I am at the moment utilizing my first Samsung in almost a decade. My final full-time Samsung was the improbable Galaxy S8, launched in early 2017, with a 5.8-inch curved Tremendous AMOLED Infinity Show, a 12MP rear digicam, 4GB of RAM, and a 3,000mAh battery.
I cherished that cellphone. However for some motive, since then, I’ve eschewed Samsung’s smartphones, bar utilizing them on showfloors, for a bit of sunshine testing right here and there, and a few digicam work.
That’s, till now. I am at the moment utilizing and loving the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8. The wide-foldable kind issue is great; it has wonderful battery life, a top-tier Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip, and loads of different nice options.
And, after a protracted, lengthy hiatus, I lastly see why so many people love their Samsungs.
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 is an excellent system
Samsung retains pushing foldables in new instructions
Now, it is essential to notice that I am not solely simply upgrading to the Z Fold 8 from the Galaxy S8. I am truly leaping ship from the Motorola Razr Fold, one other foldable launched in 2026 that I’ve additionally been extremely impressed with.
The truth is, presently, the Razr Fold remains to be my favourite “book-style” foldable this 12 months; I have never used the Pixel 11 Professional Fold but, thoughts, and solely had a quick second with the Vivo X Fold 6 (however it wonderful!).
I digress. However Samsung’s change to a wider foldable form-factor is what’s setting it other than the remainder of the 2026 crop.
One UI’s founding precept again then was constructed round one-handed use, pushing interactive parts towards the underside of the display screen for reachability, a direct response to telephones already getting too huge for thumbs — that very same precept holds on the Z Fold 8
The common Z Fold 8 folds all the way down to a 5.5-inch cowl display screen and opens right into a 7.6-inch internal show working a 4:3 side ratio — it is landscape-first and nearer to a small iPad than a cellphone that is merely unfurled. It is a completely different expertise from the tall, slender form nearly everybody else in 2026 remains to be constructing round, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Extremely included.
I ought to be upfront in regards to the compromises, thoughts. The Razr Fold has a 6,000mAh battery sitting below the hood. The Z Fold 8 has a 4,800mAh cell that is a good bit smaller, and there’s no S-Pen, both.
I’ve to confess one thing, too: I haven’t got big palms. It makes the smaller form-factor really feel extra snug to make use of, particularly for one-handed operation, and that is usually how I find yourself. I have never seen a single problem switching from a taller display screen to a shorter, wider choice when it comes to my day-to-day use, and it is nonetheless wonderful for watching reveals, images, and extra.
All the pieces simply works
It isn’t ecosystem lock-in
I heard for years that Samsung’s, like iPhones, simply labored. The South Korean tech big thinks of virtually all the pieces in terms of its model of Android, One UI. I truly used One UI 1.0 on my Samsung Galaxy S8 in early 2019, and whereas it’s miles extra polished now, there are nonetheless some design ideas threading via the years.
For instance, One UI’s founding precept again then was constructed round one-handed use, pushing interactive parts towards the underside of the display screen for reachability, a direct response to telephones already getting too huge for thumbs. That very same precept holds on the Z Fold 8, simply utilized to a display screen that makes the S8 look tiny by comparability. It is a part of why the shorter, wider form labored for me instantly reasonably than needing an adjustment interval.
One UI 9’s particular foldable options are additionally a key a part of why it has been so enjoyable switching again to Samsung. Seamless Display adjusts what’s on the internal show robotically as you rotate between portrait and panorama, so nothing wants re-laying out each time you open or shut it.
Multi-tasking with three completely different apps open concurrently can be fairly the expertise. I have to admit that I do not know fairly how usually I am going to use this, however it did make the Z Fold 8 really feel just like the Samsung Trifold, which is attention-grabbing. It is also one thing the dearer Z Fold 8 Extremely cannot do!
The flipside is that whereas I recognize that apps like Good Lock exist to assist customise Samsung gadgets, it does make me surprise why this is not simply constructed into the system already. The assist is technically there… so why make of us go the additional mile? In any other case, One UI is a superb expertise that is made leaping from my Razr Fold easy.
Construct high quality is past most different producers
Titanium, aluminum, and extra
The Galaxy Z Fold 8 is one other step up when it comes to high quality for Samsung’s foldables. This time round, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 options two layers of what Samsung calls “Flex Titanium” below its show, which is what helps to make the crease nearly imperceptible.
There may be nonetheless a slight dip whenever you run your finger throughout, however you cease noticing it nearly instantly. It is also fantastically responsive throughout the whole display screen, together with the dip.
The body is Superior Armor Aluminum, the duvet glass is Gorilla Glass Ceramic 3, and the again is Gorilla Glass Victus 2. None of that’s new for a Samsung flagship, however assembled collectively on a foldable, it feels just like the premium supplies caught as much as the premium worth, which I’ve to confess is one thing that has saved me away from Samsung gadgets up to now.
What I imply is that, more often than not, I figured the opposite telephones I used to be utilizing had been lots good, and realistically, they had been. And the lightweight-yet-sturdy feeling Z Fold 8 realistically confirms what I have been lacking through the years. Actually, the 201g weight of the Z Fold 8 makes it really feel elegant.
The cameras all the time do the job
Throughout the board, Samsung sometimes excels
The Z Fold 8 has two rear cameras, not three, and neither of them zooms optically. I am truly actually proud of how the Z Fold 8 snaps, and the shape issue makes it really feel extra like a pocket-sized handy-cam. You get a 50MP essential sensor at f/1.8 with OIS, and a 50MP ultra-wide at f/1.9 with a 120-degree subject of view; purposeful however not distinctive.
What’s truly there’s extra succesful than the spec sheet suggests. too. The 2x crop off the primary sensor is shut sufficient to optical high quality that most individuals will not discover the distinction, and video can be distinctive, with 8K at 30fps, a Log profile, and LUTs for anybody modifying critically,
However throughout the board, Samsung’s cameras come very extremely rated.
Samsung has lastly gained me again — however for a way lengthy?
I am totally enamored with my Galaxy Z Fold 8, and it is improbable to return to Samsung in any case these years.
It is laborious to disregard one factor in terms of Samsung, although, and it is the excessive worth of entry. The Z Fold 8 begins at $1.9K, which is a excessive worth for a 256GB mannequin; the Razr Fold begins on the similar worth however with double the storage and a 6,000mAh battery, for comparability.
Nonetheless, Samsung’s foldable ecosystem is way extra developed, and the construct high quality alone helps to make sure that whereas the value is excessive, you get what you pay for with the Z Fold 8, and actually throughout the board in terms of Samsung.
