Galaxy Z Flip 5: First Thoughts on Samsung's New Clamshell Foldable

There’s no question that the Galaxy Z Flip 5 is an improvement on the Z Flip 4, just based on its larger exterior screen. With a 3.4-inch screen running at 60Hz refresh rate, you can get a fair bit of utility out of it. Now, the calendar and weather widgets give users more immediate information than previous editions. Plus, the wellness widgets offer users an immediate hint of how many more steps you need to reach fitness goals. It’s like a smartwatch, only it won’t track any heat or heart activity.

Unfortunately, there’s a few obvious widgets that aren’t here at launch. There’s no photos widget to show off your photos on the exterior screen like a grandmother unspooling grandchild photos. While you can access music by opening the phone, clicking the app, then closing it again, you can’t immediately open Spotify or Apple Music right from the 3.4-inch screen. If your phone goes to sleep, you have to crack it open once again to click play.

There’s also the camera available right from the Flex Window, though the UI is very barebones compared to the controls when the phone is open.

To start, Samsung only lets users access a few apps from the exterior screen, including Google Maps, Messenger, YouTube, and Netflix. Users need to go into Settings, Advanced Features, and the “Labs” tab in order to enable some of these apps.

Google Maps works like a charm, and it’s a handy app to have on as you can discretely check your location at a glance. YouTube is currently somewhat glitchy. I’ve seen videos appear at a tiny thumbnail sized aspect ratio when I tell it to go full screen. You can unfold the phone slightly to have it stand up to watch content on your desktop, but the phone’s speaker will be facing directly into the table, which means the audio quality isn’t exactly top tier. Then again, you’ll find few people willing to watch content on such a tiny screen for very long.

Motorola’s Razr+ currently allows far more apps to work on the exterior screen, even the ones not explicitly built for that experience. While that can lead to some wonky app usage, I would much prefer to have the option to use more apps from the get-go.

The other big selling point for the Flip 5 is the flatness of the new hinge design, which Samsung has dubbed the Flex Hinge. The device indeed folds plenty flat, or flat enough to the naked eye. Unfolded, it still doesn’t lie completely flat, but you still won’t notice it’s not lying at a perfect 90 degrees.

The unfolding action doesn’t take much effort, but you won’t be flipping this thing open with one hand like a cool movie action hero does before being taunted by the big bad. That’s not a bad thing, considering users have complained about hinge issues on some previous versions of Samsung’s foldables. Still, with the lack of access to apps on the exterior screen, this stiff unfolding action means you’ll need two hands free to unfurl the device every time you want to read a full email.

One of the biggest considerations for those thinking about getting a foldable is how well they can deal with the crease. From my own experience, the crease is not as bad as the Google Pixel Fold, but it’s still noticeable. It catches the light at certain angles, and there’s still a small roller coaster feel of running the finger through the gully.

Having an exterior screen also means the phone has some fun use-cases. You can hold it like a camcorder and use the FlexCam option to show what you’re seeing on the exterior screen. You can also set it up on a table and know for certain you’re in frame when taking finicky group shots.

Unfortunately, the Flip’s twin camera array does lag far behind other phones you can get for $1,000. The rear dual sensors include a 12MP ultra-wide and a 12MP wide-angle. It’s good enough for the average selfie, but in my limited time with photo sessions I haven’t taken anything near as quality as on my previous high end Google Pixels or iPhones. There’s also a 10MP front selfie camera, but since you can get better quality selfies with the rear array the only use you’ll get out of it is for video calls. Essentially, the trade off with the Flip 4's cameras is versatility over overt quality.

The Z Flip 5 has introduced some small improvements to its Flex Mode compared to previous iterations. The feature only works when the phone is bent at between 75 and 115 degrees, but it does allow some apps to show content in the top portion of the screen and app controls in the bottom.

Users need to enable Flex Mode Panel in the Labs setting, but after you can lie the phone on a table at a bend, you’ll see a small icon in the bottom left screen corner. This lets you access a control panel that comes stock with a touchpad if you’re desperate to use your phone with a mouse cursor. You can then select a separate app to run in the bottom portion of the screen, or even in a windowed mode.

The interface is essentially the same as the Galaxy Z Fold 5, and users can press the small, blue bar at the top of the bottom app to make it full screen or swap it out for a different app.

We still need to put the phone through its paces and benchmark both its power and battery, but so far I can’t say I’m any more enamored with foldables than I was before slipping the Flip 5 into my pocket. Samsung may implement more ways to access even more apps from the exterior screen, but for now I have to spend more time cracking open the phone to look at long messages or emails, where on a traditional “chocolate bar”-type device that information is more immediately available.

If I were truly looking for a return to flip phone age, I might consider Motorola’s latest more than Samsung, especially as it also goes for $1,000. Still, we’ll see how the phone stacks up in our full review. Stay tuned.

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