Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 review: A worthy upgrade or just another foldable smartphone

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 review: The Samsung foldable is back in the market with Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Galaxy Z Flip 6. Over the past few years, Samsung has gained several rivals in the foldable market with OnePlus, Vivo, Google, and other global brands joining the race. However, the market is largely dominated by Samsung Foldables. This year, Samsung took a bigger leap with Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Galaxy Z Flip 6, making it one of the eye-turning smartphones. But does it really stand out from the crowd? Or is it just the dominance or a mere buzz? Well, let’s check it out, we have already tested the new book-style foldable and you can check out the full review here.

The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 comes with several upgrades and new features which may make you buy the smartphone. However, the design remains the same and after using the smartphone for a good 20 days, I found the Galaxy Z Flip 6 does have some flaws where Samsung needs to pay much attention if it wants to keep maintaining its dominance in the market. Let’s dive deep into the detailed Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 review to know where it stands out from the crowd and where we can expect the improvements.

Also read: Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 first impression: Living up to the hype? Here’s the initial review

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 review: Design

If you ask me how I like the design of the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6, I will simply say “It’s exactly the same as the Galaxy Z Flip 5.” Yes, the Z Flip 6 retains a similar 187-gram weight, display profile, and Gorilla Glass Victus 2-protected back panel as the predecessor. However, this year Samsung introduced a refined dual rail hinge, making it stronger and flippable ( as it was supposed to be). Additionally, the company claims that it has a stronger armour aluminium frame and has received an IP48 water resistance, making it more stronger and durable.

Since foldable smartphones are supposed to be for lifestyle products, Samsung knows how to deliver premium quality devices. The Galaxy Z Flip 6 is quite compact and slim to fit any purse or pocket. Being a woman myself, I prefer to carry small shoulder backs and I can barely fit a 6.7-inch sized smartphone. After using the Galaxy Z Flip 6 the problem was instantly solved. The overall design of the smartphone is handy and provides easy usage even when using it with a single hand. Furthermore, the in-hand feel of the smartphone is quite premium and the matte finish works as the cherry on top as it does not attract any dust, fingerprints or scratches. While, from a design standpoint, the Galaxy Z Flip 6 is not an exception if compared to the Galaxy Z Flip 5, but somehow it still looks like something new. Also, if we are honest, there is nothing more new we can expect from a clamshell-style foldable. However, let me come to the display part to talk about changes and improvements.

Also read: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6, Galaxy Z Flip 6 colour, price, design leaked ahead of July 10 Unpacked event

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 review: Display

The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 display sizes are again similar to its predecessor, with a 3.4-inch Super AMOLED cover display and a 6.7-inch Dynamic LTPO foldable AMOLED display. While the outer display offers a 60Hz refresh rate, it still is quite responsive to the touch and makes the scrolling through widgets smooth and steady. The main display offers a 120Hz refresh rate which is again promising and I did not face any lag or slow screen while scrolling through apps and social media. Additionally, we can see upgrades in brightness as well, since the cover screen offers up to 1600nits peak brightness and the main screen offers up to 2600nits brightness, making it favourable to use during direct sunlight conditions. Now, when it comes to the viewing experience, you can never go wrong with Samsung displays. Watching content on the smartphone’s main screen is a treat to the eyes. The colours are accurate, bright, and punchy. In addition to viewing, the gaming experience and the HDR graphic was top-notch. However, the only drawback of the Galaxy Z Flip 6 is its limited usability functions on the cover screen.

When I say usability functions, I mean being able to use the cover screen exactly as your main screen, like opening several apps like WhatsApp, Instagram, Netflix, Telegram, and other apps. However, Samsung has restricted all these functionalities. Earlier, I reviewed the Motorola Razr 50 Ultra and I must say I was amazed at the full-screen display and the number of functions I was able to use on the cover display. However, with Galaxy Z Flip 6, you will get limited access to apps, and it does not even open the entire WhatsApp chat unless you flip to the main screen. However, I also found a workaround to open apps via Samsung’s Good Lock app which can be downloaded via the Galaxy store. But, again it is not justified to hide this feature under the covers as it should be at your fingertips since you are paying a whopping Rs.109999 for the smartphone.

