I spent a week in New York City with the Samsung Z Fold 7 – and it spoiled me big time

ZDNET’s key takeaways

• The Galaxy Z Fold 7 is a superb improve over its predecessor, because of its slim and light-weight design, a robust hinge and a wider coverscreen.
• It’s extremely costly at $2,000 for the beginning configuration.
• However you may dig the improved {hardware}, particularly in the event you’re aware of foldable telephones from the worldwide market.

extra shopping for selections

jul / 2025

The Galaxy Z Fold 7 is Samsung’s greatest design overhaul for the reason that Z Fold 2 in 2020, and it is again with a bang. During the last three years, the Korean tech big made slight refinements to every era, leading to a stale design. However the brand new Galaxy Z Fold 7 lastly catches as much as its Chinese language rivals, even beating them in a number of methods.

CNET survey: 64% of people say ‘no thanks’ to foldable smartphones

I have been utilizing the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 for the previous week and am completely happy to report that Samsung has made some rattling near-perfect {hardware}. You get an easy-to-hold type issue, nearly no crease, a canopy display that is near a daily cellphone in itself, a stable hinge, and the identical major digicam because the Galaxy S25 Extremely. 

These upgrades include a price, although. The Fold 7 will set you again at two grand, however in case you have that cash, that is the cellphone I like to recommend most. 

An (virtually) excellent bodily type

The Galaxy Z Fold 7 measures simply 4.2mm skinny when unfolded and eight.9mm folded. For context, that is a couple of millimeters greater than the 8.25mm iPhone 16 Pro Max and eight.5mm Pixel 9 Pro. Samsung’s personal Galaxy S25 Extremely measures 8.2mm, whereas the foldable Oppo Find N5 is 8.93mm thick. 

All in all, the Galaxy Z Fold 7 is simply 0.1mm thicker than the thinnest book-style foldable, the Honor Magic V5. Paired with a physique that is lighter than all of them at 215 grams, the Galaxy Z Fold 7 the lightest book-style foldable in the marketplace proper now. 

Additionally: Oppo’s new foldable phone is one of the thinnest I’ve seen – and I hope OnePlus and Samsung follow suit

This skinny and light-weight design makes it essentially the most comfy to carry Galaxy Z Fold cellphone but — in the event you maintain it in the precise hand. In case you’re left-handed, the hinge corners may dig into your palm, which was additionally a difficulty on the predecessor. That stated, I am a right-hander, and I discover it extra comfy to make use of than the Galaxy S25 Extremely and iPhone 16 Professional Max. 

The Galaxy Z Fold 7 can also be extra sturdy than earlier than. It encompasses a stronger Gorilla Glass Victus Ceramic 2 on the quilt display, Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on the again, and a Titanium plate layer as an alternative of a carbon fiber sheet below the display for added show sturdiness. Plus, you get mud and water resistance with an IP48 ranking. 

Additionally: I took a walk with Meta’s new Oakley smart glasses – they beat my Ray-Bans in every way

Samsung improved the quilt display, too. It is not fixated on the slender type issue, enabling the 6.5-inch AMOLED display with a 21:9 side ratio so apps work together higher and play alongside nicely with the entire slab phone-like really feel. It is vivid sufficient to see outside and has the identical 120Hz dynamic refresh charge and HDR10+ assist because the inside show. Texting, scrolling via social media, and searching the net on a Samsung cowl display feels refreshing.  

Full-screen trade-offs, however the crease is gone

The Galaxy Z Fold 7 has a wider folding display than its predecessor. I’ve cherished my expertise on this sharp and vivid panel, nevertheless it is not as immersive as earlier than. 

Samsung caught to an under-display digicam (UDC) for years, which made the studying, searching and gaming expertise higher than every other foldable. Utility-wise, its high quality was worse than the brand new punch-hole 10MP digicam — and I might favor the brand new setup for video calls any day — however I miss the under-display digicam, too. I hope it returns sooner or later with higher high quality.

When you settle for that the digicam is not going wherever, you’ll be able to admire the Galaxy Z Fold 7’s eight-inch LTPO AMOLED 2X panel with assist for HDR10+ and a 120Hz dynamic refresh charge. I really like its vivid colours and high-contrast look. However like earlier than, the inside show attracts extra smudges than the quilt display. 

Additionally: I used Huawei’s $3,600 tri-foldable, and it made every phone I’ve ever tested feel outdated

Coming to the very best a part of the folding display, there’s nearly no crease. Samsung’s new butterfly hinge mechanism has efficiently negated it. In truth, Galaxy Z Fold 7 has the least quantity of crease on any book-style folding cellphone that I’ve used. The Oppo Discover N5 comes shut, however the Vivo X Fold 5 and Honor Magic V3 each have barely deeper creases working via the center of the display. 

Not that it issues when interacting with the large show, however much less crease means a cushty viewing expertise in additional lighting circumstances and angles. 

The hinge, too, feels extra premium than different foldables. In case you’re coming from one of many earlier Z Folds, the Galaxy Z Fold 7 will not prop up at 150 levels proper out of the field, nevertheless it will get higher as you utilize it. After every week of use, my unit not unfolds flat until as much as roughly 135 levels. I had an analogous expertise with the Honor Magic V3, which additionally has a butterfly hinge.

