South Korean manufacturer Samsung is anticipated to issue its next two models of folding smartphones in 2023, as it has done for the past three years: a model fold, foldable in book format, and a model flip, foldable in valve format. Two high-end phones that are pushing technical innovation on these goods even further, but it is the second model that we are interested in: the next Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5.
Because of their compact size and reduced cost, models in the Z Flip series outsell those in the Z Fold range. Price, release date, new design… we take note of the reports and speculations surrounding what could be the market’s next most popular folding smartphone.
THE LAST MOST EFFICIENT CHIP
The first details about the Galaxy Z Flip 5 arrived in July 2022… either before or after the introduction of the Galaxy Z Flip 4! The first round of reports was launched by South Korean media The Elect: according to his sources, Samsung’s next two fold and flip versions would be outfitted with a SoC Snapdragon 8 Gen 2.
Although this rumor was spread very early, it seems reasonable given that the last two Galaxy Z Flip versions were launched with the last high-end Qualcomm chip available. So we can anticipate better performance as well as less heating during extended gaming periods. If verified, this is great news because Z Flip 4 failed to keep up with greedy users.
Another credible rumor is that the storage options for the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 will be the same as those of the prior version. This is what the information site Sammobile, which specializes in the South Korean brand, stated at the end of February. According to its source, you will once again have the option of 128 GB, 256 GB, or 512 GB of onboard memory.
Sammobile also estimates that, similar to the Samsung Galaxy S23, which will be launched in early February 2023, only the 128 Go model will use the flash memory standard UFS 3.1, while variants 256 and 512 GB will profit from UFS 4.0. On theory, this technology doubles the speed of accessing and writing data on internal storage when compared to the Galaxy Z Flip 4.
AN EXTERNAL SCREEN LARGER THAN ITS COMPETITORS
However, for several months, the majority of reports conveyed by specialist media have primarily concerned the design of Samsung’s next flap smartphone. This is significant because the external appearance of the Z Flip range hasn’t altered much since the Galaxy Z Flip 3, which was launched in 2021.
As a result, there should be a shift on this Galaxy Z Flip 5, particularly for its exterior slab, which is devoted to reaching certain smartphone functions even when folded. Ross Young, a screen supply chain expert, stated in early December 2022 that this screen would be “much bigger” on the next model flip, estimating it at more than 3 inches. ( against 1.9 inch on Z Flip 3 and 4 ). Ross Young subsequently responded to another tweet by saying that hallway sounds recall a slab between 3.3 and 3.4 inches thick.
Yeah, you said that about the Flip 4 as well.
— Mike Vierling (@vierling_mike) December 1, 2022
This is not surprising: Samsung, the pioneer of flap folders in 2019, has since been surpassed by other makers’ smartphones on the size of this tiny screen, whether by the Oppo Find N2 Flip (3.26 inches) or the Razr 2022. ( 2.7 inches ). As a result, Samsung could rise to their level.
At the beginning of February 2023, it was also the turn of another leaker, Ice Universe, to confirm Ross Young’s information by stating that the Galaxy Z Flip 5 would be “larger than [that] of Oppo Find N2 Flip”. Two days later, the same leaker released a first montage of what the smartphone “has a good chance” of looking like, with a screen covering even half of the smartphone’s exterior when folded.
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 is very likely to be of this design. I am in further research… pic.twitter.com/1bVYOgmC0H
— Ice universe (@UniverseIce) February 22, 2023
The following week, a 3D rendering from Motorola Razr 2023, its next competitor, revealed a design that was nearly similar to that pushed by Ice Universe for Z Flip 5. As a result, Samsung appears to be following the pattern of external screens as closely as feasible.
A HINGE IN A DROP OF WATER WITHOUT LETTING WATER PASS
The form of the hinge is the second source of contention in the folding smartphone industry with valve. This is another speculation surrounding the Galaxy Z Flip 5. Also in December 2022, the previously mentioned Ross Young post hinted at another potential upgrade to the next smartphone: Samsung would work on a new hinge design “that should reduce the visibility of the fold” of the screen.
