The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8 arrived earlier this year boasting a familiar trick: it folds into a pocket-friendly square and places a surprisingly useful screen on the outside.

With this new model, Samsung has kept the basic Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 formula intact, but shaved down the body, improved the hinge, added more processing power, and made the cover screen easier to live with.

The displays, camera hardware, battery, and charging have barely moved, though, leaving last year’s Galaxy Z Flip 7 looking far from obsolete — it's also now much cheaper than its newer sibling.

To help you make sense of what's changed and which model is best, we've weighed up the price, design, displays, cameras, performance, software, and battery life of these two foldable phones to see which deserves your money.

As a disclaimer, we've fully reviewed the Galaxy Z Flip 7, but not the Galaxy Z Flip 8. We have spent time with the former model, though, so we've based our judgements on both hands-on experience and on-paper specs.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8 vs Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7: specs comparison

Before we dig into the details, here’s an overview of both phones’ key specs:

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8 vs Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7: price and availability

Samsung announced the Galaxy Z Flip 8 in July 2026, and the phone went on sale on August 7. Prices start at $1,199.99 / £1,149 / AU$1,949 for the 256GB model, rising to $1,399.99 / £1,319 / AU$2,249 for 512GB.

The Galaxy Z Flip 7 arrived in 2025 at $1,099 / £1,049 / AU$1,799 for 256GB, while the 512GB version launched at $1,219 / £1,149 / AU$1,999.

Samsung is therefore asking an extra $100 for the entry-level Z Flip 8, despite retaining the same storage capacity. The gap grows further with the 512GB models, and the older Flip 7 is likely to become even more tempting as retailers clear stock and discounts begin to appear, especially around sales events like Black Friday.

Given the global memory shortage and rising inflation, Samsung's decision to raise the price of the Galaxy Z Flip 8 makes some sense, but it does mean the Z Flip 7 — which is still a great phone — represents even better value in 2026.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8 vs Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7: design

Samsung has focused on making the Galaxy Z Flip 8 a little easier to carry and use, rather than giving it a big redesign. At 180g, it's 8g lighter than the Flip 7, while its 6.1mm unfolded body is 0.4mm thinner.

Fold the two phones shut, and the difference grows slightly, with the Flip 8 measuring 13.1mm compared with 13.7mm for its predecessor.

The revised Armor FlexHinge is the more useful change. Samsung has reduced friction inside the mechanism and widened the inner edges so that your fingers have more room to open the phone.

In our early hands-on testing of the Galaxy Z Flip 8, the phone felt noticeably easier to open and close than the previous model — a small refinement that should become more valuable when you repeat the motion dozens of times each day.

Otherwise, the family resemblance is strong. Both phones use the same flat-sided clamshell shape, with the large cover screen wrapping around the two rear cameras.

The Flip 7 already felt sturdy and polished, although its familiar Galaxy styling could look rather restrained beside some rival foldables.

Winner: Galaxy Z Flip 8

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8 vs Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7: display

Samsung has carried both of the Flip 7’s displays straight over to the Galaxy Z Flip 8. Each phone opens to reveal a 6.9-inch, 1080 x 2520 AMOLED panel with a 1–120Hz adaptive refresh rate, while the outside is covered by a 4.1-inch, 948 x 1048 FlexWindow. Peak brightness remains 2,600 nits.

That leaves little room between them on paper, although this is hardly a weakness for the older phone. In our review of the device, we awarded the Flip 7 a perfect 5/5 for its displays, finding the inner screen bright and clear even outdoors.

The Flip 8 receives some cover-screen improvements, but the main changes concern how Samsung’s software uses the FlexWindow rather than the panel itself. We’ll cover those additions later.

Both phones offer two excellent screens, and there is no convincing hardware reason to choose one over the other.

Winner: Tie

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8 vs Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7: cameras

Samsung has left the underlying camera hardware unchanged — you might be sensing a theme emerging here.

Both phones combine a 50MP main camera with a 12MP ultra-wide and a 10MP selfie camera, with no dedicated telephoto lens for longer-range shots.

In our testing, the Flip 7 produced strong results with more natural-looking colors than some older Samsung phones and an excellent Portrait mode.

Its folding design also lets you use the cover screen as a viewfinder for sharper selfies from the 50MP rear camera, although the lack of optical zoom limits its versatility.

The Galaxy Z Flip 8 directs its attention towards video.

Camcorder Grip places the recording and zoom controls within easy reach when the phone is held sideways, while Super Steady’s Horizontal Lock can keep footage level as the handset moves or rotates.

Our early hands-on found the latter feature particularly effective, although more aggressive stabilization can crop the frame and reduce image quality.

Winner: Galaxy Z Flip 8

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8 vs Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7: performance and software

This is where the Galaxy Z Flip 8 begins to put some meaningful distance between itself and its predecessor.

US and Australian models of the Z Flip 8 use Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy chipset, while the UK version of the phone receives Samsung’s Exynos 2600, replacing the Exynos 2500 inside the Flip 7. The latter chipset features in every version of the Flip 7, in every region.

The older phone still handles everyday apps, split-screen multitasking, and Samsung DeX without much trouble, but its performance was one of the weaker parts of our review. The Flip 8 has considerably more headroom for gaming, demanding apps, and Samsung’s growing collection of AI features — even if your version of the phone uses the Exynos 2600, and not the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5.

Its software is also better suited to the folding design. Android 17 and One UI 9 add a proper FlexWindow app tray and let you rearrange widgets directly from the cover screen.

Both phones receive seven generations of Android upgrades, but the Flip 8 naturally starts one version later and offers a smoother cover-screen experience from day one.

Winner: Galaxy Z Flip 8

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8 vs Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7: battery

Samsung has kept the same 4,300mAh battery in both phones, alongside 25W wired and 15W wireless charging.

Neither model comes close to the fastest-charging foldables, and the Flip 8 gains no extra capacity to offset its more powerful hardware.

The Flip 7 generally made it through a full day in our review, although heavier photography or gaming could leave it needing an evening top-up.

The Flip 8’s newer chipset should use that capacity more efficiently, but the improvement is unlikely to transform the experience. These remain one-day phones with relatively slow charging, leaving little to separate them.

Winner: Tie

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8 vs Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7: verdict

The most revealing thing about this comparison is how mature Samsung’s Flip formula has become.

The Galaxy Z Flip 8 improves the parts you touch every day — weight, thickness, hinge action, performance, and cover-screen software — while leaving the displays, camera hardware, battery, and charging largely untouched.

Given these upgrades, the Flip 8 is a better phone for someone buying their first Flip, especially if they plan to keep it for several years.

Existing Flip 7 owners have far less reason to move. Last year’s model still delivers most of the same foldable experience, and its lower price makes the Flip 8’s refinements look expensive rather than essential.

Overall winner: Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8

It’s finally official: after what feels like years of leaks, Apple has entered the foldable race with the iPhone Duo. It brings a host of new features, but also has the same passport-style form factor as the recently launched Galaxy Z Fold 8, Xiaomi 18 Fold, and Huawei Pura X Max.

Apple’s first foldable features many of the same compromises you might expect from a first-generation foldable, even from a company as meticulous as Apple, but the biggest concern for most users may be around the Duo's battery life.

I’ve spent the past three months using the Galaxy Z Fold 8 and its competitors. What battery life do they offer, and what can we learn from it? I tested six of the best globally available flagship foldables over several weeks to answer that question.

How I tested the folding phones' battery life

Over the past few months, I’ve been developing my own battery testing suite, CellMark, using a combination of AI models. After hundreds of hours and various iterations, I've built a solid test suite that accounts for each phone maker's idiosyncrasies and how the average person actually uses their phone today.

For this comparison, I ran the EnduranceMark suite, which loops until the battery level reaches 5%. A test is only valid if it successfully drains 80% of the battery, and each result below is characterized using a standardized metric. I ran two tests from this suite: the Synthesizer test to test drain under heavy loads, and my favorite, the Doom Scroller. As the name suggests, it simulates everyone’s favorite pastime of endlessly scrolling social media.

I also ran the ChargeMark charging test to log battery charging times. I paired the three CellMark tests with a web-browsing script that loaded 20 different web pages, scrolled at intervals, and looped to the next page, plus a looping video playback test.

As some phone makers aggressively limit background apps, some phones failed to complete certain tests, but I've included the relevant tests regardless.

Of course, these tests aren’t 100% indicative of real-world usage, but anecdotally, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Doom Scrolling results closely matched my findings during daily use. Having tested smartphones for 20 years, I'm confident in the CellMark app's results.

Round 1: The charging test

For years, charging speeds differed markedly between folding phones sold in the US and those sold outside it. Simply put, the former were vastly slower than the latter.

In the above charging test, the Galaxy Z Fold 8's 45W charging speed got it to a respectable 69-minute full charge, but the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra sustained 45W charging for longer to reach a full charge in one hour.

The Moto Razr Fold, Honor Magic V6, and Oppo Find N6 were the top three in ascending order, with Oppo retaining a charging lead it has held for years. The Google Pixel 11 Pro Fold ranked last, which isn’t surprising given its charging is the slowest.

For the iPhone Duo, Apple says 60W charging can reach 50% in just 20 minutes. Apple hasn’t published a full-charge estimate, especially since phones optimize charging speeds for longevity, but its claims put the iPhone Duo's charging speed around the level of the Honor Magic V6 and Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra.

Round 2: The web browsing test

The second test was web browsing, and each phone ran a script to load 20 of the heaviest webpages on the internet and scroll through them to simulate real-world usage. Running in a loop, this gives us an estimate of the battery life if you’re always using your browser.

The Galaxy Z Fold 8 proved surprisingly strong here, but that's where a smaller screen comes in handy. Its drain rate was the lowest of all tests, meaning a larger battery at the same drain rate would theoretically give us the best battery life overall.

The Pixel 11 Pro Fold fell short of the competition, even though its drain rate was only the third-highest, while the Motorola Razr Fold proved that the Razr Fold — and its Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 processor — is very well optimized for web browsing. Apple hasn’t revealed any iPhone Duo web-browsing estimates, so it’s unclear what to expect.

Round 3: The video playback test

The other fairly standard test is video playback, which lets us directly test many phone makers’ listed claims. This involved looping a locally stored 4K video in the default media player with the phone’s brightness set to 50%.

It’s clear that every phone maker makes bold battery-life claims that don’t always reflect your real-world experience. Here, Samsung, Oppo, and Honor deserve credit for fairly accurate video playback claims, whereas the results on the Moto Razr Fold and Pixel 11 Pro Fold fall far short of what's stated.

For the iPhone Duo, Apple claims that you'll get up to 35 hours of video playback on the inside screen and up to 44 hours on the outer display. If it lives up to these claims, or even comes close, it will likely have the best video playback battery life of any folding phone.

Round 4: The Synthesizer performance test

Web browsing and video playback are two common ways we use our phones, but companies also optimize for these scenarios, and phones struggle considerably under heavy loads.

To test this, I built the Synthesizer, which runs a series of calculations around ever-increasing prime numbers and runs numerous I/O operations in the background, both designed to heavily tax the chipset.

None of these results are surprising on their own, but together they show just how differently each phone maker has balanced power and efficiency.

The Galaxy Z Fold 8 and Fold 8 Ultra use the high-specification Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy chipset, and Samsung doesn’t throttle performance of the chipset. The result is ~5.5 hours of battery life at high performance.

The Tensor G6 inside the Pixel 11 Pro Fold is surprisingly well optimized, but as the above test shows, Motorola, Honor, and Oppo all offer considerably better battery performance and battery-life balance. The result is sustained high-load performance for much longer.

Round 5: The doomscrolling test

When I started building CellMark, I set out to build an app that could, among other tests, simulate social media usage. Considering how we use our phones — and my additional needs for visual ways to demonstrate battery and charging tests on social media — this felt like the most natural test to build.

It’s also where I've faced challenges with Oppo and Motorola phones specifically, which prevent the CellMark app from running tests longer than nine hours. Despite this, it reveals a lot of interesting data.

First, the thin body on the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra and larger battery mean it runs considerably hotter than all the competition.

The thicker build and vapor chamber of the iPhone Duo should mean this won’t be an issue for Apple's first foldable, although the A20 Pro chipset is a powerhouse. The Galaxy Z Fold 8 proves it's possible to be a small phone without succumbing to overheating problems, despite using the same processor as its sibling.

The performance of the Pixel 11 Pro Fold proves the Tensor G6 is a welcome improvement over the Tensor G5, while the Honor Magic V6 reigns supreme yet again.

It’s worth noting that the Find N6 and Razr Fold results ran for 9 hours before ending, and while all phones drain much faster as thermal temperature rises, both likely had the lowest drain and best thermal performance.

The key takeaway there? The processor makes a big difference: the Find N6 has one fewer performance core than its rivals, while the Razr Fold uses the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 rather than the high-performance Elite version. Both companies made these choices with battery life in mind, and it becomes especially apparent when you look at thermal performance in these tests.

