Samsung’s New Foldable Flagship Comes With Improvements Such As IPX8 Certification And Stylus Support. Check Out The Galaxy Z Fold 3 With Us.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3, With the adventures and troubles that befell the prototype of the Galaxy Fold and its vulnerable display, few would have imagined that Samsung’s fledgling and ambitious idea for a foldable phone would go anywhere. Still, now, almost 3 years later, we have the third generation of the same high-end phone with many improvements and improvements.

Samsung believes in the future of clamshell phones, at least for now, leaving the hugely popular Galaxy Note family in favor of the Galaxy Z Fold and adding S Pen support to its third-generation clamshell flagship; Of course, stylus support is just one of the improvements to the Galaxy Z Fold 3, with IPX8 certification, a 120Hz display cover, a more rugged screen protector and a lighter body.

With the improvements made, can the Galaxy Z Fold 3 be called the best foldable phone on the market? Can you recommend buying a Samsung foldable flagship? Check out the Galaxy Z Fold 3 with.

Design and build quality of Galaxy Z Fold 3

The Galaxy Z Fold 3 is experiencing minor yet impressive changes. Few thought that a device like the Galaxy Fold, with its collapsible display and mass of mechanical parts, could receive an IP certificate. Still, Samsung engineers have obtained IPX8 certification for Fold 3 by using multiple sealing strips and anti-corrosion alloy in the hinge mechanism. In this way, the device can last for 30 minutes at a depth of 1.5 meters of water; But dust and fine particles are still Samsung’s somewhat collapsible enemy!

At first glance, you may not be able to tell the Zold Fold 3 from the previous generation. Still, Samsung’s new folding is 11 grams lighter, 1-millimeter shorter, 0.9 millimeters wider, and 0.8 millimeters narrower than the previous generation. These numbers make more sense when you know that the spheres have smaller the device’s physical dimensions without changing the screen diameter.

The new ZFold home screen uses the same 7.6-inch panel as before; The only difference is that the selfie camera is now under the panel to feel more immersed in the content. For the light to reach the selfie camera sensor, the panel’s resolution in that part is much lower than in other parts. The screen’s low resolution in the camera area is not very clear when displaying dark colors; But when showing bright colors or even looking at the screen from other angles.

Samsung continues to introduce the 6.2-inch cover screen; But in practice, with a slight increase in panel width and a change in aspect ratio from 25: 9 to 24.5: 9, the screen width has also increased slightly. Despite all the improvements, the Galaxy Z Fold 3 still has a substantial aspect ratio it, and its 16mm thickness, when folded, conveys the TV’s remote control to the user more than it looks like a smartphone.

The Koreans say they have used a new alloy called Armor Aluminum in the body of the Galaxy Z3 Fold 3, which is much more durable and lighter than the 7000 series aluminum used in most smartphones. Samsung makes Gorilla Glass Victor back panel and screen protector. Still, the main screen protector has a much more complex structure due to its flexible nature and compatibility with the S Pen.

By changing the inner layers of the main panel and using a PET protective layer on the 7.6-inch Fold 3 display, Samsung says the new Fold display is now up to 80% more durable than the Fold 2. This protective layer is still soft and flexible; But in our experience, compared to Fold 2, the movement gestures are more smooth and less frictional.

The display still folds in place of the fold hinge; But it is not so annoying, and except when you look at the phone from different angles, you will not notice its existence; Especially since due to the nature of the phone and the verticality of the crease, most of the time, your finger will not touch it when swiping or scrolling.

Samsung has made a significant improvement in the hinge mechanism of the Galaxy Z Fold 2: the ability to keep the hinge at any desired angle, smooth movement free of any grip, looseness, or additional friction, adding small brushes to prevent dust from entering under the panel and reducing the gap in Folded mode. We hoped that the Koreans in Folder 3 would bridge the gap between the two parts of the screen, But that did not happen, and it seems that Samsung engineers in the new generation are simply focused on increasing the water resistance of the hinge.

The protrusion of the Galaxy Z Fold 3 rear camera has been modified to look similar to the S series flagships. However, the relatively thick thickness of this protrusion causes the phone to slip on the table, making the use of the Galaxy Fold 3 annoying.

