• 2 min read
Galaxy Z Flip 8 gets a bigger battery, not much else
Samsung’s new flip phone adds a 4,300mAh battery, a lighter build, and a better cover screen experience, but skips faster charging and anti-reflective coating.
Image: ZDNET
Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip 8 arrives as a modest update, with the biggest change hiding inside: a new 4,300mAh battery built with silicon-carbon anode cells. Announced at Galaxy Unpacked 2026, the phone launches without an FE version this year and, based on early hands-on impressions from ZDNET, feels more refined than reinvented.
The Flip 8 is slightly slimmer and lighter than the Flip 7, weighing 180 grams instead of 188g. It measures 13.1mm closed and 6.1mm open, versus 13.7mm and 6.5mmm on the previous model. ZDNET says the in-hand feel is similar, though the new device is easier to flip open.
Samsung is again pitching the phone at what it calls the “expressive crowd,” with much of the update centered on the outer display. The 4.1-inch AMOLED cover screen now runs at 120Hz, and One UI 9 expands what users can do without opening the phone. More apps, actions, and insights now work directly on FlexWindow, instead of being buried behind Labs settings as before.
Recommended reading
Spider-Man cameo steals Samsung Unpacked
Inside, the phone uses Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 with 12GB of RAM and either 256GB or 512GB of storage, matching its Fold siblings. In some markets, Samsung will ship the device with its own Exynos 2600 instead.
What Samsung left out
Some of the more noticeable upgrades from the Fold line did not make it to the Flip. The inner 6.5-inch AMOLED display keeps its 120Hz variable refresh rate and has a minimal crease, but Samsung did not add the anti-reflective coating found on the Galaxy Z Fold 8 and Z Fold 8 Ultra.
Charging also stays put at 25W wired and 15W wireless, with no move to 45W fast charging.
The camera hardware is unchanged too: a 50MP main camera and 12MP ultrawide—the same setup as the Flip 7, which itself matched the Flip 6. Samsung is instead leaning on software features, including Horizontal Lock from the Galaxy S26 series for smoother stabilization and a new FlipShot mode that provides a mirror view.
The Galaxy Z Flip 8 comes in Graphite, Cream, Pink, and an online-exclusive Mint color for $1,200.
Gadgets Editor
Eli is obsessed with the tangible future. He reviews phones, wearables, and everything with a battery. Known for his rigorous testing protocols and unabashed teardowns, Eli has broken more review units than he cares to admit, all in the name of discovering the truth about durability and repairability.
via ZDNET
