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The Galaxy Z Flip 5 might hit global markets in August or September, typically a couple of weeks after Qualcomm releases its “Plus” iteration of chipsets. The 8 Plus Gen 2 might power the Flip 5. According to early speculation and some credible leaks, the phone will fix design flaws and make it a better option for the mainstream market.
The Z Flip 4, launched in August 2022, is currently the best Flip-style folding phone in the world. This is primarily because of its performance, efficiency, and excellent battery life enabled by the 8+ Gen 1. The photo quality is not amazing, but it’s still a step up from the previous generation. It’s also somewhat saved by image processing algorithms.
However, the lack of competition has made Samsung focus on slight refinements, even with their foldable phones. That is set to change in 2023, thanks to Oppo’s extremely competitive upcoming Find N2 Flip. It has a large (3.26″) exterior secondary screen and no crease, with the 50MP IMX890 sensor. Oppo’s Flip is better in a lot of ways.
Latest News
March 20: As per Ice Universe, the Galaxy Z Flip 5’s external screen will have a scale of 1:1.038, which means it’s almost a perfect square. He said the external screen of the Flip 5 is nearly square in shape and measures 3.4 inches. It takes up a significant portion of the device’s surface area. Additionally, the bezel surrounding the inner screen will be slimmer, allowing for a larger display area. It will also feature new touchscreen technology.
February 22: The Z Flip 5 will reporldy come with three storage variants: 128GB, 256GB, and 512 GB. The 128GB storage variant is said to use a UFS 3.1 chip, while the rest options will use the UFS 4.0.
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 Expected Specifications
1. Camera
The existing Flip 4 has a tiny 12MP 1/1.76″ sensor. The 12MP ultra-wide isn’t that good, either. While the hardware looks lackluster, the processing somewhat saves the camera system from being terrible.
The upcoming Z Flip 5 might feature a better Samsung ISOCELL GN3 or GN5 (50MP, 1/1.57″) sensor. The ultra-wide most probably won’t see any significant upgrades.
Some speculation centers around this phone having a third rear camera, likely a telephoto lens, but that is unclear at the moment. With reports emerging that the S23 lineup might support 8K 30FPS video recording, there’s a chance it might make it to the Flip, too.
Don’t be surprised if no major improvements are made to the camera system on the Flip, though. Samsung appears to be pretty comfortable with its foldable dominance right now. That is thanks to their global availability and software.
The Flip targets a fashion-focused audience that does not care about the technicalities of camera specs and sensor sizes. Since the phone still takes good shots, they might get away with not upgrading the hardware much.
2. Display
The Z Flip 4 shipped with a 1080P 120Hz AMOLED display. It has 1200 Nits of peak brightness. The phone wasn’t the sharpest at 999$, but that was excusable because of the form factor. The cover display is 512P in resolution and 1.9″ in screen size.
The Z Flip 5 is expected to ship with a larger ~3″ cover display. The crease is still prominent on the Z Flip 4, which will likely improve with the Flip 5.
It might retain the same brightness and a 120Hz (variable) 1080P AMOLED panel with HDR10+. 1080P (~426 PPI) is sharp enough for an average user, so we don’t expect any resolution bumps.
3. Performance, Battery Life & Charging Speeds
The Z Flip 4 massively improved on one of the main complaints of the Flip 3: battery life. This is definitely because of the much more efficient TSMC fabbed 4nm Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1. It also helps that the physical capacity of the battery increased to 3700 mAh.
The Flip 5 will probably arrive with the latest and greatest from Qualcomm, which might be the 8 Plus Gen 2 at the time. That is unless Samsung pulls a surprise and uses the Exynos 2300, which might not be great news. An Exynos 2300 SOC is reportedly still under manufacturing, but it probably won’t be used in a mainstream Galaxy flagship in most regions.
The 8 Gen 2 has exceptional efficiency, excellent battery life, and fantastic performance. So, the Flip 5 probably won’t have gaming performance, general usage, and battery life issues. There’s a chance it might pack a bigger physical battery as well.
