Galaxy Z Flip 6 hands-on: A few wishes granted, one left unfulfilled

The Galaxy Z Flip is Samsung's most popular foldable series and with good reason. The starting price point is the same as any flagship device, so it's not overly expensive, and it's a true flagship phone given the specs that it boasts under the hood. Its clamshell form factor, portability, and versatility is just the cherry on top.

Samsung has now come out with the Galaxy Z Flip 6 at the Unpacked event in Paris today. It takes the baton from last year's Galaxy Z Flip 5, which was one of the bigger upgrades we've seen for this series, as it finally brought as a larger and much more usable cover display. We go hands-on with the Galaxy Z Flip 6 and find that while it has granted a few of the wishes we had from this device, one has remained unfulfilled.

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A polished, well-built foldable phone

At first glance, the Galaxy Z Flip 6 doesn't look all that different compared to its predecessor, but the design does feel a bit more squarish with sharper corners. The improvements Samsung has made to the hinge are noticeable as it elevates the feeling of this device being very well put together. Matching the color to the frame and the camera rings is new for this latest model, giving the device a much bolder look, which could be an acquired taste for some.

Samsung has granted the wish to make this device more durable by ensuring eligibility for the IP48 rating, thereby providing users with additional peace of mind that their device can hold its own reasonably well. The inner foldable panel is much stronger as well and with a less prominent center crease, adding to the visual appear when the device is unfolded.

Beating under the hood is a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy chipset with 12GB of RAM, another wish granted, and up to 512GB of internal storage. Performance is as you'd expect, it feels nice and snappy. The software, Android 14 with One UI 6.1.1, is well polished and brings new Galaxy AI features to the mix as well. The biggest wish Samsung has granted here is the increase of the battery capacity to 4,000mAh. That's going to make life so much better for users.

While the camera setup has been upgraded with a new 50-megapixel primary sensor, and we look forward to a detailed test in our full review, Samsung has once again the biggest wish of Galaxy Z Flip fans unfulfilled. It would make the content capture experience so much more enjoyable with this device but alas, that's not to be this year.

Find more insights from our Galaxy Z Flip 6 hands-on in the full video. Remember, pre-orders for the Galaxy Z Flip 6 are open now with deliveries on July 24. Prices start at $1,099.