaging, and checking your notifications with out diving into the full-screen apps is extra accessible than it ever was on the stamp-sized outer display screen of the Flip 5’s predecessors.
There’s nonetheless a twin 12MP digicam setup on the surface, as with the 2022 Flip; nevertheless, the larger exterior cowl show additionally makes for a much more distinguished viewfinder, which means that framing photographs whenever you’ve set the Flip 5 down on a flat floor to seize photographs with buddies is simpler than ever.
In apply, regardless of seemingly an identical digicam {hardware} between generations (save for a brand new reduced-glare lens on the primary sensor and a brand new picture sign processor (ISP) due to its recent chipset), picture high quality is, throughout the board, a powerful enchancment, particularly close to white steadiness and element.
The final main improve to talk of must be the chipset, with the identical exclusively-tuned Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy that Samsung and Qualcomm collaborated on for the Galaxy S23 collection that launched at the beginning of the yr additionally making an look right here (it additionally powers the brand new Fold 5 and Galaxy Tab S9 collection), leading to class-leading efficiency that is head and shoulders above the next-best clamshell foldable.
Additionally just like the senior fashions within the S23 line – particularly the Galaxy S23 Plus and Galaxy S23 Extremely – there isn’t any longer a 128GB storage choice to talk of. As a substitute, you will have the selection of 256GB of 512GB of inside house, with the worth beginning at £10 lower than you’d have paid for the equal storage on 2022’s Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 within the UK, and Australian clients paying the identical. In the meantime US clients pay the identical as they might have for a 128GB Flip 4 ($999.99), making this telephone an excellent higher deal Stateside.
With the important thing upgrades and highlights out of the best way, let’s dive into particulars of Samsung’s most refined Z Flip but.
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 assessment: Worth and availability
- Pre-orders from July 26, on sale August 11
- Obtainable from $999.99 / £1,049 / AU$1,649
- Much better worth within the US versus the UK or Australia
- Some of the costly clamshell foldables accessible proper now
In a powerful show of self-confidence, Samsung really let followers register their curiosity for pre-orders earlier than the Flip 5 had even been introduced, pairing the expertise with the promise of pre-order bonuses which assorted by area.
Within the US, consumers may declare $50 of Samsung Credit score on their pre-order, and save as much as $540 after they bundled a Z Flip 5 (or Fold 5) with a Galaxy Tab S9 collection and / or a Galaxy Watch 6. Within the UK those that ordered a number of new merchandise launched on the July Unpacked occasion may stack the same credit score deal – which means financial savings of as much as £150 – together with a free improve to the 512GB Flip at no further value (additionally accessible on US pre-orders). In Australia, consumers who pre-ordered obtained AU$100 off their buy or may as a substitute seize a ten,000mAh battery pack, value AU$59.
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| RAM / Storage | US value | UK value | AU value |
| 8GB / 256GB | $999.99 | £1,049 | AU$1,649 |
| 8GB / 512GB | $1,119.99 | £1,149 | AU$1,849 |
Pre-orders kicked off throughout Unpacked, on July 26, with the Z Flip 5 occurring sale from August 11.
As you will see from the desk above, US clients get the most effective deal, being requested to pay not more than they might have for a 128GB Z Flip 4 at launch. UK clients pay £10 lower than they might have for an equal 256GB Flip 4 (making the double storage pre-order bonus all of the extra worthwhile), whereas pricing stays unchanged relative to storage between generations in Australia.
Take a look at our rundown of the most effective Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Flip 5 offers for the most recent gives on this next-gen foldable and its launch associate.
For reference, this pricing strains up nearly precisely with the Flip 5’s most fresh-faced rival – the Motorola Razr Plus, because it’s referred to as within the US, or Razr 40 Extremely elsewhere, which is priced at $999.99 / £1,049.99 / AU$1,499 (for 8GB RAM / 256GB storage). Whereas the Razr might take the lead on design and quick charging, nevertheless, it falls quick by way of efficiency, digicam prowess and software program help, relative to the Z Flip 5.
