Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 Review: The Redemption Arc Begins

It’s no surprise that Samsung has been playing a catch-up game with its Foldables while other brands are making such major progress in the hardware division. It was only a matter of time; Samsung felt the sting, and they finally did. After spending a good time with their new flip and doing this review, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 enters the redemption arc.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 Review

Mysteriously Better Hinge and Closure

Starting off with the design, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 has been refined from the ground up with its design, profile and hinge. Weighing at 188 grams and with 6.5mm thinness when unfolded and 13.7mm thickness folded – this phone is giving “Hot Summer Body” vibes with its finish.

The clunky feel with the flip is long gone, and this feels more well put together. But that’s because of the new hinge and the better magnetised sides when you fold it. Opening and closing the phone is not that easily doable with one hand, and you need to use both your hands to unfold it – the same applies to the Z Fold 7, but the sound it makes when it closes – that’s a much nicer snap than the Z Flip 6.

The Armor FlexHinge brings an improved hinge with a thinner and more reinforced finish and uses a durable Armor Aluminium frame – and honestly, you can feel it when you hold it side by side with the Z Flip 6. But here’s the thing: Samsung has not disclosed any detailed information on the significant improvements that it underwent with the hinge.

But because of the new hinge, the crease on the inner display is now far less prominent than in the earlier models. Otherwise, we just have to take what Samsung says about the hinge as proof that it is really okay, I suppose.

The New Cover Display is Lovely but Limited in Functionality

The upgrade from the 3.4” to 4.1” is long overdue, and I am glad Samsung has finally done it, even though it has taken 5-6 years to get here. The flatter finish compared to the curved 2.5D glass on the Xiaomi Mix Flip is nice to use, but the 2.5D curvature does make swiping from the sides a lot easier.

But the 120Hz and a pretty bright display get you going with no issues – though the cover display feels more like a widget screen than a proper phone – the limitation does annoy me a lot. It still has the notification on the left, widgets on the right, and a non-modifiable control centre, which annoys me that I have to open the phone to toggle some of the functions I need.

And the fact that you still need to go through the whole Good Lock Process to get to use more apps is a frustrating one, and Samsung needs to include it natively inside the phone settings for good.

It’s the 7^th Generation, and features like these are no longer experimental. But once you do set everything up and start using the display, it is such a breath of fresh air to be able to use the phone without the need to open and use the main screen all the time. The GoodLock MultiScreen lets to change the ratio of the app, which is nice, and because of that, messaging via apps, watching videos, and scrolling through social media are all fun and easier to do from the cover right now.

Though there are other limitations: you can only use the Samsung keyboard in the cover mode and not GBoard, even after setting the app up with GoodLock to use it from the Cover Screen, the app notifications will tell you to open up to use the main screen, and the lack of orientation is a little annoying.

Picking up a call with the cover still uses the loudspeaker. This is where, to a certain degree, Xiaomi did so well with the Mix Flip by adding another earpiece to the cove,r and you can use almost any apps with the cover display.

Improved Main Display is Refreshing

I am a fan of this new wider inner display, and the crease is something that I have inevitably chosen to live with when I use the Z Flip series. But the improvement all possible to the hinge has brought the crease to a very minimal level. The 6.9” display is not just longer but wider, so it’s time to bid farewell to the odd AF ratio while watching movies or shows on the go or wherever you are.  

Exynos 2500 is Great… until you game on it

Most users getting the Z Flip aren’t particularly getting it to game on it, but they are using this phone as a content-and productivity-centric smartphone. And honestly, if you ask me, I cannot tell the difference between the Snapdragon-powered Z Flip over this Exynos-powered smartphone because the Exynos 2500 in this one feels exactly like what a flagship processor should feel like.

Performance is pretty snappy, multitasking is so easy to do, and overall, it’s a phone I wouldn’t be disappointed with. In fact, I used the Z Flip 7 to record my recent Volvo EX30 video clips and had no issues with it at all. But if you do plan to game on this phone, there are a few things to consider. For starters, the phone is thin, and it retains a simple VC cooling system, which remains unchanged, and thermal dissipation might be a bit challenging.

We were playing Silver and Blood on the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 and while the performance and the game experience was excellent – just in the first 2-3 minutes, the top part of the phone started to get all warm and 8-9 minutes in, it was hot to the touch which was a little uncomfortable while the bottom half the phone remained a lot less hot and was easier to hold. So, if you do happen to game, toggle the graphics settings to a lot less demanding settings. While this might help to a certain degree, it is better than having a hot phone.

