Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3: all you need to know

After months of waiting and numerous leaks and rumors, Samsung has officially unveiled the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 at today’s Galaxy Unpacked event. That wasn’t the only product Samsung announced, and it has also launched the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 5G, the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 and Galaxy Watch 4 Classic, and the Samsung Galaxy Buds2 wireless earbuds.

The brand new Galaxy Z Fold 3 5G is the company’s flagship foldable device that comes with several key improvements over its predecessor, the Galaxy Z Fold 2, from 2020. It has a slightly new design, new displays, a far more durable and enhanced design, and a plethora of new features such as compatibility and support for everyone’s favorite feature – the S Pen.

When will the Galaxy Z Fold 3 be available?

Samsung has officially confirmed that pre-orders will go live today – they’re live by the time you’re reading this post – and it will be available for sale from August 27.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3

You can Pre-Order your next Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 and get $200 Samsung credit. Samsung also gives you one year of Samsung Care+ for free when you opt into a 3 year Samsung Care+ plan.

• View at Samsung

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 Specifications

How much will the Galaxy Z Fold 3 cost?

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 5G will start from $1,799.99 for the 12GB RAM and 256GB storage model and it will be available for pre-order from August 11. It will be available for sale from August 27. Samsung will sell the devices directly, but most carriers are expected to carry them and have them available, and you may also be able to pick them up at larger retailers sooner or later.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3: Design

The design of the Galaxy Z Fold3 is very similar to the Galaxy Z Fold 2 from last year. At glance, the only noticeable difference is the camera module on the back, which has been slimmed down for a more minimalist and cleaner look. The cover screen (outer display) looks mainly the same with the same narrow, large display and punches hole cutout on the top for the selfie camera. It all changes when you unfold the device, as you’ll see no selfie camera on the inner display. That’s where the under-display camera comes into play, which is hidden behind the screen. Samsung has used translucent wiring, and it’s a 4×4 setup. The camera can see through the pixel and the rest of the image on display can be filled with the help of AI.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3: Colors

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The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 5G will be available in three color options only, Phantom Black, Phantom Green, and Phantom Silver. The hinge this time may not be customizable as on the previous Galaxy Z Fold series. A special Thom Browne Edition will also be sold of the Galaxy Z Fold 3.

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Luckily, if you want to customize your Galaxy Z Fold 3 to your liking, Samsung will have a number of high-quality cases ready for you to choose from, all made out of high-quality materials and vibrant, unique colors.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3: Display

The display of the Galaxy Z Fold 3 has also largely remained the same, but the technology has completely changed. Both of the displays are now brighter and provide better colors, sharpness, and also offer 120Hz high refresh rates.

The inner display is 29% brighter than the Galaxy Z Fold 2 from 2020, which is impressive. The peak brightness for the main screen is 900-1200nits, while the cover (outer) display enjoys 1000-1500 nits of brightness. If you plan on using the Galaxy Z Fold 3 outside or want to enjoy HDR10+ movies, this will be one of the best devices to enjoy it on. Many people are also interested in whether the crease is still there, and yes, unfortunately, the crease is still there and still present on the Galaxy Z Fold3.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3: Camera

The camera setup on the Galaxy Z Fold 3 is basically the same setup that can be found on the Galaxy Z Fold 2. It has the same sensors, but the software is much improved to give space to enhancements and several improvements. Images that you take on the Galaxy Z Fold 3 should come out similar to the Galaxy S21 lineup. We’ll test the camera to its full capabilities in the coming days and weeks as we work on the full review.

The primary shooter is a 12MP wide-angle camera with Dual Pixel autofocus, Optical image stabilization (OIS), aperture of f/1.8, and a Field-of-View (FOV) of 83-degrees. The secondary is a 12MP ultra wide-angle f/2.2 FOV 123-degrees, and the third is a 12MP telephoto f/2.4 sensor with a FOV of 45-degrees and OIS.

The camera hardware setup may be the same, but the software includes a number of tweaks to ensure that it is up-to-date and still provides a flagship experience that you would expect from a foldable device. Of course, this will have to go through our thorough tests before we can evaluate it further.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3: Battery

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 comes with a 4,400 mAh battery, and like on the Z Fold 2, there will be two batteries inside to device to ensure its balanced weight wise. The maximum charging speed it can be charged at is 25W via cable, and it also supports 10W wireless charging. Like on the predecessor, it will support 4.5W reverse wireless charging, which is great to top up your newly purchased Galaxy Buds2 and other accessories that may need charging.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3: Improvements

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 comes with a number of software and hardware improvements. Samsung has managed to fit a Wacom layer underneath the display to provide support for the S Pen Pro and S Pen Fold Edition styluses.

S Pen Pro & S Pen Fold Edition

• View S Pen Pro at Samsung

That’s not all, the company has also managed to make the device durable enough to earn an IPX8 certification, meaning that it can withstand submersion up to 1.5 meters of fresh water for up to 30 minutes. Unfortunately, dust and beaches are still a no-go, but it’s great to see that it can stand the everyday abuse a little better.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3: Software

The software of the Galaxy Z Fold3 will be nearly identical, if not the same, as the one that you’ve seen on the flagship Galaxy S series. It will have Samsung’s own One UI 3.1 based on Android 11.

Samsung has also partnered up with Microsoft and Google to ensure that the foldable experience meets its standards and that the operating system is optimized for all the tasks that users might want to use it for. This includes improvements for a new taskbar and a number of productivity features such as multi-view, split view, and the ability to change customize aspect ratios.

Samsung has also partnered up with Google to better optimize the folding experience by working on Android together. Samsung also made sure that applications such as Netflix, and many other big-name and popular applications/services that don’t support the folding experience are optimized by default. The new Labs feature will force non-supported applications to scale properly and fill the screen. The Samsung + Google collaboration also included the two speaking to the top developers on Android to ensure that their apps are optimized for the foldable device and other potential folding devices.

The Microsoft partnership meant that Office 365 applications will directly support drag and drop between office applications in multitasking and split-screen views and provide a tablet-like experience when unfolded. Marking up documents and giving presentations using the S Pen will also be much smoother and optimized.

Samsung has also promised at the previous Galaxy Unpacked event that it will continue to deliver three years of OS updates, and five years of security updates to its flagship devices. This means that the Galaxy Z Fold3 will get a few more Android versions, and plenty of security patches to stay up to date.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3

You can Pre-Order your next Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 and get $200 Samsung credit. Samsung also gives you one year of Samsung Care+ for free when you opt into a 3 year Samsung Care+ plan.

• View at Samsung

What are your thoughts about the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 5G? Let us know in the comments below!