The technology used by the South Korean brand’s latest folding versions does, in fact, leave a reasonably noticeable trace and is touch sensitive on the screen. Again, its competitors have caught up with it on this point: Motorola, Oppo, or Huawei offer a “teardrop” hinge design on their products, allowing them to drastically reduce the hollow of the fold while closing the smartphone completely without leaving any space between its two halves. However, as with the Z Flip 3 and 4, this technology appears to prohibit the smartphone from being watertight.
Ross Young seemed to be referring to this hinge design: in two tweets in January and then February 2023, the leaker Ice Universe again echoed the information from the screen specialist, giving « confirmation » according to him that the next Galaxy Z Fold and Flip 5 « adopt drop-of-water hinges and support IPX8 seal ».
Confirmation: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5 and Flip5 will adopt water drop hinges and support IPX8 waterproof.
— Ice universe (@UniverseIce) February 24, 2023
If this information is correct, the Z Flip 5 will be the first smartphone in the world to use this hinge design while keeping the water resistance of the two prior versions. You should trust it because the manufacturer submitted patents on this folded screen design in 2016. However, unlike the other folding cellphones on the market, no sign of future dust defense has been provided.
SOME CHARACTERISTICS THAT WE CAN GUESS
Although no other specs for Samsung’s next flap smartphone have been reported or leaked as of yet, certain characteristics of the next Galaxy Z Flip 5 should be comparable to the technical sheets of the two previous versions.
LOGICAL EVOLUTIONS
The Galaxy Z Flip has always used the most current version of Android available at the time of introduction, and this is likely to continue: The Galaxy Z Flip 5 could be sold straight under the One IU 5.1 UI, which is based on Android 13. Samsung, like all of his new versions, should provide four years of significant operating system upgrades and five years of safety updates.
Another probable development is the switch to Bluetooth 5.3, the most latest version.
NO CHANGE IF IT’S STILL RELEVANT
We can also expect the materials used in earlier Z Flip versions to stay unchanged, though their dimensions may change due to potential advancements in the exterior screen and pivot. As a result, we discovered a plastic screen with a glass back and metal borders.
On the screen, the Amoled technology and the 120 Hz frame rate remain among the finest in the high-end smartphone market. As a result, we can anticipate that the Z Flip 5 will be outfitted with it as well.
Finally, the camera types could stay the same, with a primary wide-angle module paired with an ultra-wide module. Although market norms have been to incorporate a trio of cameras (wide-angle, ultra-wide, and telephoto) for several years, the Galaxy Z Flip 3 and 4 did not. Samsung appears to want to make a statement with its Galaxy Z Fold lineup, which includes these three components.
A SIMILAR PRICE, BUT WHICH COULD INCREASE
If there are no rumors about it at the time, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 could be sold at a reasonably comparable price, with the price rise compared to the previous model being due to the ongoing increase in consumer prices. Furthermore, a rise in raw material prices and potentially higher manufacturing costs of the hypothetical new smartphone hinge could impact the selling price.
For its basic variant with 128 GB, we can anticipate it to cost between 1109 (the MSRP of the Z Flip 4 when it is launched) and 1180 euros, according to our forest based on August 2023 inflation forecasts.
WHEN WILL THE SAMSUNG GALAXY Z FLIP 5 BE RELEASED?
The formal announcement date of the Z Flip 5 is fairly simple to predict, as the previous two Galaxy Z Flips were both given to the public on the second Wednesday of August 2021 and 2022. As a result, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 will be available in August 2023.
Using the same analogy as the previous two versions of Samsung’s folding clamshell smartphone, this smartphone’s marketing has a decent chance of being successful roughly two weeks after its presentation. As a result, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 should be available in August.
