Samsung unveiled a plethora of devices at its Unpacked event last month, the most notable of which, in addition to the Note 20 Ultra, was the Galaxy Z Fold 2. Unfortunately, Samsung missed two crucial details: the release date and the price.
Now we know. On a smaller scale, ‘Unpacked Part 2’, the company revealed that its latest and greatest foldable phone will be available on September 18 for $ 1,999.99.
That’s just $ 20 more than the original Fold it launched to, so it’s nice to see that there isn’t much price increase this time around, although one would hope so, given that the price dwarfs some high-end laptops.
So what do you get for your extra $ 20? Mainly the promise of a more durable phone, but also the usual spec changes and some notable usability improvements.
Unsurprisingly, Samsung says this is its best attempt yet with a hinged phone, having gone through a few iterations with the original Fold and Z Flip. The hinge has been reinforced to be stiffer and better reject dirt. Now it can also be used in a semi-open mode similar to a laptop, useful for, for example, participating in a video call.
Specs-wise, it’s basically a 2020 flagship, although it’s slightly less premium than the S20 and Note 20 in some respects. You get a Snapdragon 865 Plus, 12GB of RAM, and 256GB of storage, which is plenty. The phone also has a 4,500 mAh battery, which is pretty good, if not totally remarkable given the sheer amount of screen surface.
But on the camera front, Samsung is opting for ‘just’ three 12-megapixel cameras on the rear, so the device likely won’t reach the same image heights as its flagship siblings. On the other hand, you can take better selfies. While the phone already has two selfie cameras (one on the inside of the phone and one on the front), you can now also unfold the device to take high-quality selfies with the main camera (with the front screen acting as the viewfinder). . It’s probably a bit awkward to hold the phone this way, but you have to do it by the ‘gram’.
Speaking of the front screen, one of the more practical differences between the Fold 2 and its predecessor is that this panel is now much larger. It has been increased from a paltry 4.6 inches to a much more modern 6.2 inches, which means the Fold 2 is likely to be more pleasant to use without having to open the device. The actual folding screen also has a smaller bulge, now 7.6 inches instead of 7.3.
Many of the improvements are also on the software front. Samsung still lets you run three separate app windows, and the company has smoothed out the transition by going from the outer to the inner screen. Samsung now gives you more control over the DPI of these apps too, and has collaborated with partners to make popular apps like the Office suite work better with the foldable form factor.
By default, the phone will be available in bronze or black colorways, although Samsung now lets you customize your hinge for a nice pop of color. And while I’m not normally a fan of designer partnerships with luxury brands, I quite like the special edition Thom Browne bundle, which also includes a Galaxy Watch 3 and Galaxy Buds Live.
The Galaxy Z Fold 2 is available for pre-order now and will ship on September 18. It will be available on the big three carriers in the US and will be unlocked on Samsung.com.
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Posted on Sep 2, 2020 – 03:10 UTC
