Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4
- What is it? Samsung's next foldable clamshell phone
- When is it out? Possibly around August 2022
- How much will it cost? About $999 / £949 / AU$1,499, probably
News and leaks
We've now seen what the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 might look like courtesy of some unofficial renders, which you can see below.
The design shown here though is basically identical to the Galaxy Z Flip 3, except in a new blue shade (which we've elsewhere heard will be joined by gold, gray and light violet colors).
The source also says the main screen will be the same size at 6.7 inches, but that the Z Flip 4 will be ever so slightly thicker than its predecessor, with dimensions of 165.1 x 71.9 x 7.2mm when unfolded.
Beyond that, one Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 leak points to the phone having a 6.7-inch main screen and a 1.9-inch cover display, much like its predecessor.
We've also seen a benchmark for the phone, suggesting that it uses a Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 Plus chipset (which is even more powerful than the chipsets used in the Galaxy S22 range), and that it will come with 8GB of RAM.
Another leak we've heard suggested the Galaxy Z Flip 4 is being tested with an under-display camera, though that's just a prototype so far, so it could end up still using a punch-hole cut-out for the front-facing selfie camera.
The leak continued that the device will have a redesigned lighter hinge but the same screen dimensions as the Z Flip 3, much like the leak above states.
Since then though another leak claimed the Galaxy Z Flip 4 won't have an under-display camera, but that it will have a slightly bigger cover screen, a third camera on the rear, and a roughly 10-20% larger battery.
A more recent rumor says the battery capacity will be 3,400mAh rather than the 3,300mAh of the Galaxy Z Flip 3. But an even more recent one points to a 3,700mAh battery, which would be quite an upgrade.
We've also seen a Galaxy Z Flip 4 patent which showed a rotating camera situated in the hinge - it's a novel concept, but likely one Samsung won't implement given how 'out-there' it is.
What we want to see
1. A more affordable price
The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 made great strides over its predecessor by being relatively affordable compared to the high-cost original... but it was still a pretty expensive smartphone.
We'd like to see the price-lowering trend continue for the next-gen device, to perhaps get the device in line with the premium S22 series or even to a mid-range price.
The price is unlikely to get low enough to make the Galaxy Z Flip 4 a tempting alternative to non-folding phones, but we live in hope.
2. Improved battery life
One thing we noticed in our Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 review, is that the battery life wasn't stellar. We were lucky to get the thing to last a day, and it seems the handset was designed so that you wouldn't need to flip it open that much, and thereby draw lots of power from the main screen.
Well, some of us like using our super-pricey smartphones, and therefore need a battery life that actually ticks through a whole day.
So we'd like to see the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 have improved staying power, so we can actually use it without worrying that it'll run out of juice.
3. Samsung Galaxy Bespoke from the get-go
The Galaxy Z Flip 3 was available in a few colors, but months after launch, Samsung unveiled Galaxy Bespoke, which is a way to design the phone in a few different color combinations.
This lets you make a phone that's a little more personal than the standard ones Samsung offers.
It would be great for early adopters of the Z Flip 4 if they could pick up custom colored models from the get-go, so they don't get burnt if the way-more-interesting options only go on sale later.