Galaxy Z Flip 6’s camera upgrade has an underhyped advantage

The Galaxy Z Flip 6 is easily the winner among the two foldables Samsung launched at its Unpacked event in Paris on July 10 when it comes to the number of upgrades they bring over older models.

Of course, that's only because previous Galaxy Z Flips lacked too many features we have come to expect from high-end phones. The Galaxy Z Fold lineup, on the other hand, has been considerably more feature-rich the last couple of years.

Still, it's good to see the Galaxy Z Flip lineup getting some love this year. It's especially good to see that the camera hardware has finally received an upgrade. The Galaxy Z Flip 6 boasts a 50MP primary rear camera instead of the 12MP camera found on its predecessors.

Galaxy Z Flip 6 can capture portrait photos at 2x zoom, unlike previous models

The new camera sensor allows for more detail in photos and improved nighttime shots thanks to a higher megapixel count. But more importantly, the Flip 6 can take near-lossless photos at 2x zoom. That enables a feature that was missing on previous models: portrait photos at 2x zoom.

The Galaxy Z Flip 5 and older models were equipped with 12MP primary cameras. That made it impossible to get high-quality pictures at 2x or higher magnification levels, forcing Samsung to limit the camera's portrait mode to 1x.

On the Flip 6, you can shoot portraits at both 1x and 2x zoom with the rear camera. It grants you more freedom when framing your shots and reduces the need for you to physically move closer to the subject.

Here are some portrait photos shot at 1x and 2x zoom with the 50MP camera:

The Galaxy Z Flip 6 isn't perfect. It's particularly disappointing that this is yet another Z Flip without a dedicated telephoto/zoom camera. But something is better than nothing, and the Flip 6 is the best phone in the lineup yet for those who take a lot of portrait photos.