Also read: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 vs Galaxy Z Fold 5

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 review: Camera

The next big upgrade of Galaxy Z Flip 6 is its camera. This year Samsung has integrated an improved 50MP wide-angle primary camera with an ISOCELL GN3 sensor and a 12MP ultra-wide camera with a 123-degree field of view. Since I have not experienced the Flip 5 camera performance, I will simply try to explain its performance in comparison to rivals. The primary camera of the Galaxy Z Flip 6 captured natural images with vibrant colour tones and utmost clarity.

The daytime images are punchy, full of brightness and popping colours ( With no over-saturation), and simply perfect. The best thing about its rear camera is that you can use it as a selfie camera as well, giving you the freedom to capture 50MP selfie images instead of its 10MP selfie camera. When in portrait mode, it gives the images a natural background blur effect, which makes the subject look in immense focus. Additionally, since it has a wide-angle lens, it also manages to capture images in a wide dynamic range, that captures the entire scene beautifully.

Its 12MP ultra-wide camera also managed to capture decent images with utmost precision and clarity, making the scenery stand out. The details from the ultra-wide camera are not only clear but it carefully captures the scene-views. However, other clamshell smartphones like the Motorola Razr 50 Ultra miss such capabilities. While the smartphone does not have a telephoto or macro lens, its overall camera quality and images will not make you miss these features as its zoom capability is decent and it also captures objects placed closely with great focus.

In my opinion, the Galaxy Z Flip 6 10MP selfie camera is decent, if not the best. I mostly used the rear camera sensor for capturing selfies, since it delivered more promising results.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 review: Performance

Under the hood, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 is powered by the flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor, providing users with top-notch performance, and not disappointing you any moment. Over the 20-day duration, I used the smartphone extensively as my primary phone to conduct several tasks, from official, and personal work to gaming. I make sure to explore every aspect. If I put it simply, the smartphone is nothing less than a premium smartphone. The smartphone is a breeze with it comes to multitasking and excessive usage. Additionally, the smartphone swiftly manages to run graphics-intensive games, without any lags or frame drops. However, despite featuring a vapour chamber cooling system, the cover display of the screen gets uncomfortably warm, which may raise some eyebrows. However, it does not hamper the performance even while playing Genshin Impact or BGMI at a higher setting. In terms of everyday usage, the Galaxy Z Flip 6 is the absolute best, with smooth performance.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 review: AI reimaged

After using the Galaxy Z Flip 6, I must say that Samsung knows exactly how to smartly integrate AI features into the smartphone, no matter if it’s a top-level flagship smartphone like the Galaxy S24 Ultra or the new generation foldable. With Galaxy Z Flip 6, Samsung announced new Galaxy AI features such as sketch to image feature, Portrait Studio, and other AI-powered features to PDFs, and the Notes app. I tried all the features to test their accuracy and performance, and mostly all of them stand out beautifully. The sketch-to-image feature was mostly accurate as it also depends on how good you are at drawing. However, I felt like this feature is not suitable for a clamshell smartphone, since it does not support stylus functionality. However, it’s a very fun-to-use feature for the Galaxy Z Fold 6. The new Portrait Studio also allowed users to generate images of different themes, making it another useful and fun AI feature to test.

Another thing I liked about the smartphone is that you can use Galaxy AI on the where screen while replying to messages on WhatsApp. Users can check spelling, and grammar, rewrite, or set the tone of text. It also provides a smart reply option which is again a very useful feature when you are on the go and you need to provide an update to your dear ones. Overall, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 managed to impress me with all the foldable customised AI features with great performance.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 review: Battery

In terms of battery lids and charging speed, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 was somewhat of a disappointment to me. The smartphone features a 4000mAh battery which is not ideal for a flagship smartphone in my opinion. The battery gets quickly drained, even while playing games or watching OTT on the device. If you are a heavy smartphone user, then the smartphone will last for about 5 hours till you have a few minutes of battery left. Additionally, it supports 25W charging which again is not expected from a flagship smartphone. The smartphone takes more than 1 hour and 30 minutes to fully charge the device from 5 percent to 100 percent, making the wait time quite long.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 review: Verdict

Now, should you buy the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 worth Rs. 109999? Well, the smartphone has excelled in all the areas be it display, performance, gaming, camera, and AI features. However, the cover display could include more functionalities to access apps and the battery life and charging speed could have been improved. Additionally, it also has poor heat management, which may raise eyebrows. Apart from these few aspects, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 is an impressive smartphone with all the advanced features. In my opinion, the flagship performance and overall design make the smartphone worth the money and it surely stands out from the crowd when it comes to AI features.