The 5 features the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 needs to earn my money
Foldables are getting more popular, with Samsungshipping ten million units last year. It’s easy to see why, as theSamsung Galaxy Z Fold 3is an incredible phone that improved on the device that preceded it. But it isn’t perfect, and there are still major caveats to using one over something like anS22 UltraorGoogle Pixel 6. With the Galaxy Z Fold 4 on the horizon, here’s what we want to see it improve on to compete in 2022.
High-end cameras
The cameras on the Z Fold 3 have taken a lot of flack, but that’s not because they’re bad. If the conditions are right, the three 12MP cameras can take some compelling photos that look great. But the conditions have to be right, with the quality quickly slipping as the sun goes down. The 2X lens is perhaps the most disappointing, especially when compared to the more common 3X found on the S22 and S22+ or the 10X on the S22 Ultra.
We should be realistic here. It’s unlikely that Samsung will manage to squeeze a periscope system into a foldable, where space constraints are a larger concern than usual. The same goes for the 108MP sensor found in the S22 Ultra.
Thankfully, it seems Samsung could be listening in this area.Leaks suggestthat we’ll see the same three cameras found on the S22 and S22+: a 50MP primary sensor, 10MP 3X telephoto with OIS, and 12MP ultrawide. If that’s the case, the cameras on the Fold 4 could finally be competitive, given the cost of the device.
Better battery life
Battery life on foldables has been an issue since the first generation, and so far, it hasn’t improved that much. The Fold 3 has a 4,400mAh cell, which is usually considered to be on the large side. However, you don’t usually find this sized cell paired with two bright, high-refresh-rate displays. Powering two screens uses a lot of power, especially when one of them is 7.6 inches.
The battery life isn’t awful, but in our experience of using one to write emails, answer messages, listen to music, and watch YouTube, you’ll probably get around three or four hours of screen time and need to charge up by the evening.
Realistically, Samsung isn’t going to be able to shove a bigger battery in the Fold 4 without making it thicker, which matters when the device is folded up. We wouldn’t mind a little extra thickness for more battery, but Samsung can’t add too much.
This is probably the most complex issue Samsung has to tackle, and we hope it’s something it can address.
A less noticeable display crease
The display crease is a divisive subject. Some hate it and refuse to use a foldable until it’s been eliminated. Others, including many of us here at AP, got used to it after a few days and stopped noticing it was there, much like a hole punch or notch.
Tolerate or hate it; we’d still like to see Samsung improve the crease in the fourth generation. If you’re looking at it head-on, the crease is easy to ignore when using the Z Fold 3 in portrait. But move the device off-axis or into landscape, and you’ll start to see and feel it as your finger moves up and down the screen.
Samsung doesn’t appear to be changing its folding methodto match the Moto Razer or Oppo Find N. However, leaks say the screen will be “smoother” this year, suggesting some improvement. Hopefully, that improvement is significant, as competitors have devices with less noticeable creases, and Samsung needs to catch up.
Improved app compatibility
The displays on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 use unconventional aspect ratios. The cover screen is 24.5:9, and the inner screen is 5:4. Apps like Twitter, Telegram, all the Google apps, and more scale to both screens just fine. But there are some glaring examples of apps that don’t, and Instagram is the most notorious. Using the cover display, the text in captions gets cut off, and you can’t read most of the comments. Switch to the inner display, and the photos and videos don’t scale correctly, and parts of them get cropped.
Instagram is just one example. Plenty of apps don’t scale correctly and can be unusable. When spending this much money on a device, you should be able to use your apps.
To be fair to Samsung, this is down to app developers not optimizing their apps correctly. But there has to be a way for Samsung to motivate them to do so. The company has already collaborated with Instagram to ensure the cameras on the S21 and S22 series work correctly in the app. So why can’t it do the same for scaling the app on its foldables? If Samsung wants its foldable phones to truly compete in the mainstream, having apps work properly is something it has to fix.
More competitive pricing
The Z Fold phones have always been expensive, with the Fold 3 launching at $1,800. A device like this will be more expensive than a conventional smartphone for the foreseeable future. Still, right now, the phone is more expensive than what most people are capable of paying, even with deals and trade-in offers.
Supposedly the Z Fold 4 is an incremental update over the Fold 3, by just changing the cameras and updating the chip. In that case, there’s no reason why the Fold 4 shouldn’t be priced significantly lower than its predecessor. If, on the other hand, the Fold 4 drastically changes the formula and addresses most of the issues on this list, then a price point similar to what we have now might be excusable.
That’s where we want to see the pricing go with the Fold 4. Either drop it down to something more reasonable or improve the phone enough to justify the high price tag.
Samsung’s next-gen foldables are coming soon.
The nextGalaxy Unpacked eventwill be on August 10th at 9 a.m. ET, so it won’t be long before we see whether Samsung has addressed any of these issues. Whatever happens, there’s one thing we can guarantee: Samsung will need to impress us if they expect us to trade in our Fold 3s for the shiny new one.
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