Samsung Galaxy Unpacked Seoul
Galaxy Z Flip5 and Galaxy Z Fold5
Samsung has been building foldables for five generations now. The Galaxy Z phones are still relatively low volume devices compared to Samsung’s Galaxy S and A series smartphones, but they are priced at a premium, and they pull a higher percentage of buyers away from Apple than Samsung’s bar phones.
Samsung’s early investment in foldables has meant that even as rivals enter the category, Samsung maintains a lead in software optimization, durability, and support. Ahead of Samsung Unpacked, I got a first-hand look at how Samsung stress tests its phones at its QA Lab in Suwon, Korea, which includes torturing them in environmental chambers, dropping steel balls on them, repeatedly tumbling them in steel drums, and more. If they do break, Samsung has more points of service than any other foldable manufacturer, and insurance plans that provide free screen replacements.
It can be hard for the tech press to get excited about iterative improvements, but most people buying a foldable will be buying their first, and these are exciting phones. The truth is, even if you have used Samsung’s foldables in the past, the new phones do feel different in the hand now that Samsung redesigned the hinge so they now fold completely flat when closed. The Galaxy Z Fold5 is also noticeably lighter – and compared to Google’s Pixel Fold, the Galaxy Z Fold5 is just much more comfortable to hold for any length of time. Samsung addressed the biggest pain point on the Galaxy Flip with a dramatically larger external display and expanded the number of things you can do with it – including running some full applications. Samsung also further improved the software for the main displays, and the user experience was already the biggest differentiator between Samsung and rivals – even Google’s own Pixel Fold. Both phones get Qualcomm’s best Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy silicon, yet pricing remains the same as last year. The only thing that hasn’t changed from prior generations is the camera hardware, though the software has gotten some tweaks.
Pricing
These are unapologetically premium phones. Pricing has remained the same despite the redesigned hinges, improved components, and inflation. It is worth noting that while there are now multiple vendors making smartphones, few are seriously undercutting Samsung on price. This is because these are expensive products to design and build to begin with, and once you’re dealing with premium or super-premium price points, consumers expect performance and components to match. Despite the price points, foldables have been growing as a category. A smartphone is something you use dozens or hundreds of times a day; if you can afford it, it is not hard to justify spending more for a more exciting fold-smaller device or a more productive and entertaining experience.
Competition
Globally, Samsung has no single challenger in foldables. Chinese vendors collectively are starting to offer worthy alternatives, but volumes are low and they are often aimed primarily at the domestic Chinese market. HONOR is offering extremely advanced hardware, and OPPO’s Find N series provides a different form factor to the Galaxy Z Fold at a lower price. In the U.S. and, to a lesser extent in Europe, Samsung’s biggest challenger is Motorola, not Google. The Pixel Fold definitely feels like a 1.0 product and comes in at the same $1,800 price point as Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold5. The best-selling foldable is Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip, and Motorola’s new razr+ provides a direct competitor at a similar price. The razr+ features a huge external display that can run full Android apps, and a bright Viva Magenta color option over at T-Mobile. However, at this point, anything that brings consumers to consider foldables – even if it’s solid competition – is good for Samsung.
Techsponential has review units of the Galaxy Z Flip5 and Galaxy Fold5; we will update this report (or link to a follow-up report) as we get more time with them.
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