The Galaxy Z Flip 6 changed my mind about flip phones

Early last year, I wrote about my experience buying a Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 on contract through my wireless provider. A generous Google Fi promo let me get the phone for half price if I kept my phone number on it for 120 consecutive days. It was a great deal on paper, but even at a discount, the Z Flip 4 didn’t live up to my expectations; the battery life and camera performance just weren’t enough for me.

I’ve been using the Galaxy Z Flip 6 for a few weeks now, and it’s a significant upgrade from the Z Flip 4. The bigger cover screen introduced with the Z Flip 5 is an obvious win, but the fit and finish is better, the cameras are good, and the battery actually lasts a full day of use. There’s probably not enough here to make the Z Flip 6 a sensible upgrade for Z Flip 5 owners, but compared to two generations ago, the experience is night and day.

What a difference two years makes

Samsung’s really getting the hang of this

Maybe my expectations of flip phones were unreasonable a year and a half ago, but once the novelty of having a phone that bends in half wore off, I really didn’t enjoy using the Z Flip 4.

I thought it was nice that it took up a little less room in my pocket than a normal phone, and needing to unfold it to scroll through Instagram or flip through Google News did help curb my unintentional phone use. But the trade-offs outweighed the benefits; the Z Flip 4 took worse photos than midrange non-folding phones, and its weak battery life meant I was babying it by the end of most days.

The Z Flip series’ build quality made serious gains from the Z Flip 4 to the Z Flip 5. As of the last generation, Samsung’s Flip phones fold shut without a hinge gap and come with a significantly larger cover display, enabling new ways of using the phone. Accessing apps without unfolding is huge for usability in this style of device; that outer screen is perfect for adjusting my thermostat in Google Home and starting exercise tracking in Oura.

In what’s probably the biggest difference versus last year’s very similar Z Flip 5, the Z Flip 6 has the same primary and ultrawide camera as the Galaxy S24 series.

I spent plenty of time using these cameras in the Galaxy S24+ earlier this year, and I think they’re fine. Samsung’s image processing isn’t my favorite, and I wish the Z Flip 6 had a telephoto instead of the ultrawide I almost never use, but I’m confident it can get a decent photo in situations where I wouldn’t have even bothered pulling out my Z Flip 4.

And thanks to a larger battery cell and a more efficient chipset, the Z Flip 6 actually lasts through a full day of use, whereas my Z Flip 4 regularly needed topping up before bed. I could actually see myself using this thing for a couple of years.

It’s still a questionable value, though

As a rule, don’t pay MSRP for Samsung phones

At the time, using the Z Flip 4 left me feeling like the trade-offs for getting a folding phone weren’t worth the upside. Back then, to get a phone that fits more easily in your pocket, you had to give up a lot of the flagship phone experience while still paying flagship phone money.

The new Z Flip 6 feels significantly less compromised. The experience is closer than ever to what Samsung’s S-series phones offer, and the whole package feels competent enough that I don’t feel like I’m missing out on much versus a more traditional phone. It’s absolutely one of the best flip phones you can get today.

It does cost $1,100 at retail, a $100 increase from the already-pricey Z Flip 5. That’s a tricky value proposition, and I can’t imagine a use case where the Flip 6 is a better option than other phones in this price range. For anyone with the nearly identical Z Flip 5, the Z Flip 6 definitely doesn’t make sense as an upgrade. But coming from the Flip 4 or earlier, it’s a better experience in every way.

I’d suggest waiting a few months, though — if history is any indication, it won’t be too long until you can save hundreds through some promotion or other.