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There’s additionally the Oppo’s Discover N2 Flip, should you’re exterior the US, which arrived at a value that undercut even the Z Flip 4, and which, when taking a look at retailers like Amazon, has continued to drop considerably (on the time of writing it is accessible for underneath £575 from Amazon UK, for instance – roughly $730 / AU$1,125).
On the very least, these new rivals spotlight simply how rather more aggressive the foldable market has develop into in the previous few years, and their presence additionally frames the Flip 5 as probably the most succesful however highly-priced gadgets in a class the place the Z Flip line as soon as ran mainly unopposed.
- Worth rating: 3.5 / 5
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 assessment: Specs
Not like the final two generations of Z Flip, Samsung does not seem to have launched a Bespoke Version of this mannequin. Beforehand customers may combine and match the colorways of the 2 halves of the telephone, however maybe the shift to that new bigger ‘Flex Window’ negates the selection. As a substitute, together with the 4 normal launch colours, there are some Samsung.com-exclusive colorways that you just will not discover from different retailers.
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| Header Cell – Column 1 | |
|---|---|
| Dimensions (folded): | 85.1 x 71.9 x 15.1mm |
| Dimensions (unfolded): | 85.1 x 165.1 x 6.9mm |
| Weight: | 187 grams |
| Foremost show: | 6.7-inch Full HD+ (2640 x 1080) adaptive 120Hz AMOLED |
| Cowl show:: | 3.4-inch (720 x 748) 60Hz AMOLED |
| Chipset: | Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy |
| RAM: | 8GB (LPDDR5X) |
| Storage: | 256GB / 512GB (UFS 4.0) |
| OS: | Android 13 w/ One UI 5.1.1 |
| Major digicam: | 12MP, f/1.8 w/ OIS |
| Extremely-wide digicam: | 12MP, f/2.2, 123º FoV |
| Entrance Digital camera: | 10MP, f/2.2, 85º FoV |
| Battery: | 3,700mAh |
| Charging: | 25W wired charging, 15W wi-fi charging, 4.5W reverse wi-fi charging |
| Colours: | Mint, lavender, graphite, cream |
| Samsung.com-exclusive colours: | Blue, inexperienced, grey, yellow |
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 assessment: Design
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- Gorilla Glass Victus 2 again
- IPX8-certified water resistance
- 2mm thinner when closed, in comparison with Z Flip 4
There aren’t all that many clamshell foldables at the moment in the marketplace, however the Galaxy Z Flip collection sports activities essentially the most outlined aesthetic of the bunch, notably the design that Samsung established with the Z Flip 3 and Z Flip 4.
The Z Flip 5 shares loads of familial traits, should you’re accustomed to the final two generations of Samsung’s signature clamshell, with a sophisticated color-matched (with most colorways, not less than) Armor Aluminum body, comparatively tight radii at its corners and a flat again – save for the twin round digicam lenses jutting out of the top-left nook.
With the show placement on the final two fashions, the cameras had been organized vertically, with the ultra-wide beneath the primary digicam), however in an effort to accommodate the brand new greatly-expanded cowl show on the Flip 5 they’re now organized horizontally. The telephone does not have the identical two-tone end of its predecessors both, with the quilt show dictating that the highest half of the Z Flip 5’s again is now a shiny black (when the display screen’s off), no matter colorway.
Talking of colours, Samsung has caught with the same pastel palette to earlier generations; nevertheless, saturation seems to be to have been diminished throughout the board, which means that in some lighting it is laborious to inform what coloration the end of the telephone is in any respect – is that the brand new signature Mint end, or simply white?
Fortunately, and particularly should you aren’t bought on the default Mint, Lavender, Graphite and Cream hues, there are a couple of bolder choices to select from. As with earlier generations there are a selection of Samsung.com exclusives to select from: blue, inexperienced, grey and yellow, which I have never seen in particular person however which look to be bolder finishes by comparability.
