Samsung has made the Galaxy Z Fold 5 thinner and lighter, but does that make it worth buying? Oh yes, it really does. We explain why in our full review.
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 MSRP $1,800.00 Score Details DT Editors' Choice “The futuristic folding Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 is thinner, lighter, and more powerful than ever before. It's the best big-screen folding smartphone you can buy.” Pros Cons This story is part of our Samsung Galaxy Unpacked 2023 coverage Where do I start with the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5? At first glance, and unless you see them next to each other, it’s practically indistinguishable from its predecessor.
The new Flex Hinge is absolutely silent and perfectly dampened. It gives the entire phone a fantastic, high-quality, luxurious feel. It holds itself open at various angles — which is great for watching video — and has bedded itself in quicker than the Z Fold 4 too. Within a day of use, the initial stiffness had disappeared, leaving a confidence-inspiring, superbly engineered motion. There’s no longer a gap between the sections, so there is less danger of debris getting in-between them.
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5: watching video, playing games, and reading I don’t play that many games, but I do watch quite a lot of videos, and I read books. I’ve already talked about how the Z Fold 5’s lower weight and thinner chassis change the way you hold and use the phone, but I want to expand on why I love to use it. The open screen is glorious; matched to the solid hinge and huge power, it’s fantastic to watch videos, read books, and play games.
Videos on the main screen are gorgeous, and the versatility of the design facilitates watching them. Reading books comes close to doing so on a Kindle, and don’t underestimate the Z Fold 5’s gaming ability either. This big-screen foldable is made for media, and the Galaxy Z Fold 5 is the best you can get.
There are a few problems, though. The camera doesn’t seem to enjoy focusing up close, either in 1x or 3x mode, and is far worse than the Z Fold 4 for this. The focusing may also contribute to some issues shooting in lowlight, as the camera seems to get confused about where it should focus. I am using the Z Fold 5 ahead of its full release, and software updates may fix this problem later on. It doesn’t ruin the camera, but it can cut down on some creative opportunities.
The phone can run three apps plus a floating window at the same time. When there’s more than one full-screen app running, you can quickly turn one into a floating window too, and I like Samsung’s pinch-to-zoom gestures throughout the system, which are fluid and accompanied by smooth animations. There’s a new drag-and-drop feature, where you can take a photo from the Gallery and drag it to a new Samsung Notes file, which will be helpful only if you use Samsung Notes and attach a lot of photos.
This is a true flagship phone that will happily handle the latest games, and you can enjoy them on an almost tablet-sized screen on a device that folds up to go into your pocket. It may sound like a very obvious benefit, but it can’t be overstated how futuristic this still feels. The Z Fold 5 directly competes with the Galaxy S23 Ultra in power and uses the same software, leaving you with a decision to make: choose a phone with a folding screen, or don’t.
Samsung has produced a new case to get around this, which adds a slot on the back of the phone to store the stylus. It is thinner than the similar case for the Z Fold 4 but still adds bulk. It costs $100 and comes with the S Pen, and is available in several different colors. It’s not the most attractive case, but if you really want to have the stylus available all the time, there isn’t a better solution .
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