What to Know About the Galaxy Z Fold 8 is missing a fan-favourite feature
Samsung’s new wide foldable is arguably the most exciting it’s ever launched. But there’s a nasty secret lurking within the hinge.
The Galaxy Z Fold 8 adopts a much shorter, squatter design than the book-style Z Fold 8 Ultra, enabling a wider internal screen that’s perfect for entertainment.
However, it’s stuck with just two positions: open or closed. And that puts it at a major disadvantage compared to the Ultra. Let me explain.
Who let the flex out?
On the surface, both the Z Fold 8 and Z Fold 8 Ultra have a very similar hinge. Both use the new ‘Flex Titanium’ design, allowing it to feel more durable and significantly reduce the appearance of the crease.
However, the Ultra has a key advantage. It lets you open the device at almost any angle between fully open and fully closed, just like a laptop. By contrast, the Z Fold 8 is limited to the two extremes, meaning it can’t be left freestanding on a table.
Luke Baker
As a result, you lose one of Samsung’s signature foldable features: Flex Mode. It removes useful features such as hands-free video calling, instant camera previews and easy group photos. You also miss out on a dedicated control panel for the likes of YouTube and Netflix, plus a separate gamepad for some mobile games.
Credit to Basil at tech_edit, who first brought this to our attention.
A potential dealbreaker?
Whether you view the loss of Flex Mode as a dealbreaker will depend on how you use your phone. If you’re happy with a phone or tablet with nothing in between, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 will suit you just fine.
But if you love the extra versatility of a screen that can be adjusted to almost any angle and be used hands-free, you’ll need to step up to the Z Fold 8 Ultra.
It’s unclear why Samsung decided to omit Flex Mode from the Galaxy Z Fold 8. The most likely explanation is to reduce costs, with the company having to design a brand-new hinge in the midst of a global RAM shortage that’s dramatically pushing up tech prices.
Luke Baker
Nonetheless, it means that the Z Fold 8’s hinge is a downgrade compared to the Ultra, and every single Galaxy Z Fold since the original in 2019.
That, and the missing telephoto lens, appear to be the main reasons for its £200/$200 lower price tag.
However, I still loved using it in my Z Fold 8 hands-on, despite the Z Fold 8 Ultra arguably being peak foldable.
