Samsung Z Flip 7 review: I was too young for the original flip-phone era - but I'm totally converted with this retro revival

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These relics might have a soft spot in the hearts of many tech fans, but I'm ashamed to say I was simply too young to enjoy the first flip-phone era. 

However, even without the benefit of rose-tinted nostalgia, I've been totally converted by this retro rival. 

The Galaxy Z Flip 7 is Samsung's latest iteration of the Z Flip series, and joins the book-like Galaxy Fold 7 as one of the company's two flagship foldables. 

The Galaxy Z Flip 7 is available in a choice of three colours - Blue Shadow, Jetblack, and Coralred - and costs £1,049 or £1,149 depending on the storage option. 

Its main selling point is the 'clamshell' folding design, which lets you snap the handset closed into a package small enough to slip into your pocket.

While it might not be as much of a game-changer as the Galaxy Fold 7, Samsung has succeeded in making a flip-phone that is simply great fun to use. 

Whether it was sat, neatly folded on my desk or flipped open to reveal the gorgeous 6.9-inch AMOLED display, the Galaxy Z Flip 7 mixes form and function to great effect.

An average battery and middling cameras might be a concern for some, but if there's been a flip-phone-shaped hole in your life since the 2000s, this could be the device to fill it. 

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 

Our verdict 

Rating:

Although it isn't perfect, Samsung has finally offered a folding phone that feels worth the extra cost compared to slab phones.

Taking one of the biggest displays available on a Samsung phone and folding it down to a pocket-sized square isn't just great fun; it really enhances the phone's practicality.

The only thing that holds the Galaxy Z Flip 7 back is the less-than-spectacular battery life and camera options that feel a little weak for a phone of this price.

However, while I can't say that this is the right phone for everyone, I simply adore Samsung's refreshing modern take on the flip-phone.

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That means seeing how they work at home, in the office, and out in public for all the situations your device needs to handle.

We evaluate devices based on their hardware, software, and overall appeal - testing everything from camera quality and battery life to how easy they are to type with.

Each phone is tested for at least a week, allowing us to provide an in-depth review to help consumers make an informed decision.

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Wiliam Hunter is a science and technology reporter at MailOnline and has been testing and reviewing products for two years. He completed a master's degree in Newspaper Journalism at City University London in 2022.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 Review

Design

Unfolded, the device is 6.56 inches tall by 2.96 inches wide and just 6.5mm thick.

That puts it on the larger and thinner end for most smartphones, coming in a little taller and slimmer than the iPhone 16 Pro Max.

But when the phone is closed, you're left with a neat little block measuring just 3.36 inches by 2.96 inches.

In this form, the Galaxy Z Flip 7 is pretty chunky at 13.7 mm thick and weighing 188 grams, but I really don't mind the extra heft.

The device feels reassuringly solid, fitting nicely into the palm of your hand or sitting stably on a table.

Despite the thickness, the design is so compact that there were times when I honestly forgot it was in my pocket.

The Galaxy Z Flip 7 also looks fantastic.

Perhaps I've spent too long looking at smartphones, but to me, the Galaxy Z Flip 7 is absolutely adorable.

Compared to the ocean of identical metal and glass slabs on the market, this compact foldable is, simply put, cute.

The front display is a nearly square 4.1-inch display that, in a colossal improvement over the Galaxy Z Flip 6, wraps around the two small cameras.

In its folded form, the Galaxy Z Flip 7's front screen is pleasantly reminiscent of my beloved 2010s tech favourites, the Tamagotchi and iPod Nano 6.

We received our review model in the colour Blue Shadow, which looks stunning, but the vibrant Coralred also looks like an extremely fun alternative.

Display

Compared to the previous Galaxy Z Flip 6, this updated model has bigger screens both inside and out.

On the outside, the display has grown from 3.6 inches to 4.1 inches, which really makes a noticeable difference.

Considering you can't use most apps from this outer display, the screen quality is almost unnecessarily good.

It's a Super AMOLED with a variable refresh rate of 60-120Hz and extremely high peak brightness of 2,600 nits, coupled with Samsung's Vision Booster to improve outdoor viewing.

Inside, there is a 6.9-inch display compared to the 6.7-inch display on the Galaxy Z Flip 6.

That gives the Galaxy Z Flip the same screen size as the iPhone 16 Pro Max, and an even bigger display than the Google Pixel 9 XL.

This inner screen is a Super AMOLED display with a variable refresh rate of 1-120Hz and the same peak brightness of 2,600 nits.

During testing, I found that both screens were extremely bright, colourful, and clear.

The slightly larger inner display was a real bonus, especially for typing out emails or watching videos on YouTube.

The inner screen is a bit more reflective due to the flexible material and smudges a lot, which can make it a little difficult to use outdoors.