The Flip 4 charges 25W (Wired) and 15W (Wireless). This isn’t even close to fast enough when compared to other flagships. The Flip 5 might improve on it to at least 45W wired charging, though this information isn’t officially confirmed.
4. Software Features
The Flip 4 has already received the One UI 5 update based on Android 13. The Z Flip 5 is expected to ship with One UI 5.1 or 5.2 out of the box.
The Flip is supposed to function like a regular phone when unfolded. So, it won’t have the fancy multitasking features of the Fold lineup. Disappointingly, the Flip 4 still has no support for Samsung DeX mode. It’s probably because DeX mode heats the phone a lot. A phone with a hot folding chassis might not be the best one to implement the feature on.
We can expect to see general performance improvements and better smoothness of animations. If the Z Flip 5 has a larger external screen, we might see more software features to complement that as well.
5. Design
The Samsung Z Flip 4 is famously known for being a Flip with water resistance. The addition of dust resistance will take it to the next level. We’ll probably see new colors for Flip 5 and a larger external screen. We will mostly get a dual or triple-camera setup to go with it.
A larger ~3.3″-3.5″ cover display will be more functional and look good if done correctly. Analyst Ross Young predicts that the size of the cover screen will increase as a direct response to Oppo’s Flip phone, which has a 3.26″ screen.
The Flip 4’s cover screen shows you notifications and has customizable faces. It has some dedicated widgets. It’s designed to show you info at a glance without the need to open the phone up.
Samsung’s ultra-thin glass technology has gotten way more durable over the years. The crease is still a visible eyesore, and you can still feel it. Competitors like Oppo have made the crease nearly disappear at multiple angles, so Samsung still has some gaps to fill here.
There are two different approaches to folding a screen. Samsung chooses to fold it in half completely. Oppo uses a water drop style hinge, reducing the crease since the screen never has to fold in half completely. It’s firmer, too.
Allowing the screen to rest in a waterdrop shape instead of pressing it down into a U shape will have several benefits. We hope Samsung moves to this better way of folding the display. The Aluminium and Glass build is expected to remain.
6. Hardware Specs
We will probably see a 120Hz 1080P HDR10+ AMOLED display. The primary sensor might change to GN3 or GN5. We might see a slightly larger physical battery. The phone is expected to be powered by the 8 Plus Gen 2 or 8 Gen 2 SOC.
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 Expected Price
- The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 could be priced at $999 in the US.
The pricing is expected to remain at 999$ and will mostly not see a drop to 899$. Adopting foldable phones in Samsung’s home country is rapid, so it does not look like the price will fall. It will mainly start at 128GB of base storage and 8GB of RAM, though a bump to 256GB will be welcome.
When can we expect the Galaxy Z Flip 5 to be released?
- Samsung might release the Galaxy Z Flip 5 in August 2023 at its Unpacked Event alongside the Galaxy Z Fold 5.
Regarding the release date, it might hit markets sometime in August or September of 2023. This news isn’t confirmed, so don’t entirely believe this info.
Should you wait for the Z Flip 5?
If you currently have a Flip 3 and below, the Flip 5 will be a major upgrade. From the current gen Flip 4, there is probably no need to switch. A larger cover screen and a less visible crease with minor performance camera bumps are good, but nothing groundbreakingly new or innovative.
Provided you get a Flip 4 right now, you can rest assured that it is the best globally available Flip-style phone with optimized apps and a software skin tailored to the West. If you prefer One UI and are in the Samsung ecosystem, the Flip 4 is fantastic.
If you are willing to wait for nearly eight months or more and you can use your current device until then, it makes sense to wait for the Flip 5. For someone willing to experiment with a different brand, it is worth trying out Oppo’s Find N2 flip that might hit global markets.
Note: This live article will update the latest news about the Galaxy Z Flip 5.
