Samsung Galaxy Z Flip3 5G Smartphone (128GB / 8GB RAM) REVIEW

With each passing day, more and more people are considering to swap their old Smartphones for any of the 5G Smartphone models that have been recently released. That’s because the 5G wireless connectivity technology offered by 5G-enabled Smartphones ultimately makes them capable of delivering higher multi-Gbps peak data speeds than any older Smartphone that doesn’t feature 5G connectivity. This translates to a massive network capacity at an ultra low latency and with an increased availability, thus making the 5G connectivity offered by 5G-enabled Smartphones much more reliable when you connect yourself to the internet. The end result is a more uniform online user experience to more users than ever before. However, while this higher performance and improved efficiency can empower any typical Smartphone user, any true fans of the classic and iconic flip phones from the late 90s up to early 2010 sadly know that getting a 5G Smartphone obviously comes with a cost. That’s none other than the fact that most 5G Smartphone models come at somewhat bulky sizes. Nevertheless, Samsung’s recently released Samsung Galaxy Z Flip3 5G Smartphone literally gives you the best of both worlds, as you get a 5G-enabled Flip-Phone-like Smartphone that unfolds to a full-sized smartphone when necessary.

The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip3 5G Smartphone features a super compact design at just 4.2″ when folded, a 6.7″ Dynamic AMOLED Main Screen and an interactive 1.9″ Super AMOLED Cover Screen, an IPX8 Water-Resistance Rating, a Dual 12MP Ultra-Wide and Wide-Angle Camera at the back and a 10MP Front Camera, a 128GB or 256GB of Storage along with 8GB RAM, 5G Connectivity, and a 3,300mAh battery that adjusts its power for all-day battery life.

All in all, not only does is the Z Flip3 5G Smartphone perfectly capable of doing everything a standard 5G Smartphone can do, but it does even more thanks to its interactive 1.9″ Super AMOLED Cover Screen and its super compact design.

That said, this is a unique Flip-Phone-like 5G Smartphone that will surely not disappoint any flip-phone fans out there.

Now, let’s have a slightly more detailed look at it and talk a little more about each of its unique features.

DESIGN & SPECS

Starting with the phone’s size, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip3 5G Smartphone features a super compact design at just 4.2″ (diagonally) when folded, for which the phone will measure just 3.40 inches long by 2.84 inches wide by 0.67 inches thick (86.4 x 72.2 x 17.1 mm) when completely closed.

In other words, the Z Flip3 5G Smartphone can be conveniently folded just like any classic flip-phone from the past to fit any small-sized pockets.

Nevertheless, you can still unfold it and open it up into a full-sized 5G Smartphone. When fully-opened, the Z Flip3 5G Smartphone measures exactly 6.53 inches long by 2.84 inches wide by 0.27 inches thick (166 x 72.2 x 6.9 mm).

More impressively, not only does the phone’s 4.2” super compact folding design delivers the ultimate portability for every move you make, but the phone itself is also extremely lightweight, coming at just 6.45 oz. (183 g)

For its design, the Z Flip3 5G Smartphone features a simple and minimalist flip-phone-like design that makes it gorgeous to look at each and every single time you use it.

In addition, regardless of its 4.2” super compact folding design and its ultra-light weight, the Z Flip3 still features a very durable construction, as its foldable body is composed by a fairly strong aluminum frame that’s responsible for protecting the phone’s hinge so you can ultimately fold and unfold the phone when necessary without ever worrying about having it break.

And that same ultra-durable construction also goes for the phone’s Front Cover and Back Cover, which are both made of Corning Gorilla Glass Victus, and this is the toughest Gorilla Glass used to date on a Galaxy Z phone series.

Furthermore, the phone’s main screen also features an extra protective layer and film that not only increases that Main Screen’s durability by 80%, but also helps to improve its overall touch sensitivity.

