Samsung Galaxy Z Flip6 review

A new primary camera, same ultrawide

The Fold branch of Samsung's bendy lineup may be stuck in one place when it comes to camera hardware, but the Flip6 does bring one major improvement to the clamshell variety. No, it's not a telephoto camera, but it's a step in that direction.

This generation gets a Tetracell main camera, the same one as in the Fold6 and several other 'regular' Galaxy S phones from years past (and present too). The 50MP sensor primary module may not be a big deal in itself, but it's a big deal for the Flip as it gives the phone the ability to zoom in at least a little, without sacrificing quality too much.

Admittedly, there are other clamshells with zooming prowess, the most recent one we've seen being the Motorola Razr 50 Ultra, which has a proper optical 2x zoom. But as Galaxy Flips go, the 6 is a step in the right direction.

• Wide (main): 50MP Samsung ISOCELL GN3 (1/1.57", 1.0µm - 2.0µm), f/1.8, 23mm, dual pixel PDAF, OIS; 4K@60fps
• Ultrawide: 12MP Samsung ISOCELL 3LU (1/3.2", 1.12µm), f/2.2, 13mm, fixed focus; 4K@60fps
• Internal camera: 10MP Samsung ISOCELL 3J1 (1/3.0", 1.22µm), f/2.5, 23mm, fixed focus; 4K@60fps

The Flip6 takes full advantage of the form factor's inherent benefits. You can use the cover screen for framing selfies and you get access to both cameras and you can zoom in too. The 2x level works great for shooting from a distance with the phone half-way folded and resting on a table, for example. Waist level or overhead shooting are also possible.

Daylight photo quality

Main camera

During the day, the Flip6's main camera does a very good job. The photos are detailed and noise-free and give a fairly organic look to random detail. The excellent dynamic range ensures you get well developed tonal extremes and the auto balance and well judged saturation levels make for accurate, yet pleasing rendition.

Daylight samples, main camera (1x)

There still is Scene optimizer, but it's now tucked away one level deeper in the settings menu, and it's off by default (not the first time, but we can't really pinpoint the moment when Samsung made the switch). It doesn't make drastic changes - on the contrary, we'd be hard-pressed to tell the two versions of these scenes apart.

Daylight samples, main camera (1x), Scene optimizer

Comparing the Flip6's photos against the previous generation, we're seeing a more natural detail presentation on the Flip6, with less aggressive sharpening. The new model's samples are also cleaner, next to an often grainy Flip5.

Daylight comparison, main camera (1x): Galaxy Z Flip6 • Galaxy Z Flip5

As we saw on the Fold, the Flip doesn't draw facial detail with too much definition, possibly for the better if you have skin imperfections. Skin tones are quite likeable though and exposures are well tuned for your subject's face.

Daylight samples, main camera (1x), Photo mode

Daylight samples, main camera (1x), Portrait mode, 1x

The Flip6 captures quite good full-res shots. Without sacrificing much along the lines of dynamic range, they offer an advantage in captured detail - if you have any use for that.

Daylight samples, main camera (1x), 50MP

The quality of the 50MP main camera shots implies that you'd be getting very good 12.5MP results at 2x and that is indeed the case.

Daylight samples, main camera (2x zoom)

We expected the Flip6 to be a lot better than the Flip5 at 2x, and we did a quick comparison to check. To get the Flip5's peculiarities out of the way first, it's prone to producing two different types of images at 2x, depending on how much time you give it between shots. If you're particularly trigger-happy, the Flip5's ISP doesn't get enough time to do its thing, and you get a basic crop-and-upscale result. If given enough time, it produces better images, though they do have their own issues - a heavily sharpened cross-hatch look. We encountered that at review time, and a year later it hasn't changed.

Shot-to-shot variation, Galaxy Z Flip5

We reckon the Flip6's results are superior to the Flip5's, even if you compare to the Flip5's 'better' samples. The new model contains finer detail and renders it a lot more naturally, even if it's a little softer in its presentation.

Daylight comparison, main camera (2x): Galaxy Z Flip6 • Galaxy Z Flip5

Photographing people at 2x, whether in Photo mode or Portrait mode, also returns good results, while also offering a more comfortable shooting distance and superior perspective than the main camera's native focal length.

Daylight samples, main camera (2x zoom), Photo mode

Daylight samples, main camera (2x zoom), Portrait mode

Ultrawide camera

Specs warriors may bash the Flip6's ultrawide camera, but it's actually not half bad. Its major downside remains the lack of autofocus, so getting sharp results with subjects closer than about 40cms isn't really possible. Other than that, it's got good dynamic range and likable colors, while detail levels are solid, if a little too high on the sharpening.

