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The Galaxy Z Fold 6 comes with a ton of upgrades that, at a glance may feel incremental, but you would be wrong to dismiss the device because of that. There are many subtle refinements that makes the Galaxy Z Fold 6 one of the most complete phablet styled foldable device read more
 "The next step in the foldable evolution, now powered by AI")
Image Credit: Firstpost | Mehul Reuben Das
Pros:
- Massive quality of life refinements over the Z Fold 5
- Proper multitasking chops with great overall performance
- Internal display one of the best ever fitted to a smartphones
- External display feels more refined and symmetrical
- Crease on the inner display is much less visible
- AI features seem interesting
- Proper software support for the foldable form factor
Cons:
- Marginal improvement in battery life over Z Fold 5
- Only minor upgrades to the camera
- Eye-watering price tag
Pricing: Starts at Rs 1,64,999 for the base 256GB+12GB variant
Rating: 4.75/5
Ever since they launched the Galaxy Z Fold, Samsung has been the king of the hill that is the phablet-styled foldable smartphones. Over the years, there have been many contenders who posed a serious challenge to Samsung’s throne.
However, they have been running the gauntlet that Samsung threw them — they have been playing by the rules that Samsung set. With the Galaxy Z Fold 6, Samsung has managed to preserve the status quo and throw other foldable smartphone makers a new gauntlet.
Sure, there are other smartphones that have outdone Samsung in certain areas. The OnePlus Open and the Vivo X Fold3 are very strong contenders. They offer some pretty awesome features, and at times, have outdone Samsung in terms of specification, pricing, or software features.
However, the Z Fold series has always been a step ahead of its competition, mainly because it offered a much more refined, and balanced package, that came with top-notch performance.
The Galaxy Z Fold 6 is an incremental upgrade over the Galaxy Z Fold 5 in the same way that Homo sapiens are ‘incrementally evolved’ over Homo sapiens. Sure they share a lot of the same basic qualities on paper — but take one look at the Galaxy Z Fold 6, or just pick it up for even half an hour, and you’ll see there are tons of changes, both on the surface level, as well as deep inside.
For starters, you get top-notch specs, two incredible displays, and most importantly, Samsung’s suite of AI features as part of Galaxy AI. But does that mean it justifies the eye-watering price that Samsung is asking for the Z Fold 6? Or has Samsung priced itself out of an already premium market? We find out.
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 Review: Design
The Galaxy Z Fold 6 is mostly about refining the design from Samsung’s previous foldable models, making it the company’s thinnest foldable phone yet. The device now has a sharper, more rectangular design, which looks great. There’s a new matte coating on the metal parts like the frame and hinge, complementing the overall aesthetic.
The hinge feels robust and sturdy, requiring just the right amount of force to unfold. It can stay open at a wider range of angles and operates more smoothly. Samsung has also reduced the phone’s weight to 239 grams, just 7 grams more than the Galaxy S24 Ultra. This lightweight design makes it easy to carry in your hand or pocket.
The new design is a rather pleasant improvement in look and feel. It’s also durable, with Gorilla Glass Victus 2 and Armor Aluminum, the same materials used in the Galaxy S24. Samsung refined everything from the speakers to the camera array. The buttons are flat and elegant, giving the phone a professional look.
The Fold 6 is thinner both when folded and unfolded, shaving off nearly 15 grams of weight. It’s also the first Galaxy Z Fold officially certified for protection against small particles and solid objects, boasting an IP48 rating. Previous models featured an IPX8 certification for water resistance, but the Fold 6 goes further with enhanced protection.
Samsung added more steel to the dual rail hinge, sealing it from the elements. The phone’s IP48 rating means it’s resistant to both dust and water. A slightly elevated edge around the inner display acts as an O-ring, sealing the device completely shut when folded, reducing the risk of dust or debris damaging the inner screen.
While the flat-edge design can be a bit sharp in the corners, digging into your hand, the overall design of the Fold 6 is refined and improved. Available in navy blue, silver, and pink at both offline and online stores, the Fold 6 also comes in black and white, exclusive to Samsung’s website.
The Fold 6 doesn’t have the Galaxy S24 Ultra’s titanium frame and Gorilla Glass Armor but features an aluminium frame that’s 10% more scratch-resistant. It retains the Gorilla Glass Victus 2 front and back glass from the Fold 5.
Despite this, the Galaxy Z Fold 6 feels premium. My only complaint would be that the slimmer and flat edges, make unfolding the phone more difficult, especially since there is no space to place some leverage. A case can help, but not completely solve this issue.
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 Review: Displays
The Galaxy Z Fold 6’s outer OLED screen is now 6.3 inches, up from 6.2 inches last year. While this may seem minor, the new 22.1:9 aspect ratio, compared to the previous 23.1:9, makes the screen wider and less elongated. This change means the keyboard on the Fold 6’s outer screen no longer feels cramped, allowing for more comfortable two-handed typing. The main 7.6-inch folding screen also benefits from the wider aspect ratio.
