Galaxy Z Fold 6 vs Galaxy Z Fold 4: Here’s changing and what’s staying the same

Intro

Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 6 is just around the corner. Samsung’s next foldable phone will be announced in the coming weeks, with the rumor mill suggesting we should expect something in mid-July. And indeed, pretty much all aspects of the Galaxy Z Fold 6 have already been aired out in the open, so we have a pretty good idea of what to expect from the next foldable phone. 

How will it differentiate itself from the Galaxy Z Fold 4, the flagship foldable that’s now a generation old already? Well, there will be some distinct differences both from a design and hardware standpoint, but the overall package won’t be that different. 

What’s more, users of the Galaxy Z Fold 4 who are completely satisfied with their devices possibly wouldn’t feel pressured to upgrade, as the new phone probably wouldn’t tick that many boxes for potential upgraders. 

Design and Size

Foldable evolution

Well, there shouldn’t be many differences between the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and the Galaxy Z Fold 4: both phones are, after all, members of Samsung’s most premium foldable range. However, there are notable differences.

According to the rumors, Samsung may use a redesigned hinge, which could deliver a display without crease, similar to OnePlus and Oppo’s foldable devices. We’ve also heard that Samsung might use titanium for the Galaxy Z Fold 6, likely to achieve a lighter and more premium build. Oh, and there are also substantial rumors that the Galaxy Z Fold 6 will be the thinnest Galaxy Z Fold out there. 

Rumors say that Samsung might come up with a wider device in the folded state that would change the aspect ratio of the external screen and make it that much more useful. All previous Galaxy Z Fold phones utilized tall but narrow external screens, which has largely limited their utility.

That’s in contrast with the Galaxy Z Fold 4, which has a traditional aspect ratio that is narrower than what we expect the Galaxy Z Fold 6 to be. Although it was pretty light at 263gr given the overall size, we expect that the Galaxy Z Fold 6 to be lighter. 

Both the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and the Galaxy Z Fold 4 will support S Pen stylus input, but neither phone has a silo to slot the accessory. Just have in mind that the Galaxy Z Fold styluses are special: they have softer tips that can’t scratch the inner displays. 

Display Differences

As we already mentioned above, we expect that the Galaxy Z Fold 6 to come with a slightly larger set of displays, both on the exterior and in the interior. The exterior screen will have a 20:9 aspect ratio, and a 6.4-inch size, while the inner display will employ a 1.08:1 aspect ratio, which is almost square-ish. 

Due to the use of thicker Ultra Thin Glass above the display, which will deform less, the Galaxy Z Fold 6 is also expected to feature no visible crease. This glass could be called “IronFlex”, as Samsung has filed for the trademark. While you never know with patents, there’s a chance IronFlex could make it to the Galaxy Z Fold 6.

Performance and Software

Snapdragons for the masses

Meanwhile, the Galaxy Z Fold 4 was powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chip. There’s a significant difference between the two platforms, with the newer phone being way better-specc’d:

What’s especially intriguing about the Galaxy Z Fold 6, however, is the prospect of a long, seven-year software support that will beat the Galaxy Z Fold 4’s four year of software support, two of which have already passed. The upcoming foldable will receive major Android updates and security patches until the end of the decade, and slightly beyond. 

Camera

Little change

As usual, we expect many improvements on the software side, including image-processing optimizations and other improvements, all despite the lack of hardware changes.

That said, while foldables have never been all about the camera performance, all Galaxy Z Fold devices have had more than decent cameras, capable of delivering more than decent results. We have no reason to believe the Galaxy Z Fold 6 will be any different.

Battery Life and Charging

Hopefully a larger battery on the Galaxy Z Fold 6

Rumors have it Samsung will feature a 4,600mAh battery inside the Galaxy Z Fold 6. This one will be an increase over the 4,400mAh battery inside the Galaxy Z Fold 4. This, paired with the more efficient chipset inside, will probably mean that the Galaxy Z Fold 6 will have a much better battery life.  

Back in the day, the Galaxy Z Fold 4 fared rather well. It achieved a pretty solid result of 12 hours and 43 minutes in our custom browsing test, which emulates a standardized browsing experience. The video streaming test result was also pretty decent at 8 hours and 47 minutes. However, in our 3D gaming test that’s designed to emulate a regular gaming experience, the Galaxy Z Fold 4 hit just 4 hours and 28 minutes, revealing there’s much room for improvement. 

Charging-wise, we expect that both the Galaxy Z Fold 6 will come with a 45W wired charging. At the same time, the Galaxy Z Fold 4 supports 25W wired charging. Wireless and reverse wireless charging are surely part of both phones’ specs sheets, too. 

Specs Comparison

Summary

So, it appears that the Galaxy Z Fold 6 will improve on many of the aspects of the Galaxy Z Fold 4. A revamped design, improved display, better performance and battery life is what would make the Galaxy Z Fold 6 the logically better pick over the Galaxy Z Fold 4. And that’s normal––evolution goes only one way.  

However, the new phone could cost a little more than what you had to pay for the Galaxy Z Fold 4. Rumors have it the upcoming phone will reportedly be up to $100 more than the Galaxy Z Fold 4 at launch. 

Overall, we’d probably have to recommend the Galaxy Z Fold 6 based on the preliminary rumors that have circulated so far. Remains to be seen if they will materialize.