On top of all of that, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip3 5G Smartphone is also rated to have an IPX8 Water-Resistance Rating, which means that the phone can withstand going underwater (fresh water, not salt water) for a maximum depth of 4.92 ft. (1.5 meters) for up to 30 minutes of time. This is definitely an awesome feature to have on a Flip-Phone-like 5G Smartphone.

Now, moving onto the Smartphone’s components. Starting with the phone’s Main Screen, this is a 6.7″ Dynamic AMOLED Display Screen that boasts a 1080p resolution (2640 x 1080) with a 120Hz Refresh Rate, and also a screen brightness that can be configured to work as high as 1200 nits.

More importantly, note that this 120Hz Refresh Rate for the phone’s 6.7″ Main Screen is actually powered by a special Adaptive Frequency Technology that makes the Z Flip3 capable of adjusting its Main Screen’s refresh rate automatically for the application that’s being used at any given moment. This not only helps to save some battery life, but also makes more demanding Apps (such as newly released Mobile Games) look better and feel better.

Moreover, the phone’s 6.7″ Dynamic AMOLED Display Screen also features support to HDR10, which ultimately helps to ensure you get a higher quality and much more clarity when looking at an image or a video that’s playing on the phone’s main screen.

Then, at the back-side of the Z Flip3, we also have an interactive 1.9″ Super AMOLED Cover Screen that boasts a 512p resolution (260 x 512) that boasts a 302 ppi density.

Note that the phone’s 1.9″ Super AMOLED Cover Screen is rated as “interactive” because it actually boasts the functionality of swiping and interacting with Apps such as Samsung Pay or even the phone’s Camera App, all without you having to open the phone. This is obviously another awesome feature to have available.

Last but not least, for the phone’s remaining Hardware Specs, our review unit featured 128GB of Storage Space (note that you can also get the Z Flip3 with 256G of Storage Space) that comes accompanied by 8GB of RAM.

Regarding the Smartphone’s CPU, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip3 5G Smartphone comes equipped with a 5nm Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 Octa-core 5G Processor that’s powered by an upgraded Adreno 660 GPU, CPU and NPU.

This updated CPU combination ultimately makes the Z Flip3 perfectly capable of running most newly released games, thus making it great for short 1-hour’ish gaming sessions overall. (Remember that this is not a laptop, so longer gaming sessions of 2 or more hours might get the phone to overheat).

For its Operative System, the Z Flip3 5G Smartphone comes running all of its operations smoothly on Android 11 by default (but you can upgrade to Android 12 if you wish).

For the phone’s User Interface (UI), know that the Z Flip3 features Samsung’s recently updated One UI 4.0 version, which not only optimizes Android, but also the older OneUI skin (featured on Samsung’s original Z Flip Smartphone).

CAMERAS

Moving on to the phone’s two Camera setups. As mentioned earlier, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip3 5G Smartphone comes packing a Dual 12MP Camera Setup at its back-side, which consists of a 12MP Ultra-Wide Camera and 12MP Wide-Angle Camera. Below these two 12MP Camera Lenses there’s also a powerful LED flash.

Just like the phone’s 6.7″ Main Screen, this Dual 12MP Camera Setup comes protected by Corning Gorilla Glass with DX, which not only gives these two camera lenses quite a bit more durability, but also helps to ensure that you can shoot more professional grade images.

It’s also worth mentioning that the Z Flip3’s Cover Screen also has selfies covered, as any selfie that’s taken with the phone closed will simply show up on its Cover Screen as a preview right after being taken, and all you have to do snap a selfie with the phone closed is to simply hit the volume button on the phone’s side to trigger its Dual 12MP Camera Shutter.

Then, at the front-side of the phone, coming built-in directly at the top-center of the phone’s 6.7″ Main Screen, there’s also a built-in 10MP Punch-Hole Front Camera, which in fact, is so discretely installed onto the Main Screen that users won’t even notice it’s there.

Note that both the phone’s Dual 12MP Camera Setup as well as its 10MP Front Camera feature support to HDR10+, and they can also record 4K video at 30 or 60fps, 1080p video at 60 or 240fps, or 720p video at 960fps. Moreover, you can also shoot in Panorama Mode for really cool effects.