Like the previous generation, the Galaxy Z Fold 3 fingerprint sensor is integrated with the heart of the power key and the volume control key on the device’s right edge. The keys have excellent feedback and are easy to access; Of course, during the day, when carrying or picking up the phone, you will probably accidentally touch the power key and cause the phone to vibrate!

Samsung sells its new clamshell phone in matte black, silver, and green; Of course, for those interested in luxury products, the Thom Browne‌ version is also available in white and has an astronomical $ 3,500 price tag.

Galaxy Z Fold display and speaker 3

On paper, there may not be a big difference between the ZFold 3 display and the previous generation; Both devices use 7.6-inch and 6.2-inch OLED panels; But if we look more closely, we will notice stark differences between them. The Galaxy Z Fold 3 now uses Dynamic AMOLED 2X panels on both screens; Besides the main display, the cover display also supports an adaptive refresh rate of up to 120 Hz.

The main display, as before, has a 7.6-inch panel with a resolution of 2208 ۷ 1768 pixels, a density of 374 pixels-brush, and a 4: 3.2 aspect ratio, and provides excellent resolution for displaying images and text. Undoubtedly, one of the main changes to the main display is removing the selfie camera aperture and the camera module placement under the panel.

First of all, we have to admit that we do not consider it a sensible decision to use the emerging and raw technology of “selfie camera under the screen” in a product with a price tag of $ 1,800; According to this technology, the resolution of the panel in the area below the camera should be reduced so that light passes through the panel and reaches the camera sensor; Therefore, there is an inverse relationship between the pixel density of the screen in the camera area and the quality of the photos.

The Galaxy Z Fold 3 selfie camera area is quite visible when displaying bright images but in darker images. In any case, when you are immersed in watching content on the 7.6-inch Fold 3 screen, you will forget the difference in resolution of this area with the rest of the panel. Still, you have to deal with the noticeable decline in the quality of selfie photos compared to the previous generation.

The spheres of the Galaxy Z Fold 3’s 6.2-inch display use an OLED panel with a resolution of 2268 ۳ 832 pixels, a density of 389 pixels-brunch, and a very long 24.5: 9 aspect ratio; As mentioned earlier, this panel now, like the larger panel, supports a 120Hz adaptive refresh rate.

All the results obtained from Zomit tests are in the same laboratory conditions.

Last year we noticed that the Galaxy Z Fold 2 giant panel does not light up as much as other Samsung flagships; This year, the Koreans will use a new OLED panel called Eco2OLED in Zold Fold 3; By removing the Polarizer plastic layer from their structure, the panel can produce up to 33% more light and consume 25% less energy. According to Samsung, the brightness of the device’s main screen now reaches more than 1,200 nits; But is that so?

In the Zomit tests, the Galaxy Z Fold 3 recorded a maximum manual brightness of 653 and 656 nits for its main displays and cover, which represents a 10% improvement over the previous generation.

To measure maximum automatic brightness, we usually use a flashlight to simulate the ambient light sensor. Still, in the case of the Galaxy Z Fold 3, even with a few flashlights, we could not get close to the brightness claimed by Samsung. Does not have.

We exposed the Galaxy Z Fold 3 to direct sunlight for further investigation and repeated our experiments. They are amazing and show up to 45% improvement over the previous generation.

Like all Samsung smartphones, the Galaxy Z Fold 3 offers two color profiles, Natural and Vivid (default profiles), in its display settings. Saturated and vibrant color displays are used in the DCI P3 space.

Our research shows that the Galaxy Z Fold 3 on the main panel behaves more or less similar to the previous generation, but the cover panel’s accuracy has decreased. Natural colors have a slight tendency to warm, and Vivid colors have a high tendency to be cold. In general, the accuracy of the Fold 3 display is not on par with other Samsung flagships.

As expected, the Galaxy Z Fold 3 on its main screen supports HDR videos with HDR10, HDR10, and HLG standards; But it is not compatible with Dolby Vision videos. Samsung Folding also allows you to stream HDR videos from Full HD resolution streaming services with Widevine L1 certification.

