Samsung Galaxy Z Fold
Ranked 2 of 5 foldable phones by recommenders
Foldable phone people say gives a big screen for video and work while folding to pocket size. Common caveat: high price, and the screen crease and durability draw complaints.
Foldable phone people say gives a big screen for video and work while folding to pocket size. Common caveat: high price, and the screen crease and durability draw complaints.
66 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 42
- criticize it
- 24
- approval share
- 64%
Recommended in 9 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Owned for 1 year
Median of the 15 owners who said how long they have had it.
Each square is one year.
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 42 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 1.7 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, not met.
- Recommended in 9 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Large screen for video and work
“it tends to give more usable screen space for viewing videos but is actually more difficult to use one-handed than the newer tall/narrow candybar format”
Comment from 20 Aug 2026 in “Pixel 11 Pro Fold feels like the end of an era” “Huge gains in productivity and night-to-day difference consuming video and photos.”
Comment from 6 Apr 2026 in “I Won't Download Your App. The Web Version Is A-OK” “I set that up while I'm in my hotel room and use my Fold7 as a personal laptop.”
Comment from 28 Jan 2026 in “Android's full desktop interface leaks: New status bar, Chrome Extensions” - Comment from 14 Mar 2026 in “Your Phone Is an Entire Computer”
- Comment from 27 Mar 2026 in “Hold on to Your Hardware”
- Comment from 3 Mar 2026 in “Apple Introduces iPhone 17e”
Feels compact when folded
“My z fold 8 is actually smaller than my old Xperia Z 3 Compact despite technically having a bigger screen”
Comment from 9 Sep 2026 in “iPhone Duo” “the passport aspect ratio turns out to really just make the form factor work”
Comment from 10 Sep 2026 in “iPhone Duo” “it feels like a regular phone when folded. Not noticeably thick at all.”
Comment from 9 Jun 2026 in “WWDC 2026: Apple is Folding” - Comment from 9 Sep 2026 in “iPhone Duo”
Crease barely noticed in use
“Z7 Fold had a somewhat noticeable one, except... I stopped noticing it after first few minutes of use”
Comment from 10 Sep 2026 in “iPhone Duo” “I've never had the crease or even noticed it at all because I'm too busy looking at the content.”
Comment from 10 Sep 2026 in “iPhone Duo” “They're great - a year in I never, or rarely if ever see the minute crease”
Comment from 10 Sep 2026 in “iPhone Duo” Hard to go back to phones
“Foldable phone experience is already past "interesting and fun" use cases to practical and useful day to day.”
Comment from 10 Sep 2026 in “iPhone Duo” “after using the Fold 8, I don't want to go back to a phone that doesn't fold”
Comment from 10 Sep 2026 in “iPhone Duo” “Having used one for over a year, I'm not going back”
Comment from 29 Oct 2026 in “MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display and Touch”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Screen and crease durability problems
“It broke like four times under warranty because the crease got gummed up with their glue strips”
Comment from 9 Jun 2026 in “WWDC 2026: Apple is Folding” “My screen protector started peeling near the top on the crease close to the 2 year mark.”
Comment from 10 Sep 2026 in “iPhone Duo” “The inner screen built-in protector was peeling in the middle.”