The 24-hour Galaxy Z Fold 8 run

Just days before publishing, I tested the Galaxy Z Fold 8 with a few changes to determine what battery life would look like under more optimal conditions. The surprise is just how much of a difference it makes.

Running the Doom Scroll test on a Galaxy Z Fold 8 with background data sync disabled and brightness set to 40%, I achieved 24 hours and 42 minutes on a single Doom Scroll run. That’s nearly 150% higher than the rest of the Galaxy Z Fold 8 testing results.

Also, every foldable phone maker tells you to open the phone for the fastest charging, partly because of thermal management. During this test, all 8,907 logged telemetry samples showed a nominal thermal status. In simple terms: unfold your phone to keep it cooler.

How might the iPhone Duo's battery compare?

Apple claims the iPhone Duo has better battery life than the iPhone 17 Pro Max, offering up to 35 hours of video playback when unfolded or 44 hours when folded. That puts it 35% higher than the Galaxy Z Fold 8, and paired with a thicker body and better thermal management, the iPhone Duo could set a new battery-life benchmark for folding phones in the US.

The true test will be in real-world use cases like Doom Scroller. I’m excited to see how optimized the iPhone Duo is, but am cautiously optimistic that it can at least match the Galaxy Z Fold 8. We’ll find out once the iPhone Duo goes on sale.

The iPhone 18 Pro Max and Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra are the top non-foldable phones from Apple and Samsung, respectively. They both feature top-tier chipsets, big, beautiful screens, and several capable cameras — and they also cost a lot as a result.

But while, superficially, these two phones have a lot in common, they are, in many ways, quite different, so if you’re deciding between them in your search for the best phone of 2026, there are several factors to consider.

Below, then, we’ve detailed the specs and features of the iPhone 18 Pro Max and Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra to give you a clearer idea of how they compare.

iPhone 18 Pro Max vs Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra: specs comparison

Before we look closely at the key features of these two phones, here's how they stack up in terms of specs:

iPhone 18 Pro Max vs Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra: price and availability

The iPhone 18 Pro Max was launched in September 2026 and is now available globally, while the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra landed in February 2026 and is also now widely available across the world.

For pricing, the iPhone 18 Pro Max starts at $1,299 / £1,299 / AU$2,299, for which you get 256GB of storage. There are other options too, though, including $1,499 / £1,499 / AU$2,699 for 512GB, $1,899 / £1,899 / AU$3,499 for 1TB, and $2,499 / £2,499 / AU$4,699 for 2TB.

The Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra will set you back $1,299.99 / £1,279 / AU$2,199 for a 256GB model, $1,499.99 / £1,449 / AU$2,499 for 512GB, or $1,799.99 / £1,699 / AU$2,649 for 1TB.

So their starting prices are either similar or identical, depending on where you are, but as you move up the storage capacities, the gulf in price widens, with the iPhone 18 Pro Max being the more expensive model — and that’s before you even get to its 2TB configuration, which isn’t a capacity that's available for the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra.

iPhone 18 Pro Max vs Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra: design

The iPhone 18 Pro Max has a similar design to the iPhone 17 Pro Max, with a large camera island on the back (housing three lenses) and a Dynamic Island cut-out in the screen — though the latter has shrunk since the previous model.

The frame is made of aluminum, and the back has an aluminum section and a glass part. The phone is also water-resistant to depths of six meters for up to 30 minutes, and it measures 163.4 x 78 x 8.8mm and weighs 249g.

The Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra has a slightly more angular design with less curvy corners, but it too has a large camera block on the back — though it’s arranged vertically, rather than horizontally as on the iPhone.

The Galaxy S26 Ultra also has a smaller punch-hole cut-out on its screen, and it uses aluminum for the frame and glass for the back. It has the same water resistance rating as the iPhone 18 Pro Max — namely IP68 — but it's only actually tested for depths of up to 1.5 meters for 30 minutes.

The Ultra comes in at 163.6 x 78.1 x 7.9mm and weighs 214g, so it’s actually lighter and slimmer than the iPhone 18 Pro Max — despite finding room for a slot to house its included S Pen Stylus.

Finally, their colors also differ, with the iPhone 18 Pro Max being sold in Black, Silver, Glacier, and Burgundy shades, while the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra is available in Cobalt Violet, Sky Blue, Black, White, Silver Shadow, and Pink Gold.

In our iPhone 18 Pro Max review, we described Burgundy and Glacier as being “two fantastic new colors”, but noted that little else had visually changed since the previous model, the iPhone 17 Pro.

In our Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra review, we similarly noted that it’s an “incremental update that slims the phone down, makes it lighter, and just a little bit softer around the edges.”

iPhone 18 Pro Max vs Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra: display

The iPhone 18 Pro Max has a 6.9-inch 1320 x 2868 OLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate, a 3,000-nit peak brightness, and around 460 pixels per inch.

The Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra has a 6.9-inch 1440 x 3120 AMOLED screen with a 120Hz refresh rate, a 2,600-nit peak brightness, and roughly 500 pixels per inch.

So, the two phones have the same size screens, the same refresh rates, and both use OLED displays, but Samsung’s phone has a marginally higher pixel density, while Apple’s has a slightly higher peak brightness.

In our reviews, we praised both displays highly, saying that the iPhone 18 Pro Max’s was “punchy, sharp, and smooth”, and the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra’s was “a fantastic 6.9-inch AMOLED that makes every image pop.”

In terms of their screen specs and quality, then, there’s little to choose between them, but the Galaxy S26 Ultra has a trick up its sleeve in the form of Privacy Display — a feature that blanks out some or all of the screen when not viewed front-on, so people can’t as easily snoop. This is a great feature that our reviewer called “a one-of-a-kind innovation that actually does what it promises.” The iPhone 18 Pro Max has no such feature.

iPhone 18 Pro Max vs Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra: cameras

For a comprehensive breakdown of how the camera systems on these two phones compare, check out our detailed iPhone 18 Pro vs Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra comparison. In essence, though, both of these phones excel at photography.

Headlining the iPhone 18 Pro Max's camera array is a 48MP main sensor with a variable aperture that can move between f/1.48-4.0. That basically means you can control how much light gets into the sensor and therefore how much of your photo stays in focus — the more light you let in, the blurrier the background, and the less light you let in, the more of your scene stays in focus.

Variable apertures are a rarity on phones, and so the functionality of such a feature may take some getting used to if you've never played around with aperture before, but its existence on the iPhone 18 Pro Max gives you more creative control over your shots.

The iPhone also has a 48MP f/2.2 ultra-wide camera with a 120-degree field of view, a 48MP f/2.8 telephoto with 4x optical zoom — plus 8x "optical-quality" reach — and an 18MP f/1.9 front-facing camera.

The latter also offers automatic subject tracking and the option to switch between portrait and landscape modes in one click, which is definitely a nice-to-have feature.

The Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra, meanwhile, has a 200MP f/1.4 main camera, a 50MP f/1.9 ultra-wide with a 120-degree field of view, a 50MP f/2.9 telephoto offering 5x optical zoom, and a 10MP f/2.4 telephoto with 3x optical zoom, plus a 12MP f/2.2 camera on the front.

So you get an extra lens on the S26 Ultra, giving you more telephoto versatility, but there’s no variable aperture here.

iPhone

Samsung

In terms of photo quality, the iPhone 18 Pro tends to capture scenes as they are, using more neutral, realistic colors, while the Galaxy ups the saturation for slightly more stylized shots.

iPhone

Samsung

When it comes to zoom, the S26 Ultra is the more versatile shooter of the two, not only because you get two optical zoom distances instead of one, but also because it lets you zoom digitally up to 100x, while the iPhone stops at 40x.

To be honest, we'd never recommend zooming much beyond 30x anyway, but the Galaxy does at least give you the option to do so, and its 3 and 5x optical zoom ranges are slightly more usable than the iPhone’s 4x range.

iPhone

Samsung

Macro photography is pretty similar on both phones, though that aforementioned color difference does come back into play, and again, we'd choose the iPhone for selfies.

Remember: check out our detailed iPhone 18 Pro vs Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra comparison for more pictures and thoughts on how these two phones stack up in terms of photography.

iPhone 18 Pro Max vs Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra: performance and software

Neither of these phones is lacking in power, with the iPhone 18 Pro Max having a top-end Apple A20 Pro chipset and 12GB of RAM, while the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra has a similarly capable Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset and either 12GB of RAM or — in the 1TB model — 16GB.

Our iPhone 18 Pro Max review described its chipset as “incredibly fast, efficient, and ready for whatever comes next,” while our Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra review described the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 as delivering “snappy performance in every task.”

Both phones also have a vapor chamber to help keep them cool under pressure, so there isn't much to choose between them in terms of gaming performance.

The same can't be said of their respective software.

The iPhone 18 Pro Max runs on iOS 27, while the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra runs on Android 17 (having originally shipped with Android 16).

The two OS packages are similarly accomplished — especially now that Apple has finally launched Siri AI — and both phones will likely receive many years of updates, with Samsung committing to seven major Android updates and Apple typically offering the same amount for its iPhones.

That said, iOS and Android are very different. The former offers a clean, uniform layout and focuses on privacy and security, while the latter is an open-source system offering deep customization options and more granular control. If you're reading this, you probably already know which software you prefer.

iPhone 18 Pro Max vs Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra: battery

For most of the last decade, Samsung’s flagship phones have had higher-capacity batteries than Apple’s, but that’s recently changed.

Samsung has refused to move above 5,000mAh in its flagship Galaxy models, while iPhones have kept creeping upwards, with the iPhone 18 Pro Max having either a 5,567mAh battery (in eSIM-only models) or a 5,391mAh one in other variants.

Still, both phones excel when it comes to battery life, with the iPhone 18 Pro Max delivering “outstanding endurance” according to our review, and we similarly praised the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra for its “fantastic” battery life.

Both phones can last for around 30 hours if used casually, and if used continuously, you'll get around 17 hours from the iPhone 18 Pro Max and 16 hours from the Galaxy.

Both devices also charge fast — you'll get 60W wired speeds and 25W wireless speeds regardless of which you choose — but for sheer capacity, the iPhone 18 Pro Max has the edge. It benefits from MagSafe, too, which isn’t something you get with the Galaxy S26 Ultra.

iPhone 18 Pro Max vs Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra: verdict

The iPhone 18 Pro Max and Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra are both exceptional phones, but they have some specific strengths and weaknesses too.

The iPhone 18 Pro Max has a variable aperture, a higher-capacity battery, MagSafe, and more storage at the top end, but it also costs a bit more in some configurations.

The Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra isn’t just the marginally cheaper phone — at least in some varieties and regions — but it also has an extra camera, a clever Privacy Display, an S Pen stylus, and more or less matches the iPhone in most other ways.

So, you’ll have to consider which of these features matters most to you — but for what it’s worth, the iPhone 18 Pro Max received five stars in our review while the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra achieved 4.5 stars.

The race to crown the best camera phone of 2026 is heating up.

Back in January, Samsung released the globally available Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra, before Oppo and Xiaomi dropped the Oppo Find X9 Ultra and Xiaomi 17 Ultra, respectively, both of which were made available in the UK but not the US (Australian buyers, meanwhile, got the Xiaomi, but not the Oppo).

Google entered the race with the Google Pixel 11 Pro in August, and now Apple has released the iPhone 18 Pro, which is earning plaudits for its variable aperture feature and pro-level video capture capabilities.

So, wherever you are in the world, you’ve likely got at least three compelling camera phones to consider at the time of writing, and I took two of them — the iPhone 18 Pro and Galaxy S26 Ultra — on a recent trip to Hawaii to see how they stack up against one another.

Below, I’ve added examples of both phones’ wide, zoom, macro, ultra-wide, and selfie-taking capabilities to help you decide which model is right for you. Then, at the end, I've summarized my thoughts on how they compare.

Specs

Before we dig into the comparison, here’s a quick roundup of each phone’s key camera specs:

In addition to the optical zoom distances listed above, both phones offer an additional ‘optical-quality’ zoom (8x for the iPhone, 2x and 10x for the Samsung), but they do so via a sensor crop rather than fixed focal lengths, so I’ve prioritized their true optical zoom distances in the ‘zoom’ section below.

It’s also worth noting that, to save storage, both the iPhone 18 Pro and Galaxy S26 Ultra capture images in smaller file sizes than their large sensors suggest by default. Specifically, the iPhone defaults to 24MP (using Apple’s ‘super-high-resolution’ imaging pipeline), while the Galaxy S26 Ultra defaults to 12MP (via pixel-binning).

I stuck with these out-of-the-box shooting settings for each of the comparisons below.

Wide

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Samsung

In this picture of a statue by the beach — “The Acrobats” by John Robinson — we can immediately see the difference between the two phones’ approaches to color science.

