That\u2019s what makes the Galaxy Z Flip 7 so exciting. With a dramatically improved cover screen, a thinner design, a larger main display, and a bigger battery, the Flip 7 is the first flip phone from Samsung in a while where it feels like the company is actually trying.<\/p>\n
In some ways, the Flip 7 is the most impressive Z Flip I\u2019ve ever used. But in that same breath, it still retains compromises that have plagued previous models, and introduces a new one, too.<\/p>\n
The Galaxy Z Flip 7 is a good foldable, but it\u2019s not quite the one I wanted it to be.<\/p>\n
The good (and bad) of the Z Flip 7\u2019s cover screen<\/p>\n
![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-7-review-13-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"samsung")
<\/p>\n
Joe Maring \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n
The cover screen is by far the most noticeable upgrade for the Flip 7, so let\u2019s start there. While the 3.4-inch cover screen on the Flip 6<\/a> was serviceable, it wasn\u2019t anything to write home about. Not only was it smaller than the competition, but it was also just a weak panel overall\u00a0 \u2014 with a low resolution, slow refresh rate, and lacking brightness.<\/p>\n Samsung fixed all of this on the Galaxy Z Flip 7, and for the first time ever on a Z Flip, the cover screen hardware feels just about perfect.<\/p>\n The jump from a 3.4-inch screen to a 4.1-inch one may not sound like a big deal, but put the Flip 6 and Flip 7 side-by-side, and the difference is undeniable. Gone is Samsung\u2019s awkward folder-shaped display, and in its place is a screen that fills up the entirety of the Flip 7\u2019s upper half. This extra space means apps are much better formatted than on 2024\u2019s phone, the keyboard is much more comfortable to type on, and Samsung\u2019s teeny tiny bezels are almost impossibly thin.<\/p>\n But Samsung didn\u2019t just give us a bigger screen with the Galaxy Z Flip 7; it also gave us a better one. The 948 x 1,048 resolution is the sharpest ever on a Z Flip cover screen, and the jump in quality is immediately noticeable. The 120Hz refresh rate is nice and smooth, and the 2,600 nits of peak brightness make the screen easy to view on bright (and hot) summer days in Michigan.<\/p>\n Joe Maring \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n Despite creating such a large and high-quality panel, Samsung still greatly limits what you can actually\u00a0do\u00a0on the Z Flip 7\u2019s cover screen:<\/p>\n You still have to jump through the Good Lock and MultiStar hoops<\/a> to run any Android app on the cover screen. Joe Maring \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n One or two of these things would be easy enough to ignore, but it\u2019s how they all add up throughout daily use where things get frustrating \u2014 especially when Motorola\u2019s Razr phones don\u2019t have any of these issues. The Flip 7\u2019s cover screen hardware is so good that I want to interact with it, but at every other turn, Samsung\u2019s restrictive software is there to stop me from doing so.<\/p>\n On the flip side (pun intended), it\u2019s not all bad news. There are some good updates this year, namely Gemini and Now Brief both being accessible on the cover screen for the first time. However, as much as I\u2019ve enjoyed talking to Gemini while the Flip 7 is folded shut, it\u2019s not enough to distract me from everything Samsung didn\u2019t change or fix this year.<\/p>\n Many of the above limitations are carried over from the Galaxy Z Flip 6. As such, it comes across as lazy for Samsung to create such an obviously better cover screen and then not optimize the software to take advantage of it. This should have been an easy slam dunk for Samsung, but instead, it feels half-baked.<\/p>\n A thinner design and a larger display make a big difference<\/p>\n Joe Maring \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n While the cover screen is the most obvious hardware change on the Z Flip 7, it isn\u2019t the only one.<\/p>\n The Galaxy Z Flip 7 is thinner than the Flip 6, measuring just 13.7mm thick while closed instead of 14.9mm. As someone who spent a fair amount of time with the Flip 6 last year, I think it\u2019s a pretty substantial difference. While not as thin as the Galaxy Z Fold 7<\/a>, the Flip 7 now feels more like a compact phone when folded, rather than two phones stacked on top of each other.<\/p>\n This thinner design is thanks to the Galaxy Z Flip 7\u2019s new hinge, which also allows for a barely-there crease on the inner display. You can still see it under certain lighting, but it\u2019s barely perceivable to the touch. The Galaxy Z Flip 6 already had a hardly noticeable crease, and the Flip 7\u2019s is even better.<\/p>\n Joe Maring \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n Speaking of the inner display, there are key upgrades for it as well. Thanks to a larger 6.9-inch size, thinner bezels, and a more traditional 21:9 aspect ratio, the Z Flip 7\u2019s main display\u00a0finally\u00a0feels just like any other \u201cnormal\u201d phone. Every previous Z Flip display has been taller and narrower than a regular slab phone, but that\u2019s no longer the case on the Flip 7, and it feels wonderful to use.