If I had to decide on between a subjectively extra immersive Fold 6 display with UDC and deep crease or Fold 7’s punch-hole-clad display with lesser crease, I might choose the latter. 

I am unable to pinpoint why the Galaxy Z Fold 7 feels extra premium than different foldables in the marketplace however it’s most likely a mix of a number of components: thinner and lighter design, least crease and flat sides that are not unergonomic (in the precise hand) to carry. It’s barely tougher to unfold, however you may get used to it throughout the first 48 hours.

Samsung eliminated one other function on the Galaxy Z Fold 7: the S Pen, and I do not miss it. I by no means used it on my Fold 5 or Fold 6 and if it helps the cellphone make it thinner, I do not thoughts lacking out on a stylus that must be saved in an exterior case. 

Helpful AI and eventually: a digicam improve

Samsung’s new Fold runs Android 16-based One UI 8, with Samsung’s Galaxy AI having essentially the most full suite of synthetic intelligence options. The cellphone runs easily, because of the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite SoC, paired with both 12GB or 16GB of RAM. 

I really discovered among the cellphone’s AI options helpful. For instance, the AI Choose function permits you to click on something in your display to take actions. From transcribing interview recordings to eradicating undesirable objects in my images, there are many helpful AI instruments that really work. 

Additionally: The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra was nearly unusable for me – until I downloaded this one app

Coming from a OnePlus cellphone lately, I feel Samsung may benefit from displaying comparable pop-ups for on-call options like transcribe and translate. As of now, you’ll want to swipe down and faucet on the Dwell Translate tile from fast panel to make use of the function, which is not as simple to make use of. 

Samsung additionally lastly gave its foldable the identical main digicam as its flagship S-series cellphone. The Galaxy Z Fold 7 sports activities a 200MP major digicam, borrowed straight from the Galaxy S25 Extremely. It’s accompanied by a modest 3x 10MP telephoto digicam and a 12MP ultrawide-angle lens. 

This digicam system produces vibrant-looking pictures in most situations. I like to recommend capturing most images in 200MP mode, so you’ll be able to crop them later and but retain the small print, because the 3x tele lens is not the very best. 

I want Samsung let customers swap between lenses within the 200MP mode. As of now, you get choices for 1x, 4x, and 5x (you’ll be able to zoom at any degree from 1x to 5x) however to alter to ultrawide, you’ll want to swap to 12MP mode after which faucet 0.6x. It is a slight inconvenience that I’ve confronted repeatedly prior to now week. 

Samsung has additionally improved the shutter pace, so transferring topics are captured higher than earlier than. The dynamic vary stays nice, whereas the Portrait mode nonetheless struggles with edge detection. Galaxy AI comes into play once more and offers you essentially the most polished photobomber-removal device. 

Additionally: How earthquake alerts work on Android – and how to make sure they’re enabled on your phone

One other cool function for videographers: Audio Eraser can now routinely detect what to tune out and has a chosen button in your gallery. It made my voice a little bit robotic, nevertheless it did nicely to suppress background noise. 

Let’s discuss battery life

Sadly, Samsung did not improve the battery capability on its new foldable. In truth, it hasn’t elevated the battery dimension in 5 generations; the Galaxy Z Fold 7 has the identical battery because the Galaxy Z Fold 3. This implies you get a 4,400mAh cell with assist for a modest 25W wired charging and 15W wi-fi charging. 

After I first noticed this quantity on paper, I used to be fearful that a tremendous {hardware} can be compromised by a questionable resolution, particularly when competing gadgets have 5,500mAh+ silicon-carbon batteries. 

Additionally: I replaced my Galaxy S25 Plus with the S25 Edge (and Samsung may do the same)

Because it seems, the Galaxy Z Fold 7 is a full one-day gadget for reasonable cellphone customers (with about 5-6 hours of every day display time). I am not impressed by the charging pace, although.

I often common about 9 hours on my cellphone every day and should cost my Z Fold 7 each night round 6 PM for my night social media scrolling. In case you’re a heavy cellphone person, count on to plug in your Z Fold 7 after the work day, or earlier in case your utilization entails numerous navigation on 5G. 

ZDNET’s shopping for recommendation

Samsung improved the weakest hyperlinks of its book-style foldable with the Galaxy Z Fold 7, and the result’s a near-perfect cellphone. I might love for it to have an even bigger battery and a greater zoom digicam — the Vivo X Fold 5 has each — however Samsung’s foldable has U.S availability, longer software program assist, and a greater person interface. In brief, that is essentially the most polished folding cellphone expertise, in my view. 

Nevertheless, it would not come low-cost. After a $100 worth bump, the Galaxy Z Fold 7 is Samsung’s costliest Fold but, beginning at $2,000. In case you can spend that quantity on a smartphone, you’ll be able to’t go improper with this cellphone. It is a generational leap over its predecessor, and if you’ll find a very good trade provide, I like to recommend upgrading from final yr’s Z Fold 6, too. In case you’re a enterprise skilled or want a cellphone for productiveness, the Galaxy Z Fold 7 must be in your radar.