The iPhone’s image is the more natural of the two, with more pronounced shadows and muted colors, versus the Samsung’s brighter, more contrast-heavy image. This difference is particularly apparent on the statue’s torso and patch of grass to the right of the scene.

iPhone

Samsung

Here, again, the Samsung’s image has punchier, arguably more artificial-looking colors, but the difference isn’t quite so stark as in the first image. Both photos are equally detailed.

iPhone

Samsung

Again, only a subtle difference between the two images, but the leaves are certainly greener in the Galaxy’s shot (see the top right-hand side of the image)

iPhone

Samsung

The iPhone and Samsung take radically different approaches to capturing this shadowy pathway. The former’s image is more realistic, with strong detail maintained where the leaves meet the sky. The Galaxy’s image is impressively detailed, too, but its colors are much more stylistic than natural, which is emerging as a theme in this comparison.

iPhone

Samsung

This, for me, is the clearest example yet of the color science difference I’ve referenced below every image so far. Both of these shots are equally detailed, but the Samsung has definitely dialed up the saturation versus the iPhone’s more neutral shot.

iPhone

Samsung

Moving on to a sunset image, and the iPhone does a good job at maintaining the clarity of both the foreground and background, while the Galaxy goes full “Oh, so you want a sunset shot?” mode. I definitely don’t hate the Monet-style sky the Samsung has captured here — it's certainly the more aesthetic of the two — but in doing so, the phone obscures almost everyone in the foreground. The iPhone’s shot is, again, more balanced, but much less stylistic.

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Samsung

This image, though, proves that the Galaxy S26 Ultra can effectively balance foreground and background in low light. I actually think it does a slightly better job than the iPhone here, but there’s not much in it.

iPhone

Samsung

Again, pretty similar results here, but the iPhone definitely chooses a warmer hue that fades from orange to red, while the Samsung goes from red to an almost pink color. This is, in fairness, a particularly tricky shot to capture.

Zoom

iPhone

Samsung

Back to that statue again, this time at 4x optical zoom for the iPhone and 5x optical zoom for the Samsung.

The level of detail captured is impressive in both cases, but the Galaxy’s image is, in my opinion, the sharper of the two, which makes sense given the phone's optical advantage over the iPhone — the Galaxy essentially has more information for its processing algorithms to work with, resulting in a slightly more detailed image.

I also like the way the Galaxy dials down the color of the blurred clouds in the background to really bring the statue into focus, which isn't something you'd expect given the phone's gung-ho approach to colors we've observed so far.

iPhone

Samsung

Interestingly, in these photos — taken at the same optical distances as above — the Samsung has again dialed down the colors to produce a much grayer image than the iPhone, though I'm not sure that approach works for this particular scene.

The iPhone's image is warmer and, in parts (see the cracks in the pavement), a touch more detailed.

iPhone

Samsung

This is an example of each phone’s maximum digital zoom capabilities — 40x for the iPhone, 100x for the Samsung. Yes, 100 is a bigger number than 40, but you can see why Apple doesn’t bother to offer anything beyond that figure. In both cases, the phone is guessing at details via processing trickery, rather than actually being able to capture them, which results in two pretty unusable images.

Still, the Samsung will produce iPhone-like results up until around the 50x mark, so it's a more versatile zoom camera overall.

Macro and ultra-wide

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Samsung

Macro mode — where your phone automatically switches to its ultra-wide camera lens when you move close to a small subject — was my favorite test to carry out on both the iPhone 18 Pro and Galaxy S26 Ultra, because macro photography is something Apple and Samsung phones have been good at for years.

In this example, as we’ve seen previously, the iPhone 18 Pro opts for more realistic, neutral colors, while the Galaxy’s shot has way more contrast. The greens in these two images are quite literally different shades.

iPhone

Samsung

Again, the level of detail here is comparable across both shots, but this is the first instance where I actually prefer the Galaxy’s deeper, more artistic-looking colors. The iPhone's brighter image is closer to reality, though.

iPhone

Samsung

In this example, it’s the other way around; I prefer the iPhone’s colors to the Samsung’s. However, you’ll notice — if you zoom in on the vascular tissue of the leaves — that the Galaxy phone actually captures more detail.

iPhone

Samsung

As in my comparison between the iPhone 17 Pro and OnePlus 15’s cameras, I’ve only included one regular ultra-wide example here because I was so preoccupied with the phones’ wide and telephoto lenses while shooting in Hawaii that I forgot to take more with their respective ultra-wide lenses (perhaps my colleague was right in saying that phones don’t need ultra-wide lenses at all — but that’s a debate for another day).

In any case, everything I said about the first few photos in this comparison applies again here. Both phones capture excellent detail — I'd probably give the edge to the iPhone, since it captures the graininess of the sand slightly better than the Samsung — but their approaches to color science differ dramatically, which is evident in the sand, sky, and grass pictured above. The iPhone captures the scene as it is; the Samsung captures the scene as it thinks you want it to be.

Selfies

iPhone

Samsung

Both of these selfies are detailed and well-balanced in terms of color, but the iPhone's image is the slightly sharper of the two, no doubt because the 18 Pro has a larger 18MP front-facing sensor than the Galaxy S26 Ultra’s 12MP sensor. It does a better job of maintaining the clarity of my flyaway hairs, for instance.

It’s worth mentioning, too, that the iPhone 18 Pro’s ‘Center Stage’ selfie camera uses subject tracking to automatically keep you in the frame, and also lets you switch between portrait and landscape modes, depending on how many subjects are in frame. I've used that particular feature a lot, so it's definitely not a gimmick.

Verdict

There’s no doubt that both of these phones are among the best camera phones money can buy in 2026, but they do differ on several fronts.

For everyday shots in good lighting, both the iPhone 18 Pro and Galaxy S26 Ultra — in their respective default shooting modes — capture plenty of detail, but you’ll get more natural-looking shots from the former, and more vibrant, stylized shots from the latter.

In low light, the iPhone takes slightly brighter pictures and, as a result, sometimes captures more of the scene than the Galaxy, but Samsung’s style-focused color science can similarly lead to better results than the iPhone. It all depends on what you’re shooting and which aesthetic you prefer.

When it comes to zoom, both phones perform well, though the Galaxy will get you closer to your subject than the iPhone without sacrificing detail (5x optical zoom vs 4x optical zoom). You also get an additional 3x optical zoom option on the Samsung, which you don’t get on the iPhone. If I wanted the most versatile zoom shooter, I’d choose the Samsung.

For selfies, though, the iPhone is the clear winner, with its larger 18MP sensor and genuinely useful framing tricks.

As mentioned, the iPhone 18 Pro also boasts a variable aperture feature. Since I wanted to compare both of these phones using their out-of-the-box shooting settings, I didn’t manually control the aperture on the iPhone in any of the above shots, but Apple does give you the option to do so, whereas Samsung does not.

Changing the aperture is useful for tweaking how much of a given background you want to keep in focus (as my colleague Lance demonstrates in a separate piece), and you can also achieve some nice lens flare effects in low light while doing so. But this is very much a pro-level feature that most users won’t play around with too much.

Overall, then, I’d say the Galaxy S26 Ultra is my preferred camera phone for zoom photography and stylized shots, but the iPhone 18 Pro is the more consistent wide shooter in both well-lit and low-light scenarios. It’s got a better selfie camera, too, and since Apple’s new pro-level controls unlock more possibilities for the iPhone, it’s the phone I’ll be sticking with until the next wave of camera-focused Chinese flagships rolls around.

Incidentally, I'll be publishing separate Portrait mode and video comparisons shortly, so stick with TechRadar for more on these two top-end camera phones.

Today Samsung debuted a pair of new Tablets: the Samsung Galaxy Tab S12+ and the Samsung Galaxy Tab S12 Ultra. I’ve been taking the Ultra for a spin ahead of its October 7 launch and have been loving the massive display.

But the price hike, and minimal upgrades leave me questioning if it really needed it launch.

There’s a lot that’ll be familiar here for owners of the Samsung Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra when it comes to the S12 series. The AMOLED screen is still 14.6-inches with a 120Hz refresh rate and 1,600 nits peak brightness, the battery is still 11,600mAh with 45W charging (and boasts the same promised 23 hours of video playback as the S11 Ultra), and the S12 Ultra tablet is still IP68 rated meaning it could spend 30 minutes underwater at a depth of 1m and survive the experience.

The tablet is as thin (5.1mm) as it was before, with the same Silver and Gray color options to choose between as before. The only notable change is the chipset — the new 3nm processor boasts an up to 19% faster CPU, 17% better GPU performance, and a 51% improvement to its NPU processing for your AI needs — though there is also a new heat chamber for better heat dissipation, plus a new four-channel speaker setup for more immersive audio than last generation’s dual-speaker build.

I’ve been trying the Ultra model out and enjoying it so far — relying on it as a solid laptop alternative with the book keyboard cover attachment (sold separately), and also as a great mobile gaming and TV-watching device while I travel (a full review will be coming soon) — but considering how similar it is to the last generation, I am left wondering if Samsung should take a leaf out of Apple’s book and abandon its annual refresh approach to Galaxy Tab launches.

The Tab S12+ is an interesting beast. There was no S11+, so it’s a replacement for the S10+ from 2024, but there’s also no regular S12 launching alongside these models, so it's kind of the successor to the S11 too.

Samsung’s Galaxy Tab S12+ boasts a 12.6-inch AMOLED screen with the same 1,600 nits peak brightness as the Ultra. It also has the same chipset as the Ultra model, but there's a smaller 10,600mAh battery (unsurprising, since it's physically smaller).

Besides the lower battery capcaity and screen size it also lacks the Ultra’s 8MP ultra-wide rear camera — but otherwise has the same 13MP main on its back, and 12MP ultra-wide on its front.

Because the S12+ is billed as a step-up model, despite there not being a base S12 to step up from, it does mean Samsung’s cheapest 2026 model is a lot more pricey than its cheapest 2025 tablet (more on that in a second).

For someone on a budget thinking of upgrading, it’s a real shame the best option from Samsung might be a tablet that’s a year old, but unless we get a regular Tab S12 (I’m not holding my breath) that’s the position we find ourselves in.

Coming for the iPad Pro?

As we’ve come to expect in 2026 — though it still stings to see every single time — the tablets will cost more than what has come before. The Galaxy Tab S12 Ultra will set you back $1,399 / £1,399 / AU$2,299 — up from $1,299 / £1,269 / AU$2,099 – meanwhile the S12+ costs $1,199 / £1,199 / AU$1,999 for its cheapest model.

For both tablets the cheapest configuration comes with 256GB of storage and 12GB of RAM, with both also having a 512GB model, and the Ultra boasting a 1TB model that also ups the RAM to 16GB, though these configurations will cost more.

At these prices, Samsung is pitching its S12 lineup against Apple’s iPad Pro lines, but thankfully the prices are a little cheaper. Compared with the 2025 iPad Pro launch prices, Samsung’s tablets would be pricier — however Apple hiked its prices by up to $200 / £200 / AU$400, putting its 11-inch iPad Pro on-par with the S12+, and making its the 13-inch iPad Pro $100 / £100 pricier.

There are factors to consider beyond price, of course. The Samsung tablets have larger screens than their respective rivals and a longer quoted battery life, and come with the S Pen stylus in the box, while the Apple Pencil is sold separately.

But Apple’s tech is lighter — 444g and 579g compared with 553g and 692g — and while we need to do some more testing, Apple silicon tends to outperform its rivals.

All that aside, there’s plenty to still love about the S12-series Galaxy Tabs. I’ve been using the Ultra for a couple of weeks now and it’s genuinely a very useful machine. I’m currently writing this story using the tablet and its keyboard attachment (multitasking across documents, web pages, and my photos app with ease).

But again I’m left wondering if it really needed to exist considering the lackluster hardware upgrades and price increase. Right now I’m not sure, but let’s see how I feel when my review is ready

As someone who writes about smartphones as part of my job, there's a special place in my heart for budget-oriented or mid-range handsets that outperform their price tags — especially those good enough to become fixtures in my list of the best cheap phones in Australia.

So I was pleased to find one of my top-rated picks, Samsung’s Galaxy A57, hitting an all-time low price of AU$479 as part of Amazon’s Prime Big Deal Days, making it an even better value handset than ever.

• Follow our dedicated live coverage of the Amazon Prime Big Deal Days 2026 sale for more deals and discounts

I would go so far as to say that the Galaxy A57 is a much better value than Samsung’s new Galaxy S26 FE — especially with its price hike from its predecessor — with prices starting at AU$1,149.

With both handsets using 6.7-inch AMOLED displays, similar main and ultrawide camera specs, along with the same starting storage of 128GB and similar battery sizes, I’d be hard-pressed to recommend the more expensive Galaxy S26 FE unless you really want a telephoto camera, wireless charging and the full Galaxy AI suite.

The Galaxy A57 brings a fair few upgrades over the just-as-excellent Galaxy A56 from last year, including a much thinner and lighter chassis (6.9mm thick and 179g compared to the A56’s 7.4mm depth and 198g weight), a faster Exynos 1680 chipset that can now handle more AI tasks, and an IP68 durability rating (up from IP67).

