Here’s everything we know about the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3, the next foldable we expect from Samsung.
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 didn’t appear at the Galaxy S21 launch on January 14, nor at the Unpacked event unveiling the mid-range Galaxy A52 5G in March, but that doesn’t mean it’s not coming – we just might have to bide our time before Samsung’s next big foldable phone is out. We’ve been hearing rumors about the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 for a while now, so we suspect it’s in development, and it’s likely to be Samsung’s next top-tier foldable phone. The Fold 3 follows on from the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2, which was officially released in September 2020 and which crucially improved on the original Galaxy Fold’s durability issues and got a much bigger front screen. So what’s left to improve? Foldables are in their early days, and they’re still working out the issues of folding displays, battery life, and multi-screen software. Given how bulky they are, future foldables might be slimmer, lighter, and less cumbersome to use one-handed. Samsung could be making many of these general improvements, but the rumor mill has suggested several more specific upgrades the Z Fold 3 could implement – including, at long last, an S Pen stylus. Given we’re also expecting a Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3, more productivity-focused features make sense for the Z Fold 3, especially since we’re hearing that Samsung probably won’t release a Note phone in 2021. Here’s all the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 leaks and rumors we’ve heard, along with what we want to see out of Samsung’s next flagship foldable. A recent rumor has put the Galaxy Z Fold 3 launch date somewhere in August, which would make sense in terms of it filling a gap left by the Note 21. One tipster has gone as far as naming a specific day: August 3. We’ve also heard that components for the phone entered mass production on June 1, suggesting a launch around two to three months later, so either July or August would fit with that. The phone itself is now apparently rolling off production lines. We’ve also heard that the Galaxy Z Fold 3 could run One UI 3.5 – software which itself is unlikely to land until the second half of the year. We’ve also seen a leaked Samsung product launch roadmap that runs up to late August, and there’s no sign of the Galaxy Z Fold 3 anywhere on it. That might mean we won’t see it before late August, although the roadmap looks like it’s probably incomplete, so don’t count on having to wait quite that long. The Z Fold 3 may not even be the next Samsung foldable though, as we could see the clamshell Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 launch first, given their alternating release schedules. With a rumored late-2021 release date for that, though, it’s anyone’s guess which foldable comes out first. As for the price, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2 cost a whopping $1,999 / £1,799 / AU$2,999, so expect a similar price for the Z Fold 3, especially as there’s been a suggestion that it will be very expensive. That said, SamMobile suggests that the Galaxy Z Fold 3 could be up to 20% cheaper than it predecessor, meaning the price might be more like $1,600 / £1,440 / AU$2,400. We’ve also since heard elsewhere that the price might be slightly lower than the Z Fold 2’s. Leaked marketing materials have shown what the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 might look like, and they show three cameras on the back, and list it as coming in black, silver, green and beige shades – though a more recent leak suggests the beige shade has been renamed to ‘cream’. The marketing materials also mention both the S Pen and an under-display camera, and the source of these images additionally claims that the Galaxy Z Fold 3 will have flat aluminum sides and be protected by Gorilla Glass Victus. We’ve also now seen clearer leaked images of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3, from two different sources. Some of these images can be seen below. They show a phone in black, navy and pink shades, with a triple-lens camera on the back, a punch-hole camera on the cover screen, and likely an under-display camera on the front. While we’d take these with a pinch of salt, we reckon the design is probably more or less accurate, especially as they line up with each other and other leaks.
