The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 has all of the makings of a great flip phone. But with a higher price and many similarities to the Flip 5, is it worth it?
Well, folks — you know what we’re here for. It’s time to review the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6. It’s the same phone as the Galaxy Z Flip 5, except there are colors around the cameras, and it’s more expensive. Bye!
I jest, but that’s not a totally inaccurate description of the Z Flip 6. This year’s Flip is a very solid phone that’s objectively good at everything it does, but it’s also an incredibly lazy one that I struggle to wholeheartedly recommend.
Confused by that juxtaposition? Let me explain.Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6: design and hardware
Let’s start on a positive note. As far as flip phone foldable build quality is concerned, I’m not sure it gets much better than the Flip 6. Samsung has been churning out folding phones for five years now, and it shows. The Z Flip 6 is sturdy, well-made, and almost perfect in its design — save for one thing.
I love that the Flip 6’s aluminum frame is now matte instead of glossy like it was on the Flip 5, but the flatter sides and sharper edges don’t feel nearly as comfortable. I don’t like the glossy frame on the Motorola Razr Plus 2024, for example, but I also find its rounded edges and frame much nicer to hold. The Flip 6 isn’t annoying to hold, though I do hope the more rounded design comes back next year.
The Z Flip 6 also has an exceptional hinge. It moves fluidly with no resistance or creakiness, it can be propped up at almost any angle, and it easily snaps open and closes shut with one hand.
The hinge is also more durable than ever, featuring Samsung’s new “dual rail hinge” design. The company says it has better shock distribution than past models, while the new folding edge mechanism offers better resistance to pressure and sharp objects. Combined with an IP48 rating that offers dust and water resistance, this is one of the most durable folding phones you’ll find.
But it’s not just the hinge that Samsung does so well; it also expertly executes the smaller details. All of the buttons are firm and clicky. The speaker is loud and sounds surprisingly full. The fingerprint sensor is lightning-fast. These are smaller details that other flip phones sometimes have to sacrifice, but not here.
As for colors, there are a lot. The “normal” colors this year include yellow, mint, blue, and gray. Yellow is my personal favorite, though I’ve grown quite fond of the blue color on my review unit. If you buy the Flip 6 from Samsung’s website, you get three more options: peach, white, and “Crafted Black.” Crafted Black has a Kevlar-like texture on the back that looks cool in photos, though it feels a bit cheap in person. Also, even though I joked about it at the beginning of the review, I do kind of love the matching colors around the cameras. It’s a fun touch.Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6: screens
We have two screens to discuss here, and we’ll start with the inner one. It’s great! It’s a 6.7-inch AMOLED panel with a 2640 x 1080 resolution, up to a 120Hz refresh rate, and up to 2600 nits of peak brightness. The increased brightness is a very nice touch (up from 1750 nits on the Flip 5), but otherwise, this is the same display as last year.
This is one area where I’m fine with Samsung keeping things the same. The Flip 6’s display is bright, colorful, and sharp, and it looks excellent whether I’m watching YouTube or scrolling Reddit. Samsung has long been an expert in the display field, and it shows once again on the Flip 6.
I also have to mention that the crease is far less prominent on the Flip 6 than it was on the Flip 5. It’s still there and more noticeable than the almost nonexistent crease on Motorola’s new Razr phones, but it’s a big step in the right direction. Where the Flip 5’s crease felt like a canyon, the Flip 6’s feels like a very small divet.
That’s the inner screen — what about the cover one? This is where I start complaining.
Last year, the Galaxy Z Flip 5 took the teeny-tiny 1.9-inch cover display on the Flip 4 and expanded it to a much larger 3.4-inch one. It was a big deal, enabling helpful widgets, an on-screen keyboard, and full application support. It was a commendable step forward, but even in 2023, it already fell behind what Motorola offered with that year’s version of the Razr Plus.
So, how did Samsung improve the cover screen on the Galaxy Z Flip 6? It … didn’t. Not at all. Just like last year, it’s a 3.4-inch AMOLED panel with a 720 x 748 resolution and a 60Hz refresh rate. It’s serviceable, but that’s about it.
