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, resembling a harder design, higher efficiency, a brand new principal digital camera, and a much bigger battery.
Nonetheless, 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 conversant in folding telephones, what they’re able to, and what their uncommon kind elements carry to the desk. The Z Flip 6 is essentially 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 replaced my Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra with the Z Fold 6 for a week – and can’t go back
The beginning value has additionally gone up $100 to $1,099. So, after utilizing the Z Flip 6 for a bit over per week, the massive 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 value in any respect. This is my reply.
Samsung would not need to 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 a substitute of shiny like on the Z Flip 5, which I admire.
Additionally: Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 vs Z Flip 5: Key differences you should know before buying
The brand new Z Flip additionally has an IP48 score, 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.
This is the Galaxy Z Flip 6’s cowl show subsequent to the bigger show on Motorola’s Razr Plus (2024).
Max Buondonno/ZDNET
These enhancements are good to see however are certainly not monumental. I might’ve liked to see a much bigger cowl show; Samsung upped the ante final yr 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, but it surely’s dwarfed by the a lot cooler-looking 4-inch panel on the 2024 Razr Plus.
Additionally: I tested Motorola’s new Razr Plus (2024) and it made the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip feel outdated
Not solely does Motorola’s show stretch to every edge and behind the cameras, but it surely additionally allows you to run any app you need, so that you not often 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 quite a bit, however that is not a nasty factor. The 6.7-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X is beautiful, with a pointy Full HD+ decision and glorious colour copy. There is a 120Hz refresh fee that retains every little thing silky easy, and Samsung even threw in 2,600 nits of peak brightness, which is far 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 checklist, gaming, or taking footage like a loopy individual, the Flip 6 may have no drawback maintaining.
Additionally: Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 vs. Motorola Razr+ (2024): I’ve tested both, and the winner is not so obvious
What I would prefer to see Samsung work on is warmth administration. There’s little or no area for corporations so as to add the identical air flow and cooling methods as regular telephones, so most foldables are likely to undergo from extreme warmth even if you’re doing regular issues like checking TikTok or firing off emails. The Flip 6 isn’t any exception; I’ve observed it will get actually heat very often, each in the summertime warmth and in my 62-degree bed room. When gaming, it may get even hotter.
The cameras are a step up from the Flip 5, however they proceed to fall in need of what normal flagships are able to. I like many of the pictures I’ve taken with the Z Flip 6; the brand new 50MP principal digital camera collects extra element and sharpness than the outdated 12MP sensor did on the Flip 5, and you may take full-resolution 50MP pictures if you wish to crop in or have them printed. In the meantime, the 12MP 123-degree ultra-wide performs nice throughout the day, however will get fairly darkish and muddy at evening with loads of synthetic mild injected into it.
Captured with the principle 50MP digital camera.
Max Buondonno/ZDNET
In case you care about digital camera high quality and desire a clamshell flip telephone, the Z Flip 6 is the one to get. I in contrast a few of the pictures I took to pictures I captured with the Razr Plus, and the distinction is sort of evening and day. Colours are extra true to life on Samsung’s telephone, lighting is oftentimes higher, and you may take footage at evening with out every of them popping out unusable. Video high quality can also be higher on the Flip 6 than the Razr Plus.
Additionally: Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 hands-on: The foldable most people should buy gets one key upgrade
After all, the capturing expertise stays unmatched with the Z Flip’s versatile kind issue. Like different foldable telephones, you’ll be able to prop it up like a kickstand for hands-free pictures, use the quilt display as a second viewfinder, file movies in traditional handheld camcorder style, and extra.
That complete 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 prime 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 also be promising as much as seven years of software program updates on the Flip 6, which suggests it falls according to the course the trade is heading.
Additionally: The Galaxy Watch Ultra convinced me to replace my Apple Watch in less than a week. Here’s why
Samsung additionally features a checklist of AI features on the Flip 6 prefer it does with its different 2024 flagships, together with context-aware replies for messages on the quilt display, dwell 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 take pleasure in 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 properly into the later hours of the day, but it surely’s certainly not 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 comparable and price $100 much less. Nonetheless, 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 stated, 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. In case you do not thoughts giving up your ultra-wide digital camera (and do not want seven years of software program updates), you would possibly wish to take into consideration selecting up the Razr Plus as a substitute.