Comment from 17 Jun 2026 in “GrapheneOS has been ported to Android 17 and official releases are coming soon” - Comment from 10 Sep 2026 in “iPhone Duo”
- Comment from 2 Dec 2025 in “Samsung reveals its tri-fold phone – and its desktop mode”
- Comment from 10 Sep 2026 in “iPhone Duo”
- Comment from 2 Dec 2025 in “Samsung reveals its tri-fold phone – and its desktop mode”
- Comment from 10 Sep 2026 in “iPhone Duo”
Hard to use one-handed
“it tends to give more usable screen space for viewing videos but is actually more difficult to use one-handed than the newer tall/narrow candybar format”
Comment from 20 Aug 2026 in “Pixel 11 Pro Fold feels like the end of an era” “it has to be used with both hands even when closed”
Comment from 22 Oct 2026 in “The iPhone Duo” Frequent terms and update prompts
“my Fold 7 harasses me to accept two sets of updates to terms and conditions first thing in the morning every morning”
Comment from 18 Mar 2026 in “Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra Review: The Privacy Screen” “my Fold 7 harasses me to accept two sets of updates to terms and conditions”
Comment from 18 Mar 2026 in “Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra Review: The Privacy Screen”
Other foldable phones people recommend
The four most recommended other foldable phones, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apple iPhone Duo | 233 | 245 | 49% | 9 | — | — |
| Samsung Galaxy Z FoldThis page | 42 | 24 | 64% | 9 | 1 yr15 owners | — |
| Google Pixel 11 Pro Fold | 39 | 35 | 53% | 8 | 2 yrs5 owners | — |
| Motorola Razr | 21 | 9 | 70% | 10 | 1.3 yrs5 owners | Approved |
| Samsung Galaxy Z Flip | 9 | 2 | 82% | 3 | — | — |
What people said
40 of the 89 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“Having used one for over a year, I'm not going back”
“it has to be used with both hands even when closed”
“My screen protector started peeling near the top on the crease close to the 2 year mark.”
“Foldable phone experience is already past "interesting and fun" use cases to practical and useful day to day.”
“I've never had the crease or even noticed it at all because I'm too busy looking at the content.”
“the passport aspect ratio turns out to really just make the form factor work”
“They're great - a year in I never, or rarely if ever see the minute crease”
“the crease is much more subtle and flat enough that I sometimes don't feel it while sliding my finger over it”
“Z7 Fold had a somewhat noticeable one, except... I stopped noticing it after first few minutes of use”
“This has been a solved issue in modern foldables already.”
“after using the Fold 8, I don't want to go back to a phone that doesn't fold”
“my Fold 8 didn't have crease either when new month ago. Now the crease is increasing”
“Seeing the creases and crunchy-feeling hinges on well-used Samsung Fold display models has always been enough to put me off”
“Zf8 is def worse than my fold 8 ultra for productivity”
“The screen is a lot more sensitive to micro scratches than your run if the mill gorilla glass though.”
“The stock keyboard is split so it's a bit more comfortable to type on with my thumbs.”
“My z fold 8 is actually smaller than my old Xperia Z 3 Compact despite technically having a bigger screen”
“The usable space on the front screen is greater without those edges”
“the 8 is a good bit lighter weight than the duo”
“I tried the Samsung one with the same form factor in a store , and that is pretty nice.”
“Samsung elegantly handles the app transition from fold to unfold by force closing and restarting the app for you”
“From a visual aesthetics perspective, I prefer the square edges of the Samsung Fold 8.”
“it tends to give more usable screen space for viewing videos but is actually more difficult to use one-handed than the newer tall/narrow candybar format”
“It is a form factor that looks silly at first but is really nice once you have it. But yes, the price for access to this is just too high for a lot of people.”
“The inner screen built-in protector was peeling in the middle.”
“had my fold 6 fixed in 30 minutes, and these centers are everywhere around the world”
“It broke like four times under warranty because the crease got gummed up with their glue strips”
“it feels like a regular phone when folded. Not noticeably thick at all.”
“the first mobile device that successfully ate into this category”
“Huge gains in productivity and night-to-day difference consuming video and photos.”
“a foldable phone is good enough to do everything on personal side”
“my Fold 7 harasses me to accept two sets of updates to terms and conditions”
“my Fold 7 harasses me to accept two sets of updates to terms and conditions first thing in the morning every morning”
“Extreme portability can cover for a lot of other UX problems.”
“my Fold7 managed to take over ~all tasks I used to do on the laptop or PC”
“I haven't used my personal laptop since that day”
“I set that up while I'm in my hotel room and use my Fold7 as a personal laptop.”
“the last few years' worth of Samsung firmware has been excellent for me”
“I bought the 4th gen of ZFold thinking it would be out of the prototype stage, and it fell apart in less than a year.”
“A few people I know that have bought Samsung folding phones have all had their screens break”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.