However, the extra brightness usually makes up for any difficulties.

The crease, an unavoidable feature of folding phones, is just about visible when the screen is off but practically disappears whenever the display is in use.

I also noticed that the crease seems to show up more in pictures than it does to the naked eye, so don't be too put off by how it might look in images online.

Performance

The Galaxy Z Flip 7's one major deviation from other Samsung models is that it comes with Samsung's own Exynos 2500 processor.

Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 7 and the Motorola Razr Ultra, meanwhile, both ship with the powerful Snapdragon 8 Elite chip.

Samsung says that this chipset has just as much power as the Snapdragon, and, based on our testing, there's no reason to doubt that.

The Z Flip 7 allows you to run two apps at the same time, with the option to add a third as an overlay, and manages this without any hint of juddering.

However, the phone does become quite warm during extended periods of high-intensity use.

Samsung has increased the battery size from 4,000mAh on the Z Flip 6 to 4,300mAh on the Z Flip 7.

That's a fairly big increase and only a little shy of the 4,400 mAh battery in the Galaxy Z Fold 7.

Samsung says that this can deliver 31 hours of video playback at 720p for content stored locally on the phone.

Battery life was by no means terrible, but for the price, I'd like to see something a little more impressive - especially considering that the smaller Google Pixel 9 Pro packs a 4,700 mAh battery.

In our testing, I found that the phone easily lasted a full day of regular use, but could dip worryingly low if I was streaming a lot of content or creating a mobile hotspot on a long train journey.

Certainly not enough to be a deal-breaker for most people, but if you want that extra peace of mind that comes with a massive battery life, it's something to consider.

In terms of day-to-day use, the screen is more than large enough to make typing comfortable and easy for emails and texts.

Calls sounded crystal clear thanks to the Galaxy Z Flip 7's excellent in-built speakers, and I found that the device had excellent network connectivity.

Camera

The cameras on the Galaxy Z Flip 7 are probably one of its weakest points.

Samsung has kept the 50 megapixel main camera and 12 megapixel ultrawide from the Z Flip 6, along with a 10 megapixel inner selfie camera.

The cameras are absolutely fine for most people, but they're nothing too exciting.

The big change is that the phone now packs Samsung's latest ProVisualEngine, which digitally analyses and enhances your photos.

Generally, photos from the Z Flip 7 look surprisingly good for their specs and capture a great amount of detail.

Side by side with a picture from the Fold 7's 200 megapixel main camera, the difference isn't that noticeable.

Although the 10 megapixel selfie camera takes perfectly fine photos, a great feature of the Z Flip 7 is that you never have to use it.

You can simply open the camera app while the phone is still folded, using the front display as your preview and take a photo or video with the 50 megapixel main camera.

In addition to being an extremely neat party trick, this is a great way to easily get some crisp-looking shots.

Software

The Galaxy Flip 7 is one of the first phones to ship with Android 16 and runs on Samsung's OneUI 8.

That gives you plenty of great features, such as the Now bar, which provides updates on ongoing activities like sports scores, music playback, and timers.

Samsung also has some of the best AI features on any smartphone at the moment, with its own in-house tools and access to Google's AI services.

That gives you access to writing, image editing, transcription, and translation services, which are simple and easy to use.

I had a great time playing with Samsung's AI picture editing tools, turning my crude doodles into photorealistic edits or turning my cat into a cute cartoon.

Google services include the Gemini chatbot, which lets you ask questions about what's happening on screen, and Circle to Search.

Unusually, Gemini struggled to identify buildings in a few photos during testing - despite having performed well on this task when running on the Z Fold 7.

For example, when shown a picture of the Design Museum, the AI insisted that it was the Francis Crick Institute building in Cambridge, even telling me that a sign 'clearly' stated that this was the case.

The Galaxy Z Flip 7 also has plenty of tools that you can use on the outer screen.

You can view notifications, respond to messages, set timers, access the voice recorder and use a few other widgets.

I found being able to check my shopping list without needing to open the phone or look for the app was really useful.

Some apps like Spotify and WhatsApp also have their widgets that you can use from the outside screen.

To use other apps on the cover screen, you need to download Samsung’s MultiStar plugin from the Galaxy Store.

This isn't difficult to do, but it really should be a default feature from the start.

Price

Starting at £1,049, the Galaxy Z Flip 7 is a bit more expensive than the Galaxy S25+ at £999 and the Google Pixel 9 at £799.

However, it still comes in slightly cheaper than the iPhone 16 Pro Max at £1,199.

For a foldable, the Galaxy Z Flip 7 is fairly middle of the road in terms of price.

For comparison, the Galaxy Z Fold 7 costs £1,799 and the Motorola Razr 60 Ultra costs £1,099.