The Galaxy Z Fold 3 can support a fixed refresh rate of 60 Hz or an adaptive rate of up to 120 Hz on both screens. According to Zomit reviews, as long as you touch the screen of the device, the refresh rate remains constant at 120 Hz; But as soon as you leave the phone for a few seconds, in most apps, such as galleries, Google Photos, or browsers, the refresh rate drops to 60 Hz.

The Samsung Folding Earphone raises the refresh rate to 48Hz when playing 24fps video; While 30 and 60 frames per second videos are played at 60 Hz.

The Galaxy Z Fold 3 stereo speakers provide a delightful audio experience. Samsung foldable phone, both in terms of volume and production of different frequencies; Especially low and medium frequencies, will satisfy you; But one of its weaknesses can consider that the surface of the speaker valve is covered when using fold 3 in the horizontal position.

Software and user interface of Galaxy Z Fold 3

The Galaxy Z Fold 3 is sold by default with Android 11, and special versions of Samsung’s proprietary user interface numbered One UI 3.1.1. This version of the One UI interface is optimized for Samsung clamshell devices and will not be available for other Korean devices.

Aside from several features unique to Samsung’s foldable handsets, the One UI 3.1.1 is no different from the One UI 3.1 and offers you all the basic features. Before we talk about the exclusive features of the Galaxy Z Fold 3, let’s list some of the common features of One UI 3.1.1 with One UI 3.1.

• Integration with Google Discover News Feed
• Integration with Google Duo video-calling application
• Control of Google Home ecosystem devices
• Implement background effects for video calls
• Ability to delete geolocation data from photos before sharing
• Ability to control blue light with Eye comfort shield
• The new camera features: Director’s view, Vlogger view, and Single Take 2.0

Samsung allows the user to customize the content on the Home screen for the main screens and the cover independently. From the background image and widgets to the shortcuts on the Home screen can be changed independently.

The App Panel bar plays a big role in improving multitasking with the Galaxy Z Fold 3. With the shortcuts in the App Panel, you can easily open three windows side by side. These shortcuts can edit, and it is even possible to create shortcuts for side-by-side windows; That way, if you run certain applications side-by-side continuously, you can quickly call them with the same saved combination by creating a shortcut.

With One UI 3.1.1, Samsung also lets you pin the App Panel to the corner of the screen; This way, you will have the same experience as the Windows toolbar or macOS‌ dock with the Galaxy Z Fold 3.

Creating and moving windows on the Galaxy ZFold 3 is a straightforward process. You can simply change the arrangement of the windows to your liking by simply dragging the small bar on the top edge of the windows. One UI 3.1.1 allows three static windows to run side by side and five floating windows; So you can have up to 8 applications available at the same time.

Some apps, such as Instagram, have not yet been optimized to run on the Galaxy Z Fold screen or float in a floating window. Allows them to activate incompatible apps to run properly on the phone.

To use the full unique design capacity of the Galaxy Z Fold, Samsung offers you the Flex mode feature. This feature is activated when the hinge of the device is folded between 75 to 115 degrees. Among the scenarios in which Flex mode offers an interesting experience are the following:

• Camera: In Flex mode, the viewfinder is on one half, and the camera keys are on the other half of the screen; So you can use the lower half of the screen as a stand. This mode is more useful when shooting at night because you can take brighter photos with longer exposure without shaking hands.
• Video gallery and application: In Flex mode, the image is placed on the upper half, and in the lower half, depending on the use of the gallery or video application, the trackpad and media control keys appear, respectively.
• When taking notes or typing text: In Flex mode, the keyboard is displayed in the lower half and the text in the upper half; This way, you can have the same experience as laptops on the Galaxy Z Fold 3; However, due to the small size of the keys, the probability of typing will be high.

Samsung encourages developers to add Flex mode support to their apps while allowing the user to force incompatible apps to support Flex mode, thanks to a feature in the Labs section of the settings menu.

S Pen support is one of the most important features of the Galaxy Z Fold 3; But since we did not have the S Pen compatible with the Samsung clamshell phone, we will postpone talking about this feature and its function to another day.

