Samsung unpacks Galaxy Z Flip 5, Fold 5 foldables

Samsung Electronics Co. on Wednesday unveiled the newest edition to its Galaxy Z foldable series – Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Fold 5 – designed to be thinner and lighter weight than their predecessors with a bigger main screen.

The fifth-generation Galaxy foldables come with more flexible hinges that enable the two halves of the phone to close properly. Hinges are seen as the main drawback of foldable smartphones.

“This new integrated hinge module features a dual rail structure, diffusing external impact,” Samsung said in a statement released for Galaxy Unpacked 2023 held on July 26 in Seoul.

To improve their durability, their main screen is equipped with a shock dispersion layer and a redesigned back for a more solid display.

“The Samsung Galaxy Z series transforms what is possible with a smartphone – open or closed,” Samsung said in the statement.

GALAXY Z FLIP 5

The Z Flip 5’s cover screen is about twice as large as that of its fourth-generation model, occupying the entire half of the phone when folded.

The cover screen is 3.4 inches or 8.61 centimeters, measured diagonally, compared with the 1.9 inches of the predecessor.

With the bigger screen, users can read, write and send entire text messages without opening the phone, while watching livestreams on platforms like Youtube. They can customize the outside screen to their preferences.

The Flip 5 also boast advanced camera capabilities to allow users to take hands-free photos from creative angles even with the phone half-unfolded at 90 degrees or in the L shape. Its dual preview function lets them see themselves in the Flex Window main screen so they can make adjustments in real-time.

When folded, the flip is 15.1 millimeters thick, 0.8 mm slimmer than its predecessor. Its battery has the same capacity as the fourth generation at 3,700mAh.

But the battery is powered by the second-generation Snapdragon 8 mobile platform, a so-called smartphone brain, as with the Galaxy S23 series.

The processor enhances the Z Flip 5’s power efficiency. Namely, it improves the performance of central processing units and graphic processing units by 34% and 41%, respectively, while reducing power consumption by 40-45%.

GALAXY Z FOLD 5

The Fold 5 is the slimmest and lightest foldable in the Galaxy Z Fold line with a long-lasting battery. Despite its large screen, it weighs 253 grams, 10 grams less than the fourth generation.

It is 13.4 mm thick when opened and 6.1 mm when closed. That means it is 0.8 mm and 0.22 mm slimmer, when closed and opened, than the previous models.

It has the same battery capacity of 4,400mAh as that of its predecessors. But as with Flip 5, it is powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor, which improves power efficiency.

When fully unfolded, its main screen is 7.6 inches, larger than conventional smartphones', which improves the immersive experience in watching video content and playing games.

The Fold 5 users can use a 4.35 mm-thick S Pen to write on the mobile device. The S Pen was introduced in the third-generation Fold in 2021.

According to Counterpoint, a research company, foldable phone shipments reached 14.9 million units in 2022, of which Samsung was estimated to take the lion’s share of 80%.

The current Galaxy Unpacked marks the first time that Samsung is holding the biannual event in South Korea.

The latest Z series will hit the market next month. The Flip 5 with 256-gigabyte storage capacity will go for 1,399,200 won ($1,100) and the Fold 5 for 2,097,700 won.

“Samsung is revolutionizing the mobile industry with foldables by setting the standard and continually refining the experience,” said TM Roh, who leads Samsung Electronics’ mobile eXperience business, during Galaxy Unpacked 2023.

Write to Ik-Hwan Kim and Jeong-Soo Hwang at lovepen@hankyung.com

Yeonhee Kim edited this article.