Round up of all the rumours and leaks surrounding the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 foldable.
Why you can trust Pocket-lint (Pocket-lint) — Samsung revealed the Galaxy Z Fold 2 alongside the Note 20 during an event in August 2020, followed by full details at the beginning of September 2020, so we’re coming up to a year since the last Fold device, which should mean a refresh is due. There have been plenty of rumours surrounding the Galaxy Z Fold 3. This feature rounds up everything we have heard so far about the foldable, including what features we might see, when it is expected to be released, and what it might look like. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2 vs Fold: What’s the difference? Release date and price 11 August event On sale 27 August 2021? Likely around £1800/$2000 Samsung has scheduled its next Galaxy Unpacked event for 11 August, which is where the Galaxy Z Fold 3 is highly expected to be announced. Rumours have claimed we could see an on-sale date of 27 August. In terms of price, we’d expect it to sit within the same region as the Galaxy Z Fold 2, which costs £1799 in the UK and $1999 in the US. So if you’re after Samsung’s next folding flagship, it might be time to start saving. Design Vertical fold Armor Frame? IP rating S Pen compatibility We are expecting the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 to adopt the same book-style vertical fold as the original Galaxy Fold and Galaxy Z Fold 2, reserving the horizontal fold for the Galaxy Z Flip series. We also expect to see the hinge offering multiple angles again. This has all but been confirmed in a pictures leak on Twitter, courtesy of Evan Blass (AKA @evleaks). Extra renders from 91Mobiles also corroborate the design, and reveal three colour options. @evleaks [Evan Blass] via Twitter As per previous rumours suggesting the Z Fold 3 will be compatible with the S Pen — just like the Galaxy S21 Ultra — the above image helps cement that reality. Samsung itself has confirmed there will be an S Pen specifically designed for the Galaxy Z Fold 3 though, which is a slightly different concept to the S21 Ultra. S Pen compatibility rumours surfaced before the Galaxy Z Fold 2 was revealed too, but it was thought the folding display couldn’t accommodate the pressures the stylus would exert, which Samsung has clearly now overcome. In other design leaks, images show a slightly smaller gap between the two halves of the folding screen — and those images also show an under-display front camera too. Another patent suggests the Z Fold 3 — or a future Z Fold device — could opt for gesture controls instead of buttons, and users will be able to customise the gestures and actions. There was some discussion regarding waterproofing before the Z Fold 2 arrived, but sources suggest that the Z Fold 3 could get an IP rating — said to be IPX8, which is the same as what has veen predicted for the Z Flip 3 too. Samsung has also filed a trademark for the expression Armor Frame. It’s being speculated that the Galaxy Z Fold 3 might be the first beneficiary of a new design or material to strengthen the frame of the phone. This could also be part of the reason the phone is rumoured to be thicker, but with a smaller battery capacity than its predecessor. Display 7.56-inch,2208 x 1768 pixels (internal); 6.23-inch,2268 x 832 pixels (internal) 120Hz refresh rate The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 to have a large flexible display inside, as well as an external display when folded. According to a reputable leaker, the internal display will measure 7.56-inches with a resolution of 2208 x 1768 pixels. The external display will have a 6.23-inch size, with a resolution of 2268 x 832 pixels. It’s also been claimed the internal display will be an LTPO (Low-Temperature Polycrystalline Oxid) backplane and sport a 120Hz refresh rate. It’s expected that there will be a punch hole camera on the front display, while various rumours have suggested an under-display camera on the main display. Hardware and specs Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 likely Exynos with AMD GPU? 12GB RAM/256GB storage 5G connectivity Expect flagship hardware under the hood of the Galaxy Z Fold 3. No rumours have suggested what exact specs we might see on the Z Fold 3 but it could be the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 or 888 Plus under the hood along with a good amount of RAM — probably at least 12GB — and at least 256GB of storage. Alternatively, Samsung could use Exynos with an AMD GPU — which the company is said to be working on. As mentioned: battery capacity is claimed to be slightly smaller than the Galaxy Z Fold 2, but the same as the original Fold, at 4380mAh. This may seem peculair, given the phone is thought to be thicker, but that thickness must to be accommodate additional tech — be that pressure sensitivity layers, better screen management, or the Armor Frame, as discussed.