If you don’t need flagship specs but want something that still feels like a premium handset, you can’t go wrong with the Samsung Galaxy A57, especially at this rock-bottom price point.

Samsung Galaxy S26 FE: Two-minute review

Picking the Samsung Galaxy S26 FE to be your next phone would be a good decision. But whether it’s the best decision is the chewier question.

As has been the case for the past several years, Samsung has launched one final version of its Galaxy S flagship phones just before summer is out (in the US and UK, at least). This “Fan Edition” device aims to provide a more streamlined experience, focused on camera capabilities and AI, at a more approachable price.

However, Samsung has this all backwards. The Galaxy S26 FE’s cameras range from OK to weak, and the AI tools will soon be available on older models. Plus, the price hike this year makes the phone a little less of a bargain.

Arguably, the real reasons you’ll want a Galaxy S26 FE are its big screen, fast charging, strong battery life, and surprisingly good gaming performance. But then, if those are your priorities, you may still be better off looking elsewhere.

Confused yet? Hopefully the rest of my Galaxy S26 FE review will clear things up.

Samsung Galaxy S26 FE review: Price and availability

• Starts at $699 /£699 / AU$1,149

The Galaxy S26 FE first went on sale on September 4, 2026. It costs $699 / £699 / AU$1,149 for the standard version, which is $50 / £50 / AU$50 more than the Galaxy S25 FE cost when it launched.

As a result, it means there’s a $200 / £180 / AU$400 difference between this phone and the cheapest full-fat Samsung Galaxy S26, or a $400 / £400 / AU$700 gap if you compare it to the similarly-sized Galaxy S26 Plus. However, those Galaxy S26 models have twice as much storage as the S26 FE by default, which makes direct comparison a little complicated.

Also, keep in mind that you get six free months of Google AI Pro (worth about $120 / £114 / AU$200 at current subscription prices) with the purchase of the S26 FE. It’s an offer worth taking advantage of for the 5TB of cloud storage capacity alone, let alone the extra Gemini powers.

Samsung Galaxy S26 FE pricing

• Value score: 3.5 / 5

Samsung Galaxy S26 FE review: Specs

Before we continue, here’s a rundown of the Galaxy S26 FE’s hardware.

Samsung Galaxy S26 FE review: Design

• No major updates from previous model other than new colors
• Worthy of the Galaxy S name in terms of looks and durability

Looks-wise, there are no major body changes between the Galaxy S26 FE and the S25 FE — not that Samsung really needed to make any.

You still have three camera lenses embedded directly into the back of the phone, then flat rails with rounded corners around the sides, leading to a big display with a single centered selfie camera on the front.

Unless you’re able to tell the S26 FE apart from a regular S26 by the color of the handset, the big telltales that you’re holding an FE are the shiny back panel, instead of a matte texture, and the larger chin bezel under the display.

Speaking of colors, Samsung’s three offerings are Graphite, Blueberry and Pistachio (pictured). The gray option will satisfy anyone who isn’t fussed about the color of their phone, or who knows they’ll be using a case to add some style to their new handset, but I do like both the blue and pale green options for the balance they strike between boldness and subtlety.

Like the other Galaxy S26 models, the S26 FE is rated IP68 for water/dust-resistance, which we expect from any flagship phone launching today. However, it uses Gorilla Glass Victus Plus on both sides to protect against scratches and smashes, which is a generation behind what you get on the S26 or S26 Plus.

• Design score: 4 / 5

Samsung Galaxy S26 FE review: Display

• Big and colorful, but lower-spec resolution and brightness
• Larger bezels than other Galaxy S phones

The 6.7-inch AMOLED display of the Galaxy S26 FE matches the size of the Galaxy S26 Plus’ display, but that’s where the similarities end. The FE’s panel only reaches an FHD resolution, rather than the Plus’ more detailed QHD, and peaks at 1,900 nits of brightness according to Samsung’s testing, rather than the 2,600-nit rating of the other S26 models.

Even though the S26 FE can’t deliver as much brightness or as many pixels as Samsung’s top-tier displays, the detail and the colors of the FE’s panel are still strong, and the screen remains fairly legible even out in what remains of the summer sun.

The bezels around the Galaxy S26 FE’s display are thicker than they are on the Galaxy S26 Plus or other premium Samsung phones, which is an understandable limitation given the FE’s lower price. It doesn’t interfere with whatever you want to watch on the screen, but it’s a difference you’ll notice if you have used other recent Galaxy S phones.

• Display score: 3.5 / 5

Samsung Galaxy S26 FE review: Software

• Samsung’s latest OS comes pre-installed
• Seven more generations of updates have been promised

The Galaxy S26 FE comes pre-installed with OneUI 9, Samsung’s take on Android 17. That actually puts it ahead of the other Galaxy S26 models, which currently can only access OneUI 9 as a beta version.

OneUI 9 gives the FE a lot of tools to play with. My FanCam — the video subject tracking tool which just debuted on the much more expensive Galaxy Z Fold 8/ Galaxy Flip 8 series — is here and works just as capably. That’s joined by other AI-powered editing features like Photo Assist and Audio Eraser.

Meanwhile, for productivity, you have Now Brief and its new custom cards option to give you even more personalized updates all in one place, more supported apps for Now Nudge, plus expanded cross-app functions and Gemini.

Perhaps most importantly for the Galaxy S26 FE, it comes with Samsung’s full seven generations of Android and seven years of security updates promise. That’s the same as other Galaxy S models, and one additional year over what the cheaper Galaxy A57 gets, which is crucial for the value proposition of the S26 FE.

• Software score: 4 / 5

Samsung Galaxy S26 FE review: Cameras

• Minor upgrades but identical sensors to previous model
• The main and selfie cameras are good, but the ultra-wide and telephoto cameras lag behind

The Galaxy S26 FE’s camera loadout has a 50MP main rear lens as its centerpiece. You also have 12MP ultra-wide and 8MP 3x telephoto cameras on the back, as well as a 12MP selfie camera embedded in the display. This is the same basic setup as the Galaxy S25 FE, and also what you'll find on the Galaxy S26 and Galaxy S26 Plus, except that the more expensive phones get a higher-resolution 10MP zoom camera instead.

Our first example is a main camera shot of some brightly colored buildings in London’s Soho neighborhood. It’s a tricky one for any camera to balance due to the shaded shopfronts on the left side and the sky and brightly lit building in the center and right side. The Galaxy S26 FE still has some detail to offer in the shadowed brickwork, but Samsung’s strength in bright colors is on full display on the other half of this particular image.

Keeping with the main camera but looking out at the London Eye at night, we see another strong attempt from the Galaxy S26 FE. There’s some softness in the details, but the balance of colors between the lights and the night sky still makes for an appealing shot.

Looking across a sun-scorched park with the ultra-wide camera, we see a shot with plenty of scenery in it, with little to no distortion at the edges. The brightness and colors could use work, though, as even accounting for the patchy grass and overcast sky, things look overly drab.

The two shots of the church bell tower, one at 2x magnification using the S26 FE’s main camera and the other using the 3x telephoto camera, reveal how best to zoom in with this phone’s particular cameras. The in-sensor 2x zoom still keeps the subtleties of the colors and markings within the brickwork and foliage of the shot, thanks to the 50MP main sensor having plenty of pixels to spare even when zoomed in. However, while the telephoto camera has greater reach, the resulting image is darker and flatter, as you might expect from the lower-resolution sensor. It’s more of a trade-off than I’d like to see on a flagship phone’s zoom camera.

I’m normally a fan of Samsung selfies, but I’m not sure I like how the highlights are exposed in this particular shot. Samsung’s excellent portrait algorithm has applied the perfect level of bokeh to this image, however, cutting around my head, and especially my glasses, accurately and applying a gentle blur to the leaves behind.

Having gone through these samples, you’ll see that the Galaxy S26 FE’s photography potential is reasonable, at least for what are arguably the two most important cameras. For future generations of S FE, though, Samsung could do with upping its game if it wants to continue claiming this is a flagship product.

• Camera score: 3 / 5

Samsung Galaxy S26 FE review: Performance

• The Exynos 2500 chip is a good performer, especially for graphics
• 8GB of RAM is limiting for a premium phone in 2026

Here’s an area where I was pleasantly surprised by the Galaxy S26 FE. Samsung’s own Exynos 2500 chipset sits inside the S26 FE, rather than the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip that basically all the other top Samsungs of 2026 are using. But that hasn’t stopped the S26 FE from turning in some decent scores.

As the table below reveals, the Exynos 2500 lags behind slightly in CPU single-core results, but is on par with or ahead of the pack on the rest of the tests. It’s a long way out in front on the Solar Bay benchmark, no doubt thanks to the Exynos’ GPU, which is well-suited to the ray-tracing graphics that this test focuses on.

Samsung Galaxy S26 FE benchmark scores

Bearing only 8GB of RAM compared to the 12GB in other premium Samsung phones, the Galaxy S26 FE does struggle with multitasking or intensive apps. While you can still game on this phone happily, it’s not a handset you’ll want to do anything more practical on than standard browsing and messaging.

• Performance score: 4 / 5

Samsung Galaxy S26 FE review: Battery

• The same battery/charging hardware as the more expensive S26 Plus
• Battery life day-to-day is good, while charging is plenty fast enough

Samsung offers the same 4,900mAh battery capacity in the Galaxy S26 FE as it does in the Galaxy S26 Plus. However, according to Samsung’s official battery estimates, the S26 FE doesn’t offer the same battery life, managing 29 hours of video playback compared to the S26 Plus’ 31 hours or the S26’s 30 hours.

For me, I used about 40% of the phone’s battery during a typical day’s use. This included some work, some photography, and some social media scrolling and video watching. The Galaxy S26 FE could definitely survive two days of regular use before needing to charge, as you would hope from a phone with this size of battery.

The Galaxy S26 FE is still equipped for 45W wired charging and 15W wireless charging. That’s the same wired speed as the S26 Plus and Ultra, but the wireless charging is slower, since the FE is not Qi2 compatible.

Using a 45W charger, Samsung estimates a 69% refill for the S26 FE in half an hour. In my own test, I found the S26 FE managed to fill to 43% in 15 minutes and to 100% in 58 minutes. Considering the battery life this phone can manage, a complete refuel in under an hour and getting over two-fifths full in a quarter-hour isn’t bad at all, even if faster options are out there.

• Battery score: 4 / 5

Should you buy the Samsung Galaxy S26 FE?

Samsung Galaxy S26 FE scorecard

Buy it if…

Don’t buy it if…

Samsung Galaxy S26 FE review: Also consider

How I tested the Samsung Galaxy S26 FE

I reviewed the Samsung Galaxy S26 FE over the course of two weeks as a work phone, using it for writing stories, answering emails and messages, watching video and playing games. I did this both at home and on the move with a SIM card installed.

Specific tests included running Geekbench 6 CPU benchmarks and 3DMark graphics benchmarks, a charging speed test using a compatible third-party charger, the taking of hundreds of photos across all of the S26 FE’s cameras to test image quality, and the careful monitoring of battery drain during use to figure out how reasonable the manufacturer’s battery life promises are.

Read more about how we test

First reviewed: September 2026

• Samsung is reportedly adding authentication chips to its Galaxy A Series of smartphones
• Security chips will help distinguish safe, genuine batteries from fake third-party replacements
• They also make the lithium recycling process a lot smoother

Samsung could be making quite a big change to certain Galaxy Phone models — the Korean tech giant is tipped to add security chips to batteries starting next year.

The report comes from The Elec, which says the new security-chipped batteries will roll out to roughly 50 million devices, starting with Samsung’s low-end and mid-range Galaxy A series (which make up the largest share of Samsung’s smartphone sales). It would mark the first time the company adds a layer of security to its phone batteries, but the company hasn’t confirmed anything yet.

According to the report, the chips will be manufactured using Samsung Electronics' 28-nanometer foundry process, using VIA PUF (physical unclonable function) technology to create unique identities for each one. It’s believed that analog devices in the US (ADI) and ICTK in South Korea will split the supply of authentication chips.

So what’s the reason behind this? Well, there are several, but the main purpose is to put an end to fake replacements destroying your devices.

If your smartphone battery is nearing the end of its life, it’s safer to get a new one by going through Samsung’s official repair services, so you know you’re getting a replacement from the company itself. However, some users find it more convenient and cost-effective to opt for a third-party replacement service, but the quality isn’t always guaranteed.

For one, these types of batteries aren’t always built to the standard of quality you get with ones manufactured by Samsung itself, which could pave the way for further battery issues and even lead to fires while charging or during use. So, these embedded authentication chips not only identify genuine Samsung batteries from dodgy ones, but could be the one and only component that prevents your home from being engulfed in flames.

Reinforcing quality and safety is a no-brainer, but there’s also a sustainability element to battery authentication chips. Using chips makes it a lot easier for repairers to review battery usage history, allowing them to customize the lithium recycling process based on the state of individual batteries, instead of recycling batteries with different characteristics using the same method.

