Now, this is a question quite a few people have asked. But the answer is simple. It is better, it is thinner and lighter. In other words, the third version of the Fold is much more refined and visibly so. The hinge, which earlier used to look like an appendage, is now seamlessly integrated into the design. The phone, when closed, fits much better in your hand. The folded Fold 3 also feels more like a Samsung galaxy device now that the front screen is almost edge-to-edge.
The big design change is when you open the Fold3 and use the larger screen. The front-facing camera here is behind the screen and eliminates the need for a notch or hole. But you can see the small round when you are on a white screen though it will not hamper your experience in any way. And when you switch to the front camera this suddenly comes to life with a spark around the screen — quite a spectacle and something you will enjoy every time. Also, this new tweak makes the larger screen of the Fold3 much more usable.
The crease is very much there, though subdued. After having seen many foldable over the past couple of years I am not sure the crease will ever go away. That would have to be a wonder of physics if at all. Companies will however try to make them less visible though. On the Z Fold3, the crease is visible more when you are on a white screen, like when checking Gmail. On colourful screens, it sort of vanishes at least stays out of sight.
When someone asks me this, I want to respond by asking: “Does it really matter in this phone?”. But anyway, people do tend to take the camera seriously on all their phones. The Fold3 is a flagship and the camera is not something we should really worry about. The rear camera for me is close to what the S series does and will not disappoint you. However, it will surely leave you confused — do you click photos with the phone closed or open? Whatever you do, the photos to come out to be good no matter the conditions.
LAUNCH | Announced | 2021, August 11 |
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Status | Available. Released 2021, August 27 |
BODY | Dimensions | Unfolded: 158.2 x 128.1 x 6.4 mm Folded: 158.2 x 67.1 x 14.4-16 mm |
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Weight | 271 g (9.56 oz) | |
Build | Glass front (Gorilla Glass Victus) (folded), plastic front (unfolded), glass back (Gorilla Glass Victus), aluminum frame | |
SIM | Nano-SIM and eSIM | |
IPX8 water resistant (up to 1.5m for 30 mins) Stylus support |
DISPLAY | Type | Foldable Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 120Hz, HDR10+, 1200 nits (peak) |
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Size | 7.6 inches, 179.9 cm2 (~88.8% screen-to-body ratio) | |
Resolution | 1768 x 2208 pixels (~374 ppi density) | |
Cover display: Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 120Hz, Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 6.2 inches, 832 x 2268 pixels, 25:9 ratio |
PLATFORM | OS | Android 11, One UI 3.1.1 |
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Chipset | Qualcomm SM8350 Snapdragon 888 5G (5 nm) | |
CPU | Octa-core (1x2.84 GHz Kryo 680 & 3x2.42 GHz Kryo 680 & 4x1.80 GHz Kryo 680) | |
GPU | Adreno 660 |
MEMORY | Card slot | No |
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Internal | 256GB 12GB RAM, 512GB 12GB RAM | |
UFS 3.1 |
MAIN CAMERA | Triple | 12 MP, f/1.8, 26mm (wide), 1/1.76", 1.8µm, Dual Pixel PDAF, OIS 12 MP, f/2.4, 52mm (telephoto), 1/3.6", 1.0µm, PDAF, OIS, 2x optical zoom 12 MP, f/2.2, 123˚, 12mm (ultrawide), 1.12µm |
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Features | LED flash, HDR, panorama | |
Video | 4K@60fps, 1080p@60/240fps (gyro-EIS), 720p@960fps (gyro-EIS), HDR10+ |
SELFIE CAMERA | Single | 4 MP, f/1.8, 2.0µm, under display Cover camera: 10 MP, f/2.2, 26mm (wide), 1/3", 1.22µm |
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Features | HDR | |
Video | 4K@30fps, 1080p@30fps, gyro-EIS |
SOUND | Loudspeaker | Yes, with stereo speakers |
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3.5mm jack | No | |
32-bit/384kHz audio Tuned by AKG |
COMMS | WLAN | Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6e, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct, hotspot |
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Bluetooth | 5.2, A2DP, LE, aptX HD | |
GPS | Yes, with A-GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO, BDS | |
NFC | Yes | |
Radio | No | |
USB | USB Type-C 3.2 |
FEATURES | Sensors | Fingerprint (side-mounted), accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass, barometer |
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Bixby natural language commands and dictation Samsung DeX (desktop experience support) Samsung Pay (Visa, MasterCard certified) Ultra Wideband (UWB) support |
BATTERY | Type | Li-Po 4400 mAh, non-removable |
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Charging | Fast charging 25W Fast wireless charging 11W Reverse wireless charging 4.5W |
MISC | Colors | Phantom Black, Phantom Silver, Phantom Green |
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TESTS | Performance | AnTuTu: 635918 (v8), 752218 (v9) GeekBench: 12719 (v4.4), 3239 (v5.1) GFXBench: 38fps (ES 3.1 onscreen) |
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Camera | Photo / Video | |
Loudspeaker | -25.6 LUFS (Very good) | |
Battery life |
Endurance rating 75h
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