Samsung has unveiled the third generation of its Milky way Z Fold smartphone named accordingly enough the Galaxy Z Fold 3 5G. In many ways, the new phone is similar to its predecessor, the Galaxy Z Fold ii. Both phones offer a hinged foldable design with internal and external screens, 5G connectivity, a 7.6-inch display and a rear triple camera setup. But the Z Fold 3 5G ups the ante with Southward Pen support, a speedier processor and a somewhat lower price tag.

SEE: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 5G cheat canvas (free PDF) (TechRepublic)

What is the Galaxy Z Fold iii 5G?

The most prominent feature of the Milky way Z Fold three 5G is its foldability. Since unveiling the Galaxy Z Fold in 2019, Samsung has been cyberbanking that consumers would be attracted to the novelty and uniqueness of foldable phones. Like its predecessor, the Z Fold 5G offers a hinge-based design that allows you to unfold and fold the phone.

When the device is folded, the vi.2-inch cover screen lets y'all view, work and play with all your apps and content. Unfold the phone, and the edge-to-edge 7.6-inch internal display takes the phase with ii screens. Both screens can function as one to give you actress real manor, or they can piece of work separately. For example, open a document in the acme half and launch a virtual keyboard in the bottom one-half, and your phone functions like a small laptop. A special customizable taskbar lets you speedily access your favorite apps.


Paradigm: Samsung

The hideaway hinge that holds the two halves together allows the phone to stay in place at whatever angle, even continuing up. The swivel on the Z Fold 3 is thinner than the i on its predecessors, according to Samsung. Plus, a sweeper feature uses bristles to repel dust and clay and keep the swivel surface area clean.

"Phones with folding displays are an integral part of Samsung's smartphone strategy, and Samsung is on its fourth iteration, gaining an increasing corporeality of consumer feedback, which is cycled dorsum into improving its next generation of devices," said GlobalData senior annotator Anisha Bhatia. "With Huawei fast losing its grip on the smartphone market, and no sign of a foldable iPhone, this futuristic segment is open for Samsung's taking."

SEE: Inquiry: How 5G volition transform business (TechRepublic Premium)

Galaxy Z Fold 3 5G: Processor and storage

The Z Fold 3 5G is powered by a more powerful CPU than its predecessors. The new telephone comes with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 scrap versus the Snapdragon 865 Plus found in the Z Fold 2. The new processor promises a faster and more efficient functioning with a 6th generation Qualcomm AI engine, a Tensor accelerator with twice the compute capacity, and a score of 26 for TOPS (trillions of operations per second) operation.

The phone comes with 12GB of RAM and offers a choice of 256GB or 512GB of internal storage. There is no congenital-in SD card slot, so in that location'due south no style to add together extra storage.

Galaxy Z Fold 3 5G: Due south Pen support


Image: Samsung

The Z Fold iii 5G is Samsung'south offset foldable smartphone to back up the company'southward S Pen to let y'all write notes and draw directly on the screen. You have to purchase an Southward Pen made specifically for the phone, either the $50 S Pen Fold Edition or the $100 Due south Pen Pro. Both pens come with a retractable Pro tip with force limit technology designed to ameliorate protect the phone's screen while you write or draw. The S Pen Fold is compatible only with the Z Fold 3 5G, while the S Pen Pro works with any S Pen-uniform Galaxy smartphone or tablet.

Galaxy Z Fold 3 5G: Connectivity

Every bit with the Z Fold 2, the third generation phone offers 5G connectivity for areas that support the latest wireless standard. The new phone supports Sub6 for broader coverage and millimeter wave (mmWave) for higher speeds. Also included are Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.ii, NFC and GPS.

Galaxy Z Fold 3 5G: Cameras

The Z Fold three 5G comes with the same three 12MP rear cameras as its predecessor. The F2.two ultrawide photographic camera offers a field of view (FOV) of 123 degrees, the F1.eight broad-angle an FOV of 83 degrees, and the F2.4 telephoto an FOV of 45 degrees. For video recording the cameras provide an optical zoom of 0.5x out and 2x in and a digital zoom of 10x.

The cover screen selfie camera offers 10MP, while the interior camera provides but 4MP (down from 10MP in the previous model). On the plus side, in that location is a major improvement hither that hopefully will find its fashion to other smartphones. The interior camera uses an under display technology that hides it from view. No notch. No punch-pigsty. No cutout. That means the display is truly edge to edge, though it's an innovation that hopefully won't affect the quality of your photos or videos.

The camera provides a few different shooting modes. Portrait manner lets you rapidly modify the depth of field and lighting. Night mode tries to retain the proper color and clarity under low-lite conditions past stabilizing the rear camera. Nighttime Hyperlapse mode snaps long-exposure shots with the rear or embrace cameras. And Manager'southward View mode takes videos from different angles and cameras.

Milky way Z Fold 3 5G: Display

When the phone is folded, the cover screen provides a 6.2-inch Hard disk drive+ Dynamic AMOLED 2X display with a resolution of 2,268 x 832 pixels and an attribute ratio of 24.v:9. The refresh rate has been bumped up to 120Hz vs the 60Hz on the Z Fold 2, so the display promises to exist faster and easier on the eyes.

When the phone is unfolded, the main screen offers a 7.6-inch QXGA+ Dynamic AMOLED 2X display with a resolution of 2,208 ten 1,768 pixels and an aspect ratio of 22.v:18. The refresh charge per unit of 120Hz is the aforementioned every bit on the Z Fold 2.

Samsung also touts the screen as 29% brighter merely more than free energy efficient than in previous models thanks to its new Echo brandish technology.