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Past new colours and a rebalancing of visible distinction within the design (introduced on by that new bigger outer display screen), the massive hook of choosing the Z Flip 5 over its predecessors – from a design perspective, not less than – is the revised water-drop hinge, which lastly permits the 2 halves of the telephone to lie completely flat in opposition to one another when the gadget is closed, leading to a considerably slimmer profile than the Flip 4; 2mm may not sound like a lot, however within the hand, and, extra importantly, within the pocket, you’d discover the distinction should you in contrast the 2 telephones facet by facet.
Regardless of transforming the collection’ most complex mechanism, Samsung has geared up the Flip 5 with the identical reassuringly sturdy Flex Hinge really feel that you’re going to discover on the earlier generations, and as earlier than you’ll be able to unfold the telephone to between 75 levels and 115 levels to allow Flex Mode, which optimizes UI placement whenever you place the telephone on a flat floor and think about it with the display screen angled inside that vary; it is nice for watching reveals whilst you’re busy within the kitchen, or if you wish to sit again hands-free whereas on a video name.
Samsung has additionally managed to retain the telephone’s IPX8-certified water resistance – a standout sturdiness characteristic that almost all rivals cannot match. There’s additionally speak of improved mud resistance, though Samsung hasn’t confirmed this in an official capability, which means that on paper sturdiness is just like the Flip 4, albeit with the assure of newer Gorilla Glass Victus 2 – as launched on the Galaxy S23 collection.
The Flip 5 retains the polished steel body of its predecessor, whereas reverting from the textured glass of its rapid predecessor to the reflective glass final seen on the Flip 3. This does not look as good, or really feel fairly as good underneath the finger, because the Flip 4’s end, and is way extra vulnerable to beauty micro-abrasions than the final Flip’s bodywork ever was, which makes a powerful case for choosing up one the most effective Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 instances accessible.
Whereas I did not topic my assessment unit to the 200,000-fold determine that Samsung guarantees the telephone is rated to face up to (the identical because the Flip 3 and Flip 4), impartial testing has revealed that the Flip 5 is way hardier than Samsung lets on. A livestream by Polish YouTuber MrKeybrd reveals (on the time of writing) the Flip 5 blazing previous 400,000 folds, whereas the Razr 40 Extremely gave up the ghost properly earlier than its quoted most, at simply shy of 127,000 folds. Each telephones had additionally been topic to water and mud, with the Flip 5 demonstrating a powerful resilience to each, regardless of nonetheless not possessing any licensed safety in opposition to mud ingress.
- Design rating: 5 / 5
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 assessment: Show
- 6.7-inch Full HD+ (2640 x 1080) AMOLED primary show w/ adaptive 1Hz to 120Hz refresh price
- 3.4-inch 720 x 748 60Hz AMOLED cowl show
- Nearly 80% bigger cowl show than Z Flip 4
In comparison with distinguished rival Motorola, Samsung has proved constantly reluctant to increase the scale of the quilt show on its latest clamshells between generations, plateauing at 1.9 inches for the 2 entries previous to the Flip 5.
In 2023, nevertheless, it lastly determined to make the leap, and canopy the vast majority of the higher half of the telephone’s again with pixels, leading to a screen-size improve of just about 80%. This implies the performance of the ‘Flex Window’ – as Samsung calls it – has been significantly expanded; with acquainted experiences like a wide range of clocks, a calendar and timers on all hand, in addition to third-party help (for issues like Spotify and Google Shares) that is prone to continue to grow past the 13 apps accessible at launch, now the telephone is out within the wild.
The added dimension additionally permits for a full QWERTY keyboard typing expertise, so that you’re not relegated to fast replies-only when responding to messages with out opening the telephone up.
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The Samsung Labs menu within the telephone’s settings additionally allows you to allow unsupported apps to be run on the Flex Window, bringing performance extra consistent with what the final two generations of Motorola Razr have been able to, and I might posit it is a vital characteristic that ought to actually be enabled by default to get essentially the most out of the quilt show expertise on the Flip 5. Having the ability to play video games and browse music and information in full with out having to open the telephone up is nice for one-handed use instances, even when some unoptimized experiences do not format completely each time.