<\/p>\n The Exynos elephant in the room<\/p>\n Joe Maring \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n Going back to the very first Galaxy Z Flip, Samsung has always included a Qualcomm Snapdragon chip in its foldable flip phones, just as it does for the vast majority of its US smartphones. Leading up to the Flip 7\u2019s release, it was expected to get Qualcomm\u2019s Snapdragon 8 Elite chip. However, as fate would have it, Samsung instead opted for its own Exynos 2500 chipset<\/a>.<\/p>\n After running the Galaxy Z Flip 7 through our usual series of benchmarks, the Exynos 2500 is immediately apparent \u2014 and not in a good way.<\/p>\n GeekBench 6 and PCMark 3.0 (which test CPU and overall performance, respectively) show that the Flip 7 has similar, if not worse, performance compared to last year\u2019s Galaxy Z Flip 6 and its Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip. Compared to the Motorola Razr Ultra and Galaxy S25 Ultra, both of which feature a Snapdragon 8 Elite, the Galaxy Z Flip 7 performs considerably worse. In our GeekBench test, the Flip 7 eked out slightly better multi-core CPU performance than the Flip 6, but it fell behind in single-core tests and came in last place in PCMark.<\/p>\n Joe Maring \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n Turning to GPU benchmarks, the Flip 7 outperformed the Flip 6 in all three 3DMark tests, even if just barely so in Wild Life and Wild Life Extreme. Meanwhile, the Razr Ultra still holds a fairly commanding lead above all three foldables.<\/p>\n Looking closer at the individual tests, there are a couple of notable points. The Flip 7 had the worst stability compared to the Flip 6 and the Razr Ultra, scoring a few points below the Flip 6 in each test and significantly behind the Razr. Interestingly, the Flip 7 stayed cooler than the Flip 6 across all three tests, but once again, the Razr Ultra still performed the best overall.<\/p>\n While the Exynos 2500 may be a good chip (great, even), it’s clearly not the best.<\/p>\n Anecdotally, the Flip 7 has performed without fault for basic day-to-day tasks, such as checking Slack messages, watching YouTube, scrolling through X, and snapping a few pictures. It\u2019s a responsive and reliable phone, although it\u2019s evident that performance has taken a hit with Samsung opting for the Exynos 2500 over the Snapdragon 8 Elite.<\/p>\n Whether or not you notice that entirely depends on how much you push your smartphone, but the whole thing doesn\u2019t sit right with me. For a phone that starts at $1,100 \u2014 even for a foldable like this \u2014 you should expect top-of-the-line performance. While the Exynos 2500 may be a good chip (great, even), it\u2019s clearly not the best.<\/p>\n Joe Maring \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n As for battery life, the 4,300mAh battery is perfectly adequate. If you use your phone sparingly, mostly on Wi-Fi and with two to three hours of screen-on time (primarily using social apps, email, YouTube, and no gaming), you can start your day at around 6:30 am and get to 11:00 pm with 40% battery still remaining. However, if you spend most of your time on 5G, play a few games, and generally use your phone more, the Galaxy Z Flip 7 is firmly a one-day smartphone.<\/p>\n Joe Maring \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n Charge speeds, unfortunately, are disappointing. The Galaxy Z Flip 7 features the same 25W wired charging as the Flip 6; however, for some reason, the Flip 7 takes longer to reach 100% and becomes significantly hotter in the process \u2014 potentially a result of the Exynos chip.<\/p>\n The Flip 7 took 91 minutes to charge from approximately 2% to 100%, whereas the Flip 6 took 85 minutes. That\u2019s not a dramatic difference, but it\u2019s still not great to see the newer phone taking longer to charge to a full battery. More concerning is the Flip 7\u2019s average charging temperature of 36.6 \u00b0C \/ 97.88 \u00b0F, which is significantly hotter than the Flip 6\u2019s average charge temp of 29.5 \u00b0C \/ 85.1 \u00b0F.<\/p>\n Good cameras, but not amazing cameras<\/p>\n Joe Maring \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n The Galaxy Z Flip 7 features a familiar camera setup compared to the Galaxy Z Flip 6, and by familiar, I mean identical. Just like last year, the Flip 7 touts a 50-megapixel primary camera and a 12MP ultrawide camera, plus a 10MP selfie camera on the inner display.<\/p>\n Also, just like last year, that means the Galaxy Z Flip 7 can capture some nice-looking photos, although it never really goes beyond being a \u201cgood\u201d camera to a \u201cgreat\u201d one<\/a>.<\/p>\n In situations with ample lighting, the Galaxy Z Flip 7\u2019s primary camera holds up well. Colors across all photos are bold and well-saturated, though not to an overwhelming degree. I love how the sunset is shining through the beer glass in the fifth photo, and the colors in the hamburger and flower photos are just lovely.<\/p>\n Any of these pictures would look great on Instagram or Threads, but as you start pixel-peeping, you notice some of the primary camera\u2019s limitations. In the photo of my cat, for example, the fur around his forehead appears poorly sharpened, with the fur around his whiskers resembling a watercolor painting. The picture of the Rocket Fizz sign also shows what happens when the lights go down. While the red and blue lights look great, there\u2019s a lot\u00a0of noise in the night background behind them. Still, I\u2019m mostly happy with how it turned out.