Hardware, gaming experience, and battery of Galaxy Z Fold 3

Unlike the Galaxy S and Galaxy Note families, which in some markets come with Samsung’s proprietary chip and in others with Qualcomm’s flagship chip, the Koreans have so far adopted a more straightforward strategy for their foldable smartphones; From the beginning, Fold series products sold only with Qualcomm chips, and the same is true of the Galaxy Z Fold 3: Samsung’s foldable flagship is powered by the Snapdragon 888.

The Snapdragon 888 is the most powerful chip currently available in Android and is produced with Samsung’s 5-nanometer 5LPE lithography. According to Qualcomm, the Snapdragon 888 brings a 25% improvement in CPU performance and a 35% improvement in GPU‌ performance compared to the Snapdragon 865, a chip used in the Galaxy ZFold 2.

Before any other chip, the Snapdragon 888 was equipped with the powerful new Cortex-X1 and Cortex-A78 cores. The chip uses a combination of a 2.84 GHz Cortex-X1 core, three 2.42 GHz Cortex-A78 mid-core cores, and four low-power 1.80 GHz Cortex-A55 cores as the CPU.

The Adreno 660 module is responsible for graphics processing on the Snapdragon 888 chip. Qualcomm does not provide much information about the details and specifications of the GPU. Still, it says the Adreno 660 is 43 percent better at AI-related processing, 35 percent at graphics processing, and 20 percent better at productivity (same performance as before).

An important point about the Adreno 660 goes back to the addition of variable rate shading. This feature previously added to ninth-generation consoles allows the developer to shade less important areas of the game’s frames with less detail, thus deploying GPU processing power to more important areas of the frames.

Qualcomm says the new Hexagon 780 Digital Signal Processor (DSP) is changing such as the integration of scalar, vector, and tensor accelerators, and now, along with the CPU and GPU, can perform 26 trillion AI-computed operations per second; Thus, the computing power of Snapdragon 888 is 73 times higher than Snapdragon 865.

Thanks to its triple image signal processor (ISP), the Snapdragon 888 is now capable of instant photography with three 28-megapixel sensors or simultaneous video recording of three 4K HDR videos. Qualcomm’s flagship chip can also record and play 10-bit 8K30 and 4K120 videos with the H.265 codec and Dolby Vision, HDR10 +, HDR10, and HLG standards; Of course, the Galaxy Z Fold 3 eventually records videos in 4K‌60 resolution.

The flagship Snapdragon 888 chip also supports 5G networks with download and upload speeds of 7500 and 3000 Mbps, thanks to the X60 modem.

* All benchmarks mentioned in this table have been implemented.

Samsung only sells its foldable flagship in two versions with 256 or 512 GB of high-speed UFS 3.1 GB and 12 GB of LPDDR5 RAM and does not offer memory upgrades.

As expected, the Galaxy ZFold 3 performs well in benchmarks close to other devices equipped with the Snapdragon 888 chip. Samsung’s new foldable flagship outperforms its predecessor by about 10% in CPU-based processing and up to 40% in games.

* All benchmarks mentioned in this table have been implemented.

To evaluate the performance of the Galaxy Z Fold 2 in continuous and heavy use, we performed the 3DMark Wild Life stress test on this smartphone. The Z-Fold 3 suffered a 35% drop after just one minute to prevent the body from overheating; The behavior of the Galaxy Z Fold 3 is very similar to that of its younger brother, the Z Flip 3. Samsung’s flagships experienced a 35 percent drop in performance, while Xiaomi’s flagship economic drop was only 10 percent in the same test.

Note that Samsung’s decision to lower the performance level was aimed at keeping the temperature low. The body temperature of the Galaxy Z Fold 3 reached about 42 degrees Celsius in the performance test; While the body temperature of Xiaomi on May 11 in the same test exceeded 48 degrees Celsius. According to our reviews, the screen brightness of the Galaxy Z Fold 3 was 23% lower than the initial value of about 455 nits immediately after the performance stability test.

* All benchmarks mentioned in this table have been implemented by Zomit.

Used GameBench software to obtain the table frame rates above.

The Galaxy Z Fold 3 runs both PUBG and Call of Duty at a 60Hz refresh rate. This popular game of Call of Duty runs with the best graphics settings and a frame rate of about 57 to 60 frames per second; But to have such an experience in PUBG game, you have to choose the middle graphic settings of the game. A noteworthy point goes back to the rendering resolution of these games, and the Galaxy Z Fold 3 renders these games with much lower resolution than the Galaxy Z Flip 3.

