While the sixth version of Samsung’s large folding smartphone benefits from some improvements, the Galaxy Z Fold6 lacks real innovations compared to its predecessor. And it does not justify its price, which is rather dissuasive.

While the sixth version of Samsung’s large folding smartphone benefits from some improvements, the Galaxy Z Fold6 lacks real innovations compared to its predecessor. And it does not justify its price, which is rather dissuasive.

The pioneer of the foldable smartphone (with Huawei, let’s not forget), delivers this summer 2024 its new vision of its Galaxy Z Fold. Well, new, don’t get too excited. The Fold6 takes and improves what the previous models have released before it. It’s as if Samsung never takes a look at what’s happening with the competition, especially Honor and OnePlus. Strange on the part of the Korean company, which actually gives the impression of resting on its laurels.

Certainly, the Z Fold retains its aura and remains a worthy representative of Samsung’s know-how and mastery on the subject of foldable smartphones. The manufacturer’s touch remains remarkable, as do the undeniable assets of this smartphone for those looking for a model capable of transforming into a tablet in one go. But for this Z Fold6, we expected a little more. We were able to test the Galaxy Z Fold6 for several weeks. Here is our verdict.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold6: a design in keeping with continuity

It’s hard not to see the family connection that unites the new Z Fold6 to Samsung’s S24 family. The Korean has reworked the design of its product to strengthen its identity. The edges of the smartphone are thus, as on the S24 Ultra, very flat and the corners well marked on the angles. A pretty rectangle. The result is very successful and the aluminum dress which on the back does not catch fingerprints, produces its little classy and elegant effect.

What we regret, however, is the absence (or impossibility?) of risk-taking regarding the thickness of the device. And we realize that the gap is widening with the Chinese competition. The Z Fold remains very thick. Folded, the device is still 12.1 mm thick, which is much thicker than a classic smartphone but also than the Honor Magic V2 released last year with its 9.9 mm or the OnePlus Open and its 11.7 mm. Which makes this Z Fold a bit chunky.

An impression reinforced by the choice of the size of the 6.3-inch external screen and its 21:9 ratio. Even if it has gained in width compared to last year, this screen still seems narrow. And we quickly realize this as soon as we have to write a message or, worse, an email. By switching from a classic smartphone to the Z Fold and its narrow screen, typos are legion as the keys of the virtual keyboard are tightly packed together. Here again, Samsung is sticking to its position compared to the competition, which equips its foldable smartphones with an external screen of a more standard width and more suited to the uses we expect from it.

Let’s finish the tour of the owner with some slight changes made to the design of the device. It now benefits from an IP48 certification to resist accidental dives in water but especially a little better to dust. The Fold has also lost a few grams (14 to be precise) which on a smartphone of 239 g all the same is practically not felt.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold6: two bright but not always comfortable screens

The main advantage of a foldable smartphone is of course having two screens. The external screen for most uses and the large internal screen for apps that require more space. As mentioned above, the 6.3-inch external screen is a bit narrow to be really comfortable on a daily basis. If you want to look at images, take photos or consult a website, no problem. On the other hand, as soon as you have to enter text on the virtual keyboard, it gets complicated. Too bad because this screen is very bright and pleasant to the eye. However, we regret that for a smartphone of this caliber and at this price, Samsung has not adopted the same anti-reflective treatment as on the S24 Ultra.

The 7.6-inch internal screen with its definition of 2160 x 1856 pixels is a success. It too is very bright… and reflective. However, we notice that Samsung is struggling with the fold. Unlike the competition which provides remarkable work in this area, the fold of the Z Fold6 screen remains quite visible when you look at it a little from the side. Annoying when it comes to sharing a photo slideshow or a video with your friends. This fold is also very present under the fingers. Once again, Samsung should take a look at the know-how of OnePlus which has almost perfectly mastered how to make this unsightly fold disappear.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold6: top performance

Technical sheet

We’re not going to dwell too much on performance. This high-end model from Samsung is obviously powered by a SoC worthy of this category, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 from Qualcomm stamped “For Galaxy” for the time being. Performance is therefore there with very respectable scores in the various benchmarks to which we subjected it.