<\/p>\n Unfortunately, that\u2019s not always the case. The nighttime photo of the movie theater sign is pretty bad, with the primary camera getting completely tripped up by the bright lights. (Interestingly, the ultrawide camera did a better job here.)<\/p>\n The Flip 7\u2019s low-light woes are even more apparent when moving subjects are involved. I tried to snap a few pictures at a recent show I went to, but every photo I took was a blurry and unfocused mess \u2014 with many of my shots worse than the ones you see above. The Flip 7 nailed the mood of the stage lights, but there\u2019s just zero detail and rampant noise everywhere you look.<\/p>\n That said, it\u2019s not all bad news. Thanks to the nature of it being a flip phone, the Flip 7\u2019s primary and ultrawide cameras are excellent selfie shooters \u2014 much better than what you\u2019d get on any slab phone. The same shortcomings apply, but compared to the selfie camera on a phone like the Galaxy S25, this is worlds better.<\/p>\n Speaking of the ultrawide camera, it\u2019s good! The 123-degree field-of-view allows you to capture a lot more of the scene at hand, all without your picture being ruined by an unsightly fish-eye effect. It also maintains similar colors and the overall vibe of the primary camera. It\u2019s nothing mind-blowing, but it\u2019s a consistent and reliable secondary sensor.<\/p>\n To see full-resolution versions of all the camera samples above (plus some extra pictures that I didn\u2019t include), you can find them in this Google Drive folder<\/a>.<\/p>\n Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 review: Is it the right flip phone for you?<\/p>\n Joe Maring \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n The Galaxy Z Flip 7 is an interesting smartphone. Between the new cover screen hardware and the improved design, Samsung proves that it still has a lot to offer in this niche. But in other aspects, whether it\u2019s the disappointing Exynos chip or the just OK cameras, it feels like Samsung still isn\u2019t doing enough. And with a hefty starting price of $1,100, it means the answer to \u201cShould you buy the Galaxy Z Flip 7?\u201d isn\u2019t an automatic yes.<\/p>\n To Samsung\u2019s credit, the Galaxy Z Flip 7 still has a few notable advantages over its Razr competition. The Flip 7 is the only foldable flip phone in the US with seven years of Android updates<\/a>, and Samsung\u2019s after-sales support for any repairs you may need is leagues ahead of what Motorola offers. Plus, there\u2019s the advantage of the Z Flip 7 existing within the broader Samsung ecosystem.<\/p>\n If you place a lot of value in those Android updates and the peace of mind that comes with Samsung\u2019s better repair network \u2014 and if you have other Samsung devices like a Galaxy Watch or Galaxy Buds \u2014 the Galaxy Z Flip 7, even with its shortcomings, is the best flip phone you can buy.<\/p>\n However, if those things don\u2019t matter as much to you, I\u2019d argue that the Flip 7 isn\u2019t the best choice for a flagship flip phone.<\/p>\n For my money, I\u2019d rather buy the Motorola Razr Ultra<\/a> ($1299.99 at Amazon<\/a>). I\u2019ve referenced it a few times already throughout this review, and that\u2019s because it\u2019s the crown jewel of what a foldable flip phone should be in 2025. Compared to the Flip 7, the Razr Ultra features a significantly better chipset, longer battery life, much faster charging, and cover screen software that addresses nearly all of the issues with Samsung\u2019s approach. The $1,300 price tag is more expensive than the Flip 7, but Motorola\u2019s frequent sales<\/a> mean it ultimately shouldn\u2019t cost you that much more than buying a Flip 7.<\/p>\n For my money, I’d rather buy the Motorola Razr Ultra.<\/p>\n The baseline Motorola Razr (2025)<\/a> ($599.99 at Amazon<\/a>) is also worth considering. It has a smaller cover screen, a less capable processor, and less RAM than the Z Flip 7, but it also costs significantly less at just $700. Plus, you\u2019re still getting much better cover screen software, a larger battery than the Flip 7, and faster charging, too. The Galaxy Z Flip 7 FE<\/a> ($899.99 at Amazon<\/a>) also exists if you want a slightly cheaper Flip, but the Razr (2025) is a much better deal<\/a>.<\/p>\n Joe Maring \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 is by no means a bad smartphone. In some regards, it\u2019s the most impressive Z Flip Samsung has ever released, and for the right person, it\u2019s the best flip phone you can buy.<\/p>\n But Samsung had an opportunity to make the Galaxy Z Flip 7 the unequivocal best flip phone of the year, and ultimately, that\u2019s not what we got. Instead, the Flip 7 is just another good flip phone that\u2019s (once again) bested by the competition.<\/p>\n Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7<\/p>\n MSRP: $1,099.00<\/p>\n Samsung’s best flip phone for 2025.<\/p>\n The Galaxy Z Flip 7 offers some of Samsung’s most impressive flip phone hardware ever, featuring a 4.1-inch edge-to-edge cover screen and a thickness of just 13.7mm when closed. It also has a larger 6.9-inch inner display, good general performance, and seven years of Android updates.<\/p>\n Positives<\/p>\n Excellent cover screen hardwareImpressively thin designLarger, more comfortable inner displayGood day-to-day performanceSeven years of Android updates<\/p>\n Cons<\/p>\n Frustrating cover screen softwareExynos 2400 is a downgrade from the Snapdragon 8 EliteSlow (and hot) chargingMiddling cameras<\/p>\n![\"samsung](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-6-hands-on-flexwindow-widgets-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"samsung")
