Galaxy Z Fold7/Flip7

[skulls17]

Yeah it's a really tough call. I definitely loved the Fold when it was open. That's where it shines, but aside from some odd issues I had that probably could have been fixed with a factory reset (wtf), I still felt that it was awkward when using the camera. The features are cool, but I found myself constantly fumbling it trying to get the right grip. I'm sure that could have gotten better over time but again, the phone was on thin ice from the start due to me paying $1,000 after trading in what is quite possibly my favorite phone ever.

And then, you look at the top features for me in a phone that matter the most: Battery, Camera, Screen. 2 of the 3 were worse by enough of a margin to see a difference.

Folds are really cool devices and if they someday have a Fold Ultra where it literally has the same exact specs as the Ultra slab phone, I'd probably be keeping that.

I'm in the same predicament you were. I really like my fold I still have like a week and a half to decide. The battery for me is okay I'm not a power user. I am an amateur photographer. The normal point and shoot camera and macro mode is okay. The zooming really sucks. I don't tend to zoom too much but when I do I want it to look okay. I just don't know what to do. I Love The Fold when it is open I absolutely love it. I don't hate the front screen it is kind of narrow and some websites get all jumbled. The front screen is okay. I just don't know if I should trade in my s25 ultra or not. It's such a tough decision and I honestly don't know what to do.

 

[mjschabow]

I'm in the same predicament you were. I really like my fold I still have like a week and a half to decide. The battery for me is okay I'm not a power user. I am an amateur photographer. The normal point and shoot camera and macro mode is okay. The zooming really sucks. I don't tend to zoom too much but when I do I want it to look okay. I just don't know what to do. I Love The Fold when it is open I absolutely love it. I don't hate the front screen it is kind of narrow and some websites get all jumbled. The front screen is okay. I just don't know if I should trade in my s25 ultra or not. It's such a tough decision and I honestly don't know what to do.

I for sure don't want to influence anyone in this thread to get rid of the Fold. It's an awesome device. So my advice to you would be to make a list of the things most important to you in a phone. If camera and battery (including charging speeds) are at the top of the list and having a tablet style screen is not, then that might make your decision a lot easier.

My opinion is that Folds are incredible and Samsung hit it out of the park this year, but it has to be a phone that fits your lifestyle, and you shouldn't try to force it too much.

 

[skulls17]

I for sure don't want to influence anyone in this thread to get rid of the Fold. It's an awesome device. So my advice to you would be to make a list of the things most important to you in a phone. If camera and battery (including charging speeds) are at the top of the list and having a tablet style screen is not, then that might make your decision a lot easier.

My opinion is that Folds are incredible and Samsung hit it out of the park this year, but it has to be a phone that fits your lifestyle, and you shouldn't try to force it too much.

Thank you so much for replying. I do find myself making excuses for the fold like it's a bad boyfriend that I'm trying to stick up for LOL
I adore the inner screen. I hate this

 

[Ludatyk]

I just don't know if I should trade in my s25 ultra or not. It's such a tough decision and I honestly don't know what to do.

If you didn't get an instant "I want to keep this device" reaction then my advice is to return the ZF7... because I knew immediately where I stood years ago when I unbox the Fold 2.

At least you gave it a try... that way you know where you stand, so going forward you prefer slab over a foldable. Everyone has their preferences... nothing wrong with that.

 

[mjschabow]

If you didn't get an instant "I want to keep this device" reaction then my advice is to return the ZF7... because I knew immediately where I stood years ago when I unbox the Fold 2.

At least you gave it a try... that way you know where you stand, so going forward you prefer slab over a foldable. Everyone has their preferences... nothing wrong with that.

This is probably the best advice. What Skull was describing was the same thing I was doing. "Trying" to like a Foldable. Who knows, maybe I will down the road again. Top specs would have helped for sure.

 

[Dominican]

What crease?

