Samsung has no major updates or surprises planned today, and the Galaxy Z Flip 4 is keeping steady. It is the most recent version of Samsung’s smaller foldable, and it has some subtle but important improvements like a larger battery, improved camera technology, and a more durable main display. In order to design your own “bespoke” Flip 4, you can combine some of the new hues. It still starts at $999, which is expensive by foldable standards but still in the upper tiers of smartphone pricing, so if you were holding out for a price reduction, we’ve got bad news for you.
Naturally, there is a newer chipset: the Flip 4 has a Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 (along with 8GB of RAM), which you can find on virtually every high-end Android phone introduced this year that isn’t produced by Google. Samsung straightened up the phone’s formerly curved edges and slimmed down the hinge, reducing the breadth and height of the device by a few millimetres. However, the thickness is unchanged: 17.1mm at the hinge and 15.9mm at the junction of the display’s ends, meaning that the gap when the phone is folded is the same size.
This time around, the main panel is still 6.7 inches with a variable refresh rate of 120Hz, and it is reportedly 45 percent stronger due to modifications in the display structure and stronger ultra-thin glass. This year’s adhesive is also stronger, keeping the (very important) screen protector in place. We all taught that when the adhesive slips, awful things happen. The total durability score remained constant. It is still IPX8, meaning that it has strong water resistance and independent dust resistance.
The cover screen is still only a little man at 1.9 inches. But you can do more with the cover screen; there will be an optional SmartThings widget for quick access to smart home management, and you can also use it to access Samsung Wallet or make rapid replies to SMS. In the same aspect ratio as the final image, selfie previews will also be displayed on the cover screen.
Despite being little, there is a noticeable variation in appearance between Samsung’s current model and previous iterations. The Flip 4 doesn’t feel like it made many trade-offs to be able to fold; rather, it feels more like a regular, extremely beautiful flagship phone that also happens to split in half. I had a positive impression of the flat hinge, the flatter corner, the straighter edges, and the polished aluminium rails. It appears to be how the Flip ought to have looked from the start for this fashion-focused phone. Samsung finally got there; it merely required an additional iteration.
The 3,300mAh battery from last year is increased to 3,700mAh. The Flip 3 easily made it through a full day of use during our tests, but having longer battery life is never a bad thing. The rate of wired charging has increased to 25W from 15W. The same 10W speed of wireless charging is still available.
The primary camera’s hardware is also updated, however that is a close second. This year’s chip is still 12-megapixels, but the sensor is larger (Samsung won’t disclose by how much) and the pixels are bigger (1.8 mm vs. 1.4 mm). The optical stabilisation that a $999 phone ought to have is still included. As well as the 10-megapixel selfie camera, the 12-megapixel ultrawide camera is still present.
The Flip 4 is currently up for preorder and will be available on August 26. The palette consists of graphite, bora purple, and fresh pink-gold and blue alternatives.