Galaxy Z Flip 6![\"Holding](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-7-review-1-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"samsung")
Galaxy Z Flip 7<\/p>\n![\"Weather](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-7-review-3-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"samsung")
<\/p>\n
\nYou can\u2019t edit or add new clock faces on the cover screen.
\nYou can\u2019t add, remove, or edit widgets on the cover screen.
\nYou can\u2019t edit quick settings toggles on the cover screen.
\nYou can\u2019t multitask\/see your recent apps on the cover screen.
\nYou can\u2019t use third-party keyboards (like Gboard) on the cover screen.
\nYou can\u2019t rotate the cover screen to use it in a different orientation.
\n![\""Open](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-7-review-4-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"samsung")
<\/p>\n![\"Gemini](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-7-review-gemini-2-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"samsung")
Gemini![\"Now](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-7-review-now-brief-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"samsung")
Now Brief<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-7-review-2-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"samsung")
<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-7-review-15-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"samsung")
<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-7-review-22-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"samsung")
<\/p>\n![\"GeekBench](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/galaxy-z-flip-7-review-geekbench-6-results-scaled.png\"\/ "\\"galaxy")
![\"PCMark](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/galaxy-z-flip-7-review-pcmark-3-results-scaled.png\"\/ "\\"galaxy")
<\/p>\n![\"Galaxy](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/galaxy-z-flip-7-review-overall-gpu-benchmarks-scaled.png\"\/ "\\"galaxy")
<\/p>\n![\"Galaxy](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/galaxy-z-flip-7-review-wild-life-extreme-stress-test-gpu-benchmark-scaled.png\"\/ "\\"galaxy")
![\"Galaxy](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/galaxy-z-flip-7-review-solar-bay-gpu-benchmark-scaled.png\"\/ "\\"galaxy")
<\/p>\n![\"Battery](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-7-review-10-edited-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"samsung")
<\/p>\n![\"Charging](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-7-charging-benchmark-scaled.png\"\/ "\\"samsung")
<\/p>\n![\"Using](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-7-review-9-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"samsung")
<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-7-camera-sample-28-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"samsung")
1x primary camera![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-7-camera-sample-29-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"samsung")
0.6x ultrawide camera![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-7-camera-sample-25-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"samsung")
1x primary camera![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-7-camera-sample-24-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"samsung")
2x primary camera<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-7-camera-sample-17-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"samsung")
1x primary camera![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-7-camera-sample-18-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"samsung")
0.6x ultrawide camera<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-7-camera-sample-32-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"samsung")
1x primary camera![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-7-camera-sample-33-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"samsung")
0.6x ultrawide camera![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-7-camera-sample-30-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"samsung")
1x primary camera![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-7-camera-sample-31-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"samsung")
0.6x ultrawide camera<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-7-review-17-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"samsung")
<\/p>\n![\"Motorola](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Motorola-Razr-Ultra-tent-mode-ai-rainbow.jpg\"\/ "\\"Motorola")
Motorola Razr Ultra![\"Motorola](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Motorola-Razr-2025-cover-screen.jpg\"\/ "\\"Motorola")
Motorola Razr (2025)<\/p>\n![\"Close](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-7-review-19-scaled.jpg\"\/ "\\"samsung")
<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/1753795456_263_custom_filename.jpg\"\/)
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