In August 2020, Samsung officially completed work on the new Galaxy Z Fold 2 smartphone, and since September this model has become available in pre-order, and of all the folding smartphones on the market, this one is perhaps the most stylish and advanced. When unfolded, it is especially comfortable to watch video on it, because the display area is doubled. When folded, the device turns into a miniature copy of a laptop: it is convenient to place it on the table in front of you in order, for example, to track incoming messages.
The estimated retail price of the new item is about $ 2,000. Fold 1 owners have the right to turn in their phones for trade-in at a cost of up to $ 800, entrance to golf clubs and Michelin restaurants.
Stylish and high performance
Compared to its predecessor, the Fold 2 looks more presentable. It's slightly larger, with a large camera notch on its main screen giving way to a neat hole for taking selfies. The Fold 1 was equipped with a 4,380mAh battery, up to 4,500mAh for the new model.
The device boasts 256GB of storage and 12GB of RAM. At the same time, there is no slot for microSD cards on this model. In terms of cameras, the Galaxy Z Fold 2 has a main wide-angle camera and an ultra-wide camera, both 12MP, as well as a 12MP telephoto lens with 10x digital zoom.
The Fold 2 is available from retailers only in two colors: black and bronze. Four more options are available at samsung.com: Gold, Silver, Blue, and Red, all with a bold metallic sheen.
The novelty weighs as much as 280 g, which is 12 grams more than its predecessor. For those who are used to using lighter models, this mass will seem quite impressive. Another fly in the ointment in a barrel of honey will be the lack of such an important characteristic as water resistance.
Bright picture and flexible setting
The dimensions of the main display of the device are 7.6 inches. The refresh rate reaches 120 Hz, which is exactly twice the rate of the first Fold. Thanks to this characteristic, the quality of video viewing is improved, the scrolling becomes smoother. The Responsive Panel automatically adjusts its settings to the image that is currently being broadcast on the screen.
The OLED display does not have a 120Hz update, and the diagonal is only 6.2 inches. However, the image quality is still decent. The main advantage is this: as soon as you close the main display, you can continue to complete the tasks on the cover without the slightest interruption.
However, the aspect ratio on the cover display is slightly smaller than that of other similar smartphones. Therefore, it is more convenient to type text on the main display.
Software and Flex modes
Flex is the way a smartphone looks like a laptop, and Software is a more traditional way of working. On the first Fold, the applications did not adapt to the two-part screen. There was a feeling that the applications for the phone were launched on the tablet without any preliminary modifications.
If you open Slack on Fold 2, the list of messages will be displayed on the right side of the display, and contacts will go to the left side. Similarly, Gmail, YouTube, Microsoft Office programs, camera, calendar, gallery and media player are adjusted for a specific display. Flex mode is especially handy for video calls: you do not have to look for a phone stand. In the open state, the gap between the two halves is visible to the naked eye, but it is minimal and does not cause any inconvenience.
Galaxy Fold 2 is ideal for multi-tasking. A maximum of 3 applications can be launched on the display at once and their positions can be swapped. To transfer content from one application to another, you do not have to use the "copy + paste" commands - it is enough to drag, for example, a photo from the gallery into the outgoing message. You can also customize presets to launch a couple of applications with the press of a single button.
Who is this model for?
The Samsung Galaxy Fold 2 is equally good for personal and business communication. It is ergonomic, productive, helps to save time and effort in the process. Those users for whom power and performance are not the main parameters will not remain indifferent to the original design of the device. Fold 2 gives us new experiences and unconventional sensations, which means that the popularity of this model is guaranteed. |