A notable improvement is the reduced crease at the fold. Although it’s still more noticeable than on Chinese foldables, which use different folding mechanisms, it’s less distracting. The main screen, with a 2160 X 1856 resolution and a maximum brightness of 3,000 nits, delivers stunning visuals.
The Fold 6 keeps the 120Hz variable refresh rate and AMOLED panel but brings technical upgrades and tweaks to the aspect ratio. Both the cover and foldable displays are wider and shorter, with the cover screen having less rounded bezels, enhancing the perception of width.
The 6.3-inch cover screen is a 2376 X 968 AMOLED panel with an adaptive refresh rate from 1Hz to 120Hz. It’s practical for quick tasks like web browsing, email, and Instagram scrolling. The outer display is more squarish than before and has far thinner bezels, especially on the edge, compared to the X Fold 5. This makes the outer display look larger than before.
The inner 7.6-inch screen is a 2160 x 1856 AMOLED panel with a thin, flat bezel. It’s exceptionally bright, reaching up to 2,600 nits, and the crease is less noticeable than in previous models. While you can still see and feel the crease, Samsung has made significant improvements.
Visually, the Galaxy Z Fold 6 offers a vibrant, contrast-rich display perfect for various tasks. Watching videos on Netflix or Prime, playing games like Asphalt 9, and browsing websites or reading articles are enjoyable experiences. In tablet mode, the Z Fold 6 is comfortable to hold.
Flex mode, which lets you fold the screen 90 degrees and set it on a flat surface, is handy for video watching and calls, though typing in this mode isn’t ideal.
Samsung also keeps delivering a top-notch stylus experience on foldable phones with the Galaxy Z Fold 6, with some really cool features. However, you don’t get an S Pen included with the phone. You’ll have to buy the specific S Pen Fold Edition if you want to use a stylus.
Despite concerns about the outer display being slimmer than competitors like the OnePlus Open and Pixel Fold, I find the compact, pocket-friendly design of the Samsung Fold 6 appealing. I didn’t have issues with the Fold 5 or the Fold 6. I used the Fold 6’s inner display for almost everything except taking photos, videos, and making calls, the three tasks that I would invariably use with the outer display. Having said the outer display was more than adequate for quick texts or emails.
Foldables with wider outer displays often lead to people using the outer screen more and neglecting the inner one. With the Fold 6, the balance between the outer and inner displays encourages using the foldable screen more often, making it a versatile and practical device.
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 Review: Camera
The Galaxy Z Fold 6’s three-camera array stands out visually but offers a mixed bag of feelings. The cameras are the same as those on the Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Galaxy Z Fold 4, which is a bit disappointing, especially considering the high price of the Fold 6. This disparity feels even more pronounced given the increased cost of the Fold 6 compared to its predecessors.
The Fold 6’s cameras include a 50MP wide-angle lens with an f/1.8 aperture, a 12MP ultrawide lens with an f/2.2 aperture and a 123-degree field of view, and a 10MP camera with 3X optical zoom and an f/2.4 aperture.
These cameras are very capable. I managed to take stunning photos in various conditions during my trip to Paris, but the overall experience left me wanting more for some reason. Colours and sharpness are generally good, and low-light performance is adequate, but macro photography is nonexistent. Portrait mode, on the other hand, produced beautiful images of people and pets.
One of the standout features is the colour quality and detail, thanks to Samsung’s updated ProVisual Engine, which enhances computational photography capabilities. This engine has improved significantly, offering a more accurate representation of reality, though Samsung’s tendency to make skies appear overly blue remains.
In well-lit environments, the Z Fold 6 captures vibrant and rich images, though sometimes at the expense of slight detail loss and occasional overexposure. Colours can also be a bit off. In low-light conditions, Samsung’s Night Mode does a great job of boosting exposure without adding significant artefacts.
The under-display camera (UDC) on the foldable screen is still nearly useless. It can only take basic photos and videos, with the quality you’d expect from a 4-megapixel sensor. While it’s fine for video calls in Flex Mode, it performs adequately only in well-lit environments.
The 50MP main camera is a strong performer, delivering superb shots with excellent colours, sharpness, exposure, and detail resolution. Its performance is comparable to the top-tier cameras on the market, like those in the Galaxy S24 series or the iPhone 15 generation. Unfortunately, the 12MP ultra-wide camera is less impressive, with dull colours, overprocessing, and a lack of detail. It will get the job done for ultra-wide shots but don’t expect too much from it.
The cover display features a proper front-facing camera. The 10MP front camera delivers good picture and video quality and includes useful features like auto framing in video mode, which keeps you in the frame even if you move away from the centre.
Click here for some camera samples from the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6.
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 Review: Performance, software experience and UI
The Galaxy Z Fold 6 comes equipped with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip (the ‘For Galaxy’ variant with slightly higher clock speeds) and 12GB of RAM as standard, with storage options of 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB. This setup ensures the phone is fast, smooth, and capable of handling anything you throw at it.