And in this very moment, I realised, I am very glad this phone was not running the Snapdragon Processor, which could very much cook the phone just like how the Motorola Razr is having troubles right now. And while I understand older Exynos users getting annoyed that this uses Exynos, that’s in the past because, since the 2400 at least for me, performance and the experience with Exynos is absolutely amazing.

Battery Life of the 4300mAh is Decent

The increase in battery capacity by 300mAh is a much-needed increase, and while retaining the thin profile, Samsung has done some interesting engineering here. They were able to fit this in, all possible because of the new PCB, which takes up a lot less space. While the 4300mAh is still not a lot by today’s standards, Samsung’s software optimisation does a good job at it.

Samsung is playing it too safe with the battery capacity since that unforgettable incident from the Note7 days. And I can understand how that hinders the brand’s ability to grow in the battery department, but taking it slow is better than nothing. With that said, if I don’t game on this phone, I could get a day’s worth of battery life, with a decent 3 hours 30+ minutes of SoT (Screen on time), but if I do push its limits, then it does require a charger or a power bank as the sun sets.

Again, if you choose to use this phone heavily, then carry your power bank at all times.

Same Camera, Similar Experience

The camera hardware on the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 has not changed compared to the Flip 6. But the experience has changed a little, especially with the new OneUI 8 Camera layout with support for custom LUT for photos and such, which we have spoken about in our other Samsung reviews.

But photos you take on this phone will not disappoint you because with the cover display, you won’t be using the main display’s hideous camera under the UTG and will resort to the 50MP shooter and the 12MP ultrawide on the back.

Because it has no telephoto, the Zoom is limited to 10x Digitally, but the Z Flip is a very lifestyle phone, so you will have a different kind of fun with it by taking POV shots and getting creative with it. Overall, it’s a good camera, but I do wish that the 12MP ultrawide gets a spruce up in the next one because more light in the ultrawide would mean better low light performance, and I wouldn’t have to wait for a good few seconds to shoot a selfie with my buddy here in these photos.

You can check out all the samples from this phone below.

Improved OneUI with DeX (F*ck yes)

For years, not having the DeX mode on the Z Flip felt like an oversight – though most users who want the best productivity experience on a phone would either go for the S Ultra and the Z Fold. But it wouldn’t hurt to put the Dex mode in the Flip, too. And finally, it’s here, and I am happy that it exists with the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7. DeX has always been a better mode for connecting a phone to a bigger screen, and if you have a dongle, you could charge the phone and even connect storage to use as well.

But for me, it makes more sense when I am travelling – as it allows me to connect to a portable monitor when needed or to my Hotel’s TV to watch my content. DeX has its limitations too, but with this feature, now my Flip can be the entertainment device I can keep in my bag while I am on the move.

What I am Not a Fan of

The Awful Charging Speed (it’s not even 35W)

Another oversight on Samsung’s part is the charging speed for the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 – the awful 25W charging, which takes longer than usual to charge the battery up from 15% to 100% – in fact, we documented our charging speed and time:

• At 12:30 pm, at 16%, the phone predicted that it would complete charging at 1:45 pm.
• At 1:25 pm, it was only at 60% and it says 50 minutes left.
• At 1:45 pm, it was at 82% with an estimated time of completion at 2:16 pm
• Finally, at 2:25 pm, it completed charging, and it took far longer than 1 hour to charge from 15% to 100%.

The fact that this phone is capped at 25W while the A56 has a 45W is, as the kids say, Diabolical. And with our Sharge adapter, we realised it only utilised about 15-18W, which is a shame. So, charge your phone overnight, don’t charge while you are doing your morning routine, because you best bet, one hour later, it ain’t going to touch 100%.

Conclusion

Over the years, we have seen the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip Series creep up in price as it improves the phone with the right hardware to pair with the software to provide the best experience. Until the last generation, it felt very limiting in many areas than one. I am glad that Samsung realised it and finally took the initiative to make a better Z Flip.

And the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 is truly the best Z Flip they have made, apart from the minor inconvenience the charging speed brings to the table. At RM 4,999 for the 256GB, well, pricey for sure, but if you got the phone at the same price but for the 512GB, it’s more worth it.

The 256GB is listed as “coming soon” on their site because of the Double Storage promotion – so, there’s a good chance you will get the 256GB for a lot more cheaper price in months’ time. A pattern we have been noticing with Samsung for a while now. So, shop smart.

I do hope those software quirks get worked out in the coming months with updates.

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