Hands on: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 and Galaxy Z Flip 7

If you live in the United States, the foldable smartphone market has not been particularly kind to you. We've all had to sit by and longingly look across the ocean at the innovative designs that Chinese manufacturers are making. Now, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 is here to fix that.

The Z Fold 7 is just 8.9mm thin, and it weighs less than my iPhone 15 Pro Max. It seems to fix everything I hate about smartphones, and in the couple hours I spent using one so far, I love it.

Samsung sponsored my hotel accommodations for the Unpacked event.

The problem with foldables

I struggle to care about them

Smartphones are boring. Even the companies that make them know it. It's a mature market, which is why no one aims for year-over-year upgrades anymore. Product refreshes are more iterative than ever (throwback to when every site called every phone review "Evolution, not revolution").

For a hot minute, foldable screens changed that, but it wasn't for long, at least for me. With US entries from Samsung, Google, and OnePlus, I've used them all, and while I bounce around between phones a lot, I'm finding myself not using them anymore.

The reason is because the experience just isn't good. I'm not opening the screen often enough, and if I use the external display, there are compromises. If you're just using it as a regular phone, it's heavy and it's bulky, whether you're talking about the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6, Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold, or OnePlus Open.

So, the question is, are you opening the screen enough to make the form factor worth the compromises when you're not opening it? For me, I wasn't.

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 fixes the form factor

It's so delightfully thin and light

At 8.9mm thick, it's just 0.7mm thicker than a Galaxy S25 Ultra and 0.65mm thicker than an iPhone 16 Pro Max. At 215g, it's 3g lighter than an S25 Ultra and 12g lighter than an iPhone 16 Pro Max.

If you never open the screen at all, the experience is just like using a regular phone. The screen is 6.5 inches at 21:9, so it's still a bit smaller and narrower than your average phone, but again, it just feels normal, which is what I wanted.

If you're reading this from outside the US, then you're probably questioning this a bit. Honor has been leading the industry for thinness on foldables for a few years now, but it doesn't sell its products in the United States, so here we are.

When using the external screen doesn't force you to make compromises, the internal screen is added value. It's eight inches diagonally now, and it's almost square (but not quite). Because of the shape, it's not going to change your video-watching experience by that much, but you can do more with that real estate.

I read a lot of comic books these days, so it's perfect for that. Of course, it's perfect for any kind of reading, not just books that are so heavy on graphics.

Multitasking is great too, and there's a neat photo editing feature where you can remove objects using Galaxy AI and see a before and after.

But this is just math at this point. You have more screen real estate, which means you can do more. I've only spent a couple of hours with the Z Fold 7 so far, so anything I say beyond this is just based on prior experience with Samsung's foldables.

The camera still isn't quite Ultra

We'll have to keep dreaming for now

While many of us have been crying out for thinner and lighter foldables in the US for a while, another common complaint has been the camera. Yes, I want the same camera that's on the S25 Ultra, on a foldable. It's not easy, but hey, the engineering part of it isn't my job.

The camera on the Z Fold 7 is greatly improved over the Z Fold 6. The main sensor is the same 200MP camera that's on the S25 Edge, which is awesome. The telephoto lens is still 3x though, and it's the same 10MP sensor that's on the Galaxy Z Fold 6.

To be clear, the camera system looks great. It's going to be a fine camera, and it's Samsung, so you can trust it. I just want more, and with Samsung tossing that Ultra word around, it's fresh on my mind.

The Galaxy Z Flip 7 finally does edge-to-edge

The old cover display goes to the Galaxy Z Flip FE

I believe that the Galaxy Z Fold 7 is the hero product here, but the Flip 7 comes with its own improvements. It's got a 4.1-inch external display that goes edge-to-edge, something that Motorola has been doing with its Razr+ and Razr Ultra already. Indeed, Samsung was criticized for not doing the same with the Galaxy Z Flip 6.

That external display is the big change, and the ability to launch Gemini Live from it. The cameras remain the same, with a 50MP main sensor and a 12MP ultra-wide.

No flip phone has used triple cameras yet, and an ultra-wide sensor just makes more sense for a product like this than telephoto would. It's designed for main camera selfies, so in a group setting, you'll be happy it's there.

And then there's the Galaxy Z Flip 7 FE, which is fine. It has the same style external display that the Galaxy Z Flip 6 had, which is fine. I just don't really understand why you wouldn't just buy last year's model, since the Z Flip 7 FE comes in at $899.

This is a trend that we're seeing though. Companies are releasing more "entry-level" devices that aren't priced like entry-level devices, and you're better off just buying the previous-gen flagship while it's still in stock. It happened with Microsoft and its 13-inch Surface Laptop, and it happened with Apple and the iPhone 16e.

It looks weird right now while prices are going up, and I'm sure these companies are anticipating you buying something else. But next year, it won't be as silly, because the flagship devices cost more too.

Pricing and availability

You can preorder the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7, Z Flip 7, and Z Flip 7 FE starting today, starting at $1,999.99, $1,099.99, and $899.99, respectively. They'll ship on July 25.

The Z Fold 7 comes in Jet black, Blue Shadow, Silver Shadow, and Mint, and the Z Flip 7 comes in Jet black, Blue Shadow, Coral Red, and Mint. For both devices, Mint is exclusive to Samsung.com, which is a little disappointing since Mint was an existing color on the Z Flip 6. But hey, if you really wanted a Fold in Mint, now is your opportunity. The Z Flip 7 FE only comes in black and white.

I'm really looking forward to picking up my review unit, because as I've said, I'm more excited about the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 than I've been about a foldable in a long time.

Note: If you've not reserved a unit through Samsung.com, you can still get $50 by preordering through our link.

• 

  Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7

  SoC

  Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy

  RAM

  12GB

  Storage

  256GB / 512GB

  Battery

  4,400mAh (typical) dual battery

  Ports

  USB-C

  Operating System

  Android 16 / One UI 8

  Samsung's latest foldable smartphone is thinner and lighter than ever, and it has a better camera. If you haven't reserved one, you can still get a $50 credit by using the link below.

  $1999 at Samsung $2000 at Amazon

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• Image credit: Samsung

  Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7

  SoC

  Samsung Exynos 2500

  RAM

  12GB

  Storage

  256GB / 512GB

  Battery

  4,300mAh (typical) dual battery

  Operating System

  Android 16 / One UI 8

  Front camera

  10MP Selfie Camera F2.2, Pixel size: 1.12μm, FOV: 85˚

  The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 improves over last year's model with a 4.1-inch edge-to-edge cover display.

  $1099 at Samsung $1100 at Amazon

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