The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6: A Pocket-Sized Powerhouse with AI at its Core
The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 is back, and it’s ready to turn heads once again. Samsung has a long history of innovating in the foldable phone space, and with the Z Flip 6, they’ve made it their mission to push the boundaries of AI integration. The Flip 6 boasts impressive features, including a powerful Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor, a gorgeous 6.7-inch Dynamic AMOLED display, and cutting-edge AI capabilities. However, in a rapidly evolving market where brands like Motorola are challenging the status quo with lower price points, how does the Galaxy Z Flip 6 hold up? Let’s find out in this in-depth review.
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 Design: Pocketable and Premium
The Galaxy Z Flip 6, while familiar in its outward appearance, features several subtle enhancements. Its compact size when folded makes it remarkably pocketable, and the new dual-rail hinge contributes to a stronger exterior. The sleek build uses an enhanced armor aluminum frame to provide a solid in-hand feel, and the scratch-resistant Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2 adds to its durability.
The matte finish adds a touch of elegance and keeps the phone looking fresh, even after prolonged use. The flat edge finish contributes to a premium aesthetic, although it can feel slightly uncomfortable in the hand due to the sharp edges. However, you quickly adapt to its size and find it easy to open and close with one hand. While the Flip 6 is designed to be enjoyed without a case, adding one will inevitably increase the weight, impacting its portability.
Samsung has released the Galaxy Z Flip 6 in six alluring colors: Crafted Black, White, and Peach (Special Edition) and Blue, Mint, and Silver Shadow (standard). The special edition colors offer unique visual appeal, while the standard options provide a more classic look. The Silver Shadow model, reviewed here, is both bright and charming and grows on you as you use it.
In terms of water resistance, the Flip 6 has IP48 certification, offering some protection against water splashes. Overall, the Flip 6 doesn’t revolutionize the Flip 5’s design, but it refines it with subtle but meaningful improvements.
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 Display: A Two-Faced Story
While the display department also features minor evolutionary steps, the Galaxy Z Flip 6 offers a captivating experience overall. The 6.7-inch Full-HD+ Dynamic AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate and 1080×2640 pixels resolution creates an incredibly crisp and vibrant viewing experience. The increased peak brightness of 2600nits compared to its predecessor’s 1750nits is a notable improvement, especially for outdoor usage.
The 3.4-inch Super AMOLED cover display, however, comes with a disappointing 60Hz refresh rate and a 720×748 pixels resolution. In an era where Motorola’s Razr 50 Ultra offers significantly more functionality and visual clarity with its cover display, this feels like a step back from Samsung. The 306PPI pixel density and 1600nits peak brightness also fall short of expectations for a phone in this price range.
The limited functionality of the cover display is a significant drawback. While Samsung allows for the addition of widgets, including calculator, dialer, gallery, and calendar, the functionality remains restricted. While the Good Lock app from the Galaxy Store offers workarounds for accessing more apps on the cover screen, its implementation is not as straightforward or reliable as on the Motorola Razr 50 Ultra.
Despite its limitations, the cover display features useful customisations. Features like the ability to open apps and have them continue on the main screen when unfolded, or the option to use widgets for quick access to specific functions, add a layer of convenience. Ultimately, the Flip 6’s cover screen is a mixed bag: it offers potential for improved usability but falls short of what competitors are offering.
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 Performance: A Pocket Rocket
Samsung ensures that the Galaxy Z Flip 6 boasts the latest hardware, guaranteeing a top-notch performance. The device houses a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 SoC, which, despite not being the newest generation (8s Gen 3), delivers an exceptional performance due to its capabilities.
The inclusion of a vapor chamber cooling system is a game-changer. It ensures that the phone, even when running demanding graphics games like Call of Duty Mobile and BGMI, stays relatively cool, preventing performance throttling. Samsung has also transitioned to a base 12GB RAM configuration, exceeding expectations and offering a smooth multitasking experience.