And everybody use it for months we'll see it

 

[skulls17]

This is probably the best advice. What Skull was describing was the same thing I was doing. "Trying" to like a Foldable. Who knows, maybe I will down the road again. Top specs would have helped for sure.

Oh, it would’ve been tremendous to have the same camera as the S 25 ultra and at least a 5000 MAH battery

 

[Bkdodger]

And everybody use it for months we'll see it

View attachment 2535669

I've been using it since release date it looks the same as the first day I got it. I'm one that opens and closes the phone plenty as well. I had the ZF6 a year as well no issues look the same as the day I bought it and the day I turned it in for trade in. People just have to keep putting stuff on videos get some traffic coming through there.

 

[aggie99]

I actually don't care how costly it would be. I would pay $2,500 for that phone.

same. might even throw in one of my kids.

 

[Bkdodger]

same. might even throw in one of my kids.

Just so you know they only take the youngest for maximum trade in value

 

[jamezr]

Folds are really cool devices and if they someday have a Fold Ultra where it literally has the same exact specs as the Ultra slab phone, I'd probably be keeping that.

I would definitely love love a fold that was the S25U that unfolded. I don't care if it was thicker than the current Fold7. Just having a full size outer display would be so awesome!

 

[Cuesca]

Honestly if there was an Ultra without the S-pen I would get that over the fold. I don't like them, don't want them they made the older Ultra feel wider than a normal phone and have less battery. IMHO the 'Plus' series should have the same features/build quality as the Ultra, the only differentiator for the Ultra should be the slightly bigger screen size and spen.

Edit: I have another gripe with the Fold 7 why are good cases so hard to find with this thing? Right now rocking the Nillkin but the latch on that thing is filmsy and sometimes won't even close. That being said its better than the garbage I bought at ATT and a lot of the sub $30 cases from Amazon. Right now I'm trying to pick between the dBrand and Benks. I think I might go with the Benks, I've owned literally hundreds of dbrand skins/cases but this year it looks like they're not even trying with the Fold7.

 

[tbayrgs]

Was able to put hands on a Fold 7 at Best Buy today…the thinness takes you aback considering we don’t use anything else that thin. Really great looking and feeling device.

Still not enough to sway me to trade my Pixel 9 Pro Fold for it though. The thinness is almost unsettling. I absolutely appreciate how light it makes it but I find how thick my P9PF is just fine and if 5mm thick means more battery and imbedded Qi2 magnets, I’ll take that.

I honestly wish my P9PF was just a touch wider so that when open, it offered more usable space for watching video and side by side apps—3:4 ratio would be great vs. basically square now.

 

[SteveJUAE]

If you didn't get an instant "I want to keep this device" reaction then my advice is to return the ZF7... because I knew immediately where I stood years ago when I unbox the Fold 2.

At least you gave it a try... that way you know where you stand, so going forward you prefer slab over a foldable. Everyone has their preferences... nothing wrong with that.

Exactly

Us long time Fold users would not sacrifice what we consider a superior screen for a slab just because you can have better zoom you use once in a while or even faster charging that is easily countered by good habits

The one thing we all have in common is we look at our phones for several hours a day and it seems obvious to Fold users that this should be priority over much lesser used features, as you are constantly getting maximum benefit.

 

[Zito Abroad]

Exactly

Us long time Fold users would not sacrifice what we consider a superior screen for a slab just because you can have better zoom you use once in a while or even faster charging that is easily countered by good habits

The one thing we all have in common is we look at our phones for several hours a day and it seems obvious to Fold users that this should be priority over much lesser used features, as you are constantly getting maximum benefit.

I would say the same goes for us dedicated Flip users. We continue to buy this device because we love the compact size. Cameras are not TOP priority because the cameras that are on this thing are way more than adequate for us. Also, here's the thing about the cameras. Each time they upgrade the cameras, it won't change one thing about how we use our Flip. For instance, every slab user I know, takes selfies and group selfies with the punch hole selfie camera, but it's absolute trash compared to the main cameras on any Flip series phone. The reason I'm comparing it to the main cameras is because we all use our main cameras for selfies. The cover display gives us the preview to frame the shot. Me and a few other Flip users have now become the dedicated group selfie shooters. Lol. When you value these types of use cases, along with the compact form factor, there's just no going back to a slab. Like the other poster was saying, when you know, you know.