In-game, the device also performs with flying colors. We were able to run our reference title Genshin Impact on the internal screen at 60 frames per second while maintaining a high level of detail. However, the device tends to heat up quite quickly when subjected to demanding tasks. With 3D Mark’s SolarBay test (which highlights RayTracing), its temperature went from 26° to 43°.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold6: an AI-boosted software overlay

During our test of the Galaxy Z Flip6, we really appreciated Samsung’s progress in sprinkling a few pinches of artificial intelligence here and there. The Z Fold6 is in the same boat. It also benefits from photo editing functions with generative AI and some functions for editing and generating text or even translation. Elements that should not be long in arriving on the previous generation of the Fold. We invite you to read our test since the functions linked to AI (except for the automatic cropping when taking a picture which remains exclusive to the Z Flip6) are rigorously identical.

Another good point is that Samsung is committed to a 7-year follow-up of major updates and security patches for this Z Fold6.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold6: an improvement in photography, except in low light

Samsung still seems to be struggling to offer an excellent photo component on its foldable smartphone, the most expensive of all the models in its catalog, let’s remember. The Z Fold6 therefore displays lower performance than the S24 Ultra released at the beginning of the year. We will therefore have to make do here with a trio of sensors composed of a 50 Mpx wide-angle (f / 1.8), a 12 Mpx ultra wide-angle (f / 2.2) and a 10 Mpx 3x telephoto lens (f / 2.4). Finally, hidden behind the internal screen panel, we find a 4 Mpx selfie camera (f / 1.8) whose usefulness has yet to be proven.

During the day, the wide-angle module delivers good results. The shots are well-made and well-detailed but remain below what the S24 Ultra can provide.

The ultra-wide-angle module with its 12 Mpx sensor delivers correct results, nothing more. The images suffer from a slight loss of colors and distortions on the sides. Classic but at this price, it is not acceptable.

The telephoto lens stands out with good quality and details that are very present. Beyond 3x (the camera can go up to 30x), digital noise sets in and the smoothing is far too pronounced for usable images. Here again, we expected better.

It’s especially when the light drops that the Z Fold6 has problems. The colors tend to lose their naturalness. While the results are sufficient for social media posts, they remain below what some much cheaper smartphones can offer.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold6: good battery life but charging too slowly

To power this giant smartphone, Samsung relies on a 4400 mAh battery. It’s a bit short but sufficient if you’re content to use the device mainly closed. It lasted a little over 15 hours with our PCMark test. Enough to last a good day and a half, which is pretty good. But the characteristic of a foldable smartphone is to use its large internal screen. If you want to use it frequently, don’t count on more than a day.

And don’t count on quickly refueling to go out in the evening. This has been going on for years now and Samsung persists. The charging of this Z Fold6 is limited to 25 W (and the charger is obviously not provided even for a smartphone at 2000 euros). Connected to our 100 W Anker charger, the device recovered 100% charge in 1h20. This is far too slow and it is time for Samsung to get up to speed.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold6: should you fall for Samsung’s large folding smartphone?

With its Z Fold6, Samsung is struggling to surprise. The concept of the folding smartphone in book format is no longer a novelty and the competition has overtaken the pioneer. Honor, OnePlus, Google and Xiaomi, whose new Mix Fold is expected to arrive in France, seem much more focused on innovation than the Korean.

Of course, the Z Fold6 is not a bad smartphone. It benefits from Samsung’s expertise in the field but especially from its manufacturer’s brand image. But for 2000 euros, we expected more. More finesse, more photo quality, more autonomy, more speed in recharging… and less creases on the internal screen. Samsung’s efforts seem to be focused for the moment mainly on the software side with the addition of numerous AI functions. It is a success but it is a safe bet that they will only interest a small fraction of users after the first moments of discovery.

The Z Fold6 may, however, be of interest to professionals who want to keep a giant smartphone handy in their pocket. But in this case we regret the absence of a stylus (charged as an option for 60 euros or 100 euros with a case capable of holding it) which would have allowed you to take notes easily and transcribe them legibly thanks to the function present in the mobile. Once again, for 2000 euros, the account is not there.