If the reports are on the money, then Samsung's authentication chips should arrive roughly around the same time the new EU regulations come into force. As of February 2027, the EU will require phone makers to fit 'readily removable' batteries, but as Gagadget.com notes, there's also the EU Battery Regulation 2023/1542.

What this means is that as of February 2027, industrial and EV batteries must have digital battery passports for identification purposes. While this applies to vehicles and not smartphones (yet), it appears that Samsung is getting a head start, preparing itself for a potential change of law.

Unlike Apple, which started integrating authentication chips in 2018 with the launch of the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR, this would be the first time Samsung introduces a similar technology to its own smartphones, so it’s been a long time coming, to say the least.

As mentioned, Samsung hasn’t commented on anything yet, but we’ll update this story if and when we hear more.

• Samsung might not upgrade the RAM and storage amounts for the Galaxy S27 series
• This is likely due to the ongoing RAM and storage crisis driven by AI
• There's a chance that at least some models will use later UFS and DDR generations

If you were hoping the Samsung Galaxy S27 series would ship with more RAM or storage than the Samsung Galaxy S26 line then, well, you’re probably going to be disappointed, because the latest leak suggests there will be almost no changes on that front.

According to reputable South Korean leaker Lanzuk (via GSMArena), the Samsung Galaxy S27 and Galaxy S27 Plus will both ship with 12GB of RAM paired with a choice of 256GB or 512GB of storage. In the case of the Galaxy S27 Plus, that’s identical to its predecessor, and those configurations are also available with the standard Samsung Galaxy S26 — but that phone additionally comes in a 128GB capacity, which is absent here.

For the Samsung Galaxy S27 Ultra, you’ll apparently get 12GB of RAM alongside 256GB or 512GB of storage, but then there’s also supposedly a 1TB model with 16GB of RAM. This likewise is identical to the configurations you can get the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra in.

Finally, the rumored new Samsung Galaxy S27 Pro will apparently be sold in 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB configurations, all with 12GB of RAM. So despite this supposedly being a more compact version of the Ultra, it apparently won’t match that phone’s 16GB of RAM in the top configuration.

The same source does at least claim that some phones in the S27 series might use LPDDR6 RAM and UFS 5.1 storage, both of which would be significantly faster than the RAM and storage used in the Galaxy S26 line, but if so it would likely just be the top storage tiers that do.

Another thing you can blame AI for

All of this means that at least on the RAM and storage front, the Samsung Galaxy S27 series might not be much of an upgrade on the Galaxy S26 line, especially if you’re not paying out for the top configurations.

But that’s not really a surprise, as this is likely thanks to the ongoing RAM and storage crisis, fueled by demands from AI data centers. This is affecting most tech, with companies having to choose between limited RAM/storage upgrades — and sometimes downgrades, or higher prices… or both.

So the one upside of this is that if Samsung does keep the RAM and storage at current levels, that might help keep the price of the Galaxy S27 series under control. But with Qualcomm’s latest chipsets reportedly costing more than previous generations too, we wouldn’t be surprised if Samsung’s next flagships still end up with higher price tags than the current ones.

Samsung has just brought back its semi-regular cashback offer, allowing you to get up to £350 when you buy one of its latest phones, smartwatches, earbuds, or SSDs — including the Galaxy Z Fold 8, Galaxy Watch 9, and Galaxy Buds 4 Pro.

Accessing the offer is simple: buy an eligible product from an eligible retailer between now and October 9, then submit a claim through the dedicated Samsung Cashback site within 30 days of purchase.

Retailers participating in the offer include the big names and usual suspects, such as Amazon, Currys, Argos, AO, Very, and, of course, the official Samsung Store. Several major phone networks and retailers are also taking part, so you can choose to pick up a device on a contract with the likes of Tesco Mobile, Carphone Warehouse, and Mobile Phones Direct.

To get into some specific deals, the offer means you can pick up the brand-new Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 at the Samsung Store for £1,349 (was £1,699) after the £350 cashback — plus get up to an extra £730 off with a trade-in. That's a tempting one for me, after seeing our hugely positive 4.5-star review of Samsung's fascinating foldable.

The Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra, meanwhile, comes with £300 cashback, dropping the price to £1,399 (was £1,699). And if you choose to buy the S26 Ultra from the official Samsung Store, you can get a guaranteed £150 off when you trade in any smartphone in any condition.

I will just point out that the cashback is provided in the form of a virtual prepaid Mastercard in the Samsung Wallet app. It's not as clean as cash being sent directly to your nominated bank account, but the card is eligible to be used in-person or online on whatever you like. An annoying extra step, but at least it's not restricted to specific retailers or uses.

If you're interested in checking out the promotion, I've listed some of the biggest eligible retailers below with links that take you directly to all of their latest deals on Samsung tech.

Samsung Cashback promotion — eligible retailers

• Amazon
• Samsung
• Currys
• Argos
• Very
• AO
• John Lewis
• Carphone Warehouse
• Mobiles.co.uk

The past few months have been an exciting time for tech journalists and enthusiasts alike, thanks to a barrageflagship phone launches. From Samsung’s Z-series foldables to the Google Pixel 11 lineup and more recently, the new iPhone 18 Pro lineup (and the new iPhone Duo foldable).

While they may be some of the most exciting phone launches in recent memory — and it’s great that the foldable iPhone has finally seen the light of day — the biggest takeaway, is that every single new handset is more expensive than ever.This is clearly indicative of the ongoing RAM and storage shortages — even older phones have quietly received price hikes — and will likely make the latest smartphone releases too expensive for many consumers.

Thankfully, you don’t have to settle for a previous year's flagship device to save, and you only have to look back to a release from a few months ago to score a bargain. The Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra — my pick for the best Android phone — is currently 23% off on Amazon, now AU$1,685.

Featuring a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset, 12GB of RAM, four rear cameras and a new built-in Privacy Display screen, there’s a lot to love with the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra, and it can easily hold up for years to come, especially with up to 7 years of Android updates and security support.

I especially loved the Privacy Display screen, which marked a major hardware innovation amid a sea of similar-looking phones in 2026. Super Steady Horizontal Lock for shooting video makes the S26 Ultra great for action shots (and a neat party trick, too!), while the included S Pen stylus remains a nice bonus that most handsets don’t offer.

One great plus of buying the Galaxy S26 Ultra now is the stable release of One UI 9, which is built on Android 17 and features a redesigned quick settings menu, customisable Control Centre, My FanCam and improved multitasking controls.

Personally, you really can’t go wrong with the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra if you’re prioritising raw power and smarts in an Android phone, and this discount makes the handset a great pick during a time of component shortages.

It took years, but Apple finally gave the world its first foldable phone — the iPhone Duo — at its Surprise and Shine event earlier this week. The Duo steps into a busy foldables market, with one particular model primed to give it a run for its money: the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8.

The Z Fold 8 is the latest in a long line of Galaxy foldables, and Apple's first foldable bears a number of similarities to Samsung's passport-shaped device. But for anyone considering investing in either the Z Fold 8 or iPhone Duo, there are a number of key differences to be aware of.

There’s still a month to go until iPhone Duo preorders open, and even longer until the device begins shipping (October 23). But still, there’s no time like the present to check out seven major areas in which the iPhone Duo and the Galaxy Z Fold 8 differ.

A dollar disparity

The first notable difference between the iPhone Duo and Galaxy Z Fold 8 is how much they cost.

The iPhone Duo retails for $1,999 /£1,999 / AU$3,499, which is significantly more than the Galaxy Z Fold 8's $1,899 / £1,699 / AU$2,699 (at least in certain regions), with both phones starting with the same 256GB of storage. If you want the best deal on a wide foldable, Samsung has the clear advantage.

Diverging displays

Both Samsung and Apple have gone for roughly the same shapes for their respective foldable displays, but with a small size difference. The iPhone Duo uses a 7.6-inch main inner display and a 5.4-inch outer display. The Galaxy Z Fold 8’s inner display also measures 7.6 inches across, but its outer screen is marginally larger at 5.5 inches.

There’s also an interesting split in how Samsung and Apple have treated the material in their phones' screens. The iPhone Duo uses a matte-like nano-texture display instead of a glossier, anti-glare coating like the Galaxy Z Fold 8. Both materials serve the same purpose — to make the screen easier to read under bright light. But which one is better remains to be seen at this point.

Apple has also given the iPhone Duo stylus support on both displays, via the Apple Pencil USB-C. Samsung used to offer stylus support on its foldables, but unfortunately for wannabe doodlers, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 does not work with any of Samsung’s S Pens.

Different designs and mismatching materials

Despite their similar passport shapes, the iPhone Duo and Galaxy Z Fold 8 do differ quite significantly in terms of design.

The iPhone Duo, for instance, has four rounded corners when open, but when closed, it has two right-angled corners on the hinge side. Samsung, by contrast, has gone with pointed corners all around on the Galaxy Z Fold 8, which arguably gives it a more cohesive look.

For side rail materials, it’s a case of polished titanium on the iPhone Duo versus matte aluminum on the Galaxy Z Fold 8. Both look great on their respective phones, but which finish is better will be up to the viewer.

These two phones also use different display materials to shore up their durability. Apple has equipped the Duo with its own Ceramic Shield 2 toughened glass on the front, and the original Ceramic Shield on the back. Samsung instead uses Gorilla Glass Ceramic 3 and Gorilla Glass Victus 2 to protect the Galaxy Z Fold 8’s front and back, respectively.

Apple has also equipped the iPhone Duo with the same Camera Control key that you find on other iPhones, making the edges of the phone surprisingly busy. Samsung lacks equivalents for these buttons on the Galaxy Z Fold 8, which simply offers a power button and volume controls.

Interestingly, the iPhone Duo is some 53g heavier than the Z Fold 8 (254g vs 201g), but it does offer IP68 water and dust resistance, while the Z Fold 8 only offers IP48-level protection.

The last thing to mention is color options. The iPhone Duo comes in either Star White or Night Sky (deep blue), while the Galaxy Z Fold 8 has a wider selection of Lavender, Graphite, Cream, and Pistachio.

SIM support split

When it comes to actually adding your phone number to one of these phones, there’s an important difference to consider here too. The Galaxy Z Fold 8 offers a physical SIM slot as well as eSIM support for virtual numbers. However, the iPhone Duo is eSIM-only worldwide.

You can easily convert a regular SIM into an eSIM during phone set-up. But unless you re-request a SIM card from your carrier, you’ll be locked into the eSIM way of life from then on.

Branching battery tech

Since Apple doesn’t publish its battery sizes itself, we don’t know right now what the capacity of the iPhone Duo is. Instead, Apple says its internal testing reveals the iPhone Duo is capable of 31 hours of video playback when using the inner display, 44 hours when just using the outer display, or “all-day” battery life when it comes to general use.

Samsung’s testing promise for the Galaxy Z Fold 8 is 26 hours of video playback, which sounds like it’s inferior to Apple's on paper. However, without doing consistent battery testing on both phones, we don’t yet know for sure which phone will last longer in the real world.

For refuelling, Apple claims the iPhone Duo can charge up to 50% full in 20 mins with a compatible wired charger, or 30 minutes with a MagSafe or Qi2 wireless charger. Samsung’s claim is a 63% wired charge in 30 minutes, which doesn’t quite map onto Apple’s information either. This will also require some of our own testing to figure out which device charges faster.

Contrasting cameras

The iPhone Duo and Galaxy Z Fold 8 each have four cameras, serving the same purposes. But there are some technical differences to pay attention to.

On the back of the iPhone Duo, Apple has stuck with its typical 48MP main and 48MP ultra-wide combination. That puts the Duo at a small resolution disadvantage compared to the Galaxy Z Fold 8, which boasts two rear 50MP cameras.

However, things change for front-facing cameras. Samsung uses 10MP front cameras on the inside and outside of the Z Fold 8, but Apple uses one higher-res 12MP front camera on the outer display, and an under-display inner camera of currently unknown resolution.

Samsung used to use this kind of camera on its older Galaxy Z Folds, but the Galaxy Z Fold 8 has a more typical punch-hole cutout, removing a bit of the display but guaranteeing higher-quality shots. Maybe Apple has worked out how to take clear, attractive photos through display layers, but it’s not something we’ve seen any other company manage, even after the technology has existed for several years.

Potentially polarized performance

The silicon inside the Galaxy Z Fold 8 is a known quantity. The Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy has appeared in other premium Samsung phones this year, including the Galaxy S26 Ultra, and it’s a monstrously powerful chipset.

The iPhone Duo contains Apple’s brand-new A20 Pro chip. Since it’s fresh out of the foundry, we will have to wait for test results to know if it’s more powerful, less powerful, or about the same as the Snapdragon silicon in the Z Fold 8.

We don’t know if there’s any RAM capacity difference, but for storage, you can get 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB versions of both the iPhone Duo and the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8. However, Apple also offers a 2TB edition of the iPhone Duo if you want even more space for your files.

Based on these differences, would you rather buy the iPhone Duo or Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8? Let us know in the comments below.

