Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5 review: Slim, durable and feature-rich

With more durable body and up to five years of software support, the premium Galaxy Z Fold5 is built to serve the customer for long.

Last weekend, Samsung's latest premium phone Galaxy Z Fold5 along with the Z Flip5 hit stores in India.

The new Galaxy Z Fold5 comes with Qualcomm's latest and most powerful silicon Snapdragon 8 Gen 2; the build quality is said to be more durable than previous iterations and slimmer too. I used the device for a week and here are my thoughts on Samsung's latest offering.

Design, build quality and display

If you keep the Galaxy Z Fold5 side-by-side with the Fold4, you won't be able to pick up any difference instantly at all. They are identical, but only on close observation, you can notice the changes.

The most critical part of the foldable phone, the hinge that holds the two panels together is slimmer than previous iterations but really strong. Once you fold the phone, it takes a bit of strength to open it again., Also, the two panels join closely even at the hinge and the tip of the display panels. There is hardly any space for the dust to creep in.

When folded, the device is slim when compared to any of the previous generation models. It can easily slip into the pocket without any hassle. Also, the device weighs less too.

Galaxy Z Fold5 (253g):

Folded: 154.9 x 67.1 x 13.4 mm

Unfolded: 154.9 x 129.9 x 6.1 mm

Galaxy Fold4 (263g):

Folded: 155.1 x 67.1 x 14.2 (at the tip of the two displays folding)-15.8 mm (at the hinge)

Unfolded: 155.1 x 130.1 x 6.3 mm

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5

Though the device doesn't come with an official dust-resistant rating, Fold5's hinge is neatly designed to ensure dust does not sneak inside easily and damage internal hardware.

The hinge and the metal rails around the display are made of sturdy armour aluminium. It comes with IPX8 rating and this means, the device can sustain water splashes and accidental drops in the water body up to a depth of 1.5 metres (approx. 5 feet) for close to 30 minutes.

Furthermore, the front display panel and the glass-covered back are protected by Corning's latest Gorilla Glass Victus 2 shield to safeguard against scratches. Also, the matte finish of the back ensures, the fingerprint smudges are not easily visible in a direct line of sight, but only when viewed from a certain angle.

Samsung Galaxy Fold5

Yes, it is well protected, but this is a very expensive phone. I suggest prospective buyers get a cover case and if possible subscribe to an accidental damage care warranty, so that, god forbid, in case of accidental physical damage of a display or any other component, the cost of the service will be low and get it repaired on priority.

The Galaxy Fold5 features two displays-- a 6.2-inch HD+ Dynamic AMOLED 2X Display on the cover panel with 120Hz. It is also the home of a tiny 10MP camera at the top. This screen, though bit with an odd 23.1:9 aspect ratio, is good enough to operate like any other normal phone. You can message, read emails, scroll through news feeds on social media apps and even video chat too.

Inside, the company has incorporated a big 7.6-inch QXGA+ (2176x1812p) Dynamic AMOLED 2X with Infinity Flex Display design, aspect ratio: 21.6:18, and support adaptive refresh rate (1Hz-120Hz).

As I noted in my first impression story, the hidden 4MP selfie camera magically blends into the display. It is way better than any previous iterations. And, it becomes visible only when you open for video chatting or want to take a selfie picture.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5

Also, it doesn't obstruct when viewing movies or scrolling on social media apps. With a 91.1% screen-to-body ratio, the massive 7.6-inch display is built to deliver the ultimate viewing experience on a phone and aces it. Yes, there is a crease at the middle (at the foldable point), but when within an hour or two, of usage, you'll forget its existence.

The phone features stereo speakers tuned by AKG. It adds great value to the viewing experience while watching a TV series or playing a game at home. It can easily fill the room and even when the volume is put to the max, the audio is clear and crisp with no distortion.

The side-mounted fingerprint sensor works flawlessly at all times.

It should be noted that Samsung is offering the top-end 1TB model only in Icy Blue, and the other two 256GB and 512GB variants are available in three colours-- Icy Blue, Cream, and Phantom Black.

Like the Galaxy Z Flip5, the Fold5 is being assembled in India. Also, a lot of the plastic and metal materials used for components in the device are recycled.

The Fold5 is said to have a minimum of 10 per cent post-consumer recycled plastic and 22-per cent pre-consumer recycled glass.

The paper used for packaging is made up of 100 per cent recycled material. The company also switched to recycled paper material for the front and back cover protector.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5

Performance

The Galaxy Z Fold5 is powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, which can clock up to 3.36 GHz CPU speed. It is backed by Adreno 740 GPU, 12GB RAM and runs on Android 13-based One UI software.

The company is offering the device in three storage options-- 256GB, 512GB and 1TB. Our review unit is a base model and as advertised, it works smoothly without any issues to complain about.

Even while gaming or any other heavy-duty tasks such as 4K or 8K video recording, the phone doesn't show any lag-ness. Like I noticed in the Flip5, the Fold5 too gets a tad warm but not overwhelming enough for me to red-flag the potential customer.

With One UI, Samsung has done a great job by bringing value-added features such as recent apps in the taskbar, which ensures at least four recently used apps are visible on the screen at all times to switch between multiple apps. Also with the split screen, you can simultaneously work on two or even three apps with ease on the same frame of the screen.

It supports a two-handed drag-and-drop feature, which comes in handy to move a photo to an email with ease. Also with the hidden pop-up feature, users can exchange messages, with less distraction while enjoying a TV series. The bubble pops up with a new notification and he/she can quickly reply and the floating messenger app returns to the background.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5' score on Geekbench performance app

Like the previous edition, the Fold5 too supports S Pen and the display is well-optimised to take notes and let loose the creativity to create digital art or work on a presentation with ease.