Talking of the Razr, or extra particularly the aforementioned Motorola Razr Plus / Razr 40 Extremely, whereas each foldables have gone large on their cowl shows in 2023, Motorola’s iteration seems to be to be forward of the curve, aesthetically talking, with pixels wrapped all the best way round its twin digicam system, whereas the Flip 5’s Flex Window skirts across the cameras, leaving somewhat extra bezel. (Not that you just’d know from the press photographs, the place the darkest areas of the wallpaper conceal the quilt display screen’s true boundary, in the same approach to how Apple tried to cover the notch on the iPhone X’s press photographs when it first launched.)
It is a small beauty quirk that helps differentiate these two top-tier clamshell foldables, however once we’re speaking about telephones for which design is among the key promoting factors, it seems like a distinction value highlighting.
Whereas there’s loads to speak about with regard to the quilt show, the Flip 5’s primary display screen is relatively much less attention-grabbing, not less than within the sense that it is seemingly unchanged from the primary display screen on the final Z Flip: it is a 6.7-inch Full HD+ (2640 x 1080) ‘Dynamic AMOLED 2X Infinity Flex Show’ (Samsung’s advertising and marketing crew was clearly left unsupervised with that one), with an adaptive refresh price that may scale from a silky-smooth 120Hz all the best way all the way down to 1Hz for optimum energy consumption.
Protected underneath what Samsung calls UTG (ultra-thin glass), this can be a gorgeous Full HD+ panel, with nice colours, distinction and viewing angles, bolstered by even increased peak brightness than the Flip 4 (1750 nits, up from 1200 nits), making for enhanced out of doors legibility on what was already a decent viewing expertise.
There’s nonetheless a dip alongside the show’s fold line that, regardless of the altered Flex Hinge design, seems to be virtually an identical to the one on the Flip 4, which means you will nonetheless really feel it underneath the finger, and see it when viewing the telephone at an angle, however you will not discover head-on and can doubtless develop accustomed to its presence in on a regular basis utilization. That mentioned, the earlier Samsung (or any foldable telephone maker) figures out methods to get rid of the crease completely, the higher, because it’s really barely extra noticeable under-finger than the crease on its predecessor’s display screen.
The Flip 5’s person expertise – as with its predecessor – helps darkish mode (making wallpapers and UI components black or darkish, slightly than white or vibrant), adaptive brightness (on the primary show), the flexibility to set the refresh price to adaptive (1Hz to 120Hz, primarily based on device-detected use case) or mounted at 60Hz), eye consolation protect (to cut back blue mild output for extra comfy viewing), coloration profiles (Vivid by default however may also be set to Pure or custom-tuned with coloration temperature and RGB sliders), and, amongst different settings, there’s help for an always-on show on each the primary and the quilt display screen, letting you test the time and excellent notifications at a look.
- Show rating: 4.5 / 5
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 assessment: Software program
- Runs Android 13 on high of One UI 5.1.1 out the field
- 4 years OS updates + 5 years safety updates
- Can run third-party apps on cowl show
Should you’re coming from an current Samsung telephone, One UI 5.1.1 (atop Android 13) on the Flip 5 ought to really feel wholly acquainted, with each Google Play and the Galaxy Retailer at your disposal, and in reality quite a few Google and Samsung apps sitting facet by facet (many of the latter might be uninstalled or hidden in the event that they’re duplicates you do not intend on utilizing).
One UI has a definite aesthetic that differs from extra inventory builds of Android, from its use and placement of coloration to the ‘squircle’ icons all through your house screens and app drawer. In fact, Samsung desires to present customers somewhat added worth past a brand new coat of paint and its personal app retailer, so you will additionally discover options like Edge Panels – granting entry to favourite apps or contacts, and even app pairs, so you’ll be able to leap into split-screen multitasking (significantly pleasant on the Flip 5’s tall show) with a single faucet.
In fact, the enlarged cowl show (the Flex Window) which graces this Flip 5 serves as one of many greatest and most attention-grabbing upgrades generationally. Not solely does it assist shut the hole that rivals like Motorola and Oppo had been creating again up, but it surely significantly expands performance past what was doable on its predecessor’s comparatively tiny 1.9-inch panel.