The battery capacity of the Galaxy Z Fold 3 is reduced by 100 mAh compared to the previous generation. Now it is 4400 mAh, which is not surprising considering the size of the display and the nature of the device. The battery comes in two packs of 2280 and 2120 mAh in two parts of the foldable body of the Galaxy Z Fold 3.

* All benchmarks mentioned in this table have been implemented.

Unfortunately, Samsung does not come with a charger; But it is possible to charge the battery with 25-watt chargers. This charger takes one hour and 45 minutes to charge the Galaxy Z Fold 3 battery fully. The Samsung foldable phone can also charge with a wireless charger with a maximum power of 11 watts, or it can also use it for wireless charging of other devices with a power of 4 watts.

When we set the refresh rate to adaptable, we find that charging the Galaxy Z Fold 3 in everyday use is not much different from the previous generation. Still, if you want to watch movies on the main screen of the device, you will experience about 25% more charge than the Galaxy Z Fold 2. Our review shows that the Galaxy Z Fold 3, with about 50% brightness (200 nits) and Airplane mode, can be with the user for up to 7 hours of Screen-on Time for one day.

Because the Galaxy Z Fold 3 plays 30 and 60 fps video at 60 Hz refresh rate in adaptive mode, we did not experience any difference in the video playback time of the device at a constant 60 Hz refresh rate; But if it is impossible to limit your use to the cover screen only, the video playback time will be more than 22 hours and charging in everyday use will be more than 10 hours.

Galaxy Z Fold 3 camera

Of course, a multifunction device like the Galaxy Z Fold 3 may not be the best in every way, and the camera is an example of that. Apart from changing the built-in selfie camera from a 10-megapixel sensor to a 4-megapixel one below the display, the rest of the Fold 3 camera modules are no different from the past. Samsung’s foldable flagship combines three 12-megapixel modules with wide-angle, ultraviolet, and telephoto lenses as a rear camera and a 10-megapixel module as an external selfie camera.

The Galaxy Z Fold 3’s main camera uses Sony’s relatively old 1x 1.76-inch IMX555 module, 1.8-micrometer pixels, 26mm f / 1.8 wide-angle lens, optical image stabilization, and Dual Pixel phase-detection autofocus system.

The ultraviolet camera uses a 12-megapixel sensor with 1.12-micrometer pixels and a 12mm ultra-wide-angle lens with a 123-degree field of view and f / 2.2. Unlike the flagship of the Galaxy S family, the Galaxy Z Fold 3 ultraviolet camera does not use autofocus for macro photography.

The telephoto camera uses SK Hynix’s 12-megapixel Hi-1337 sensor with a not-so-large size of 1.3 / 3.6 inches and 1.0 micrometers, a 52mm f / 2.4 lens, phase-detection autofocus system, and optical image stabilization. This camera provides 2x optical zoom compared to the main camera.

The external selfie camera uses Sony’s 10-megapixel IMX374 sensor with dimensions of 1 / 3.0‌ inch, 1.22-micrometer pixels, with a wide-angle lens with f / 2.2.

The selfie camera under the Galaxy Z Fold 3 display is one of the most interesting and, at the same time, not very efficient parts of the Korean foldable phone. According to Samsung, the camera uses a 4-megapixel sensor with 2.0 micrometers and an f / 1.8 lens. Passing light beams through the colored pixels of the display and delivering them to the sensor is a complex and challenging process that does not have a surprising result.

Dynamic range and details of Galaxy Z Fold photos

The Galaxy Z Fold 3 with the main camera gives you a wide dynamic range and a desirable level of detail. Ultraviolet camera photos are also satisfying in their own right, But they are lower than the main camera. In favorable ambient light, the telephoto camera looks better than the ultraviolet in terms of the level of detail and dynamic range and closer to the main camera.