Prospective consumers have to buy S Pen separately and also should invest in Samsung's official Fold5 cover, which comes with a special slot to hold the stylus at all times.

Samsung promises to offer four years of Android OS updates (up to 2027) and an additional year (up to 2028) of security software support against cyber threats.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5

With Li-Po 4400 mAh battery, the Galaxy Z Fold5 delivers a full day of battery life under normal usage. If you are an extreme user, binge on multimedia content on OTT apps, then there is a chance of you needing a charger. I recommend users to download the episodes or movies on the previous day and watch them offline. , all phones will drain faster if you stream videos directly through a cellular connection. Even with a Wi-Fi connection, it drains a bit slowly, but will still have an impact on battery life.

The phone supports 25W charging speed through wired. It can charge from zero to 50 percent within 30 min. It also supports wireless charging, it will charge a little slow at 15W speed. With the powershare feature, users can charge other gadgets such as the wireless earphone cases but is capped at 4.5W speed.

It should be noted that the Galaxy Z Fold5 doesn't come with a charger, but only the Type-C-to-Type-cablet. Prospective buyers have to separately purchase the charger or rely on the old phone's adaptor. This is one of the measures to reduce the negative impact on the environment to source raw materials for building new chargers for every new phone. This way consumers can reduce their carbon footprint too.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5's camera sample

Photography

The new Galaxy Z Fold5 comes with five cameras in total, a triple camera module on the back, one each on the cover display and another inside.

The primary camera module on the rear side houses-- main 12MP Ultra Wide Camera (f/2.2, Pixel size: 1.12μm, FOV: 123-degree) + 50MP Wide-angle Camera (Dual Pixel AF, OIS, F1.8, Pixel size: 1.0μm, FOV: 85-degree) and a 10MP Telephoto Camera (PDAF, f/2.4, OIS, Pixel size: 1.0μm, FOV: 36-degree, 3X optical zoom) with LED flash.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5's camera sample

Samsung's premium foldable phone does a fantastic job in natural sunlight. The subject, particularly the colourful flowers come off and vibrant. Of course, Samsung's native camera has that magical colour booster that can make even dull-coloured flowers bright and beautiful. Also, minute details of the petals and leaves are really well captured too.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5's camera sample

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5's camera sample

As you can see in the sample photo above, the ultra-wide angle mode of the phone ensures the vast extent of the lake is covered in the scene.

Like the other premium Galaxy S series, the Fold5 too supports 3X optical zoom and manages to get rich lossless-quality photos.

It can digitally zoom up to 30X. To me, up to 10X Zoom, the quality of photos is really good and beyond that, the photos began to accumulate noise. They are not discernible when viewed on a compact screen but on the computer, you will notice those grainy pixels.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5's camera sample 

With respect to close-up shots, here too, the phone manages to spring a pleasant surprise with high-quality photos by capturing the minute details of the subject with great clarity.

In the night mode too, it manages to get a really good snap with the right balance of the light and the darkness.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5's camera sample 

In terms of the video quality aspect, the phone can record up to 8K at 30 fps (frames per second), 4K at 60 fps, full HD at 60 fps and 240 fps. The videos are really good and stable too.

It also supports a super slo-mo HD recording feature with up to 960 fps.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5's camera sample 

The company has incorporated a 10MP Selfie Camera (f/2.2, Pixel size: 1.2um, FOV: 85-degree) on the cover panel. Inside it has 4MP (f/1.8, Pixel size: 2.0μm, FOV: 80-degree) under-display sensor.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5's camera sample 

The selfie camera on the cover display is really good in all light conditions. The portrait mode too works like a charm and ensures edges around the face, head and ear are correctly captured and the background is blurred. It looks natural and users can increase or decrease the intensity of the bokeh effect too.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5's camera sample with portrait mode on

The front camera can record up to 4K and full HD 1080p at 30 fps and 60 fps. You can notice the high-quality streaming during video chatting, provided you have a steady internet connection.

However, for obvious reasons, the 10MP front camera on the cover screen is way better than the in-display 4MP selfie camera.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5's camera sample 

Final thoughts

Though there is hardly any major change in the design language, the Galaxy Z Fold5 is the best foldable phone in the market at least in India.

It has been five years since Samsung started offering foldable phone phones, and to this day, the Galaxy Z Fold series remains peerless in India. Samsung has improved the durability of the Fold series with every new iteration and this year's model too comes with valuable improvement.

The new flex hinge is slim and yet sturdier than any previous versions. Also, more eco-friendly too.

The camera hardware is really good, on par with any premium phone in the market and can offer a full-day battery life.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5

With more durable body and up to five years of software security support, the Galaxy Z Fold5 is built to serve the customer for at least a half-decade. This ensures customer need not have to buy expensive phones every year or two.

I've already reviewed the Galaxy Z Flip5, do check it out if you haven't already, to decide if you want the compact flip phone or the big Galaxy Z Fold5.

Read more | Galaxy Z Flip5 review: Getting close to perfection

The Galaxy Z Fold5 is available in three configurations-- 12GB RAM + 256GB storage, 12GB RAM + 512GB storage and 12GB RAM + 1TB storage-- for Rs 1,54,999, Rs 1,64,999, and Rs 1,84,999 respectively.

Get the latest news on new launches, gadget reviews, apps, cybersecurity, and more on personal technology only on DH Tech.