Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 foldable smartphone review – the flip phone is back

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• VERDICT

Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip 4 is a fun and approachable foldable smartphone that has a slick design and a swathe of features to attract upgrading Flip users and those keen to take their first step into the new foldable world.

Samsung’s new Galaxy Z Flip 4 uses a similar hinge and technology as the Z Fold 4 to make it a foldable smartphone – but it a vastly different device and a different customer that it’s designed for.

While Z Fold 4 is a workhorse device designed for the high-end users, the Z Flip 4 has a different demographic – a regular user who wants the features they know and love but with a head-turning form factor that’s made flip phones trendy again.

But it’s a flip phone with a huge difference to the ones we used almost 20 years ago.

The foldable display which, when unfolded, is 6.7-inch but when the users is done using that screen, they can fold it half and they are no longer carrying a large device but a much smaller more pocketable device.

Until now, having a large phone screen meant you had to carry around a large device.

The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 changes all of that.

And in its fourth iteration, the Flip 4 is better than ever with an improved camera, slimmer hinge, faster performance and longer battery life.

It also has an IPX8 rating which makes it water resistant.

It’s also made from Armor Aluminium so it can handle solid daily use and doesn’t need to be handled with kid gloves.

THE EXPERIENCE

Having a folding smartphone for the first is a novelty but that’s not going to last forever.

What will last forever is the convenience of having a full-sized device that can be literally folded in half and slipped inside your pocket.

People were fascinated by it when we showed it to them – to them it was like a party trick.

The larger outside screen – it’s now 1.9-inch – is also a lot more functional and you can still do a lot as well like check your messages and notifications and control your media without opening the phone.

It can also be used to access your digital wallet so you can pay for things while its closed as well.

Users can also frame photos using the smaller screen and shoot video through the main cameras beside the front display.

When it is unfolded with the larger screen it’s just like a regular phone – until you decide to fold it and put it away.

DESIGN

The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 has had a slight redesign – and by redesign we mean a couple of millimetres to give the inside and outside screen a little more room.

It also has a slimmer hinge which has a smaller protrusion when it’s closed.

The cameras used to be flush with the front surface but now the two lenses protrude slightly.

There are also some new colours including Bora Purple.

Samsung has a Bespoke mode which allows users to choose their own panel and frame colours to make it truly their own.

SCREEN

The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 has a 6.7-inch Dynamic AMOLED screen with an adaptive 120Hz refresh rate.

The colours and clarity are remarkable – with the same glass-like appearance of a regular screen.

The Flip 4 display is actually covered with a razor thin layer of glass. And the touchscreen also works like any other smartphone you’ve ever used.

There is a slight indentation where the hinge is located but you quickly forget about that when you’re using the phone, taking your images and viewing your content.

FLEX MODE

Flex Mode is the feature that really sets the Z Flip 4 apart and enables so many features and capabilities.

And it is enabled by the hinge when the device is half open and able to be rested on surfaces.

Users can take advantage of Flex Mode mainly when taking photos, viewing content and when on video calls.

The most obvious use, and one that’s tailor-made for the typical Z Flip 4 user, is taking selfies.

Users can rest the phone on a flat surface and align the camera and then simply hold up an open palm activate the three-second shutter timer.

The result are perfectly framed selfies that are ready to share.

CAMERA

The Z Flip 4 has two main 12-megapixel cameras – a wide and ultrawide – as well as a front 10-megapixel camera on the main screen.

The camera is not the same quality as you’ll find on the Z Fold 4 and the Galaxy S22 Ultra, but it still holds its own with sharp images that capture natural colours.

It has inherited the Nightography capabilities so low light images are really impressive and manage to find light and make the picture remarkably brighter.

Even the selfie camera, the one you use in Flex Mode, will have you looking your best.

Flex Mode allows you to do a lot more with the camera.

The fact you can bend the phone at a right angle makes it possible to do things like taking top-down images or low angle shots and videos.

The level of versatility is only limited by your imagination.

Considering the user of the Z Flip 4 is more likely to take and share images on social media and with friends, it’s a shame the quality of the camera is not better.

The camera on the Z Fold 4 is a lot better but the typical user is less likely to use the camera in the same way as the Z Flip 4 user.

We think the Z Flip 4 user would appreciate a higher quality camera than the Z Fold 4 user.

What that would do to the design, we don’t know – it could make it a little bigger, but we think that would be an acceptable trade-off for many customers.

BATTERY

One of the biggest improvements of the Z Flip 4 is the battery life.

It now has a larger 3,700mAh battery which easily gets you through the day.

When we were using it as our main phone there was still about 20 per cent battery remaining by the evening.

The previous model would be lucky to get you through to mid-afternoon on a busy day before needing a recharge, so this is a welcome upgrade.

PRICE

The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 will be priced at $1,499 (256GB), $1,649 (256GB), $1,849 (512GB) $1,729 (Bespoke – 256GB). These are the same prices as last year.

VERDICT

Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip 4 is a fun and approachable foldable smartphone that has a slick design and a swathe of features to attract upgrading Flip users and those keen to take their first step into the new foldable world.