Samsung Galaxy Z Fold8 - Branding Nightmare. Dream Phone

It's not every day we get a whole new kind of phone.

Since pioneering the folding screen on a handset back in 2019, Samsung has pretty much dominated a section of the market it literally created out of thin air.

Well, until recently.

Over the last couple of years it seems like all the big names have caught up, releasing their own folding phones and in some cases, laying down the gauntlet to Samsung with innovative form-factors and pushing the boundaries with hinge technology, latterly eliminating the dreaded "crease" almost completely.

Samsung hasn't taken this lying down, also continuing to refine its Z Fold and Z Flip lines, making each generation more durable, thinner, lighter and yes, less creasy.

And now they've got a new one entirely.

The confusing thing is, it has an old name. Last year's Galaxy Z Fold7 has been updated but it isn't the Z Fold8. It's become the Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra instead. That's fine. The first one didn't have a Z in its name, it was just a Fold. If they want to add an Ultra to the title too, whatevs.

The trouble is, that's not the phone I'm reviewing today.

Today we're looking at the Galaxy Z Fold8. So, essentially last year's name on a brand new phone. Could Samsung actually have made this any more confusing?

I can only speculate as to why they've done this - and I'll touch on that shortly - but first, let's just enjoy something new and exciting.

Let me start by admitting I never quite understood why the original Fold was the size and shape it was. I mean, I get that when opened up, the proportions of the internal display matched up quite nicely with those of a small tablet. But in my view, Samsung's design team put too much focus on getting that part right and didn't pay enough attention to the cover (outer) display.

Sure, it's fun to show off that folding screen to your mates and when you're doing actual work on your phone - browsing websites, editing documents, pictures and video, obviously that larger display is just the ticket.

However, the rest of the time (and by "the rest" I mean "most") many people would be using the Fold in its folded state, kind of like any other phone. That meant a very long, skinny outer display, literally too tall for most people to be able to operate with one hand. Too long to fit comfortably in a pants pocket and too narrow to comfortably fit all your usual apps and widgets on the home screen.

Anecdotally, casual users spend 70% to 80% of the time using folding phones folded, so unless you're the kind of power user who tends to reverse those stats, perhaps a tall skinny phone has limited appeal.

Well, seven generations later and Samsung has finally come up with what I like to think of as "The People's Fold." Simply by making it shorter and wider, the new Z Fold8 solves pretty much all of those complaints in one fell swoop - with very little compromise on durability, power or performance.

The Z Fold8's more squat display measures 5.5-inches diagonally as opposed to 6.5-inches on the Ultra - but because of its extra width, the difference in screen size when opened isn't nearly so dramatic; 7.6-inches vs 8.0. 

As far as I'm concerned, this is a major win, certainly in terms of sheer pocketability. The Z Fold8 slips into my front pants pocket, or the inside pocket of my jacket in much the same way Samsung's clamshell foldable, the Z Flip8 does, taking up so much less vertical space and not stabbing me in the thigh or armpit with its sharp corners every time I move.

It still has the same flagship CPU as the Ultra; the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy, both inner and outer displays offer 1-120HZ adaptive refresh rates and peak brightness levels top out at a dazzling 3000nits - all just like the Ultra.

The battery is slightly smaller, although given the screens are too, there's only about an hour's difference in how long the charge will last and the benefit is, the Fold8 ends up being noticeably lighter than the Ultra too.

The only significant tradeoff is the camera array. Both inner and outer selfie cams are the same; 10MP - which is fine, although these days that's lagging behind some competitors by quite a margin.

More conspicuously, there's a whole sensor missing on the Fold8 's main camera module compared to the one on the Ultra - no telephoto lens at all. The primary Wide shooter is 50MP as opposed to the 200MP option on the Ultra but the 50MP Ultra Wides are both the same.

So... Does that actually matter? Obviously, not if you take a lot of wide-angle shots and because Macro shooting uses the Ultra Wide sensor too, there won't be any difference in close-ups either.

However, keen-eyed camera buffs will probably detect the difference in detail and the accuracy of the background blur in portrait (or bokeh) shots taken with the main lens. Don't get me wrong, 50MP is great. But 200MP is super-great.

Then, depending on what you use your phone's camera to take photos of, the missing telephoto lens could be an issue if you take lots of sports shots or perhaps things like your kids/pets/partner playing in the surf.

To be honest, I've been clicking away with the Z Fold8 quite happily and not once have I thought to myself, "Gee, I wish I had a bit more optical zoom here" or "I wonder if I'm going to be able to blow this photo of my dog up to be a ten-foot mural on my wall?"