• The iPhone Duo animation has been recreated on a Galaxy Z Fold 8
• For now, it's only a demo — not something you can set up yourself
• Samsung would need to implement the hack for it to work system-wide

The initial reactions to Apple's new, foldable iPhone Duo seem to be largely positive, with a lot of praise for the various software tweaks that have been implemented in iOS 27 for the new form factor — including a cool transition animation that shows up when you switch between the inner and outer screens.

As you open up or close the main 7.6-inch display, the wallpaper dissolves and seems to pass through the moving half of the screen to reappear on the other side. It's a neat effect, and one Android user has wasted no time in recreating the effect on their Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 foldable.

"Felt a bit of FOMO seeing that cool iPhone Duo animation Apple showed off today, so I poked around and found that the Z Fold 8 has a really accurate hinge sensor," explains the user in question on Reddit. "I realized it would be pretty simple to take the hinge sensor values and use them to drive a transition animation on both screens."

It works really nicely too, as you can see from the video embedded above. The half of the display that's opening and closing looks like it becomes semi-transparent as it moves, revealing what's underneath — though as with the iPhone Duo, it's all trickery involving motion sensors and gradients.

Over to you, Samsung

Unfortunately, this is only a demo for now — as in, an app that screenshots the display, then shows how an open/close animation could potentially work. It's not actually something you can apply at the system level and use across all your apps, and the developer says only Samsung would have the necessary access for that.

The reactions in the Reddit thread are overwhelmingly positive, nevertheless. The hack gets described at various points as "great", "awesome", and "so cool" — and it's genuinely impressive that it was created so soon after Apple's event. It seems a lot of Samsung foldable owners would want this on their phones.

There is perhaps a word of warning here for iPhone Duo buyers. When asked about using the effect, the original poster says "honestly, it looks cool for the first minute, but it gets really annoying after that", adding that "the effect is also only convincing head on" and "any difference in viewing angles really breaks the illusion".

Whether or not that's the case on Apple's foldable remains to be seen, but it's worth considering. For the time being at least, the iPhone Duo is the only folding handset that has this particular animation — and if you've really got to have it, pre-orders open on Friday, October 16, with prices starting at $1,999 / £1,999 / AU$3,499.

The next generation of iPhones might be imminent, but those who prefer Android don't have to wait if they're on the hunt for a decent upgrade. Right now, the official Samsung Store has some of the best deals of the entire year on the new Galaxy Z Fold and Galaxy S26 series.

With what I assume are limited-time-only Labor Day specials, the official Samsung Store is currently offering up to $800 off with a trade-in, or up to $300 off upfront across a range of devices.

We've seen bigger trade-in rebates before, but the upfront discounts here are really, really great. For example, the $300 upfront discount on the brand-new Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra is $100 better than the one that was initially offered in the pre-order phase last month. The $300 discount on the Galaxy S26 Ultra is equally compelling, matching the lowest upfront price I've ever seen on the device.

Both of these deals are available on unlocked devices, meaning you can still get your discount without having to sign up for any long-term plans. They're also available across a range of storage sizes, alongside a few other additional bundle options, should you want to get some additional cheap accessories like a smartwatch or a pair of earbuds.

Record-low phone discounts at Samsung

• See more: check out all of today's deals at Samsung

I've now spent a month with Samsung's two recent folding phones. I've used them as my daily phones, worked and played with them, and even taken hundreds of pictures between them to test the cameras (650 when I wrote that article; nearly 1,000 now).

Through that time, I've used the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 most, and that's for purely practical purposes. It's a brand-new form factor, so as a tech journalist, my time is better spent testing it out.

Despite enjoying my time with the Z Fold 8, I've been wavering back and forth on whether I prefer it to the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra. The two handsets have a lot in common, but that includes a really high price. And so the smaller display, reduced camera count, and lack of features in the Fold 8 mean I've been struggling to claim it as the overall winner.

That was until I took the Galaxy Z Fold 8 on vacation to France; it got a nice dose of real-world testing, and the trip helped me appreciate elements of the phone that I hadn't noticed, or had taken for granted, before. I took the Z Fold 8 Ultra with me, too, which helped underline how much better the new-form phone is.

And with another vacation coming up, I'm glad I've discovered just how useful the Fold 8 is when on the go.

This is the perfect shape for a phone

When I wrote about my Galaxy Z Fold camera test, I mentioned that the smaller-body Fold 8 felt like the instinctive camera device to use, as it was easy to remove from my pocket without endless maneuvering. The long, thin Fold 8 Ultra doesn't fully fit in my pocket, and digs into my hip when I walk.

The more I used both phones, the more I realized that's not only true for picture-taking, but basically everything else too. When I needed to navigate around an unfamiliar city, use Translate to understand a menu, or get contactless ready for public transport, the readily removable Fold 8 was a much more convenient choice.

It's not just trouser pockets that show the benefit. The Fold 8 is the perfect shape to fit in the side pockets of my backpack, or the small inner pockets for valuables. That's all unlike the Ultra, which sticks out awkwardly.

And that awkward design isn't just bad for looks or utility. It's pretty normal to be worried about losing your possessions while travelling, either from nifty pickpockets who identify you as a tourist, or from them falling out when you leave your bag somewhere. When I was walking around with the Ultra sticking its camera bump out of my jeans, those fears were multiplied — not so with the standard model, which could disappear from view.

Many people have referred to the Galaxy Z Fold 8 as the 'passport'-style foldable. In the above image, you can see the phone alongside my battered-looking passport: they're very similar sizes (the document is thinner but taller). Given that this document was designed to be easily portable for travellers, it makes sense that Samsung has taken inspiration from the shape of the booklet.

All my holiday experiences aren't just true abroad, though. A svelte form factor that keeps the phone secure but ready to remove is just as useful at home as away.

The wide screen keeps getting better and better

I forgot something, didn't I? This is a folding phone, and I've yet to metaphorically unpack it to discuss the inner display. And yet, the Z Fold 8's 7.6-inch, 4:3 aspect ratio main display is one of its main differences from the Z Fold 8 Ultra's 8-inch 1:0.9 aspect ratio primary panel.

I'm an iPad user, and so I was already primed for the Z Fold 8's main screen, since Apple's tablets also use that aspect ratio. But with how popular the previous Z Fold phones are (which share dimensions with the new Ultra), I was expecting the new screen shape to really need to prove itself.

And there are certainly some tasks for which the Z Fold 8 Ultra is better. I prefer it for grid-based tasks like seeing my calendar, checking out pictures I've taken, and calculator use. The user interface feels more spacious, with extra space at the bottom for a web browser search bar, and I appreciate that my apps and widgets are in the same place if I rotate the phone.

When I was on my holiday, the Ultra was relegated to my gaming and camera phone — that result is what convinced me of this article's thesis statement in the first place — but I can see its more square-shaped main display being the right shape for certain users, who have specific use cases.

The Galaxy Z Fold 8's display proves itself as especially useful for many, many other tasks. And I'm not just talking about entertainment; video-watching is one of the main tasks Samsung used to justify the wider 4:3 aspect ratio, but there's a lot more to the phone than that.

The pictures above show two types of phone use that are common on holidays (and that I used the phone for on my trip): reading using the Kindle app, and navigating with Google Maps. As regards the former, you can see that the wide aspect ratio does a better job of resembling a book than a Kindle would, and as for the latter, you can see that the UI overlay and maps sit together just as well as on a squarish display (as on the Ultra). In fact, when I used Google Maps on the Ultra, the search bar and options being higher made it a little more annoying to use.

Speaking more generally, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 feels great for multi-tasking, as the two apps feel like they're sized in a more natural way than on a squarish Z Fold 8 Ultra or long, thin Android tablet. It took me going on holiday, when I'd split-view tourist information websites and maps, or my gallery app and Instagram, to really appreciate this kind of use.

It's hard to explain to someone who isn't using the Z Fold 8, but apps just feel right on this wider phone (well, when they're actually optimized for the shape; some, like Strava, just give you their usual vertical scroll). Every day, I find another function which feels great on the wider screen.

There's one glaring omission. Samsung opted not to give the Z Fold 8 Flex Mode, while it's present in the Ultra. This is a tool that identifies when your foldable is part-open and splits the main display in natural ways; it'll give you a camera viewfinder in one half, and controls on the other, for example. It's a useful, though admittedly sparsely implemented, feature. The Z Fold 8 is worse off for its omission, and I'm hoping it gains it in an update.

It's not just a pretty screen

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 is smaller and cheaper than its Ultra sibling. Most of the time, when we see phones like that, the smaller one is a Lite handset and is weaker or worse in some ways. And so I had a bias towards the Fold 8, expecting it to be far more inferior than it actually was.

It's great for gaming, especially on the large screen, even if it does get a little hot quicker than I'd like (that's the Snapdragon chipset doing what, in my opinion, Snapdragon chips do best: overheat).

Even down to the specs minutiae, the Z Fold 8 matches the Ultra. Its storage sizes are the same (well, with a few slight region-based variations, but generally, the storage and RAM options are the same). It uses UFS 4.0 flash storage, and it has a mostly quick side-mounted fingerprint sensor, which I love way more than under-display ones.

As I mentioned before, the Z Fold 8 Ultra was my go-to gaming phone. This isn't because it was more powerful, but because I assumed it would be and so downloaded all my games onto it first (and got stuck into various runs, with progress I didn't want to lose). But some time away on my holiday gave me time to play the same titles on the Z Fold 8, and there's no noticeable difference in how games run on either phone (other than the form factor difference).

My trip helped me appreciate the software a lot more too. Both phones have Samsung's One UI, and its implementation is largely the same between the two, other than the aforementioned Flex Mode fiasco. Which means the cheaper phone doesn't give you a worse experience.

The camera quality and suite of photo editing features were all, obviously, tools which I used constantly on my holiday. And I quickly realized that, despite this not being the 'Ultra' phone, its results largely match what you'll get on the pricier phone (mostly, but we'll get more into that later). Despite what you see in the picture above, I mostly used the inner display for editing snaps, as its large size and aspect ratio let me see details in my photos that a smaller screen might have me missing.

Software remains a strong point of Samsung's camera phones, even if I've come to expect the strong stuff to be kept in reserve for the Galaxy S mobiles. I noticed that, after taking photos and checking them out in the Gallery app, the phone would take a few seconds to apply its own filters, optimizations, and fixes. So I could clearly see the 'before and after' of the phone's magic, and it made it apparent that the handset does a great job at fixing my mistakes.

But there's one design consideration I want to flag, which I wouldn't have noticed if I hadn't spent a week shoving both phones in pockets and bags while abroad. Both devices collect dust and fluff, but the Z Fold 8 seemed to collect way more inside its body than the Ultra. Maybe it's a side effect of the shape or aspect ratio, or the Ultra's larger display making an equal amount of fluff appear like more, but I always had to give the Z Fold 8 a wipe when using its main display.

Fluff is normal and unavoidable... but it can mess up foldable phones if it gets in the joints or hinges. So I'm curious to discover the longevity of these phones, especially with iFixit revealing just how disastrous dust can be to the devices.

Have Fold, will travel

Despite the myriad reasons to like the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that there are several problems with it.

The biggest issue is the battery life: it's not good. I can't pretend to be surprised, given how little space there is in the Fold to fit a power cell, but the reason doesn't detract from the challenge.

I struggle to get the Z Fold 8 to last a day, and find myself having to use it sparingly or engage power-saving mode if I'm going to be away from a charger. While I was on my holiday, I charged it multiple times per day, and afterwards I've found myself ensuring it's fully charged every time I leave the house.

Another weak point of the phone is its camera setup, or more specifically its camera omissions. Generally, pictures taken on the Z Fold 8 are good, but the absence of the Ultra's zoom lens means the premium phone is my go-to photography handset when I have time to stop and choose between the two.

The Ultra is better for holiday shots, product pictures (including the ones accompanying this article), and portrait pictures. As mentioned, I probably take more pictures with the Z Fold 8 given it's the more easily accessible phone, but there's no denying which of the two is the superior shooter.

For the Galaxy Z Fold 9, then, improvements to the camera array and battery life are at the top of my wish list.

Samsung has introduced a third premium Z-series foldable in 2026 with the Galaxy Z Fold 8, alongside the Galaxy Z Flip 8 and the newly renamed Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra.

This new model introduces a new design: a short and wide 5.5-inch cover screen when folded, and a 7.6-inch main screen with a 4:3 aspect ratio that can fit widescreen videos better than the Galaxy Z Fold 7’s square display, or resemble an ereader when in portrait mode.

Speaking of the Galaxy Z Fold 7, its direct successor is now called the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra. It is thinner than ever at 4.1mm, compared to an already ridiculously thin 4.2mm, and also features a 50MP ultrawide camera (versus the Z Fold 7's 12MP), a higher-resolution main screen, and increased peak brightness from 2,600 nits to 3,000 nits.

