Samsung’s foldable flagship retains evolving, and the brand new Galaxy Z Fold 7 is right here to tighten the hole between versatile telephones and conventional slabs. However how a lot has actually modified in comparison with final 12 months’s Galaxy Z Fold 6? Right here’s a more in-depth have a look at how the 2 stack up.
Samsung Galaxy Fold 7
Design and Construct
One of many largest speaking factors this 12 months is how a lot slimmer and lighter the Fold 7 has turn out to be. It weighs 215 grams, which is noticeably lighter than the Fold 6’s 253 grams — a distinction you’ll truly really feel in your pocket or bag. Folded up, the Fold 7 measures 8.9mm thick, slimmer than the Fold 6’s 12.1mm. When unfolded, it’s simply 4.2mm, a considerable trim-down in comparison with the earlier technology’s 6.1mm profile. Total, Samsung says the brand new design is about 26% thinner when open, which makes an enormous distinction if you’re holding it like a pill.
Supplies have additionally had an improve. Whereas the Fold 6 used Armor Aluminum and Gorilla Glass Victus+, the Fold 7 brings in more durable Gorilla Glass Ceramic 2 on the duvet show and an armored titanium layer within the body. The hinge has been reworked too, with the brand new Armor Flex Hinge designed to disperse stress extra evenly to cut back seen creasing over time. The water resistance ranking sits at IP48 — a slight technical bump over the Fold 6’s IPX8 — including mud safety to the combo.
Larger and Brighter Screens
Open up the Fold 7 and also you’re greeted by a barely bigger 8.0-inch QXGA+ Dynamic AMOLED 2X show, up from the Fold 6’s 7.6-inch panel. The quilt display is larger too, now 6.5 inches with a extra usable 21:9 side ratio, in comparison with the Fold 6’s narrower 6.2-inch entrance show. Each the primary and canopy screens help adaptive refresh charges as much as 120Hz for clean scrolling and gaming.
It’s a delicate bump in dimension, however mixed with slimmer bezels and improved sturdiness layers, it makes the Fold 7 really feel extra like a small pill when opened and extra like a daily cellphone when closed.
A Critical Digital camera Improve
Maybe essentially the most vital {hardware} leap is within the digital camera. The Fold 7 inherits the flagship-level 200MP wide-angle important digital camera, aligning it with the Galaxy S25 Extremely. That’s an enormous bounce from the Fold 6’s 50MP important shooter. You continue to get a triple rear digital camera system with a 12MP ultra-wide lens and a 10MP telephoto lens with 3X optical zoom and as much as 30X Area Zoom. Nonetheless, the brand new high-resolution important sensor guarantees sharper particulars, particularly in difficult lighting situations.
Selfie shooters additionally get an enchancment. The quilt digital camera stays at 10MP, however the under-display digital camera on the primary display is now a extra standard 10MP sensor, changing the Fold 6’s much less spectacular 4MP under-display digital camera. This improve ought to lead to clearer video calls and selfies when the cellphone is unfolded.
Efficiency and Battery
Each generations depend on top-end Snapdragon silicon, however the Fold 7 debuts the brand new Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy, which brings CPU, GPU, and NPU positive factors over the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 used within the Fold 6. This implies quicker on-device AI processing, improved multitasking, and enhanced gaming efficiency.
Battery capability hasn’t modified — each pack a 4,400mAh dual-cell battery — however Samsung claims improved energy effectivity due to the brand new chipset and show tech. Wired charging nonetheless tops out at 25W, with wi-fi and reverse wi-fi charging options carried over from the Fold 6.
Smarter Software program
The Fold 7 is Samsung’s first foldable to ship with Android 16 and One UI 8, bringing extra AI-powered options out of the field. Instruments like Generative Edit, Circle to Search, and Gemini Stay are designed to benefit from the bigger display, letting you edit pictures, seek for info mid-game, or drag and drop AI-generated content material between apps extra simply.
Whereas the Fold 6 did get a few of Samsung’s AI instruments by updates, the Fold 7’s {hardware} is clearly tuned to run them extra easily, and its bigger display makes them extra sensible to make use of aspect by aspect.
Which Ought to You Select?
The Z Fold 6 was already a refined foldable, however the Fold 7 nudges the idea ahead with a thinner, lighter construct, stronger supplies, and a severe digital camera improve. If you happen to’re upgrading from an older Fold — particularly something earlier than the Fold 5 — the Fold 7’s refinements will really feel substantial. However for Fold 6 house owners, the primary draw is basically the improved important digital camera, lighter design, and next-gen AI software program.
With a well-recognized worth level and Samsung’s promise of seven years of software program help, the Galaxy Z Fold 7 seems to be just like the foldable to beat — at the least till the subsequent iteration inevitably pushes the design even nearer to the mainstream.
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