Adam Kos Samsung introduced the fourth generation of its folding phones, which belong to its top portfolio. If the Galaxy Z Flip4 is after all more of a lifestyle device, then the Galaxy Z Fold4 should be the ultimate workhorse. So we compared it with the iPhone 13 Pro Max and it's true that they are very different worlds.
As part of the presentation of Samsung's new products, we had the opportunity to physically touch them. When you look at the Fold4 directly, it paradoxically does not look robust. Its front 6,2" touchscreen is smaller than the 6,7" of the iPhone 13 Pro Max. Fold4 is also narrower at the same time. While the largest and most equipped iPhone has a width of 78,1 mm, the Galaxy Z Fold 4 has a width (when closed) of only 67,1 mm, and that is very noticeable.
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After all, it is also smaller in height, as it measures 155,1 mm, while the aforementioned iPhone is 160,8 mm. But it goes without saying that thickness will be a problem here. Here, Apple specifies 7,65 mm for the iPhone (without protruding camera lenses). But the latest Fold is 15,8mm when closed (it's 14,2mm at its narrowest point), which is a problem because it's still like two iPhones on top of each other. Even though it is smaller in terms of its base, you will definitely feel the thickness in your pocket. The same can be said about the weight, which is 263 g. Considering a hybrid device, however, it may not be so much, because the iPhone 13 Pro Max weighs a really high 238 g for a phone.
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Samsung Magazine The question is whether the device can even be made even thinner given the display technology it uses and how its hinge is designed. However, when you open the Galaxy from the Fold4, you get a 7,6" display, while the device will already have a compact thickness of 6,3 mm (without protruding camera lenses). For comparison, it's the same thickness as the iPad mini, but it has an 8,3" display and weighs 293g.
Top-of-the-line cameras
The front display, which does not support the S Pen stylus, has a 10MPx camera located in the opening (aperture f/2,2). The internal camera is then hidden under the display, but it has a resolution of only 4 MPx, even though its aperture is f/1,8. You authenticate with the capacitive fingerprint reader in the side button. Of course, Apple uses a 12MPx TrueDepth camera in the cutout providing Face ID.
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The following is the main trio of cameras with which Samsung has not experimented in any way. It simply took those from the Galaxy S22 and S22+ and popped them into the Fold. Of course, the Ultra ones wouldn't fit. It is positive, however, that the Fold4 therefore belongs to the photographic elite, because the quality of the cameras of the previous generation was widely criticized.
- 12 MPix ultra-wide camera, f/2,2, pixel size: 1,12 μm, angle of view: 123˚
- 50 MPix wide-angle camera, Dual Pixel AF, OIS, f/1,8, pixel size: 1,0 μm, angle of view: 85˚
- 10 MPix telephoto lens, PDAF, f/2,4, OIS, pixel size: 1,0 μm, angle of view: 36˚
Because the cameras extend beyond the back of the device, the phone wobbles when working on a flat surface. Quality is simply not paid for in money. Thanks to the large surface, it is not as terrible as, for example, with the iPhone. Even if we are comparing two top models from two manufacturers, it is a very disparate comparison. It is obvious that the Fold4 will do more work than the iPhone. It is simply a hybrid device that combines a mobile phone with a tablet. If you know you don't need a tablet, the Fold4 is a completely unnecessary device for you.
It is true, however, that Samsung also worked a lot on the One UI 4.1.1 user interface, which runs on top of Android 12L, which the Fold4 received as the first device ever. Multitasking is raised to a completely different level here and, frankly, more usable than it will be in iPadOS 16 with Stage Manager. Although it will only be shown by harsh tests.
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A high price doesn't have to be so high
After playing with the new Fold for half an hour, it still couldn't convince me that I should trade it for the iPhone 13 Pro Max, but that doesn't mean it's a bad device. The biggest complaints clearly go to the size when closed and the groove in the middle of the open display. Anyone who tries this will understand why Apple still hesitates to release its puzzle. This element will probably be the one with which he simply does not want to be satisfied. At least let's hope so.
The Galaxy Z Fold4 will be available in black, grey-green and beige. The recommended retail price is CZK 44 for the 999 GB RAM/12 GB internal memory version and CZK 256 for the 47 GB RAM/999 GB internal memory version. A version with 12 GB of RAM and 512 TB of internal memory will be exclusively available on the samsung.cz website in black and grey-green, the recommended retail price of which is CZK 12. The iPhone 1 pro Max starts at CZK 54 for 999 GB and ends at CZK 13 for 31 TB. The maximum configurations are therefore equal in price, which plays to Samsung's advantage, because here you have two devices in one.
For example, you can pre-order the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold4 here
I have no idea why I should be interested in comparing these two devices. That's completely out of the question.