Samsung raises the stakes for expensive and foldable phones

BarcelonaBlackBerry tried it before: in its final years, when it was still looking for a response to the onslaught of the iPhone and Android terminals, the Canadian brand explored phone formats that moved away from the conventional rectangular bar. The 2014 BlackBerry Passport had dimensions practically identical to those of a physical passport; I still keep mine. The format did not serve to save the brand, which ended up abandoning the terminal business, and for more than a decade no one has recovered it.

Until today. Samsung presented this Wednesday its new generation of smartphones foldables, and one of the three models adopts precisely these almost square proportions when closed: the Galaxy Z Fold8, which coexists in the family with the Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra and the Galaxy Z Flip8.

Three formats, three audiences

The Z Fold8 Ultra maintains the formula that Samsung has exploited since the first Galaxy Fold: a sandwich of two normal phones that, when folded, behaves like a regular elongated phone (72.8 x 158.4 millimeters) and, when unfolded, reveals an 8-inch screen. The new range features a screen dubbed Flex Titanium that allows the device to be slimmed down without losing resistance and to reduce the crease mark in the center. This generation incorporates the adjective Ultra for the first time, with which Samsung assimilates the terminal to the highest-end Galaxy S, especially regarding photographic features: a 200-megapixel main camera with HDR, a 50-megapixel ultra-wide-angle camera, and 8K video recording. The Cine LUT function adds four preset cinema styles. It weighs 215 grams, is 4.1 millimeters thick when unfolded, has a 5,000 mAh battery (26 hours of watching videos, according to Samsung), and a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy processor. The 45W fast charging (the Z Fold 7's was 25W) reaches 63% in 30 minutes. It is priced at €2,199 with 256 GB. The previous model went on sale starting at €2,109.

The Z Flip8, for its part, brings the old flip phone format, which folds over the keyboard, popular in phones 20 years ago, to the smartphone era. It weighs 180 grams and is 6.1 millimeters thick when unfolded. The external screen is increasingly functional for AI use without having to open the device. It mounts an Exynos 2600 processor and a 4,300 mAh battery. It costs €1,299 with 256 GB (the Flip7 from a year ago cost €1,209).

The Z Fold8 plain (1,999 €) breaks with tradition. When folded, it measures 81.9 x 123.9 millimeters, proportions far from the narrowness of previous Z Folds. Samsung assures that the external screen, with a 10:16 aspect ratio, is suitable for messages, social networks, or short videos, while the internal screen, 7.6 inches with a 4:3 proportion, is better for games, movies, and reading. It weighs 201 grams, features the same processor as the Z Fold8 Ultra, and has a 4,800 mAh battery. On the back, there are two 50-megapixel cameras, a wide-angle and an ultra-wide-angle, and a dual recording function that simultaneously captures what is happening in front of the phone and the user's reaction.

With the screen unfolded, three new image editing tools arrive: Photo Assist, for automatic retouching; My FanCam, which follows the chosen subject and generates already cropped videos to share on social media without manual editing; and Document Scan, which detects margins and captures multiple pages in succession. The Now Nudge takes advantage of the unfolded space to open suggested actions in windows (check calendar, search location, save a place) without having to leave the conversation where they arose.

All three models use OneUI 9, Samsung's variant of Android 16, with new Gemini-based Galaxy AI features from Google. Now Brief displays personalized information about the user's daily routine, Now Nudge suggests the next step when appropriate within a conversation, and integration with Gemini allows tasks to be completed in fewer steps and combined with more than 40 applications, from checking tickets to booking a table at a restaurant. They also connect with the brand's watches and future glasses. Samsung does not specify if these more advanced Galaxy AI features will be available in Catalan at launch. In all cases, the increasingly competent DeX function is offered, to use the phone as a computer with an external monitor, keyboard, and mouse.

With the foldable iPhone on the horizon

Samsung's new foldables arrive at a time when the high-end market is moving more and more money. The company assures that the market for mobile phones over 1,500 euros will grow by almost 65% this year in Spain. And in this segment, foldables are fundamental for the Korean brand, which boasts of dominating a category that it itself inaugurated in 2019: the Galaxy Z have represented 93% of all devices in this segment sold here since then, a share that has remained above 86% during the first months of 2026. The brand says it already has more than a quarter of a million active Z Fold and Z Flip users in the State, and the three best-selling foldables in Spain during 2025 were Galaxy Z models.

This leadership, however, has its days numbered as a de facto monopoly. Apple is preparing its own foldable phone; its presentation is expected in September, in principle along with the iPhone 18 Pro, although some rumors point to a postponement. Several leaks coincide in placing the format of the future foldable iPhone closer to the Fold8 than to the Fold8 Ultra: a book-type design that opens horizontally, with an interior screen of around 7.6 or 7.9 inches, and an exterior screen with a 4:3 aspect ratio.

Watches

At the same event, Samsung has also presented the new generations of its smartwatches, the Galaxy Watch Ultra2 (€749) and the Galaxy Watch9 (€409), which confirm that the brand is increasingly focusing on health and less on simple wrist notifications. The main novelty is the Vitals function, which Samsung presents as an early warning system for potential health problems: it combines heart rate, heart rate variability, skin temperature, respiratory rate, and blood oxygen to establish a personal baseline (at least seven nights of measured sleep are required) and warns when it detects significant deviations from this baseline. The BioActive sensor continuously collects biometric data that the watch translates into practical recommendations, moving from reactive treatment to proactive care.

The more sporty Watch Ultra2 also incorporates the Nutrition Alert function, which calculates sweat loss and warns you to rehydrate, and adds specific diving functions developed with Mares; the battery is 35% larger than that of the previous Watch Ultra, in a 12% slimmer titanium case (10.7 millimeters). The basic Watch9 model emphasizes comfort for wearing it 24 hours a day, thus collecting complete sleep and activity data.