With all that said, these foldables have arrived as some of the most expensive phones you can buy in Australia, with the base 256GB models starting from AU$2,699 for the Z Fold 8 and AU$2,999 for the Ultra. The latter also represents a AU$100 price hike from the Z Fold 7.

If you’ve been sold on all the features and are happy to buy either handset outright, you can check out the current best outright deals below and then pair that with one of our best SIM-only plans.

However, the high upfront costs of both foldables will likely mean many buyers may prefer to pay either one off over a multi-year contract from a major Australian telco like Vodafone, Optus or Telstra.

We’ve crunched the numbers on the big three’s Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 and Z Fold 8 Ultra plans below — including any current promotions and discounts — to help guide you to the best value options for various needs.

The best Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 plan overall

The best premium Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 plan

The best Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra plan overall

The best premium Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra plan

Outright Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 and Z Fold 8 Ultra deals

Not interested in purchasing through a telco with a postpaid plan? Many Aussie retailers offer the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 and Z Fold 8 Ultra outright, including an option to pay in instalments through Samsung Australia directly. Here are the top current offers available from our retail partners.

What’s new with Samsung’s latest foldables?

Samsung’s latest foldables, the Galaxy Z Fold 8, Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra and Galaxy Z Flip 8, mark substantial design and usability upgrades over their predecessors – pushing the boundaries of what a foldable phone can be.

The Galaxy Z Fold 8 is the newest addition to the Z-series range, featuring a new short and wide form factor when folded, and a main screen with a 4:3 aspect ratio that can fit widescreen videos better than most foldables’ square display, or resemble an ereader when in portrait mode.

Meanwhile, the Galaxy Z Fold 7’s direct successor is now called the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra, which is now even thinner at 4.1mm when unfolded and its main display gets a resolution bump at 2256 x 2504 pixels (up from 1968 x 2184 pixels). Its most prominent upgrade though is the camera system with a new 50MP ultrawide sensor to pair with the 200MP shooter, similar to those found in the Galaxy S26 Ultra.

Both devices get a powerful Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset, 12GB RAM (or 16GB in some instances) and new silicon-carbon batteries to fit in larger capacities compared to traditional lithium-ion batteries in the same physical size — 4,800mAh for the Z Fold 8 and 5,000mAh for the Ultra.

Meanwhile, the Galaxy Z Flip 8 is thinner and lighter than its predecessor at 6.1mm unfolded and 13.1mm folded, compared to the Flip 7’s 6.5mm and 13.7mm, respectively. There’s also a refined hinge that’s aimed at making the handset easier to open one-handed and reducing the crease. While it doesn’t get the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip used by its foldable cousins here in Australia, it still gets an upgraded Exynos 2600 found in the base Galaxy S26 and S26 Plus. The handset also gets the silicon-carbon treatment here, although it retains the same 4,300mAh capacity as the Flip 7.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8, Z Fold 8 Ultra and Z Flip 8 specs

Just when it looked like foldable phones might fade into irrelevance (they represented just 1.5% of global smartphone sales in 2025), Samsung has come along with the Galaxy Z Fold 8 — a passport-shaped foldable that could, with Apple’s help, catapult dual-screen devices into the mainstream.

We’ve actually seen this form factor before — the Huawei Pura X Max, for instance, debuted in China earlier this year — but the Galaxy Z Fold 8 marks the first time a passport-style foldable has been made available in Western markets.

So, is it as revolutionary as Samsung wants us to believe? I’ve been using the Galaxy Z Fold 8 for exactly a month now, and I can safely say that, yes, it’s a supremely versatile content-watching machine — though there are some quirks to be aware of if you’re thinking of spending $1,899 /£1,699 / AU$2,699 on one.

In this article, I’ll run through what I love, don’t love, and just generally think about Samsung’s new kid on the block. You can also check out our full Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 review for an in-depth look at specific features, or watch the video below for an on-camera rundown of everything I’m about to say.

Calling all video lovers

Let’s kick off with my thoughts on the Z Fold 8’s design, which ditches the productivity-focused dimensions of previous book-style foldables for a squatter, passport shape when closed and a more practical rectangular shape when opened.

Samsung says these dimension tweaks are a response to changing consumer habits (read: we’re all addicted to scrolling in 2026), and it’s easy to see why the Z Fold 8 is a better phone for browsing social media, watching videos, and reading articles than the larger Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra.

For starters, the 5.5-inch, 10:16 cover display is perfect for one-handed use of full-sized apps. You don’t have to stretch your thumb to reach the top of the screen, and it’s also much easier to type on this wider display than on taller, narrower book-style foldables.

The phone’s width might make one-handed typing a bit of a challenge for those with smaller hands, but it’s honestly super nostalgic to type with two hands (which is how we all type for the most part anyway), as it feels a bit like using an old BlackBerry phone without the physical keyboard. Remember those?

Turn the Z Fold 8 on its side, and this cover screen becomes a 16:10 canvas that’s perfectly sized for YouTube videos, Netflix movies, and other video content. The content's aspect ratio stays the same as on any other phone, but in this orientation, the Z Fold 8 removes awkward pillarboxing for a more immersive viewing experience.

I did find that my hand would sometimes cover the bottom-firing speaker when I held the phone like this, but half-unfolding the Z Fold 8 and letting it stand independently has honestly become one of my favorite ways to watch video on any phone.

All this being said, you’re not buying a foldable to use one screen only, and opening up the Z Fold 8 gives you a glorious 7.6-inch, 4:3 display that’s — you guessed it! — also great for video.

On the front display, most video content is cropped by default to 16:9, but you still get smaller black bars here and less negative space than you would on something like the Z Fold 8 Ultra. But the Z Fold 8 really shines when displaying native 4:3 content like older anime shows.

I mean, just *look* at this Neon Genesis Evangelion episode on Netflix and tell me there’s a better way to watch TV on a phone:

And you can say the same for reading. Using the unfolded Z Fold 8 in portrait is great for scrolling through websites, ebooks, and comics because 3:4 isn’t too far off the dimensions of traditional physical books.

This also makes the Z Fold 8 a great size for work-focused apps like Google Docs. While the Z Fold 8 Ultra is definitely more geared towards productivity, I found that the content-focused size of this smaller model isn’t totally unsuitable for professional tasks.

One thing I have noticed, though, is that social media apps aren’t well-optimized for this unfolded screen. 3:4 isn’t too bad for Instagram, but as soon as you switch to landscape, the app just isn’t formatted nicely, so for the most part I’ve been scrolling through socials on the cover display, which feels much more normal by comparison.

And a final word on the phone’s design: the crease here is definitely less visible than it is on the Galaxy Z Fold 7. Samsung added a Flex Titanium layer to both Z Fold 8 models this year, which also makes the hinge feel sturdier, and the phone unfold completely flat. And while phones like the Pixel 11 Pro Fold and Honor Magic V6 offer better dust resistance, I’ve never worried about the durability of my Z Fold 8.

Pocketable power

In terms of performance, the Z Fold 8 is just as fun to use as it is to look at. It’s got a top-of-the-line Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset and 12GB of RAM, so games like Asphalt Legends run smoothly at their highest graphical settings.

Samsung has also updated its Multi-Window feature so you can use up to three apps side-by-side vertically or horizontally, as well as via the older splitting method. I can’t say I’ve ever needed to use three apps simultaneously, but having two apps open side-by-side is definitely useful for cross-referencing info while working, and if you’re really unhinged, you can scroll through Reels AND TikTok at the same time.

Now Nudge has been updated too, and will open suggested apps in split-screen, which is a nice way to encourage you to use the full potential of the foldable phone you've just spent so much money on.

Camera compromises

Right, enough of the good stuff — let’s talk about what you lose by choosing this type of foldable over another.

The biggest compromise comes in the camera department, as while the Z Fold 8’s main and ultra-wide snappers are decent enough, there’s no form of telephoto camera to speak of here, which is… pretty wild considering how much this phone costs.

The 50MP main camera does offer 2x in-sensor zoom for a little extra reach when you need it, but you’ll start to lose image quality when zooming digitally up to 10x. Thankfully, the main and ultra-wide cameras you do get are pretty solid, offering vibrant colors and plenty of detail, but you will get sharper images on the more camera-focused Z Fold 8 Ultra.

Here's a picture-by-picture comparison of the two phones' photography capabilities, as captured by TechRadar contributor Tom Bedford:

That said, selfies are great, and portrait mode is still a Samsung strength, while Smart video features like Super Steady video with Horizontal Lock and My FanCam keep the Z Fold 8 feeling fun and fresh. The former levels out shaky footage at the expense of some resolution, while the latter lets you create a motion-tracked video of a particular subject from any video.

My FanCam is pretty effective, though, as we explained in our review of the phone; the subject needs to be well lit and large enough in the frame for Samsung’s algorithm to identify. There’s no manual tracking option, so you’re at the mercy of the feature as to whether your footage is compatible.

Battery life is another good-but-not-great aspect of the Galaxy Z Fold 8. Yes, it’s the first Samsung phone to feature a silicon-carbon battery, and yes, it has better battery life than the Z Fold 7 — but you won’t get Honor- or Oppo-level endurance here.

Samsung says you’ll get 26 hours of video playback from a single charge of the Z Fold 8, and that’s true, but only if you stick to the cover screen. In reality, a day with the phone means switching between screens, watching YouTube videos in unfolded mode, maybe gaming a bit — and as such, the real battery life figure lands closer to somewhere between a day and a day-and-a-half.

Mind you, that’s still… pretty good! I charge my phone every night anyway, so I haven’t been left in the lurch with a dead Z Fold 8, but I don’t think the inclusion of silicon-carbon technology here is the revolution that some people (including me) maybe hoped it would be.

The Honor Magic V6, for context, uses a larger 6,600mAh battery that lasts for well over two days, and that’s a figure that not even the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra can touch.

For charging, you’re getting 45W wired speeds, which will get you to 50% in around 25 minutes and a full charge in about an hour, and again, those are perfectly good if not exceptional numbers.

You also get 20W wireless charging, but as with every other Samsung phone, you’ll need to buy a magnetic case to make use of it, as the Z Fold 8 doesn’t have any built-in magnets.

One month verdict

Overall, I’ve really enjoyed my time with the Galaxy Z Fold 8 so far, and have been pleasantly surprised by just how well this new form factor works for most things I do on my phone every day.

Videos look great on both displays; I love typing on the cover screen and reading on the inner screen, and the Z Fold 8 is also powerful enough to be a nice little gaming machine.

You’ll get better cameras and battery life by choosing a regular flagship phone or the more expensive Z Fold 8 Ultra, but none of those devices will feel as fun or special as the Z Fold 8.

To be honest, I feel similarly about this phone as I do the iPhone Air. It seems weird and silly at first — and you’re paying a lot of money for fewer flagship features — but the Z Fold 8 is just very fun to use day-to-day, and it brings back some of the excitement that foldable phones have been missing.

If the rumors are true and Apple is indeed releasing a similarly sized iPhone Ultra later this year, this new form factor has a real chance of taking off — but as things stand right now, the Z Fold 8 is the foldable to buy if, like me, consuming content is what you do best.

• RCS in Google Messages has stopped working for some users
• The issue mostly seems to be affecting newly set up Samsung phones
• Various fixes have been proposed, but the simplest and weirdest seems the most reliable

RCS (Rich Communication Services) is a worthwhile upgrade to SMS — it brings encryption, read receipts, and more, and it’s accessible via Google Messages on Android. Except right now, it seems not to be working for a number of people.

It's not clear how widespread the issue is, but various posts on Reddit suggest there are issues with RCS on recent Samsung phones like the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 and Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra.

The issue most commonly seems to occur when swapping over to a new device, so people who’ve had a Samsung Galaxy S26 for a while with no issue, for instance, are seemingly less likely to run into problems than someone who just bought the phone and set it up.

But in any case, a number of Reddit users report RCS failing to connect, in some cases followed by a 3100 error code. The good news is that there are several potential fixes floating around, and one of them is quite straightforward.

That fix, as highlighted in one Reddit thread, is to turn off RCS, connect to a VPN, then turn RCS back on, and hopefully it will reactivate as normal. You can safely turn the VPN off at this point. This Reddit post says that you should connect to a VPN in Paris, France, specifically, but elsewhere, users have claimed success by using other VPN regions, so it’s unlikely you need to choose Paris — we certainly can’t see why that would make all the difference.

Anecdotally, this method seems to have the highest success rate going by the replies on Reddit, with most users exclaiming variations of “I can't believe this actually worked,” and that’s good, because not all the suggested solutions are as simple as this.

The official suggestion

So we’d suggest trying this method first, but if it doesn’t work, then Google’s own support team posted a suggestion too. They say you should update to the latest version of Google Messages, then turn RCS off, clear data for Carrier Services, restart your phone, and finally turn RCS back on.

If that doesn’t work either, another user has posted a six-step process that involves stopping the Google Messages app, then removing your phone number from Google, followed by turning off two-step verification, turning off recovery phone, and removing Google Play Services updates, then turning Google Messages back on — after which, if RCS is now connecting, you should re-enable/update all of the above.

