I had a Galaxy Z Fold 4 for a little over a month before I sold it. I really liked it, but there were some things that bothered me about it. The biggest issue was the hinge. It was much thinner than the hinge on the Fold 3, and it felt like it could easily break. ..
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 is a new Android tablet that is lighter and has thinner bezels. It is more comfortable to use and has a more individualized design than the older Galaxy Z. The Fold 4 also multitasks better than the older model and is our favorite Android tablet after using it for two weeks.
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 review: Design
The Fold 4 is the most advanced model yet, with a cleaner hinge and disappearance of the lip that once ran along one side of the primary screen. It’s also lighter than the Fold 3. ..
We found that the screen is quite dust-prone, but the hinge is easy to open and shut, and we never felt that it was particularly vulnerable to breakages due to the strong build quality of the frame and display. Let’s get this out of the way right away: there is a crease visible when the device is in tablet mode, especially when viewed from an angle. However, the more brightness we increased, the less noticeable this crease became.
The Fold 4’s foldable design is both a blessing and a curse. On one hand, it makes the tablet easy to take with you wherever you go, perfect for lounging on the couch and watching YouTube, skimming Instagram, and reading text-heavy websites like Reddit. However, we found that we didn’t like using it on crowded trains during the morning commute because you lose all privacy when texting or browsing social media, just like with all tablets. ..
The front display on the Galaxy S8 is functional but it’s not always enjoyable. Although we appreciated that it could be used one-handedly, the body is thick when folded, and the typing experience feels uncomfortable. As a result, we were prone to making mistakes when messaging while using this method. Additionally, we didn’t like bringing it to the gym since we never felt completely at ease taking our eyes off of it. The front screen is good for checking notifications quickly (and we’d miss it if it weren’t there), but after a few days we realized that opening the device frequently to access our apps was more of a nuisance than a step we always wanted to take. ..
Display
Samsung’s new Galaxy S8 and S8+ come with a 6.2-inch Dynamic AMOLED screen with a refresh rate of up to 120Hz. This means that the screen is incredibly smooth, has deep blacks, brilliant colors, and an overall gorgeous user experience. ..
The Z Fold 4’s cover is essentially a way to hide the phone from view, such as when you want to return calls or respond to texts. Even though the display is still quite tall and not very wide, we wouldn’t describe it as crowded. It’s not difficult to use the on-screen keyboard, and once more, it’s big enough for most things you could want to complete without really unfolding the phone.
This display is amazing! It has a 7.6-inch flexible display that is 120Hz-capable, and it is a complete joy to watch YouTube videos and movies, play games, navigate through social media apps, or browse the web on it. How fantastic it is to remove a phone from your pocket and go-go-gadget it into a square-ish tablet with a large display cannot be overstated.
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4’s display is flexible, but still scratch-resistant. It also supports the S Pen Pro stylus.
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 review: Software
The Galaxy Z Fold 4 is the latest large-screen device to receive the Android 12L operating system. This new software has undergone some of the biggest advancements, including a customized version of Android that makes multitasking simpler and a new Taskbar that displays your most recent apps automatically. You can also rearrange the main home row on the home screen to choose which favorites show up on the taskbar. ..
The new 7.6-inch display is perfect for multitasking and allows you to run up to three programmes simultaneously.
Drag and drop is an advantage of the Galaxy Z Fold 4 because it makes it easy to move items between apps. Additionally, with the Flex mode, app content is placed at the top and controls are placed at the bottom when the screen is folded in half. This makes it easy to use the Galaxy Z Fold 4 as a tablet that can be used in both portrait and landscape modes.
Performance
The Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 processor and 12GB of RAM are inside the Z Fold 4, which is sufficient for stutter-free multitasking. You’ll be delighted to know that even demanding 3D games run smoothly on this phone’s maximum settings if you’re a gamer, and since it has a 120Hz AMOLED display and dual stereo speakers, those games will look and sound even bigger. ..
The Galaxy Z Fold 4 is perfect for gamers who want a phone that can handle all their gaming needs. It has a large screen, enough storage to store games and other media, and a fast processor so you can play the latest games without any problems.
The taskbar is a remnant of the old Android design, and it’s not very helpful. It’s difficult to know where to hit the back button or get to the settings menu, and it takes up a lot of space on the screen. Plus, it can be hard to see what’s going on at a glance.
