Beyond all the hype and buzzwords accompanying every new phone launch, even customers now realize that deep down all smartphones look and feel the same. There¡¯s no breath of fresh air on the horizon, no reimagining of the possibilities. Until you hold the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 in your hands.
The quintessential full-touchscreen candybar design of the modern smartphone has reached a saturation point over the past 15 years, as flip phones and physical keyboards faded away. Nothing announces the era of foldable screen smartphones better than the exceptional Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3. It¡¯s unlike any other phone you¡¯ve used, hands down.
There¡¯s plenty to like about the Galaxy Z Fold 3, even though it¡¯s not 100% perfect. If you thought the Galaxy Z Flip 3 was amazing, think of the Galaxy Z Fold 3 as its over-achieving big brother ¨C everything the Flip 3 does the Fold 3 does better. I summarize my highlights of the game-changing device after using it for over a month (longer than a regular review sample), and how history might judge it in the future.
Foldable screen
It isn¡¯t every day you come across a phone that takes your breath away, making you feel like a child agape with wonder, but the Galaxy Z Fold 3 has that effect on pretty much everyone. And a lot of it boils down to its foldable screen.
Just like the Galaxy Z Flip 3, the Z Fold 3¡¯s screen bends and contorts in an unconventional manner which is central to its entire appeal. But where the Flip 3 opens up vertically, the Fold 3 transforms from a phone to a mini-tablet horizontally. What¡¯s even more impressive is the Z Fold 3¡¯s screen effect ¨C if it were a book, the Fold 3¡¯s screen appears to spill beyond the cover and wraps into the inside left and right halves, divided by a slightly indented spine crease of an otherwise single unbroken screen layer. Seen this way, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 is marvelous to behold, a real feat of industrial design and cutting-edge engineering, where the adjectives and exaggerated hyperboles feel justified.
Opening and closing the Galaxy Z Fold 3¡¯s foldable screen never gets old, and yes it feels bulkier than any self-respecting flagship smartphone ought to be in 2021. But it¡¯s far from a deal-breaker for a foldable concept that finally marries form with function better than anything out there on the market. Where the Galaxy Z Flip 3 feels high on nostalgia, the Fold 3¡¯s bendable screen experience feels bolder and sophisticated, heralding the myriad possibilities of using a foldable screen phone as your daily driver in the not-too-distant future. For this reason alone, the Galaxy Z Fold 3¡¯s experience is so exciting.
No gimmick stylus
I remember using the S Pen on the Galaxy Note 5 over half a decade ago, where it felt quite pointless, largely a gimmick. Not just older S Pen implementations, my fundamental problem with styluses as a navigational tool in the past was they felt clunky, inconvenient and time consuming ¨C basically, poor excuses for not touching the screen with your fingers directly. But that¡¯s no longer the case with the S Pen experience on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3.?
The S Pen¡¯s another impressive example of engineering problem-solving on the Fold 3¡¯s foldable screen ¨C how smoothly it traces, tracks and responds to the fine-tip stylus touch. The crease running along the centre of the unfolded screen isn¡¯t a dead zone, Samsung has ensured this with clever use of software.
The learning curve on the stylus can be compared to the trackpoint on a ThinkPad ¨C you¡¯ll get used to it within a day and wonder why on earth every phone (or laptop keyboard) doesn¡¯t support it out of the box. The stylus on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 is super accurate and makes navigating the device extremely intuitive, whether you¡¯re sketching a digital painting or annotating a document.?
Everything is great except the decision to make the S Pen an optional purchase, which means it doesn¡¯t have the super-convenient physical compartment inside the Galaxy Z Fold 3 unit like Galaxy Note devices of the past.?
Tablet mode unleashed
In many ways, the fundamental question the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 tries to answer with its foldable screen implementation is whether you need to buy a separate tablet at all. If your futuristic smartphone can instantly expand its dimensions to a very respectable 7.6-inch panel, why clutter your life with a separate tablet device for a few more inches??
While it¡¯s not perfect in its re-imagining of a smartphone-tablet hybrid, the Galaxy Z Fold 3¡¯s definitely the most compelling concept that tests your tablet allegiance from a foldable screen perspective.
Whether it¡¯s reading an online article or an e-book, watching a movie on Netflix or gaming or just doodling mindlessly, the unfolded Galaxy Z Fold 3¡¯s display does all these tasks pretty well. The increased screen real-estate makes everything from typing to attending a video call a much better experience on the Galaxy Z Fold 3.?
Beyond what any other smartphone can offer, the wider unfolded screen of the Z Fold 3 feels a lot closer to being a tablet substitute than it has ever done before in previous iterations. And even after extended use, the bendable screen of the Galaxy Z Fold 3 still feels brand new.
In the admiration of hardware and industrial design, the software shouldn¡¯t be forgotten ¨C it needs deserving praise. The Galaxy Z Fold 3¡¯s experience comes to life not just by cutting edge hardware, but also Samsung¡¯s One UI which enables it to shine. Paired with the stylus, the One UI tweaks make the device¡¯s tablet experience more wholesome ¨C apps adjust to show a tablet UI, Samsung¡¯s apps take full advantage of the split screen real-estate, and the swipe-out ¡°task bar¡± along the right edge adds a whole new level of quick tasks in a more efficient manner. It all clicks together and makes sense, especially when you navigate the Galaxy Z Fold 3¡¯s unfolded screen with a stylus.
All inside a flagship smartphone shell
Beyond its futuristic foldable screen allure, at its heart the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 is still an excellent flagship smartphone that¡¯s 5G-ready, with very good camera and video performance to take on the best in the market.?
Given its larger screen real-estate, the device¡¯s battery life isn¡¯t the best; its front camera can be better; and it's not thin enough in the pocket ¨C but all these are minor blemishes, not deal breakers, in a device that¡¯s bringing a futuristic concept to life. I¡¯m sure some of these areas will be improved upon in the future Galaxy Z Fold update.?
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 for me is a genre-defining moment, much like the iPhone was back when it debuted in 2007. I like how the Galaxy Z Fold 3 intelligently goes beyond the Galaxy Z Flip 3 in the mega-phablet territory with a stylus experience that doesn¡¯t feel forced.?
Much like the iPhone aggregated several devices into one unbeatable package for so long, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 will be cherished as the first premium smartphone to incorporate a fully-functional foldable screen that actually made sense to use, which tried to squeeze in a tablet inside a truly innovative smartphone experience like no other.
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