As you all know, the Galaxy Z Fold 2 was briefly showcased at Galaxy Unpacked 2020 in early August when Samsung teased a more in-depth announcement scheduled for September 1. August is now behind us and today was the day when the Galaxy Z Fold 2 finally got unwrapped and pushed onto Samsung’s virtual shelves for pre-order customers.
The Galaxy Z Fold 2 will have a pre-order window of a few weeks before it starts shipping to early adopters on September 18. Samsung claims that its latest foldable hybrid device will be released in around 40 markets including the USA, South Korea, and Europe. Meanwhile, the Galaxy Z Fold 2 Thom Browne Edition is available for pre-order starting today until September 25.
Samsung is giving Galaxy Z Fold 2 customers the option to customize the color of the hinge, but this service will be available only in select markets (21 in total). Color options for the hinge include Metallic Blue, Metallic Gold, Metallic Red, and Metallic Silver. The phone itself will only be available in Mystic Black and Mystic Bronze, however.
The Galaxy Z Fold 2 Thom Browne Edition will have its own unique color scheme featuring the Americana striping, and the retail package will include the smartphone itself as well as a pair of Galaxy Buds Live and the Galaxy Watch 3. The standard Galaxy Z Fold 2 will ship alongside a standard pair of wired AKG earbuds.
Galaxy Z Fold 2 specifications galore
Most of these specs will sound familiar thanks to previous leaks and rumors but they are now officially confirmed without a shadow of a doubt. The Galaxy Z Fold 2 is powered by the Snapdragon 865+ chipset paired with 12GB of RAM and 256GB or 512GB of UFS 3.1 built-in storage.
The new flexible Dynamic AMOLED 2X Display measures 7.6 inches in diagonal and has a pixel count of 2208 by 1768, as well as a 120Hz adaptive refresh rate. The cover display also got considerably larger and it now clocks in at a 6.2-inch diagonal. It has a resolution of 2260 by 816 but it’s limited to 60Hz.
Other specs include a side-mounted fingerprint scanner, stereo speakers, an eSIM and one Nano SIM slot, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax, HE80 MIMO, Bluetooth 5.0, NFC, and USB-C. All these components are powered by a 4,500mAh dual battery with 25W charging.
Galaxy Z Fold 2 new software features
The phone runs Android 10 paired with One UI 2.5, and it includes software features specific to the foldable form factor such as Flex Mode, Multi-Active Window, and Split Screen Capture.
Multi-Active Window was further improved and it now lets you run the same app in different windows simultaneously. Split Screen Capture was also added to Multi-Active Window and it allows users to capture screenshots of an app opened in Multi-Active Window instead of capturing all the contents on the screen. Screenshots can then be pasted into another app and resized or edited.
Flex Mode debuted with the Galaxy Z Flip but it’s a new addition to the Galaxy Fold series. It lets users turn the Galaxy Z Fold 2 into its own camera stand and it was made possible by the new hinge. Flex Mode is now accompanied by a new camera feature called Auto Framing. It leverages AI and the camera’s zoom capabilities to keep the main subject in the middle of the frame when the phone is still. Auto Framing works with the rear ultra-wide sensor and the selfie shooter; it has a tracking distance of 1.5-to-2.5 meters and it can track two subjects simultaneously.
Speaking of new camera features enabled by updated hardware, Dual Preview is now available when capturing photos with the main camera, turning the new cover display into a viewfinder. Subjects being photographed can show the palm of their hand to capture a timed selfie. The timer is shown on the cover display atop the viewfinder.
Galaxy Z Fold 2 camera specs
The back of the Galaxy Z Fold 2 accommodates three main cameras. There’s a 12MP wide-angle camera with an f/1.8 aperture, 1.8-micron pixels, 83 degrees FOV, Super Speed Dual Pixel Autofocus, and OIS. Then there’s the 12MP ultra-wide shooter with an f/2.2 aperture, 1.12um pixels, and 123 degrees FOV. Last but not least, the trio of sensors includes a 12MP telephoto lens with an f/2.4 aperture, 1.0um pixels, 45 degrees FOV, OIS, and PDAF. The setup is capable of HDR10+ recording, up to 2x optical zoom and up to 10x digital zoom.
The Galaxy Z Fold 2 also features two selfie cameras, each with a resolution of 10MP, an f/2.2 aperture, 1.22um pixels, and 80 degrees FOV. One selfie camera is embedded within the cover display while the other resides in the flexible display’s Infinity-O cutout.
The Galaxy Z Fold 2 represents some of the best mobile technologies money can buy right now. It’s a direct sequel to the original Galaxy Fold and it shows improvements in countless areas. It also got a special edition bundle, and the standard variant is expected to hit the shelves in a lot more countries than the original model did. All in all, the Galaxy Z Fold 2 seems to be a worthy evolutionary step and it spells great news for fans of Samsung’s foldable devices. We’ll tell you a lot more about it and the user experience it provides once we finish our review so stay tuned.
