Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 review: The compact foldable I’ve wanted all along

Seven years of folding phone innovation have led Samsung to finally embrace a wide-format design with its new Galaxy Z Fold 8. The compact, BlackBerry-esque phone unfolds into a mini tablet, with aspect ratios that feel more natural than its taller Fold 8 Ultra sibling. This isn’t the first time we’ve seen a shorter, wider folding phone, but this is indeed the first time it appeals to a wider audience.

Also: The Galaxy Z Fold 8 is so good, I don’t see the point of flip phones any more

Samsung’s all-new form factor debuts amid mounting rumors of a palm-sized foldable iPhone Ultra, and isn’t free of shortcomings. However, the fun, practical design outweighs all weaknesses. Since its launch at Galaxy Unpacked, I’ve used the Fold 8 for 10 days, and unexpectedly, it hasn’t lost its charm yet. 

I’m still amazed by how comfortable it is to type on the cover screen or how comfortably it fits my pocket. This is, in a way, the compact phone I’ve been waiting for.

“The power of the Fold in the palm of my hand”

I was skeptical about the usability of a short and wide cover screen, but I’ve found it to be the perfect combination of novelty and practicality. In fact, the 5.5-inch AMOLED panel has been my go-to reading companion, thanks to its 10:16 aspect ratio.

From browsing in Chrome to reading in the Kindle or NYT app, I haven’t once felt forced to unfold my Fold 8 for better readability. I’ve also been typing on it (with both hands) more than expected. Unlike flip phones, you can see the conversation while typing your message. The keyboard takes up about half the screen, but it leaves plenty of room for unbothered messaging without feeling cramped.

The comfortable in-hand feel is also made possible by the slim and light design. As a matter of fact, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 is Samsung’s lightest Z Fold phone at 201 grams (versus the 215g Fold 8 Ultra and 214g S26 Ultra). Plus, it is just 4.5mm thick when unfolded and 9.7mm when closed. It doesn’t feel any thicker than a regular slab phone. And that’s not even the best part.

Its true uniqueness lies in its versatility. It unfolds into a 7.6-inch mini tablet with a 4:3 aspect ratio, which is more natural in everyday tasks than traditional book-style foldables’ squarish 8-inch screens.

I open the Fold 8 when I want to watch video content. Everything from YouTube videos to movie watching in Netflix or Prime Video is better than other tall folding phones. A 4:3 screen means you get less letterboxing (black borders on top and bottom) when watching videos.

It’s the vertical videos (TikTok, Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts) that require adjustment. Instagram downloads in the tablet version, which pushes the like, comment, and share buttons to the black border on the right side (on both the cover screen and inner display) for better reel watchability. Personally, I like it, but it might be an adjustment for anyone used to the mobile app UI. 

The big canvas is also great for reading, but that punch-hole selfie camera is unexpectedly more bothersome on this phone. It cuts off words on the right edge of the screen. You can always rotate it so the camera is positioned on the side of your right palm, but it sometimes interferes with the auto brightness. I wish Samsung had positioned it in the corner or found a way to add an under-display camera.

It did improve the multitasking experience, however, with One UI 9 (based on Android 17). It feels more intuitive, natural and easy to use. The Fold 8 can run three apps side by side, but that’s not ideal. I found myself multitasking more often 90:10 split-screen between two apps.

For instance, I had Chrome (for research) and Google Docs (to type) set side by side. When researching, I could easily maximize Chrome’s screen space by sliding the middle bar and pushing Docs to cover (roughly) 10% of the screen, and vice versa when I wanted to type. This was hardly as buttery smooth on previous versions. 

Also: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra vs. Motorola Razr Fold: Which premium foldable should you get?

The Galaxy Z Fold 8 is different than other book-style foldables in a way that it doesn’t force you to adjust to its design quirks. Instead, it adapts to your usage more naturally.

The crease, hinge and durability

Samsung uses a “Flex Titanium” technology in its folding display structure, which helps with durability, slimness and minimizing the crease. It combines a titanium-alloy film with an enhanced titanium plate to strengthen the display and “refine the way the device opens.”

All this is to say that the crease is definitely more subtle, and the phone pops open after a certain angle, giving you a more natural unfolding experience. However, Samsung has removed Flex mode on the hinge, so you can’t prop up the Fold 8 like its Ultra sibling to watch videos. The Tent mode on its cover screen is a fair substitute.

As for the crease, it has been minimized to an extent that you can’t feel it when running your finger over it. You can still spot it in some lighting situations but it is a non-issue and won’t distract you from on-screen content.

An even bigger upgrade comes in the form of anti-reflective coating. Samsung claims that the reflectivity on the Fold 8’s inner screen has been reduced by 50% (versus the Fold 7).

Also: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 vs. Z Flip 8: How Samsung’s two new foldables compare

It is the upgrade I’ve wanted since the Fold 6 days, and I’m glad the Korean phone maker finally listened. In practical usage, this means the folding screen is much more legible in direct light than its predecessor. I could navigate on Maps, see the camera viewfinder clearly, and browse in the Delhi sun without any issues. It’s also in part thanks to the higher brightness levels (3,000 nits vs. 2,600 nits on the Fold 7).

Like last year, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 is rated IP48 for dust and water resistance. This means it can survive freshwater submersion but isn’t resistant to small dust particles like pocket lint. While this is in line with most foldable phones, the Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold and Honor Magic V6 offer a dust-tight design with their IP68 ratings. I hope Samsung adopts it for its next generation of Z series phones.

Push the cameras for the best results

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 has one less camera than the Fold 8 Ultra and a lower-resolution main sensor. It has a dual camera system consisting of a 50MP main camera and another 50MP ultrawide angle sensor.