Daylight samples, ultrawide camera (0.6x)

The generational differences aren't huge. Samsung has eased off on the sharpening and there's probably even less grain in the skies and other areas of uniform color.

Daylight comparison, ultrawide camera (0.6x): Galaxy Z Flip6 • Galaxy Z Flip5

Selfies

The internal selfie camera of the Flip6 captures alright 10MP shots that are well detailed though also somewhat excessively sharpened. Colors are lively and dynamic range is very good, so there's that.

Selfie samples, internal camera

Still, you'll probably want to use the cover screen and the main camera for selfies - it's a lot easier than on the Fold and the results are worth it.

Selfie samples, rear camera, 1x

The ultrawide camera can't really be used for close-up framing and odd perspectives - your face will end up blurry. Things are looking great at arm's length though, making it an excellent option for group selfies of getting more of your surroundings in the frame.

Selfie samples, ultrawide camera, 0.6x

Low-light photo quality

Samsung's approach to Night mode processing has been rather reserved as of late and unless it's a properly dark scene, the Flip6 will likely not engage the full power of its low-light magic, so you might have to manually go into Night mode to get the most of it. We didn't observe Scene optimizer to be making a difference either.

Main camera

With that in mind, in Photo mode the main camera still takes pretty great photos. There may be some fine grain in the shadows, but we don't really mind it that much, plus we do enjoy the detail that goes along with it. The auto white balance was unfazed by mixed street lighting, and color saturation didn't suffer in the dark. Dynamic range is good in Photo mode, with a bit more contrast than in Night mode.

Low-light samples, main camera (1x)

Night mode does tone down the highlights visibly, though not too dramatically. Shadows may also get a minor boost, but overall not as notable as the highlight containment.

Low-light samples, main camera (1x), Night mode

The new model has a pronounced advantage over the Flip5 at night, offering better detail, less sharpening and improved dynamic range.

Low-light comparison, main camera (1x): Galaxy Z Flip6 • Galaxy Z Flip5

At 2x, the Flip6's results are very usable and, again, a generational improvement. The 6 captures finer detail and it looks more natural than the 5's more heavily processed rendition.

Low-light samples, main camera (2x)

That said, the Flip6's advantage isn't as huge as we'd have hoped - the old one fares better than we anticipated.

Low-light comparison, main camera (2x): Galaxy Z Flip6 • Galaxy Z Flip5

Ultrawide camera

The ultrawide camera's photos have good dynamic range and the colors don't suffer from the low light levels either. Detail is very good, even if it's accompanied by a little noise.

Low-light samples, ultrawide camera (0.6x)

Even though the hardware should be the same, the Flip6 generally takes sharper photos with its ultrawide.

Low-light comparison, ultrawide camera (0.6x): Galaxy Z Flip6 • Galaxy Z Flip5

Video recording

The Galaxy Z Flip6 can record video up to 4K60 with all of its cameras - the two rear ones and the inner selfie unit. There's no 8K on the main camera, even though it's the same hardware as on the Fold6, which does offer 8K capability (not that it's all that important, though). Additionally, in the Pro Video mode you can set the frame rate at 24fps.

The default codec is h.265 with further options - you can set it to quality priority or file size priority, and when in quality priority, you can flip an extra toggle for high(-er) bit rate recording. You can also enable HDR10+ capture when using the h.265 codec. Alternatively, there's the h.264 option if you have to prioritize about compatibility.

Electronic stabilization is available in all modes on all cameras and it can be switched off in settings, if you'd like to stabilize your footage otherwise.

Video sample playlist

You can check out the playlist below, which includes multiple video samples.

The Flip6's daylight 4K videos from the main camera and the ultrawide are essentially identical to the Fold6's which means they're alright, but not really worth raving about. Colors are likeable, dynamic range is nicely wide, it's just that the detail isn't as pin-sharp as we'd like it to be. Still, it's worth pointing out that, while at 1x the Flip6 is more or less on par with the previous generation, zooming in to 2x on the new model produces vastly superior results to the Flip5's.

We can't complain about the Flip6's electronic stabilization capabilities - on the contrary, the results are praiseworthy, when it comes to walking shake removal, panning smoothness, or just general steadiness, when keeping the phone pointed in one direction.

In the dark, the main camera does a reasonably good job, while the ultrawide is a bit softer and noisier, but usable if need be. The 2x result is also fairly decent and better than the Flip5's.