I won’t dwell too much on its performance because it’s simply top-notch. The Z Fold 6 features the best-in-class SoC, an impressive vapor chamber system, and delivers all the performance you’d expect. In benchmarks, it consistently ranks near the top or outright beats other foldables. For those interested, we have benchmark results available.
The Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 can run a bit warm, especially during intensive tasks, but Samsung’s new and larger vapour chamber cooling system (1.6 times bigger than the Fold 5’s) handles it well. During our tests, the cooling system proved more than adequate, keeping the phone running smoothly even during long gaming sessions with high-end games like Call of Duty at high refresh rates.
In most scenarios, the Fold 6 stays cool. Long gaming sessions and extended video recording did warm it up, but it never got uncomfortably hot.
Galaxy AI features process quickly, at least those that can be handled on-device. Most AI features, however, require an internet connection, so your connection speed will affect how fast things get done.
The Fold 6 runs on One UI 6.1.1 out of the box, bringing features like live effect wallpapers from any image, the ability to clip objects or people from motion photos and convert them to GIFs, and an improved Auto Blocker that prevents sideloading of apps by default.
Sound quality has also been improved with features like dialogue and voice boosting in videos and a loudness normalisation setting to prevent sudden changes in volume.
The Fold 6 will receive Android, One UI, and security updates for seven years, which is longer than any other foldable phone except the Google Pixel Fold. This extended support is one of the few justifications for Samsung’s price increase.
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 Review: AI features
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 is brimming with AI features, including Google Gemini. Here are some of the highlights.
On the productivity front, Note Assist is a real game-changer. It can transcribe and summarize meeting notes for you. It usually produces a clear, easy-to-understand summary. In my testing, it did take a bit of time to transcribe a rather long meeting, but the transcription and notes that it came up with, where very helpful. It also works well with other apps like Google Meet.
Then there are a ton of Google Gemini features, which are always ready with a quick swipe from the corner. It can do everything from answering questions to brainstorming vacation ideas.
It even helps with homework; I snapped a photo of a rather complex maths problem, one that an Economics student in the second year of his master’s would be expected to solve, and Gemini provided step-by-step instructions with such ease and clarity that even I could understand.
The highlight of the Galaxy AI’s features though would be its Interpreter app. It allows users to use a real-time translation during conversations. Both you and the person you’re talking to can see what’s being said on the main and cover displays. I tested this with a colleague with whom I was speaking in Bengali. He was speaking to me in a mix of Hindi and English.
Despite a slight delay, our conversation flowed smoothly with both audio and text. This feature could revolutionize travel, especially since the Interpreter app works offline.
Samsung has also added some fun AI features to the foldable format. One example is Sketch to Image in the Samsung Notes app.
You can sketch anything, and the AI will transform it into a watercolour, illustration, sketch, pop art, or 3D cartoon. It takes a few seconds, but the results are quite impressive. You can even sketch objects into photos. For example, I drew a basic white car in front of the parking lot of a resort and got a white Lambo generated. What took me by surprise was that the result looked very realistic.
Additionally, Galaxy AI can transform photos with Portrait Studio, allowing you to turn yourself into anything from a comic book character to a 3D cartoon.
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 Review: Battery
Samsung has decided not to increase the battery capacity on the Fold for the fourth consecutive year. The Fold 6 features a 4,400 mAh battery, the same as the Fold 3, Fold 4, and Fold 5, and only marginally larger than the original Fold’s 4,380 mAh.
Therefore, any battery life improvements are attributed to the new Snapdragon chip and software optimization rather than a larger battery.
The Fold 6 also charges slower compared to the Fold 5. It reaches about 40 per cent in 30 minutes and takes roughly 100 minutes for a full charge. In contrast, the Fold 5 could charge up to 50 per cent in 30 minutes and achieve a full charge in about 80 minutes.
It’s important to note that our testing primarily used the larger inner display at 70 per cent peak brightness. If you mainly use the outer display, you will experience significantly better battery life.
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 Review: Verdict
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 is like carrying two gadgets in one. You get a beefy 6.3-inch smartphone that you can unfold into a slim and stunning tablet. And despite this versatility, it doesn’t feel like you’re hauling around two devices, thanks to its manageable size and weight.
This is undoubtedly one of the top foldable phones available. While there are less expensive options, few can match the Z Fold 6 in terms of design, performance, and AI capabilities. If you’re looking for a true 2-in-1 device, this might be the best option out there.
Unlike some companies that are still considering bringing AI to their foldable sometime in the future, Samsung is already delivering a rather unique experience, with Galaxy AI on the Z Fold 6, which is not only impressive but also genuinely useful.
And even if you disregard its foldable nature, this device stands out as a proper top-notch device, showcasing the best the company has to offer. It handles the latest games effortlessly, and the nearly tablet-sized screen makes gaming and other activities a joy.
However, the price of the Fold 6 is a significant consideration. The high-end model can cost around Rs 2 Lakhs, while the base model starts at approximately Rs 1.65 Lakhs. With this price increase, it seems like Samsung is positioning the Z Fold as something that is beyond a premium offering, whereas they should be aiming to make the foldable form factor more accessible.
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English (US) ·