INTERFACE

And when it comes to the Z Flip3 5G Smartphone’s interface, know that the phone features a very simple interface.

Starting at the top-side of the phone, we have the phone’s built-in Microphone as well as a set of internal stereo speakers that make it capable of playing audio at 32-bit/384kHz.

Then, at the top-right side of the phone, we have a Volume Key, and below it, there’s the phone’s side key, which works as the phone’s dedicated Power Button.

Not only that, but that same side key also doubles as an Optical Fingerprint Sensor that allows you to unlock the phone in a safer way.

Sitting at the opposite side of the phone, there’s a Dual SIM Card Tray at the top-left side of the phone, which features a slot for a Nano-SIM Card and a second slot for an eSIM Card.

Lastly, at the bottom-side of the phone, we have a built-in USB-C (2.0) Connection Port that can also be used as a Multipurpose Jack for USB-enabled wired headphones / USB-enabled wired earbuds.

It’s also worth mentioning that the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip3 5G Smartphone also supports the use of Samsung Pay (both Visa and MasterCard certified), which you can use without actually opening the phone.

CONNECTIVITY

For its connectivity, this 5G Smartphone features both Bluetooth 5.1 Connectivity (with support to A2DP and LE), as well as Wi-Fi Connectivity (with support to the most common wireless standards – 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ and also Wi-Fi 6 included).

In addition, since this is in fact a 5G Smartphone, the Z Flip3 also features 5G Connectivity.

Moreover, the phone also features GPS Connectivity, boasting A-GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO, and BDS, and coming equipped with a set of sensors that include an accelerometer, a gyro sensor, a proximity sensor, a compass, and a barometer.

BATTERY & BATTERY LIFE

Finally, for its power, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip3 5G Smartphone comes equipped with a 3,300mAh Li-Po Battery that adjusts its power to ultimately give users an all-day battery life.

Specifically speaking for screen-time, you can get around 5 hours and 40’ish minutes when having the phone’s 6.7″ Dynamic AMOLED Display Screen configured to work on its 120Hz Adaptive Refresh Rate, or around slightly over 6 hours when you set its 6.7″ Main Screen to work in a 60Hz Mode.

For charging, note that the phone’s internal battery supports 15W Fast Charging (wired), as well as 10W Fast Wireless Charging, and also 4.5W Reverse Wireless Charging. Charging is reasonably fast, so consider leaving the phone charging overnight.

FINAL THOUGHTS

The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip3 5G Smartphone features a super compact design at just 4.2″ when folded, a 6.7″ Dynamic AMOLED Main Screen and an interactive 1.9″ Super AMOLED Cover Screen, an IPX8 Water-Resistance Rating, a Dual 12MP Ultra-Wide and Wide-Angle Camera at the back and a 10MP Front Camera, a 128GB or 256GB of Storage along with 8GB RAM, 5G Connectivity, and a 3,300mAh battery that adjusts its power for all-day battery life.

All in all, not only does is the Z Flip3 5G Smartphone perfectly capable of doing everything a standard 5G Smartphone can do, but it does even more thanks to its interactive 1.9″ Super AMOLED Cover Screen and its super compact design.

That said, this is a unique Flip-Phone-like 5G Smartphone that will surely not disappoint any flip-phone fans out there.

The Z Flip3 is currently available in four (x4) different color models: Cream, Phantom Black, Lavender, and Green.

If you’re interested in buying it, know that the 128GB Storage Space version costs you $999.99, while the 256 GB Version will cost you $1049.99 (for an extra $50… seriously consider going for the bigger Storage Space model). Each purchase can be paid either in full as a one-time payment, paid monthly, or paid in 4 installments. Customers also have the option to get up to $700 of trade-in credit when trading in older Samsung devices (Smartphones, Tablets, or Smartwatches).

You can order yours online right now, either directly from Samsung’s official US shopping page, or alternatively, from Verizon’s official website.