The Z Flip 6’s performance is truly admirable, even when challenged with heavy loads. While it can get warm during intense gaming sessions, the cooling system swiftly brings the temperature down within minutes of closing the app.
To further illustrate the impressive performance of the Z Flip 6, let’s take a look at the benchmark scores:
| Benchmark | Razr 50 Ultra | Oppo Find N3 Flip | Galaxy Z Flip 6 |
|---|---|---|---|
| AnTuTu v10 | 1,283,736 | 1,027,655 | 1,433,798 |
| PCMark Work 3.0 | 18,011 | 9,824 | 16,911 |
| Geekbench 6 Single | 1,926 | 1,116 | 1,687 |
| Geekbench 6 Multi | 4,950 | 3,325 | 6,520 |
| GFXBench T-rex | 120 | 60 | 120 |
| GFXBench Manhattan 3.1 | 120 | 60 | 120 |
| GFXBench Car Chase | 87 | 60 | 110 |
| 3DM Slingshot Extreme OpenGL | Maxed Out | Maxed Out | Maxed Out |
| 3DM Slingshot | Maxed Out | Maxed Out | Maxed Out |
| 3DM Wild Life | Maxed Out | Maxed Out | Maxed Out |
| 3DM Wild Life Unlimited | 12,050 | 12,769 | 13,889 |
The Z Flip 6 excels in all these tests, proving its remarkable performance capabilities. The user experience is further enhanced by the clean and bloatware-free OneUI 6.1.1, based on Android 14.
Additional features that add to the overall experience include:
- Near-invisible crease: Samsung has made significant progress in minimizing the crease on the main display, making it almost undetectable in daily use.
- IP48 water resistance: Provides reassurance against accidental splashes.
- Decent speakers: Suitable for listening in small rooms.
- Nano SIM and eSIM support: Provides flexible connectivity options.
- Excellent call quality: Offers clear and reliable conversations.
- Strong network connectivity: Maintains data even in low network zones.
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 AI: The Next Evolution
AI is a central focus for Samsung’s premium devices this year, and the Galaxy Z Flip 6 embraces this with a robust suite of AI-powered features. These features seamlessly integrate into everyday usage, enhancing productivity and streamlining experiences.
Here are some notable AI additions:
- Note Assist: Transforms your Samsung Notes into a powerful tool with features like summarizing, spell-checking, translating, voice recording, transcription, and PDF overlay translation.
- Composer: Helps you compose text for email or social media by suggesting sentences and phrases.
- Interpreter: Enables seamless communication across language barriers by offering on-screen translations during face-to-face conversations.
- Sketch to Image: Utilizes AI to understand your sketches and transform them into realistic images.
- Portrait Studio: Allows you to convert portrait photos into different art styles, such as comics, 3D cartoons, watercolors, and sketches.
- Flex Cam with Auto Zoom: Frames your subjects automatically with AI-powered intelligent composition.
- Suggested Replies: Provides AI-generated responses for text messages on platforms like Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messages.
- Photo Ambient: Dynamically changes your wallpaper in real time based on the current time and weather.
These are only some of the AI features Samsung has integrated into the Galaxy Z Flip 6. The dedicated AI settings tab allows you to explore and manage all AI-powered features at your convenience. Other notable additions include:
- Call Assist: Offers real-time translation during voice calls.
- Chat Assist: Translates messages and composes text with the help of AI.
- Browsing Assist: Provides summaries and translations for webpages.
The Galaxy Z Flip 6 positions itself as a powerful and versatile phone that not only meets your daily needs but also seamlessly integrates AI to enhance those experiences.
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 Camera: A Flip Phone with a Photography Edge
Samsung has made significant strides in the camera department with the Galaxy Z Flip 6. The redesigned primary camera boasts a 50-megapixel wide-angle ISOCELL GN3 sensor with an f/1.8 aperture, dual-pixel PDAF, and OIS. This, combined with a 12-megapixel ultrawide camera and a 10-megapixel selfie camera, promises a well-rounded photographic experience.