 

[mjschabow]

Exactly

Us long time Fold users would not sacrifice what we consider a superior screen for a slab just because you can have better zoom you use once in a while or even faster charging that is easily countered by good habits

The one thing we all have in common is we look at our phones for several hours a day and it seems obvious to Fold users that this should be priority over much lesser used features, as you are constantly getting maximum benefit.

Different strokes for different folks. I use the Zoom camera a ton and use my phone outdoors a lot.

 

[SteveJUAE]

I would say the same goes for us dedicated Flip users. We continue to buy this device because we love the compact size. Cameras are not TOP priority because the cameras that are on this thing are way more than adequate for us. Also, here's the thing about the cameras. Each time they upgrade the cameras, it won't change one thing about how we use our Flip. For instance, every slab user I know, takes selfies and group selfies with the punch hole selfie camera, but it's absolute trash compared to the main cameras on any Flip series phone. The reason I'm comparing it to the main cameras is because we all use our main cameras for selfies. The cover display gives us the preview to frame the shot. Me and a few other Flip users have now become the dedicated group selfie shooters. Lol. When you value these types of use cases, along with the compact form factor, there's just no going back to a slab. Like the other poster was saying, when you know, you know.

I agree (BTW I also have a Flip 5 and the Mrs has a Flip 7)

Us foldable users gain the most out of our superior features because its a major function of our daily use and not a feature we only use a fraction of the time like 5x zooms on the S25 etc

 

[SteveJUAE]

Different strokes for different folks. I use the Zoom camera a ton and use my phone outdoors a lot.

Yes, but we have plenty of posts on users of S25 who try the Folds then revert back

This is a post on why us long term Fold users do not feel the lure of the S25 and other slabs.

You may well use your zoom a lot but it's not >6 hours a day

Your experience was also marred as you had to nanny your device if you wanted to return it, as many have replied previously we do not treat our folds any different to a slab phone.

 

[Bkdodger]

I don't really have anything new or useful to say LOL but yesterday I had a mix day of work and activities throughout the day and evening with drives in between and it was a pleasure to use this phone in the different scenarios. I mean I shouldn't be surprised since I've been using a foldable for the longest but it just felt like the form factor contributed even more to my pleasure.

 

[Cuesca]

I don't really have anything new or useful to say LOL but yesterday I had a mix day of work and activities throughout the day and evening with drives in between and it was a pleasure to use this phone in the different scenarios. I mean I shouldn't be surprised since I've been using a foldable for the longest but it just felt like the form factor contributed even more to my pleasure.

I think what I like best about the Fold 7 is it showed me how much nicer OneUI is compared to iOS. I don't have to worry about email notification bubbles not going away even after I read everything. Or text/email not coming through right away because Apple decided they want to reroute them through India or something. Or being at the mercy of UI designers, another reason I got the Fold 7 was because Liquidglass was the last straw for me.

 

[jamezr]

Yes, but we have plenty of posts on users of S25 who try the Folds then revert back

This is a post on why us long term Fold users do not feel the lure of the S25 and other slabs.

You may well use your zoom a lot but it's not >6 hours a day

Your experience was also marred as you had to nanny your device if you wanted to return it, as many have replied previously we do not treat our folds any different to a slab phone.

I have had a few foldables along with the Fold 7. The fold 7 was amazing and was the best foldable phone i have used to date. But i returned it and went back to my S25U and P9XL...and not because of the zoom. I went back to slab phones because of the outer display. That is the display I use on average 6 hours a day

I don't want to have to unfold my phone all the time for everyday uses or tasks. IMHO that is a failure of a folding device. I should be able to use a folding phone for 80-90% of what I would a slab phone completely folded.
Then when consuming media or for casual web browsing i would unfold it.

