At its ‘Unpacked’ event earlier in August, Samsung Electronics showed only a glimpse of the company’s third take on the folding smartphone. With no time to spare at the already long event, Samsung promised the Z Fold2 would get its own event — and it did. Unveiled and launched more fully at a second Unpacked event online, the Z Fold2 is now actually up for pre-order in some markets before availability from September 18 onwards.

 

The Galaxy Z Fold2 comes with numerous improvements and refinements after feedback and learnings from the initial models of Samsung’s foldable devices, making it obvious that the electronics giant is not about to be put off by any missteps. The Z Fold2 comes with a larger Cover Screen as users gave feedback about wanting to use the display on the lid more fully instead of it being an add-on.

The Cover Screen is now 6.2 inches, almost as large as regular phones tend to be these days. The screen has a small punch hole for the front cameras. Users can do whatever they would on a regular phone including checking email, looking up Maps, and even watching videos or movies without necessarily having to unfold the device, although of course, they can.

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When unfolded, the massive 7.6-inch Main Screen, has minimised bezels with a 120Hz adaptable refresh rate for smooth scrolling and gameplay. Samsung promises specially good sound on this phone, the best yet on a Galaxy device because of the high dynamic dual stereo speakers.

“Our journey towards the next generation of mobile devices is full of originality and innovation,” said TM Roh, President and Head of Mobile Communications Business, Samsung Electronics. “With the launch of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2, we closely listened to user feedback to ensure we were bringing meaningful improvements to the hardware, while also developing new innovations to enhance the user experience. Further strengthened by our industry-leading partnerships with Google and Microsoft, we’re reshaping and redefining the possibilities of the mobile device experience.”

Hideaway Hinge

Samsung uses ultra thin glass on the main screen, anchored by a ‘Hideaway Hinge’, which fits seamlessly into the device body with a special mechanism and enables free standing capabilities so one can open and stop the screen at various points, called Flex Mode. The gap between the body and hinge housing is designed to repel dust and undesirable particles. On the software front, App Continuity enables crossing the boundary between the Cover and Main Screen.

The five cameras on this device work in different ways because of the form factor. Using the Flex mode, it’s now possible to capture images and see up to five recent captures on the bottom half of the screen with the preview of the most recent on top. Flex also does away with the need for a tripod and lets users take hands-free photos and video. Using the Main and Cover Screen at the same time with Dual Preview, both parties can see what’s being captured.

On the Z FoldZ, the hyper-productive can use several apps at once and choose the most optimised UI for the task, switching layouts from Settings. On the Main Screen, Microsoft Office apps can be used in a tablet-like experience. Samsung has a partnership Google to make the apps work seamlessly with the foldable UX and with Microsoft to maximise productivity.

The Galaxy Z Fold2 will be available in Mystic Black and Mystic Bronze, in around 40 markets including the US and Korea, on September 18, with pre-orders from September 1, starting with select markets including the US and Europe. India prices are not announced yet for the Z Fold2 which, in US dollars, is $1,999.

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