4 Months with the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 5G
I have been an avid Apple iPhone user since the iPhone 4 first came available on Verizon Wireless. Prior to that, I was the proud owner of an HTC Droid Eris, the oft-forgotten little stepbrother to the OG Motorola Droid. While the iPhone is still in my pocket as my primary personal device, I still take a chance on a secondary device to stay acquainted with the Android ecosystem, how different apps and platforms work compared to their iOS brethren, and to try out some Google-specific features that are sometimes Android only. In August, I added the just released Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 5G as my new secondary device, and immediately it became a favorite of mine. Here are my thoughts after 4 months with this device riding shotgun beside me every day.
Specs
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 5G is a foldable smartphone with a 6.2-inch external display that opens up to show off a glorious 7.6-inch inner display. The cover screen is OLED and with a resolution of 2268 x 832 (for a 387ppi measurement) and includes 120Hz adaptive refresh rate and a centered hole-punch 10MP selfie camera. The magnificently striking main screen is also OLED, with a resolution of 2208 x 1768 (for a 374ppi measurement), is HDR 10+ certified, has 120Hz adaptive refresh rate, and includes a first-generation Under Display Camera that measures 4MP.
The outer screen is covered in Corning’s Gorilla Glass Victus, while the inner display is Samsung’s second-generation Ultra-Thin Glass, covered with a newly enhanced PET screen protector that feels smooth to the touch, even if there IS a noticeable crease. That crease, like Apple’s iPhone notch, becomes less prominent or noticeable the more you use the device, although you definitely still feel it with every swipe over the hinge.
Inside this machine is the Snapdragon 888 chipset, paired with 12 GB of RAM and (on my model) 256 GB of internal storage. This is all powered by a large 4,400 mAh battery that supports 25 W quick charging and wireless charging up to 11 W.
The camera setup on the rear of the device is a triple camera setup that features a 12MP 123-degree UltraWide camera with an F2.2 aperture, a 12MP Wide-angle camera (83 degrees) with an F1.8 aperture, and a 12MP Telephoto camera with an F2.4 aperture and 45-degree field-of-view and supports 10x digital zoom, HDR 10+ recording, and video recording up to 4K at 30 or 60 FPS.
Software
The device runs Android 11 out of the box, and was just recently updated to Android 12 in December of 2021. The software experience might actually be the next best thing about the phone, other than the obvious fact that it folds! Android has nailed the multitasking experience for a device like this when opened up, allowing for multiple applications to be open at the same time, side-by-side. Want to scroll Twitter while looking at YouTube videos? No problem. Want to look at Instagram posts while splitting the screen with your Facebook feed on the other? Easy. It’s perfect for researching something and taking notes, or copying and pasting from Edge (or Chrome) into another app. Android 12 brings with it the color-matching Material You aspects, which in my case brings out the colors in the Windows 11 background image that I use as my wallpaper and makes my widgets and controls the same matching color across the OS. This has to be my favorite version of Android yet…I just love the ease of doing things, and this is all without talking about Split View. Some apps, like YouTube, allow for the device to remain semi-folded like a mini-laptop and display the video on the top half of the screen with the comments scrollable on the bottom (without affecting the video). In the stock Camera app, I can take a photo one side with the viewfinder, while the other side of the screen can show the photo I just took to decide whether I captured the shot or not much faster. Little wrinkles like this make the form-factor exciting and strategic at the same time.
Daily Use
I quickly fell in love with this device primarily based on the fact that it folded a tablet up and placed it into a pocketable experience for everyday carry. The battery easily gets me through an entire day of calls, text messages, TikTok viewing, Instagram scrolling, Twitter learning, YouTube viewing and more. I often go to bed with around 25% battery still left, and that is on my most intense use days.
The S Pen is only supported on the larger internal screen, and it is a special Fold Edition S Pen, to boot. It features a pressure-loaded retractable tip so as to not damage the super-sensitive screen as you write. The experience with the S Pen is phenomenal, and I truly enjoy using it at meetings to take notes, or just to doodle and sketch when I need a brain break. My only wish is that the S Pen could be housed inside the device, as carrying it around as an extra accessory can be quite annoying sometimes. The device itself does wobble when unfolded and laid out on a desk to write on due to the camera bump, but overall, it is still an enjoyable experience.
Taking photos with the main cameras on the rear of the device provide fine, but not remarkable shots. Clear, colorful, with just some portrait mode misses on the outline of subjects every now and then, but overall, not too bad. It competes admirably with photos taken on my iPhone, with different shots and lighting scenarios providing different results for each. The Under-Display selfie camera, however, is a mess. The pictures are blurry or poorly blown-out by surrounding light sources, which one can imagine from a first-generation attempt at something like this. Lots of washed out colors and details emerge when using the UDC on the inner screen. I do appreciate that the camera is covered by pixels when not using it and blends into the screen image way better than a punch hole or notch camera does.
It is a chunky device but still fits in the pockets of most jeans and dress pants, and when using it in public, it is often something people look at and then approach to ask questions about. For me, it fits a particular useful purpose when my kids are lounging with me on the couch before bed at night, enjoying some iPad time, and I can use this device as a mini-tablet and enjoy some content, as well. The multi-tasking experience is hands down better than what Apple currently employs on any iPad or iPhone…being able to place 2 apps side-by-side (vertically or horizontally) is much appreciated and works well every time. You can even place a third app on the screen and have a floating fourth window if you so choose. The ability to pin a frequently used combo of apps to the side bar to open together with a single-click is also a nice benefit of the software experience. The main screen is a bit of an odd aspect ratio (2.73:1, tall and skinny), which makes typing a bit of a circus act at times. Swipe keyboard input helps the cause a bit when using the front screen, but it is fine for quick checks of social apps and looking at notifications. I find myself opening the device up to the main screen for deeper interacting, emails, etc.
The crease is barely noticeable when looking straight at the device.
Summary
Overall, this device has provided me with an amazing Android experience that continues to get better with every update. In December it received its Android 12 update, and it has been rock-solid so far. It truly is a standout powerhouse device, and one that often finds me at odds on what device I would rather use more often: this Z Fold 3 or my iPhone. I don’t get annoyed by “blue bubble vs. green bubble” texting, so that is not a matter here, but I often carry both because of the strengths that each device possesses for my use-cases. If you are on the fence about trying a foldable device for the first time, do it! Without apprehension, I would recommend this device to anyone seeking my input. It is a wonderful experience, a multi-tasking powerhouse, and a true art of innovation to use a screen the folds up (even with a crease, people) into a smaller overall foorprint.
