Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 Samsung is one of the biggest players in the foldable space. The South Korean tech giant is the only brand that has stood by both of its foldables designs through thick and thin, when brands like Oppo and OnePlus withdrew from international markets due to dropping consumer interest in the smartphone category last year. Year after year, Samsung has been improving both of its foldables, with one model getting preference over the other with every passing year. What nobody expected was Samsung upgrading its folder-like cover display (on the Flip 5 and Flip 6) to a segment-leading (size-wise) 4.1-inch screen.
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A large cover display is a must-have on modern clamshell foldables. And Samsung, for once, has managed to deliver the biggest one on block. But the cover display experience mainly depends on its underlying software, and unfortunately for Samsung, Motorola has ruined things for the brand, consistently, year after year, by delivering a class-leading experience. So, does Samsung’s latest foldable match up to Motorola this year? Read on to find out!
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 Design: Slim, slick and modern but…
• Dimensions (folded) – 85.5 x 75.2 x 13.7 mm
• Dimensions (unfolded) – 166.7 x 75.2 x 6.5 mm
• Weight – 188g
• Durability – IP48
This year’s Galaxy Z Flip 7 is a complete refresh.
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 Display: Thin is in
• Cover display – 4.1-inch, 948 × 1,048 pixels, 120Hz, 344 PPI
• Main display – 7-inch, 1,224 x 2,912 pixels, 165Hz, 464 PPI
• Display type – AMOLED (LTPO only for main display)
I absolutely dig the near bezel-less look that Samsung has used for its new 4.1-inch cover display. It gets plenty bright outdoors, showcases slightly punchy colors and offers a high refresh rate. It’s not the power-saving LTPO variety like on the Razr but sure looks good with those razor-thin bezels, which are a big upgrade from the earlier display that for some strange reason resembled a desktop folder icon.
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 Software: Run for cover!
• Android version – 16
• Software – One UI 8.0
• Software commitment – 7 years OS + 7 years SMR
Unlike the Galaxy S25 Edge I reviewed earlier, the Galaxy Z Flip 7 does come with One UI 8 out of the box. It’s based on Android 16, but apart from the very basic features such as notifications grouping. It’s hard to tell that you are using the same version, as the experience is very different from what’s currently available on a Google Pixel smartphone.
On the Samsung side of things, there’s still plenty to unwrap in One UI 8. The Now Bar, which also delivers the Now Brief (three times a day), can now be accessed on the cover display itself. Live updates from Android 16 will soon be relayed through the Now Bar if they aren’t already. As it currently stands, Samsung is the one fueling the Now Bar experience with select supported apps.
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 Performance: Hot-headed
• Processor – Exynos 2500, 3.3GHz, 3nm
• RAM – 12GB
• Storage – 256/512GB (UFS 4.0)
Over the years, book-style foldables have improved when it comes to heat management thanks to the use of vapour chamber cooling systems. Samsung seems to have avoided the hot-headed Snapdragon Elite available in its competitor, the Razr 60 Ultra and went with its own silicon this year. The chip isn’t a downgrade by any means. It isn’t as powerful as the Elite, as evident in the benchmark results below, which compare it with last year’s Galaxy Z Flip 6.
| Benchmarks | Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 | Motorola Razr 60 Ultra | Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chipset | Exynos 2500 (3nm) | Snapdragon 8 Elite (3nm) | Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 (4nm) | |
| Display Resolution | FHD+ | FHD+ | FHD+ | |
| AnTuTu v10 | 16,84,939 | 19,09,999 | 14,33,798 | |
| PCMark Work 3.0 | FTR | 20,789 | 16,911 | |
| Geekbench V6 Single | 2,083 | 1,736 | 1,687 | |
| Geekbench V6 Multi | 7,340 | 6,797 | 6,520 | |
| GFXB T-rex | 119 | 120 | 120 | |
| GFXB Manhattan 3.1 | 119 | 120 | 120 | |
| GFXB Car Chase | 109 | 105 | 110 | |
| 3DM Slingshot Extreme OpenGL | Maxed Out | Maxed Out | Maxed Out | |
| 3DM Slingshot | Maxed Out | Maxed Out | Maxed Out | |
| 3DM Wild Life | Maxed Out | Maxed Out | Maxed Out | |
| 3DM Wild Life Unlimited | 20,092 | 23,212 | 13,889 |
In our PCMark Stress test, which simulates heavy graphic loads in a loop, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 performed better than the Motorola Razr, which could not finish the test as it got too hot. However, there is a noticeable drop in scores just three loops in, which indicates that it’s not an ideal choice for gamers and definitely lacks a cooling mechanism. Do keep in mind that such a stress test is purely synthetic as it overloads the processor to test its limits.
In our real-world testing, I tried out Call of Duty: Mobile, and the phone ran a bit warm when using the default High graphics and frame rate settings. Switching gears to Very High, the phone showed signs of struggle just one tournament: dropped frames, slowdowns when accessing menus, followed as the phone’s temperature creeped higher.
Read more: Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 Review: A Well-Rounded Flip Phone Packed With AI | PCMag
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 Cameras: Pretty average
• Primary camera – 50-megapixel, f/1.8, OIS
• Ultrawide camera – 12-megapixel, f/2.2, FF
• Selfie camera – 10-megapixel, f/2.2, FF
Starting off with the ultrawide cameras, Samsung’s photos appear a bit soft, show plenty of lens barrel distortion and purple fringing. The details aren’t that great, given the smartphone’s price, and it’s also easy to spot areas with clipped highlights.