It is another interesting design decision from Samsung though, as this new aspect ratio (both on the outer and inner displays) was clearly focussed on creating and consuming more streamable, meme-able, portable content.

And I assume the slight camera compromise is the main reason the new shaped phone is now the Z Fold8 and the "Zoomier" one becomes the Ultra. Understandable? Maybe. Still confusing as hell though.

Name confusion and camera mismatch aside, I really love this phone. I've noticed how quickly I've taken to using it as my daily device - so easy to handle and recent upgrades to Samsung's durability ratings with its foldables mean I no longer feel as if I have to treat a handset like this with kid gloves. I also think, because it's more comfortable in the hand, that I do actually use the inner (sorry, "Main") display more often - especially when dealing with emails or watching video.

It has all the high-end features I've come to depend upon with a flagship; it charges wirelessly, connects via Wi-Fi 7 for incredible download speeds and One UI is certainly one of my favourite Android interfaces.

As for that squishy home-screen issue I had on the previous Folds - now I have the opposite challenge of course; plenty of room to fit my widgets widthways but a whole row of app icons shorter. Oh well, I'll get used to that, I guess.

Please don't ask me about AI . Like most Galaxy phones, this one is packed with it; Gemini, Co-Pilot - Galaxy AI itself - and as usual, I'm not always sure which one I'm using when. Just rest assured, the Z Fold8 does all the tricks. And when it comes to features like real-time translation, Samsung is one of the best I've tried.

Available in Cream, Graphite, Lavender or Pistachio(Online only) - the Z Fold8 is potentially one of the most exciting phones of the year - if for no other reason because it really is new. There's no other phone quite like it at the moment - well, not for another couple of months anyway.

But don't get one just because it's the new thing - get one because it's the right thing. I'm not saying the taller, skinnier Ultra isn't still the best option for many users, and I'll be reviewing that one in more detail in the weeks to come.

I just happen to think for the more casual, drop-it-in-your-pocket and forget it's there users like me, the Z Fold8 might just be a better fit.

    

Click here for more information and pricing on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold8.

motorola signature and motorola razr fold - New Zealand's New Perfect Power Couple

I've been doing this for years. I've reviewed dozens and dozens of phones.

So you might think I'd get a bit blasé about it. If you've seen one phone, you've seen them all. Right?

Except...

Every now and then, I take a phone out of the box and I immediately find myself saying, "Oh yeah. That's nice. That's a really nice phone."

I mean, literally. Like, out loud. Actually saying that. Even though no-one else is in the room.

It doesn't happen often.

But the other day, it happened twice. Simultaneously.

And I never would have expected it from a motorola... let alone a pair of motorolas.

Today, motorola has launched 7 new handsets to the New Zealand market, which in itself, is pretty unprecedented. These range wildly in both price and form-factor. From the NZ$549 g37 with its enormous battery life, to the iconic clamshell foldable, the razr 70 ultra, at NZ$2,499, there's something for everyone - even for people like me who thought they'd seen it all before.

Yes, as part of this major handset shakeup, there are two completely new models and these are the ones that took my breath away.

But not before I got a good whiff of them. I'd completely forgotten motorola likes to imbue its premium handsets with an enticing scent that permeates through the box and the packaging, creating a unique "new phone smell" that ensured my unboxing of the razr fold and motorola signature was always going to be a feast for all five of my senses. (Did I taste them? Maybe. What if I did?)

I'll start with the razr fold, because this is the one I thought I knew most about. For those of us who are aware motorola still actually makes phones, decades after the world-sweeping success of the original razr, we were well aware they'd immediately jumped on board the foldable wave to try and recreate a bit of clamshell mania.

But few of us had anticipated the introduction of a book-style folding handset as well. This form-factor has quickly become both an indispensable productivity tool for busy power-users on the go, as well as a bit of a corporate flex, when owners unfold the phones in front of their colleagues to make a note on their presentation or just to check their calendar.

Against the odds, on its first attempt, motorola's longways foldable has managed to tick all the boxes most other brands have taken several generations to perfect; durable, sturdy hinge mechanism, excellent internal screen-to-body ratio, long battery life, flagship-quality external display, stylus compatibility... the razr fold has pretty much nailed it all on debut.

To a very discerning eye, the crease on the main, internal display is admittedly still a little more prominent than those on a few of the other similar-style phones I've trialled lately, but so far, that's honestly the only place the motorola has fallen ever-so-slightly short.

And in one other area, it surges into first place. Which is why it carries the DXOMARK Gold Award for its primary camera array. Since the very first foldable screen, I've been somewhat bemused to see people handing over thousands for a phone with a just-alright camera.