I’m not a fan of Samsung’s default processing, but it has improved in the last year, and there are ways to extract the best from what you have. I took most of my photos in 50MP mode, which gives you more details than the default mode.

However, you miss out on certain features like the ability to add a filter style, which is hard to understand because I’d rather have these styles applied to a higher resolution photo than 12MP shots.

I also like the rich contrast and details on ultrawide photos. They look better than my Fold 7’s ultrawide shots.  

As for videos, they aren’t sharp and get noisy once you zoom in on your scene. Every time I wanted to zoom in on a subject in videos, I wished this phone had a telephoto camera. And this leads me to another gripe – the camera position, again.

The Fold 8’s cameras are located in a vertical camera module, but I think it’d have been better to have a horizontal layout (ultrawide on top of the main camera) because I kept getting my finger in 1x shots. I have big hands, and I’m assuming people with smaller hands won’t have to readjust their grip so often. However, it bothered me enough to stand out in my camera experience.

Processor and battery

Samsung’s new wide-fold houses the same chip that powers its Galaxy S26 Ultra and Fold 8 Ultra – the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy processor. It is paired with 12GB of RAM for the 256GB and 512GB storage variants and 16GB of RAM with 1TB of storage. In my day-to-day usage, the phone ran smoothly with no issues at all.

However, it tends to struggle under certain scenarios, like gaming for 30 minutes or more. Samsung says that it has reworked the internals to create more space for heat dissipation, which should result in better thermal management. But the Fold 8 gets warm to touch under sustained workloads. Other than that, you won’t find any major misses here. From multitasking to camera processing, everything is smooth and fast.

Also: I’ve been using the Galaxy Z Fold 8 for two weeks – these two accessories perfect the experience

The Galaxy Z Fold 8 also received a big battery upgrade. It packs a 4,800mAh cell with support for 45-watt fast charging. This might not look like a big deal, but the Fold 7 had a 4,400mah battery capacity and the new Z series is the first lineup of Samsung smartphones to feature high-density silicon-carbon anode batteries. In real-world usage, it delivers an all-day battery life without breaking a sweat.

In my testing period, I’ve consistently used my Fold 8 to take calls, scroll through Reddit, Instagram, answer messages on WhatsApp, video call my niece, take photos, and read. I consistently got more than eight hours of screen time. This isn’t the Oppo Find N6 or Honor Magic V6, but I didn’t have to charge it twice a day (like my Fold 7). And when you do need to charge, it goes from 10% to 75% within 30 minutes.

Also: Amazon will give you a $350 gift card when you buy a new Samsung phone – here’s what to know

While the Galaxy Z Fold 8 supports 20-watt fast charging, it doesn’t have built-in magnets. You’ll need to purchase a Qi2-compatible case, or you’ll be left figuring out the perfect alignment on a wireless charger half of the time. In my opinion, the absence of magnets for another year is a big miss. I don’t want to ruin Fold 8’s marvelous piece of engineering by slapping a case on it; it’s a tough phone, built to withstand drops, and I’d like to add magnetic accessories like a kickstand or power bank on it without needing a case.

Features worth mentioning

The new Samsung foldables run One UI 9 based on Android 17 and they have a few new AI features worth talking about.

My FanCam

This is the most fun new AI feature. If you shoot a video where your subject is with a few other people, you can choose to track them with AI to make it look like the camera was following them. You can also adjust the aspect ratio, but it will degrade the video quality. Samsung suggests you take 4K videos if you plan on using My FanCam.

Now Nudge

It works like Magic Cue for Google Pixel phones. It suggests actions based on your on-screen content. For instance, if someone sends me a message asking for availability on a specific date, the Fold 8 will show a popup to open the Calendar. Once you tap on it, it pulls up the Calendar on half of the screen. It sounds good in theory, but like Magic Cue, Now Nudge doesn’t work all the time.

Apart from these two features, I haven’t proactively used any of the generative AI stuff. I hardly ever use the AI Eraser in my photos, but when I need it, Samsung does surprisingly well to detect, delete, and fill in the details. I mostly use it to delete annoying elements in my selfies, like dustbins and signboards.  

Also: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra vs. Google Pixel Fold 10 Pro: You can’t lose, but here’s my surprise pick

Regarding other AI features, I wish Samsung and Google would stop forcing use cases that don’t exist to sell their unreliable AI. I’m glad this phone doesn’t need any of it to make a case for its $1,900 price tag.

ZDNET’s buying advice

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 is one of the most expensive folding phones on the market, but it is also one of the best mix of fun and practicality. At $1,900, I’d expect my device to have a dedicated camera for optical zoom and iron out the misses from previous generation products (like the lack of Qi2.2 magnets). But despite this, it’s easy to recommend. I haven’t had this much fun using a phone in a long time.

Also: I went hands-on with the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8, but it’s not the upgrade I expected

The new Samsung smartphone is built for most people. It combines flip pocketability and fold usability in a wider design that’s ideal for video consumption — not just for reading. The Galaxy Z Fold 8 adapts to your usage instead of asking you to adjust to its design. It is a refreshing take on a relatively new concept, and I’m all for it.

If your usage involves reading, watching videos, and browsing the web – and you have the budget for it — the Galaxy Z Fold 8 is the best folding phone out there right now.

Why the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 gets an Editors’ Choice award

Its refreshing new design is both practical and pocketable, and it feels like the fold for everyone — not just power users. While it has its own limitations, and its $1,900 price tag is not exactly what I’d call “affordable”, the new Fold 8 redefines what you can do on a foldable phone.