The main difference between the two taskbars is that the small one is fixed on the bottom of your screen, while the large one can be moved around. The navigation keys and your favorite and most used apps are stored on the large taskbar, which is helpful for quickly switching between apps or dragging some of its content over to your active app to open both of them in split-screen mode. ..
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 review: S Pen and Note factor
We proclaimed the Fold 3 to be the rightful heir to the Note throne last year. There’s no doubt that many Note enthusiasts will prefer the Galaxy S22 Ultra because the S Pen really has a holster, even though we still believe the Fold is the superior Note device because to the larger display. Samsung now produces a better Note-style case with a S Pen holster on the back, but the Fold 4 still lacks any form of S Pen holster. Aside from that, case makers like Caseborne and Spigen produce cases with S Pen holsters integrated into the spine, back, or even right side.
The Fold 4 offers an experience that is very close to the ideal of having one device that does it all, even though all of these cases add weight to the phone. We used Spigen’s Thin Fit P case for the duration of the evaluation period, which allowed us constant access to the S Pen. We found that utilizing the S Pen was increased significantly as a result of the extra convenience, and we wholeheartedly advise anyone who enjoys using the S Pen to have one of these cases.
Samsung is releasing a new color option for the S Pen with the Fold 4. The pen is now available in two new shades that coordinate with the phone’s color palette. This makes it easier to find and use, and looks nicer overall. The S Pens that come with the Fold 4 are already standard on Note phones, so this addition is just another way to make the device more user-friendly. ..
The biggest drawback of the Fold 4 is that the cover display still doesn’t work properly. This makes it difficult to access information on the device. The only way to use the S Pen is by using the foldable inner display which is compatible with it. Samsung needs to include this feature in a future Fold iteration. ..
Camera
The new Fold 4 includes a total of five cameras: a new triple system on the back, a 10MP selfie camera up front, and two 4MP selfie cameras tucked away behind the internal screen’s top right corner. The back cameras are largely identical to those of the S22+ and are a significant improvement over the Fold 3 from the previous year. The 50MP primary camera is fantastic, producing top-notch pictures in a range of lighting situations with superb low-light performance. The ultrawide camera is fantastic for landscapes and group photographs, and the 3x optical zoom is helpful. ..
The three cameras on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold are all excellent, but the ultrawide camera only captures 30 frames per second. The under-display selfie camera is innovative, but it only works well for video calls because the photographs it takes are of poor quality. The outside 10MP selfie camera is one of the best, but you can also use the primary cameras and the outside screen as a viewfinder to take even better selfies and group photos. Although a little difficult to grip, it is worth the effort. ..
Battery life
The Fold 4 is a powerful tablet that has great battery life. It comes with a 4400mAh battery, which is very good for such a powerful device. The fast charger also helps to charge the tablet to 50% capacity in just 30 minutes. Overall, the Fold 4 is an amazing tablet that will last you a long time.
The phone had a 100% charge at 6 p.m. on a Sunday, and by 10:30 p.m. the following night, it still had 20%. After a day of moderate to heavy use, which included watching videos, reading applications, and listening to Spotify, it didn’t switch off until Tuesday about midday. It took less than 1.5 hours to reach full power using a 25W wall adapter, and we liked how a short charge of 10-15 minutes offered a couple hours of juice.
Price and availability
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 is now readily accessible in retailers. You can upgrade to 512GB or 1TB, though. The price of the 512GB model is $1,919, while the 1TB model is an outrageous $2,159. The Galaxy Z Fold 4 is available from all three of the country’s major wireless providers as well as major retailers. Even though the phone is now available for purchase, several of the top Galaxy Z Fold 4 pre-order discounts are still active as of this writing. For instance, trade-in offers from Samsung and AT&T both offer savings of up to $1,000. With a new line, you can also receive discounts of up to $800 from Verizon and $1,000 from T-Mobile.
Conclusion
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 was a good foldable device, but its ergonomics, battery life, cameras, and notably its high price prevented us from giving it our highest endorsement. With its new Galaxy Z Fold 4, Samsung claims to have intensified its efforts to enhance these areas this year. Along with this, we have additional beneficial changes including a SoC and a display that uses less power. It’s time to find out if all these minor adjustments result in a better user experience and if it’s finally time to give this foldable smartphone some serious thought as your main smartphone.