Milky way Z Fold 3 5G: Bombardment and charging

The 2-cell 4,400mAh dual bombardment offers slightly less capacity than the 4,500mAh used in the previous model. Only the more efficient Snapdragon 888 processor should recoup for the lower capacity, and then battery life hopefully will be more or less the same. The phone supports fast charging and wireless charging with 25W fast charging, 10W fast charging and four.5W reverse wireless charging.

Milky way Z Fold 3 5G: Durability

The Z Fold 3 5G is designed with Armor Aluminum, which Samsung points to equally the strongest aluminum always found on a Milky way smartphone.

The front encompass screen uses Corning Gorilla Glass Victus to protect it against scratches and drops. Lab tests conducted by Corning found that Gorilla Glass Victus withstood drops onto hard, rough surfaces from up to 6.7 feet. Corning said that this new flavor of Gorilla Glass has upward to four times the scratch resistance of competing products. The screen also is covered with a new protective film fabricated of stretchable PET (polyethylene terephthalate), making it more durable than previous models, according to Samsung.

The principal screen is composed of Samsung ultra-thin drinking glass, which the company says is less breakable and more than scratch-resistant than in the by. Further, the Z Fold 3 5G is rated at IPX8 for water resistance, which means it can survive immersion in more than 3.3 feet of h2o.

Milky way Z Fold iii 5G: Authentication and security

Both facial recognition and a fingerprint sensor are available to lock and unlock your phone also as authenticate purchases and logins. Located on the side of the device, the capacitive fingerprint sensor doubles every bit the power button. Your fingerprint data and other data stored on the device are protected by Samsung'south Knox security. A special secure folder is designed to isolate individual files such equally apps, photos and videos.

Galaxy Z Fold iii 5G: Operating arrangement and interface

The Z Fold three 5G comes with Android xi. Samsung also has outfitted the phone with a special version of its One UI interface designed to have reward of the foldable format and brandish.

Galaxy Z Fold 3 5G: Colors

The Z Fold 3 5G is available in three colors: Phantom Black, Phantom Green and Phantom Argent. Included in the box are the phone itself, a data cablevision, ejection pin and a quick start guide.

Specs for the Galaxy Z Fold 3

  • Internal brandish: 7.six-inch QXGA+ Dynamic AMOLED 2X Infinity Flex Display (2,208 10 1,768 pixels), 120Hz refresh rate
  • Encompass screen display: 6.two-inch Hd+ Dynamic AMOLED 2X Brandish (2,268 x 832 pixels), 120Hz refresh rate
  • Dimensions: Folded: 2.64″ x half-dozen.22″ x 0.63″ (swivel), 0.56″ (sagging); Unfolded: five.04″ x six.22″ 10 0.25″
  • Storage: 256 GB or 512GB
  • RAM: 12 GB
  • Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 888
  • Cameras: 12MP rear ultrawide, wide and telephoto lenses; 10MP selfie comprehend camera; 4MP under display camera.
  • Bombardment: 4,400mAh dual bombardment
  • Login security: fingerprint reader on side, face up recognition
  • Charging: Fast charging compatible on wired and wireless, wireless power share
  • Connectivity: LTE, 5G Sub6/mmWave, Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth, NFC, GPS
  • Ports: USB-C
  • SIM carte du jour: One eSIM and two Nano SIMs
  • Water Resistance: IPX8
  • Os: Android 11
  • Colors: Phantom Black, Phantom Green, Phantom Silverish
  • Included in the box: Galaxy Z Fold 3 5G, data cable, ejection pivot, quick start guide

Should I purchase the Galaxy Z Fold iii 5G?

One way to answer that question is with another question. Do you want or need a foldable phone? What started out as a gimmick from Samsung and one that was poorly designed with the original Z Fold has evolved into an intriguing and potentially useful concept. Foldability turns your smaller smartphone into a mini tablet-sized device, effective for multitasking, creating documents, playing games and watching videos.

The other answer to that question depends on what telephone you own now. If you currently own a non-foldable phone and see yourself truly taking reward of this course factor, then the Z Fold 3 5G is certainly worth considering. If you already own the original Z Fold, the tertiary generation represents a jump forrard in terms of performance, reliability, immovability and other areas. Only if you own the Z Fold 2, then the changes you'd detect in the Z Fold 3 are more evolutionary than revolutionary.

SEE: Samsung's new foldables and how they stack upward to the competition (TechRepublic)

The deciding cistron usually comes down to cost. Fifty-fifty in a smartphone market that has seen selling prices jump over the past few years, $1,800 is a pretty penny to spend on a mobile device. You'd be shelling out the same corporeality or more that y'all'd pay for a full-blown computer. That has to requite anyone intermission, even for a device that potentially represents the future of the manufacture.

The Galaxy Z Fold 3 is hardly the merely foldable game in town. Samsung's new Milky way Z Flip 3 offers a foldable feel at a much lower toll, though its clamshell flip design is smaller and less immersive. Microsoft's Surface Duo is another take on the foldable concept, and one that has plummeted from its original price of $1,400 down to nether $700.

Following in the footsteps of Samsung, other Android manufacturers are planning their ain mobile phones. Even Apple has filed a patent for a foldable iPhone, though such a device is likely a few years away. So if you lot're corking on a foldable phone right away, Samsung is all the same the main game in boondocks.

When volition the Galaxy Z Fold 3 5G be available, and how much will it toll?

The Galaxy Z Fold 3 5G launches on Aug. 27 in select regions, including the U.S., Europe and Korea.

Anyone who preorders the phone will receive a yr of Samsung Care+ protection to comprehend the device for accidental damage, including screen replacement, h2o damage and dorsum cover replacement.

The price starts at $1,800 for the 256GB version and rises to $1,900 for the 512GB model. Those prices are $200 less than the initial cost of the Z Fold ii but however correspond a loftier marking for a smartphone.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3
Epitome: Samsung