Top-of-the-line foldable telephones I’ve examined is just not a OnePlus or Motorola

ZDNET’s key takeaways

• The $1,099 Galaxy Z Flip 6 is Samsung’s newest tackle a modernized flip telephone.
• It comes with a number of upgrades, corresponding to a more durable design, higher efficiency, a brand new principal digicam, and an even bigger battery.

• Nevertheless, it is from thrilling, given its similarities to the Z Flip 5, and it prices $100 greater than Motorola’s Razr Plus.

Samsung is already on the sixth iteration of its Galaxy Z Flip, and by now, we have all grown acquainted with folding telephones, what they’re able to, and what their uncommon kind elements convey to the desk. The Z Flip 6 is probably the most polished clamshell we have seen to this point. In comparison with the Z Flip 5, Samsung has modified little or no, with solely a handful of options to market the brand new mannequin with.

Additionally: I changed my Samsung Galaxy S24 Extremely with the Z Fold 6 for every week – and may’t return

The beginning worth has additionally gone up $100 to $1,099. So, after utilizing the Z Flip 6 for just a little over every week, the large query for me is whether or not or not the brand new price ticket is justified, particularly when Motorola’s Razr Plus, the Z Flip’s closest competitor, did not go up in worth in any respect. Here is my reply.

View at Samsung

Samsung does not must reinvent the wheel each time it ships a brand new folding telephone, however there’s been room for enchancment on the Z Flip’s design for some time. On the Z Flip 6, Samsung switched again to matte aluminum sides as an alternative of shiny like on the Z Flip 5, which I recognize. 

Additionally: Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 vs Z Flip 5: Key variations you need to know earlier than shopping for

The brand new Z Flip additionally has an IP48 ranking, marking the primary time one of many firm’s folding telephones has supplied any licensed type of mud safety. The hinge has additionally been strengthened, leading to a shallower crease alongside the center of the show.

These enhancements are good to see however are under no circumstances monumental. I’d’ve cherished to see an even bigger cowl show; Samsung upped the ante final 12 months when it swapped the Flip 4’s 1.9-inch cowl show for a 3.4-inch panel on the Flip 5. The Flip 6 carries that very same bigger display on the skin, nevertheless it’s dwarfed by the a lot cooler-looking 4-inch panel on the 2024 Razr Plus.

Additionally: I examined Motorola’s new Razr Plus (2024) and it made the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip really feel outdated

Not solely does Motorola’s show stretch to every edge and behind the cameras, nevertheless it additionally enables you to run any app you need, so that you hardly ever have to open the telephone to do fast issues like reply to a textual content. On the Z Flip, you are restricted to the panels and widgets Samsung offers you entry to, which makes the expertise far much less helpful than Motorola’s.

Naturally, I discovered myself opening the Flip 6 show rather a lot, however that is not a nasty factor. The 6.7-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X is gorgeous, with a pointy Full HD+ decision and glorious shade replica. There is a 120Hz refresh charge that retains every part silky easy, and Samsung even threw in 2,600 nits of peak brightness, which is way brighter than the 1,750-nit panel on the Flip 5. 

I additionally love the efficiency of this telephone. Inside sits a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor, 12GB of RAM, and both 256GB or 512GB of storage, and it is quick. Whether or not you are scrolling Instagram, flipping between your calendar and to-do listing, gaming, or taking footage like a loopy particular person, the Flip 6 can have no downside maintaining.

Additionally: Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 vs. Motorola Razr+ (2024): I’ve examined each, and the winner is just not so apparent

What I would wish to see Samsung work on is warmth administration. There’s little or no house for firms so as to add the identical air flow and cooling methods as regular telephones, so most foldables are inclined to undergo from extreme warmth even once you’re doing regular issues like checking TikTok or firing off emails. The Flip 6 is not any exception; I’ve seen it will get actually heat very often, each in the summertime warmth and in my 62-degree bed room. When gaming, it could actually get even hotter. 

The cameras are a step up from the Flip 5, however they proceed to fall wanting what regular flagships are able to. I like many of the photographs I’ve taken with the Z Flip 6; the brand new 50MP principal digicam collects extra element and sharpness than the previous 12MP sensor did on the Flip 5, and you’ll take full-resolution 50MP photographs if you wish to crop in or have them printed. In the meantime, the 12MP 123-degree ultra-wide performs tremendous in the course of the day, however will get fairly darkish and muddy at night time with plenty of synthetic mild injected into it.

If you happen to care about digicam high quality and need a clamshell flip telephone, the Z Flip 6 is the one to get. I in contrast a number of the photographs I took to photographs I captured with the Razr Plus, and the distinction is nearly night time and day. Colours are extra true to life on Samsung’s telephone, lighting is oftentimes higher, and you’ll take footage at night time with out every of them popping out unusable. Video high quality can be higher on the Flip 6 than the Razr Plus.

Additionally: Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 hands-on: The foldable most individuals can buy will get one key improve

After all, the capturing expertise stays unmatched with the Z Flip’s versatile kind issue. Like different foldable telephones, you possibly can prop it up like a kickstand for hands-free photographs, use the duvet display as a second viewfinder, document movies in traditional handheld camcorder trend, and extra.

That entire expertise is pushed by software program, and the software program on the Z Flip 6 is stable. The overarching story is that it is nonetheless purely Samsung, with One UI 6.1 and its smorgasbord of options piled on high of Android 14. There are Edge panels, split-screen modes, an array of customizable UI choices, efficiency and battery optimization settings, and extra, together with all of the options that make foldables so distinctive. Samsung can be promising as much as seven years of software program updates on the Flip 6, which implies it falls in keeping with the path the business is heading.

Additionally: The Galaxy Watch Extremely satisfied me to interchange my Apple Watch in lower than every week. Here is why

Samsung additionally features a listing of AI options on the Flip 6 prefer it does with its different 2024 flagships, together with context-aware replies for messages on the duvet display, stay translations, dialog recording, and computerized transcriptions. None of those options have been ground-breaking, however they’re good to have and add a little bit of aptitude to the expertise. It is solely a matter of time earlier than Samsung goes as arduous as Apple is in iOS 18 with AI, so let’s all get pleasure from it whereas it is nonetheless complimentary.

Battery life on the Galaxy Z Flip 6 can final a full day, as long as you are cautious. Samsung elevated the dimensions of the battery from 3,700mAh to 4,000mAh, which helps it stretch effectively into the later hours of the day, nevertheless it’s under no circumstances a two-day telephone.

ZDNET’s shopping for recommendation

At $1,100, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 is simple to understand as “boring” or “overpriced,” particularly when the Z Flip 5 was so related and price $100 much less. Nevertheless, the chances are that nobody who owns a Flip 5 goes to purchase a Flip 6, and Samsung is banking on older Flip clients or people who’re new to foldables altogether to spring for its newest clamshell, and for individuals who do, you will get a reasonably first rate telephone in change.

That mentioned, the Motorola Razr Plus is on the market looming over the Flip 6 with its superior cowl show, vegan leather-based design, and cheaper price. If you happen to do not thoughts giving up your ultra-wide digicam (and do not want seven years of software program updates), you would possibly need to take into consideration choosing up the Razr Plus as an alternative.