Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7 review: Pretty neat performer

Samsung's latest foldable phones -- Galaxy Z Fold7 and Flip7-- come with a big upgrade in terms of bigger display, longer battery life and more.

I have been using the Flip7 for a little over two weeks, and here are my thoughts on Samsung's premium Android phone.

Design, build quality and display

Unlike the book-style design of the Galaxy Z Fold7, the Flip7 comes in a classic clamshell form factor. And, it is slimmer and weighs less than the predecessor. To me, the compact flip-style is the perfect design for a phone. The device features a massive 6.9-inch screen and can instantly fold in half its size. This is such a meaningful space-saving feature; it helps me put both the earphone case and the phone in the same pocket.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7.

Most importantly, the design ensures the main display is always safeguarded from articles like coins and keys in the closed confines of a pocket. Even the cover display and the panel are well protected by Corning's Gorilla Glass Victus 2, which is one of the sturdiest glass shields for phones in the market. It can protect it from cracking during a fall from the pocket, at a height of one metre (three feet) on a hard surface.

Further, with an IP48 rating, the device can survive accidental water splashes and also dust (larger than one millimetre).

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7.

Samsung has incorporated a proprietary FlexiHinge, made of armour aluminium material. The hinge is slimmer but sturdier than any previous iterations.

The frame is also made of sturdy armor aluminium alloy, which can sustain a hard fall on a hard surface and protect the internal hardware from damage. However, the metallic body will suffer dents and scratches if it falls on a rough surface. So, I recommend prospective Galaxy Z Flip7 buyers to get a nice cover case with the device. And, if you have some extra cash, go for insurance coverage from Samsung; it will save a lot if the device, god forbid, ever suffers any physical damage.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7.

Our review unit is blue, and as you can see from the cover photos, it looks gorgeous in the sunlight. Samsung offers the device three other options, including jetblack, coral red and mint. The latter is available only in Samsung stores.

The device features a pretty good 4.1-inch (1048x948p) super AMOLED with 120Hz refresh rate. It is just perfect to read the messages and other notifications, and this helps us screen calls and decide whether to reply or hang up the calls. Also, it supports several value-added apps such as Google Maps. Users can use the cover display to navigate and save battery by not using the inner display. Users can also check out the health metrics, calendar and more.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7.

Inside, it houses a big 6.9-inch full HD+ (2520x1080p) Dynamic AMOLED 2X with 120Hz adaptive refresh rate. What's more interesting is that it is one of the biggest displays in a phone, and the aspect ratio is now 21:9, which is great for consuming content. It does not feel too narrow to watch TV or too long to scroll the social media platforms. And, when done with the use, the phone folds in half. This is just perfect.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7.

And, by the way, the side-mounted fingerprint sensor works amazingly smoothly with a lower false rejection rate.

Performance

The Galaxy Z Flip7 houses Samsung's 3nm class Exynos 2500 deca-core processor (3.3GHz Cortex-X5 x 1 core + 2.74GHz Cortex-A725 x 2 core + 2.36GHz Cortex-A725 x 5 cores and 1.8GHz Cortex-A520 x 2 cores) processor with Xclipse 950 GPU, 12GB RAM, 256GB/512GB storage.

It runs Android 16-based One UI 8 with a clean user interface. Thanks to software optimisation, you don't find any hardship while navigating on the cover display or in the inner display.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7.

The device supports all the Galaxy AI features such as Call Assist (real-time translations during voice calls), writing assist, interpreter, Note assist, Transcript assist, Photo assist, drawing assist, object eraser, audio eraser, photo ambient wallpaper in addition to Google's propreitary Gemini Live, Circle to search and more.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7 supports more than 10 Galaxy AI features in addition to Google's Gemini Live, Circle to Search and more.

The device gets a bit warm while playing games or while recording video. This is more noticeable when using the device outdoors with sunny weather. This is not a deal breaker, as most phones made of metal and glass exhibit such behaviour. However, the Galaxy Z Fold7 was a little more stable than this Flip version.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7.

It comes with a 4,300mAh battery, 300mAh more than the predecessor. The device can easily last a full day under normal usage with Wi-Fi at home and the office. However, if you are fully reliant on a cellular network, you have to rely on a power bank in the evening, only if you consume too much multimedia content. If used normally for viewing and replying to messages, answering calls, and occasionally scrolling on social media apps, it can go all the way till you retire to bed.

It supports 25W charging speed. It takes close to 90 minutes to charge from zero to 100 per cent mark. It also supports 10W wireless charging as well.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7's camera sample.

Photography

It features a dual-camera module— main 50MP wide-angle camera ( f/1.8 aperture, 23mm wide lens, 1/1.57-inch sensor, 1.0µm pixel size, dual pixel PDAF: Phase Detection Auto Focus, OIS: Optical Image Stabilisation) and 12MP 123-degree ultra-wide angle camera ( f/2.2, 13mm lens, 1/3.2-inch, 1.12µm pixel size) with LED flash on the back.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7's camera sample.

The Galaxy Z Flip7 takes pretty amazing photos in the sunlight. It gets sharp and colourful images of human faces and flowers. The latter, as you can see from several camera samples, comes off vibrant and really pretty.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7's camera sample.

In close-up shots, too, the Galaxy Z Flip7 does a fine job of getting the details nicely in the frame.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7's camera sample.

With ultra-wide angle, it was able to get the vast agricultural land in the photo without any software trick of bending structures just accommodate more in the compact space.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7's camera sample with ultra-wide angle mode.

It also supports 2X, 4X and goes up to 10X Zoom. The picture quality remains good up to 5X, and beyond that, the frame begins to accumulate grains.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7's camera sample with 1X.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7's camera sample with 2X zoom.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7's camera sample with 4X zoom.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7's camera sample with 10X zoom.

At night, it takes pretty nice photos with less noise.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7's camera sample.

It takes good portrait pictures. You can see the sharp focus on our pet dog with all the facial hair and the ears perfectly captured, and the minute details of the eyes are brilliantly captured. And, importantly, it does a fine job with artfully blurring the background to get the perfect bokeh effect.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7's camera sample with portrait mode on.

The device supports gen AI editing tools to remove unwanted objects from the photo and in videos, users can remove the background noise as well.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7 supports several gen AI-powered photography tools.

Also, with reimagine feature, users can ask gen AI tool to add things to the photo and make it fun and worth sharing with friends and family to have an engaging conversation on messenger apps and social media platforms.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7's camera sample.

On the front, it houses a 10MP (f/2.2, 23mm lens, 1/3.0-inch sensor, 1.22µm pixel size) camera. It takes pretty good selfies in the sunlight.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7's camera sample.

The primary camera can record up to 4K videos at 30 and 60 frames per second (fps) options. The front camera can record 4K at 30 fps. The video quality is decent.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7's camera sample.

Final thoughts: Pretty neat performer

Though Galaxy Z Flip7 hasn't undergone a drastic design change like the Z Fold7, it has unique design elements to stand apart from the competition. Also, it comes with better build quality, and longer battery life compared to the predecessor.

There is not much change in photography hardware over the 2024 model, but still, the device does a fine job getting really good snaps.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7.

And, I am particularly impressed with Samsung's gen AI tools and photography editing features. They set a new benchmark for premium phones.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7 comes in two configurations-- 12 GB RAM + 256 GB storage and 12GB RAM + 512GB storage-- for Rs 1,09,999, and Rs 1,21,999, respectively.

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