Then unfolding on the fly is not an easy thing to do....it takes 2 hands for the Fold 7. I don't use any other phone 2 handed. So i end up treating the Fold 7 completely different than my slab phones.

For me the outer display needs to be the same size as any other slab phone. Then when the task needs it....I could unfold it and have that awesome display size for what ever I need it for.

Its not all about specs or zoom or battery or the creases or any of those things. It is all about the user experience.
For my uses...the outer display on the F7 is still too narrow. It needs to be the same as the S25U. I would not mind if it was thicker to accomplish that either. Then i could truly take advantage for the full unfolded display awesomeness when the task needed it.

I know some use the F7 unfolded most of the time. That is perfect for them! I could not fit that into my uses at all.
I am excited to see what the Fold 8 has to offer though! I would love for it to have a full size outer display.

 

[NeonNights]

I woke up this morning and noticed my Fold6's inner screen has what appears to be a 2-inch vertical row of bad pixels. Not completely dead pixels, but definitely non-conforming. Restarting the phone didn't make it go away and cleaning the screen with a microfiber didn't "massage" out the issue. If anything, the clean surface revealed I have another 1-inch line towards the lower right quadrant that's also non-conforming, along with two smaller 1/8" horizontal pixels that are non-conforming.

The following photos are from my wife's iPhone 15 Pro. It was a challenge to capture the small line of pixels. It is much more noticeable in person. Well, that's what SamsungCare+ is for. Let's see what they say. I wonder if this is my unplanned, scenic path to a Fold7.

Also want to add this was totally unexpected as the Fold6 hasn't been dropped or damaged in any way to explain the change in pixels. Wait, now that I think about it, this may have started a few months ago but I was able to massage the pixels back to obedience. I guess the pixels are revolting again and gained a few other friends.

 

[Zito Abroad]

As for battery on the Flip 7, this is how I end my day. By 9-10pm I'm home and have plenty of battery left. I'm typically 40%-50% with my usage at the end of my day. I'm good with that. I honestly don't know what else Samsung can do in the Flip series that will want me to upgrade or at least, make me feel like I'm upgrading. As is, this phone's size and weight are at a point where any improvement wouldn't make a huge difference to me. I might now grab the Fold 9 or most likely the Fold 10 to feel like I'm actually upgrading. I also know, I truly don't want to give up this compact form factor, so I might still grab a Flip at the same time. Never thought I'd actually entertain the thought of using 2 phones, but here we are.

 

[Ludatyk]

The following photos are from my wife's iPhone 15 Pro. It was a challenge to capture the small line of pixels. It is much more noticeable in person. Well, that's what SamsungCare+ is for. Let's see what they say. I wonder if this is my unplanned, scenic path to a Fold7.

Have you contacted Samsung about it yet? If so... keep us updated.

Also want to add this was totally unexpected as the Fold6 hasn't been dropped or damaged in any way to explain the change in pixels. Wait, now that I think about it, this may have started a few months ago but I was able to massage the pixels back to obedience. I guess the pixels are revolting again and gained a few other friends.

I have had some drops with my ZF6 resulted in some minor dents on the corners (no damages to the screens)... if I do get some dead pixels, hoping that Samsung will service it under Care+.

And what do you mean by massage the pixels back?

 

[NeonNights]

Massage as in sometimes you have a stuck pixel and can gently rub the screen to unstick it. It is an old remedy from back in the day for LCDs.

I started the claim process but paused...would you guys go for local repair (which I assume is a screen replacement) or opt for Samsung sending you a replacement Fold6 (which in all likelihood will be a refurb)?

I just worry about the repair person scratching up my phone in the process. And does a claim or repair affect future trade-in value? Am I better off just trading my device in now towards a Fold7? But then again, this sort of thing is what SamsungCare is for.