This feels like a bit of a nuclear option though, and not all users found this method worked for them. So hopefully the weird VPN trick will solve the issue for you. Interestingly, this trick first emerged two years ago when some users were having similar issues. So, while we’re not sure why it works, it has a long history of solving the problem.

The iPhone Ultra probably won’t launch for around another month, but we already have a fair idea of what to expect — and that’s not just thanks to leaks and rumors, but also because Samsung has launched what we think is a very similar phone.

That phone, of course, is the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8, a foldable device with a passport-like form factor, which is very much in line with what we’re hearing Apple is planning for its first foldable, reportedly called the iPhone Ultra.

That form factor, and particularly the screen sizes and shapes it results in, are arguably the most interesting things about these phones, since they’re different to the book-style and clamshell-style foldables we’re used to seeing.

But just how similar will the screens on these two phones be? Well, while we won’t be certain of anything until Apple unveils the iPhone Ultra, we’ve taken some educated guesses below, based on leaks and rumors about that phone, coupled with the confirmed specs of the Galaxy Z Fold 8.

How will their foldable screens compare?

Much like the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 folds open like a book, but unlike the tall and narrow Z Fold 8 Ultra, it has a slightly smaller and more passport-like display, and we’re expecting something similar from the iPhone Ultra.

To be more specific, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 has a 7.6-inch 1828 x 2448 AMOLED screen with around 403 pixels per inch, a peak brightness of 3,000 nits, and an aspect ratio of 4:3.

That aspect ratio makes it more suited to watching widescreen video than typical book-style foldables like the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra, as our content viewing comparison shows, and speaking of books, it’s arguably also a better shape for reading, too.

So, what of the iPhone Ultra? Well, going by leaks, this device will probably have a foldable display of between 7.7 and 7.8 inches. Different sources point to slightly different numbers, but all the recent leaks put it in roughly that range.

So that would make it ever so slightly bigger than the Galaxy Z Fold 8’s screen — though still smaller than the 8-inch Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra.

We’re less sure of what the resolution will be, but leaker Digital Chat Station (via MacRumors) claimed last year that it would be 1920 x 2713 and that it would have a 4:3 aspect ratio. Though it’s worth noting that this resolution wouldn’t actually yield a 4:3 aspect ratio, so at least one of these numbers must be at least slightly wrong.

In any case, 4:3 would make for the same aspect ratio as the Galaxy Z Fold 8, and while this rumored resolution would be slightly higher, the marginally bigger display size should mean it still offers a similar number of pixels per inch.

We’re inclined to believe the aspect ratio here more than the resolution, as leaked renders of the iPhone Ultra show a very similar screen shape to that of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8.

We also fully expect the iPhone Ultra to have an AMOLED screen, just like Samsung’s phone, since other iPhones use that too.

We haven’t heard much about the iPhone Ultra’s screen brightness, but the iPhone 17 Pro, for example, has a 3,000-nit peak brightness, so the iPhone Ultra might well match that — and match the Galaxy Z Fold 8’s brightness in the process.

In which case, there may be no significant difference between their foldable screens, with the iPhone’s probably just being slightly larger — though it may also have a less visible crease, if rumors are to be believed. The iPhone Ultra’s corners are also likely to be curvier than the Z Fold 8’s, based both on leaks — such as the dummy unit above shared by Sonny Dickson — and Apple’s typical design practices.

How will their cover displays compare?

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 has a 5.5-inch 1248 x 1972 AMOLED cover screen with around 428 pixels per inch, and with an aspect ratio of 16:10. This leaves it a bit more of a square shape than the screens on most phones.

As for the iPhone Ultra, that could either have a 5.49-inch cover display with a 1422 x 2088 resolution (according to the source detailed in the section above), or a 5.3-inch cover screen (according to a paywalled report on The Information). So, in other words, it might either be slightly smaller than the Z Fold 8’s cover display or roughly the same size. It will also most likely use AMOLED tech, since other iPhones do.

Not much has been said about the iPhone Ultra's outer aspect ratio, but this again is likely to be similar to the Galaxy Z Fold 8’s 16:10 one — both because it looks similar in leaked renders and dummy units, and because that would make sense if its internal aspect ratio is the same, as has been rumored.

So, as with their foldable screens, the main difference between the cover screen on the iPhone Ultra and the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 might just be their size, with Apple’s possibly being slightly smaller in this case — though some leaks suggest there will be no real difference there either. In which case, it could just be the iPhone’s potentially curvier corners that set it apart.

How will their dimensions compare?

Screen sizes have a major impact on dimensions, but they’re not the only factor, with bezels and internal components also playing a role, so how will the iPhone Ultra compare to Samsung’s passport-style foldable there?

Well, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 is 123.9 x 161.4 x 4.5mm when unfolded and 123.9 x 81.9 x 9.7mm when folded shut.

Sources aren’t in total agreement about the iPhone Ultra’s dimensions, but going by various leaks, it seems likely to come in at 120.6 x 167.6 x 4.5-4.8mm when unfolded and 120.6 x 83.8 x 9.0-9.6mm when folded, so it’s mostly just the thickness that there’s disagreement on.

That, in any case, would make the iPhone slightly shorter than Samsung’s phone but also marginally wider. When unfolded, it could be either the same thickness or slightly thicker, and when folded shut, it would seemingly be marginally slimmer.

Based on these rumored screen sizes and dimensions, which foldable phone would you rather buy? Let us know in the poll or comments section below.

• Don't like the camera bump on your foldable? Take it off
• That's what one Redditor has done with their Galaxy Z Fold 8
• It now lies flat — but the selfie camera is the only camera left

How far would you go to get one of the best foldable phones looking and working exactly the way you want it? One Samsung user has taken the drastic step of cutting off the rear camera module on their new Galaxy Z Fold 8, just so it'll lie perfectly flat when placed on a surface.

The unusual DIY hack is documented on Reddit, and has been met with one or two raised eyebrows. Apparently, the owner of the phone used a razor blade to perform the operation, and says the end result is "not bad".

"The wobble is so annoying and I never use [the cameras] anyways" was the reason given by the user, when asked what prompted the customization — and they don't appear to have any regrets about what they've done.

Our Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 review doesn't mention the camera bump as being a particularly egregious problem, but we do have some praise for the performance of the dual-lens camera on the back — so it seems a shame, and a little drastic, to remove them.

A job well done

The reactions in the original Reddit thread are mostly of disbelief that someone would go to these lengths just to get a phone to lie flat, while taking away their ability to capture photos and videos at the same time.

Amidst a lot of well-chosen GIFs, there are comments like "no amount of explanation justifies it" and "what a mad man", as well as some appreciation for a tech-hack that seems to have been well done, based on the photo evidence.

There's also one request for more information from another Redditor who wants to do the same to their own Galaxy Z Fold 8 — perhaps an indication that the wobble you get when the handset lies flat is annoying quite a few users.

Samsung launched the phone on July 22, and the starting price is $1,899 / £1,699 / AU$2,699. It launched alongside the slightly more expensive Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra and the more affordable Galaxy Z Flip 8.

Since they were announced last month, I've been dual-wielding the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 and Z Fold 8 Ultra, the two new premium folding phones from the world's foremost foldable maker.

In the two weeks since the phones showed up at my door, I've taken hundreds of pictures on them (349 on the Fold 8 and 307 on the Ultra, to be precise). They've come with me on multiple holidays, been used for product photography for reviews I've published, and even accompanied me on a film location scout day, which saw them get a lot of use.

You'd expect that the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra would be my default photography foldable. As I'll explain a little later, it's simply a better camera phone, offering better-looking photos thanks to having more cameras.

However, that's not been the case. When I need to grab a shot, I've found myself reaching for whichever pocket the 'standard' Galaxy Z Fold 8 is in. And the reason has little to do with its photography chops.

Size matters more than sensors

The benefit of the best camera phone over a DSLR or mirrorless camera is convenience. You don't have to sling them over your neck or tote them around in a carry case; they fit in your pocket and, more importantly, come out of your pocket in a pinch.

The Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra is a long, thin phone; we're talking 158.4mm tall and just 72.8mm wide when it's folded (8.9mm thick and 215g heavy, if we're trying to get all the dimensions). When I put it in my trouser pocket, it digs its way right into the bottom, yet still sticks out the top a fair way.

Yet removing it can be quite a faff due to its frame. I have to angle and adjust it, feeling like Ross, Rachel and Chandler trying to pivot it to remove it.

By contrast, removing the Galaxy Z Fold 8 from my pocket is a breeze because of how small and stumpy it is when folded (123.9 x 81.9 x 9.7mm, 201g, just so we've got everything). It comes out easier than an average, non-folding smartphone.

Quite a vapid reason to prefer one phone over the other, right? But try to imagine this removing process 50, 60, 70 times in one day, when I'm on holiday or a recce; the Z Fold 8 Ultra becomes more effort than it's worth.

In fact, most of the Z Fold 8 Ultra's shots are from specific shoots or sessions, when I knew I'd be using the phone lots, and so didn't put it in my pocket at all.

One is clearly a better camera phone

Despite the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 being my preferred photography phone, I'm under no illusions about which takes better pictures.

Both phones have a 50MP f/1.9 ultra-wide camera, and two 10MP f/2.2 selfie cameras. But from here, the Ultra is, as you'd imagine, better.

For starters, its main sensor is more powerful, packing in 200 megapixels and an f/1.7 focal length, compared to the Z Fold 8's 50MP f/1.8. As photographers know, though, it's not all about megapixels, and I found it's the zoom lens that made the Ultra better.

The Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra has a 10MP telephoto camera which supports a 3x zoom. On paper, it's the same unit the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra packs.

A zoom lens gives the Z Fold 8 Ultra much, much more versatility for photography; in fact, I'd wager at least half of my pictures on the phone use this snapper. Its 67mm lens gives much nicer, softer depth of field than the main camera, even if the app keeps jumping between optical and digital zoom when you're using it.

When you zoom in on the Galaxy Z Fold 8, you're just getting digital zoom. The flower pictures above will show you how this looks in comparison to optical; it's fine, but to camera phone photographers, it won't compete.

As you'll notice when you look at the above pictures too, the Z Fold 8 Ultra offers some extra bokeh on the 1x zoom picture, likely thanks to the extra information presented from all those excess pixels it's capturing. However, for the most part, I've found them pretty matched when it comes to these 'standard' pictures taken on the wide camera.

Want some more Z Fold 8 Ultra camera samples? Every shot of the Z Fold 8 in this article was taken on the Ultra phone, using the 3x camera (hence why you're not seeing the Ultra in the shots).

Photography is only part of the process

Despite its lesser camera performance, I'm still using the Galaxy Z Fold 8 as my go-to photography phone. And the convenience of pulling it out of my pocket is only one reason. Another is what happens once I've captured the picture.

The inner, or main, screen of the Z Fold 8 has a 4:3 aspect ratio. For some comparison, the Z Fold 8 Ultra is 0.9:1, which is close enough to square that I feel comfortable referring to it as such for the rest of this article.

I don't know about you, but I don't capture or use square photos. I imagine you're in the same boat, given that Instagram basically single-handedly killed them off several years ago. No: for me, it's 16:9. Not only is this the required aspect ratio for every single website I write for, but it's a wide-screen aspect ratio which is appropriate for film reference shots, all-encompassing panoramas, or dramatic action shots. But the point I'm about to make would stand even more if you shoot in the camera app's default 4:3.

A wider display is much better for editing pictures. If you look at a wide snap on the Z Fold 8 Ultra's square display, you're given loads of black bars (or dead space) at the top and bottom. These are still present on the Z Fold 8, but much smaller, offering just enough space to house the edit controls.

When I'm holding an open Z Fold 8, I also find that my hands are in the perfect spot to easily manipulate the picture. Thanks to its display edges being taller, I have to move them around much more on the Ultra phone.

Based on coverage of the phones, both by critics and online users who've grabbed an early purchase of the phones, the aspect ratio is proving pretty divisive for the new phones. Some prefer the older shape of the Z Fold 8 Ultra; others like the 'passport'-style Z Fold 8. And for tasks like photo editing, I much, much prefer the latter.

Good, better, best

People who've read this article after glimpsing through the specs list of these new folding phones might find my preference for the worse one a little baffling. But those who've had hands-on time with the Z Fold 8 might understand my stance.

But if you're looking for a great camera phone, I'd be remiss not to mention something. Neither of these phones, not even the triple-camera Z Fold 8 Ultra, is actually a dedicated camera phone. They're fine for photography, but they won't hold a candle to the best mobiles on the market.

The Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra would be a much better pick for people who want a camera phone, and don't need something that folds.

Don't just stick to Samsung, either. I've found most Galaxy phones have below-average battery lives — it's actually pretty poor on the Z Fold 8, at least compared to a non-folding phone, which cut some of my photo shoots short.

But if your main priority is a bending mobile, and the camera chops are a secondary consideration, don't rely on the specs list: the form factor is just as important.