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At Samsung’s launch event for the Galaxy Fold 8, Galaxy Fold 8 Ultra, Galaxy Flip 8, as well as the Galaxy Watch8 and Galaxy Watch Ultra2 smartwatches, I saw several things that made me want a foldable even more than I already do. One of them was Samsung’s decision to drop the “Z” branding from the foldable lineup in at least four countries: Ukraine, Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia.
Unlike my previous hands-on with a foldable smartphone, I should also clarify that I now find myself specifically drawn to the book-style form factor. I simply need more screen space, and since I rely heavily on both a smartphone and a tablet, having access to both experiences is genuinely valuable to me. Samsung also demonstrated that book-style foldables are not just compact tablets – they can function as remarkably practical smartphones when folded as well.
Read also: Samsung smartphone reviews
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Video report from the presentation
Samsung Galaxy Fold 8/Fold 8 Ultra
What do I mean by that? The Samsung Galaxy Fold 8 is not simply a lighter version of the Ultra. It is a fundamentally different device. The most significant distinction lies in the displays. The standard model features a 4:3 display, similar to the Open Gate aspect ratio. The Ultra, by contrast, retains a much squarer 10:9 aspect ratio.
As a result, the outer displays are different as well. The Ultra adopts the expected tall smartphone aspect ratio, while the Fold 8 is wider than even most conventional slab phones. When folded, its footprint is remarkably close to that of a passport, with an effective 16:10 aspect ratio. To be honest, that is exactly what makes it such an intriguing device.
Leaks had also been heavily suggesting that the Ultra model would inherit a number of features from the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra, the company’s flagship slab-style smartphone. That certainly sounded promising. In practice, however, we have lost at least one telephoto module, while the remaining one is only a 10 MP sensor.
On the other hand, the device does feature a 200 MP main camera, a 50 MP ultra-wide sensor, and support for the APV (Advanced Professional Video) codec, which we covered in a separate article. The link is available in the description. More importantly, APV recording is supported across every camera module, including the 3× telephoto lens. The same applies to the Fold 8, where every camera module supports the APV codec.
The standard model comes with a less capable camera system, featuring two 50 MP cameras and no dedicated telephoto lens. Both devices are powered by the same Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy chipset, a customized version with slightly higher clock speeds. The standard model also includes less RAM, with 12 GB compared to the Ultra’s 16 GB. Storage configurations, however, are identical, ranging from 256 GB to 1 TB.
The displays have also received several upgrades. To improve durability, Samsung has added a titanium backing plate along with a titanium frame surrounding the display. The hinge mechanism has been completely redesigned as well, and these changes apply across the entire lineup of newly announced foldables. The AI capabilities have also been expanded, although we’ll return to those in a moment. On the downside, stylus support is now gone entirely. The digitizer has been removed at the hardware level, leaving no S Pen compatibility. Samsung has, however, retained support for DeX.
As for battery capacity, both smartphones are equipped with batteries of around 5,000 mAh, with the standard model offering slightly less. Wired charging is rated at 45 W, while wireless charging supports up to 20 W. Built-in magnetic attachment hardware has not made a return either, with magnetic mounting instead relying on compatible cases. According to Samsung representatives, this decision was made to preserve compatibility with reverse wireless charging. Pricing starts at €2,000 for the Samsung Galaxy Fold 8 and €2,200 for the Samsung Galaxy Fold 8 Ultra.
Samsung Galaxy Flip 8
Now, let’s move on to the Flip 8. Many of the features introduced with the Fold lineup are absent here. Instead of a Snapdragon chipset, the Flip 8 is powered exclusively by the Exynos 2600. As a result, it does not support the APV codec, since that capability depends on the processor. On the plus side, the device now weighs just 180 g, making it Samsung’s lightest clamshell-style foldable to date.
The Flip 8 features two displays: a 4.1-inch Super AMOLED cover screen and a 6.9-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X internal display with a 120 Hz refresh rate. It comes equipped with 12 GB of RAM and up to 512 GB of internal storage. The camera setup includes a 50 MP main sensor, a 12 MP ultra-wide camera, and a 10 MP front-facing camera. The software has also been improved, allowing the cover display to handle a much wider range of tasks than before.
The Flip 8 is equipped with a 4,300 mAh battery. It supports up to 45 W wired charging, 20 W wireless charging, and reverse wireless charging. Pricing for the Flip 8 starts at €1,300.
Samsung Galaxy Watch9/Ultra2
Among the other announcements were the Samsung Galaxy Watch9 and Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra2. The new models are visually very similar to their predecessors, particularly the Watch Ultra2. My colleague, Vladyslav Surkov, happened to be wearing the first-generation Watch Ultra, and at one point we genuinely mixed the two up – coming close to walking away with the new model by mistake.
That said, there are meaningful improvements, and they are all for the better. Battery life has been noticeably extended, the watches have become smarter thanks to enhanced on-device AI capabilities, and overall performance has improved through processor optimizations. The Watch Ultra2, meanwhile, now supports dedicated dive watch functionality and is capable of automatically detecting deep dives.
Those improvements are reflected in the pricing as well. The Samsung Galaxy Watch9 is expected to start at around $350 / €310, while the Galaxy Watch Ultra2 will start at approximately $715 / €630. That said, alongside the Fold 8, the Watch Ultra2 is the product I’m most looking forward to trying out in person.
But I’d love to hear your thoughts. Let me know in the comments which of the new devices caught your attention the most. For me, it’s definitely the Fold 8. I’m ready. My body is ready. Now it’s your turn – share your pick in the comments!