Ultraviolet camera

HDR Photo Ultraviolet Camera

Real cut ultraviolet photo

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Main camera

Wide HDR camera photo

Real cut wide photo

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Telephoto camera

HDR photo of the telephoto camera

Real cut photo telephoto

Color of Galaxy Z Fold 3 photos

The colors recorded with the help of the Galaxy Z Fold 3 main camera and ultraviolet are close to each other and relatively saturated; While the colors of the telephoto camera seem closer to reality.

Ultraviolet camera

Wide camera

Telephoto camera

Shooting in the dark with the Galaxy Z Fold 3

The Galaxy Z Fold 3 captures more or less satisfying photos, even in automatic mode. Still, with the help of Night mode on all three cameras, Wide, Ultraviolet and Telephoto, it reduces the noise of the photos and extracts a little more detail from the shadows and bright areas of the image; Of course, Night mode eliminates noise by softening parts of the image by softening the software.

Ultraviolet camera

Night mode

Photo mode

Real Cut Night mode

Real Cut Photo Mode

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Main camera

Night mode

Photo mode

Real Cut Night mode

Real Cut Photo Mode

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Telephoto camera

Night mode

Photo mode

Real Cut Night mode

Real Cut Photo Mode

Selfie with Galaxy Z Fold 3

The unique nature of the Galaxy Z Fold 3 allows you to take selfies with all 5 cameras. As expected, of all these cameras, the 4-megapixel module below the main display captures the worst shots, with still colors, boisterous, limited dynamic range, and little detail. Still, the device’s external selfie camera is much more satisfying, and the main camera gives you selfies full of detail, vivid colors, and a wide dynamic range.

External selfie camera

Selfie camera under the screen

Main camera

Portrait photography with Galaxy Z Fold 3

Samsung’s clamshell flagship allows you to take portraits with both your main camera and telephoto. Sold 3 takes portrait photography of human and inanimate subjects and has a satisfactory performance in implementing bokeh effects; Portrait photographs have a wide dynamic range and vivid colors, But their details are not as good as regular photos of the Galaxy Z Fold 3.

Portrait photo with the main camera

Portrait photo with telephoto camera

Despite the Snapdragon 888’s support for 4K120 and 8K30 video recording, the Galaxy Z Fold 3 offers a maximum 4K60 video recording capability. Samsung Foldable Flagship With all rear and selfie cameras, it offers 4K video recording at 30 frames per second, 48Mbps video bitrate, and 255kbps video bitrate; But 4K60 video recording at a total resolution of 71 Mbps is limited to the main camera.

The Galaxy Z Fold 3 4K30 videos are good in contrast, color, and dynamic range; But noise is evident in them. On the other side of the field, the 4K60 videos of the main camera are very noisy and devoid of detail. The ZoldFold 3 does not quite fit the Samsung S flagship family in terms of video recording.

Conclusion

Last year, Samsung fixed many of the drawbacks of the first generation of this foldable phone with the Galaxy Z Fold 2; In such a way that a fundamental and great objection could no longer be attributed to it. The Koreans went even further this year, bringing about another constructive change.

With its sophisticated mechanism and moving parts, the Galaxy ZFold 3 is IPX8 certified for water resistance, supports pens, has up to 35% brighter display, has a lighter and more durable body, and on both screens, It offers an adaptive 120Hz refresh rate.

In the next step, Samsung must go to war with physics to address the inherent flaws of foldable phones, such as screen folds, hinge slits, and the device’s thickness when folded. We hope that the Koreans will be able to slightly change the aspect ratio of the screen display to improve the performance and ergonomics of the device in smartphone mode.

Is it now possible to offer the purchase of Galaxy Z Fold 3 to ordinary people with ease? Our answer is still no, But this negative answer does not have the determination of previous generations! The Galaxy Z Fold 3 is a fun experience for techies and, of course, those who have the budget to pay the astronomical price.

Positive points

• IPX8 certification and more durable flexible display
• Adaptive 120Hz refresh rate on both monitors
• Main screen font support
• 35% more screen brightness
• Experience fluent and enjoyable multitasking
• An efficient night-vision camera set

Cons

• Strange and rugged dimensions and not so ergonomic in the phone mode
• Possibility of damaging the phone in the presence of dust
• Not so convenient charging
• Poor performance stability than flagships equipped with Snapdragon 888
• Astronomical price