I originally got a Zflip 5 and liked the compactness and versatility, hence I decided to give the fold a try!
Pros:
- the beautiful, large screen is perfect for multi-tasking, for example: texting somebody about a vacation destination and taking quick screenshots and sending it right to them on the other side of your screen
- The external cameras are an amazing improvement from last year, likely because Samsung tuned their auto-ai-whatever image processing.
- the foldable screen makes it it's own stand! YouTube even has a built in mode that turns the bottom half into the video controls!
- The springs don't drag it open or close like my flip, so I can stand it at almost any angle!
- materials make it feel premium! Samsung put a lot of effort into perfecting the foldable feeeling of quality. I also own an S24 ultra and they feel almost identical in terms of trust I have in the physical design and materials. Extremely well machined!
- using the outside screen doesn't feel terrible and cramped as I had expected. It's a lot like when I got my flip and thought it was weirdly tall, but I got used to it.
- ecosystem integration is finally to a point I can recommend people get everything Samsung, like the watch, ring, and tablets! Copy and paste works, if I need to open a message on my phone from my watch, I can immediately just open my phone, copy an OTP, etc.
Ehhh:
- Battery life is middling, it will last you all day, BUT with low-medium use. I am in a job where I use it around 4 hours a day and it struggles to be at even 20% at the end of my day.
- Samsung bloatware is Mostly removable, I miss my pixel phones with completely uninstallable to no bloatware. I hate that we have non-uninstallabke bloatware like AR camera or Bixby (Google assistant FTW)
Cons:
- app support is getting closer to being more widespread but still not where it needs to be, some apps have issues with both the external and internal display ratios, whether it be too skinny to display things, or too wide to display things properly.
- front/internal camera is terrible, it is taking a picture through the screen, but it is simply unacceptably bad
- Brightness of the screen is not enough for outdoor use. I went to a local restaurant today and noticed I could barely see the screen with extra brightness enabled in overcast weather.
Overall 8.5/10
TL:DR
Physical design is impeccable, however software support and battery life hold it back from being what Samsung envisions: the perfect compact phone. 8.5/10
Manufactured using processes that reduce the risk of negative environmental impact.
As certified by
ECOLOGO
ECOLOGO
ECOLOGO certified products have reduced environmental impacts at one or more stages of their lifecycle – from raw materials to end of life. ECOLOGO certification indicates that a product has met environmental performance standards, which include criteria in some or all of the following categories: materials, energy, manufacturing and operations, health and environment, product performance and use, and product stewardship and innovation. Products are evaluated on the applicable criteria through testing and auditing.