In daylight conditions, the Flip 6’s camera truly shines. Images captured offer sharp details, accurate colors, good exposure, and a wide dynamic range. The color rendering in both photos and videos is impressive, and the autofocusing is lightning-fast and reliable. Even close-ups, although not as exceptional as with a macro lens, are handled admirably thanks to the Flip 6’s impressive capabilities.
Here are some sample camera shots:
[Image examples from the camera review, showing wide-angle, ultra-wide, daylight, portrait, and low-light photos]
The primary camera captures vibrant and detailed images, while the ultrawide camera captures beautiful wide perspectives without compromising on quality. Samsung’s AI capabilities even allow for object removal from images using the Object Eraser feature, adding a level of creative control.
The Flip 6’s nightography capabilities are impressive as well, producing decent night shots with a good balance of detail and noise control. The low-light performance is greatly enhanced compared to its predecessor, with improved dynamic range and sharper details.
[Image examples showcasing the Galaxy Z Flip 6’s low-light and nightography capabilities]
While 8K video recording is not available, the Flip 6 offers 4K recording at 30 and 60fps, making it an excellent choice for capturing high-quality video content.
Overall, the Galaxy Z Flip 6’s camera system delivers a well-rounded and impressive photographic experience across various lighting conditions.
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 Battery: Still a Work in Progress
While the battery capacity has received a significant bump – 4000mAh compared to the Flip 5’s 3700mAh – the actual battery life improvements are less impressive. The 25W wired charging and 15W wireless charging promise faster charging speeds, but the real-world performance doesn’t always live up to the promise.
With heavy usage patterns, including multitasking with multiple apps open in the background, gaming sessions, calls, and camera usage, the Flip 6 struggled to maintain a full charge for a full day. The screen-on time averaged around 5 hours, and battery life was 15 hours with heavy usage and 18 hours with medium usage.
[Image example showing the Galaxy Z Flip 6’s battery performance]
The Flip 6’s video loop test yielded a result of 18 hours and 20 minutes, slightly ahead of its predecessor. While Samsung correctly claims a 50 percent charge in 32 minutes with a 25W adapter, a full charge still takes about 80-90 minutes.
Overall, the Galaxy Z Flip 6’s battery life is adequate but not groundbreaking. It’s not quite at the level expected in a premium phone, which could be a turn-off for consumers who value long battery life.
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 Verdict: A Powerful Foldable with AI at the Forefront
The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 offers a compelling package with several strengths.
- AI Features: These AI features are truly useful and integrate seamlessly into everyday use.
- Improved Primary Camera: The new sensor delivers sharper details and improved low-light performance.
- Vapor Chamber Cooling System: Keeps the phone cool, even during demanding tasks.
- 12GB Base RAM: Provides a smooth and responsive multitasking experience.
However, the Flip 6 also comes with some drawbacks:
- High Price Point: While offering a lot of value, the Flip 6’s price tag may raise concerns for budget-conscious consumers.
- Limited Cover Display Functionality: Although there are workarounds, the cover display’s limited functionality falls short of competitors.
- Average Battery Life: The increase in battery capacity isn’t reflected in significantly improved real-world performance.
In comparison to competitors like the Motorola Razr 50 Ultra, which offers a strong combination of design, performance, and display capabilities at a more affordable price, the Galaxy Z Flip 6 leans heavily on its AI integration. If AI-powered features are a priority for you, the Flip 6 is a strong contender. However, for others, the price point and limited cover display functionality may present a barrier to purchase.
Ultimately, whether the Galaxy Z Flip 6 is the right phone for you depends on your individual needs and priorities. If you’re looking for a pocketable, powerful phone with cutting-edge AI features, the Flip 6 is certainly worth considering. However, if you’re on a tight budget or prioritize a more feature-rich cover display, other options may be a better fit.