Having the ability to test on notifications, toggle fast settings and scrub by widgets like a timer, a calendar and the climate are all well-considered inclusions for what are understandably the most definitely use instances, however the cowl show’s power actually lies in its extra experimental performance.
Inside the settings menu on most Samsung telephones, you will discover the Samsung Labs sub-menu, which helps you to allow extra experimental and fewer polished options. Within the case of the Z Flip 5, it is right here you will discover the choice to permit apps to run on the quilt display screen – not simply widgets, however full-blown apps. The choice is proscribed primarily based on which apps your telephone comes pre-loaded with, however contains the likes of Google Maps, Netflix, YouTube and Messages (the place you are not restricted to fast replies and might sort with a full on-screen keyboard – good). Even this is not the top of the quilt show’s potential, nevertheless.
Should you’re prepared to go for an much more experimental expertise, Samsung’s personal Good Lock app – downloadable from the pre-loaded Galaxy Retailer – gives help for a plugin name MultiStar, which in flip allows you to run apps by means of its launcher widget, and by that I imply (nearly) any app put in in your gadget. This implies way more alternative than what Samsung Labs has to supply; even when it comes with the discover that ‘some apps will not be optimized for the quilt display screen.’
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The Flip being the Flip, there’s additionally Flex Mode to think about, which helps you to place the telephone down on a flat floor partially open (between 75 levels and 115 levels), at which level supported apps will shift to the higher half of the show, in order that they’re extra simply viewable, whereas controls will seem on the decrease half. Should you’re streaming a present, for instance, you’ll play/pause, scrub, skip ahead or again in time and alter the amount, all with out obstructing what’s on the display screen. There’s even a one-touch screenshot button, and you may flip the decrease half of the show right into a computing-style trackpad, full with mouse cursor.
In apply, there isn’t any getting round the truth that most 16:9 content material could be very small when considered in Flex Mode, as you are primarily watching panorama content material in portrait; nevertheless, it positively has its makes use of – should you’re streaming a podcast on YouTube, otherwise you’re tuned right into a Simply Chatting stream on Twitch, for instance. In any other case, the Z Fold 5’s panorama oriented Flex Mode is likely to be a greater match on your life-style.
One side of the software program expertise that Samsung has instilled inside its top-tier telephones (and even its mid-range entries) is virtually unmatched long-term software program help (significantly within the Android camp). The Z Flip 5 advantages from 4 years of OS updates post-launch, and an extra yr of safety updates; that is greater than virtually all the different greatest Android telephones, and means higher long-term worth and usefulness for consumers.
- Software program rating: 4.5 / 5
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 assessment: Cameras
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- 12MP major and ultra-wide rear cameras
- 10MP hole-punch selfie digicam
- New primary lens with diminished lens flare
- New FlexCam third-party optimizations
It might seem that the cameras on the Z Flip 5 ape these of its predecessor precisely, with a 12MP major sensor sporting 1.8μm pixels, an f/1.8 aperture and OIS (optical picture stabilization), accompanied by a 12MP ultra-wide snapper with 1.12μm pixels, an f/2.2 aperture and a 123-degree area of view. The front-facing 10MP punch-hole selfie snapper reads the identical as properly, with 1.12μm pixels and an f/2.2 aperture. All of which begs the query “are there any upgrades to think about right here?”
Fortunately, regardless of the seemingly untouched {hardware}, there are small however constant enhancements to picture high quality between generations that the Z Flip 5 demonstrates throughout the board. As to why that’s, learn on.
In accordance with Samsung, the ‘Tremendous Clear Lens’ on the primary 12MP sensor is new, and fewer liable to flare that may in any other case wash out and scale back distinction in photographs, nevertheless, most of generational enhancements to picture high quality come straight from the brand new silicon on the telephone’s coronary heart, offered by Qualcomm. Improved multi-frame processing with the chipmaker’s AI Object Conscious Engine is probably going what’s liable for the majority of the visible upgrades, that are ample.
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