(Brand New) Samsung Z Fold 5 5G, 512GB + 12GB, Single Sim + ESim

The Galaxy Z Fold5 of 2023 focuses on much-needed camera upgrades and throws in some subtle physical polishing, all the while maintaining the core concept of the productivity-driven phone-turns-tablet form factor.

The camera setup of the Z Fold3,  Z fold4 used some relatively ancient hardware, and the new model changes most of it. Having in principle the same wide-ultra wide-telephoto arrangement, the Z Fold5 gets more reach on the long end and a larger sensor main camera, while the ultra-wide remains untouched. Mind you, it’s still not a cutting-edge configuration – it’s almost the same as the one on the Galaxy S22 (+) with some fine print in the autofocusing section.

In the physical touches, we’re seeing that the bezels have been trimmed down, the outer screen has adopted a slightly less tall aspect (still taller than virtually anything), and the whole thing now weighs ever so slightly less – all evolutionary changes that may or may be spotted in practice. It’s certainly not the gapless foldable we’ve all been droning on that Samsung should make, while Chinese manufacturers are, in fact, making.

Speaking of the display, the foldable inner panel maintains the numbers of the old model the diagonal is 7.6 inches refresh rate mazes out at 120Hz, and it’s a granularly adaptive refresh rate, as befitting the Fold’s high-end status. The outer panel matches the big one for refresh rate capability, and while the diagonal remains unchanged from the predecessor at 6.2 inches, the new aspect should make it slightly more convenient while also marginally increasing the usable area.

Other things you won’t be getting on this iteration either include properly fast charging, Samsung instead keeping things at 25 watts of PPS-enhanced USB Power Delivery. The battery capacity remains at 4,400mAh, but that hasn’t really proven a pain point in the past, so we won’t be making a big deal of it now either.

If anything, further advancements in the display tech (Samsung advertised a more power-efficient panel for this generation Fold), coupled with the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset, itself not sourced from Samsung’s chip making division but TSMC, might actually mean improved battery life – we’ll get to that.