Apparently motorola thought that was weird too, so they've put their best camera on their most expensive phone. Kind of... what's the word?... logical?

What remains to be seen is how many Kiwis are prepared to hand over NZ$3,499 for a phone from a brand a lot of people still think stopped making phones some time before the turn of the century.

The good news is, you can get that same camera on another phone that costs a lot less.

The motorola signature is my favourite phone ever. And it became my favourite phone about half a second after I picked it up for the first time. I've never come across a handset that looks or feels as good as this.

And that's before I even turned it on.

My review unit is Martini Olive. If that's not the coolest name for a phone colour, I don't know what is. What's more, it's actually a cool colour; a luxurious shade of green that tends more towards gold, which looks incredible on the glimmering aluminium side rails and matching camera module surround. 

The rear panel is described as "twill-inspired" - a sumptuously tactile matte finish that's easy to grip and allays any fear of a cracked glass back so many of us have had to have repaired in the past. (The alternate Carbon option is more of linen look and feel, apparently)

And wow, is this thing thin. A mere 6.99mm and just 186grams.

Best of all, motorola has utterly eschewed the recent trend in flagship phone design; the dreaded camera module bump. Somewhere along the way we all agreed it was okay for the best phones with the best cameras to have a massive slab of glass and metal whacked on the back, just to hold the lenses. These unwieldy eyesores have only grown bigger as cameras have become more powerful, in some cases doubling the thickness of the phone and throwing the balance out completely.

I happen to hate sharp corners and I absolutely love curves. Both the razr fold and the signature still have camera modules, but the rear panels swoop up to the edges seamlessly. Comparing this design to other high-end phones is a bit like comparing a Corvette Stingray to a container ship.

Other than their wonderful curves, the signature and razr fold have a lot else in common - starting with their primary camera arrays consisting of 50MP wide, 50MP ultra-wide and 50MP periscope telephoto sensors. This means very consistent and accurate colour and contrast, no matter the focal length, from 0.5x through 1x and 3x optical, right out to 100x Super Zoom Pro.

You can shoot strikingly detailed video in 8K, enhanced by remarkable intelligent stabilisation.

This is the kind of camera that never leaves you asking, "I wish I could..." ...because you probably can.

The selfie camera situation gets complicated because the razr fold has two of them - well, three if you count the primary camera, of course. In fact, there's an onscreen shortcut to do just that when you open its camera app. So you have a choice; the 20MP front-facing cam on the outer screen, the 32MP inside, or you can go full 50MP with the main shooter because, why wouldn't you?

Not to be outdone, the single selfie-camera on the signature is 50MP too, and it shoots video in 4K. So that's pretty crazy.

Both the fold and signature draw on 12GB of RAM and the superior power of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 chip to perform any task instantly, or indeed simultaneously with other tasks, smoothly and flawlessly.

Whether you're using Moto AI, Gemini, Perplexity or Co-Pilot to create, edit, search or streamline your workflow, neither handset misses a beat. Have I mentioned how much I appreciate the motorola OS, Hello UI? It's about the most stripped-back version of Android 16 you'll find on a phone and that means I get everything I want and nothing I don't.

Oh, and how does seven years of Android security updates sound?

Both these phones charge wirelessly - which for me is essential. And again, they go a step further. If you have the right charger, you can juice up at 50W. That's still wireless, by the way. Even faster plugged in.

Both have big batteries too - lasting well into a second day on a full charge if not seeing it out two days completely.

Both phones are also surprisingly tough - the signature because it's so slim, the razr fold because, well, it folds. The latter carries IP48 and IP49 water resistance ratings and the outer display is protected by the latest and greatest Corning Gorilla Glass Ceramic 3.

Meanwhile, the signature's screen is Gorilla Glass Victus 2, it's both IP68 and IP69 rated against water and dust and is MIL-STD-810H compliant. So extreme altitude, heat and cold can't really hurt it.

These phones even sound good - both pump out pretty decent Dolby stereo tuned by a little company you may have heard of called Bose.

For me - and remember, I've reviewed a lot of phones - there's only one area where these two come up short - and it's nothing to do with the phones themselves. I want an ecosystem; in short, I want more motorola. I've paired them both with the truly excellent moto buds+ but don't they know I need a watch too?

I know motorola makes them, but for some reason, you can't easily find them in New Zealand. Let's hope that changes. And soon.

Meanwhile, I'll enjoy these two handsets while I have them, especially the signature which, I'll say it again, is my new favourite phone ever. Not bad for $1699. Not bad at all.

    

Click here for more information on the motorola signature.

Click here for more information on the motorola razr fold.