Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2 is official with bigger screens, new hideaway hinge

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2 is finally official and it's better than its predecessor in every way.

Starting with the screen - the outside screen (which Samsung calls Cover screen) has grown from a bezel-ridden 4.6-inch to a 6.2-inch 2260x816px Super AMOLED that covers the entire front and sports a particularly tall 25:9 aspect.

Inside the main screen has seen a smaller increase - up from 7.3-inch, it's now a 7.6-inch 2208x1768px Dynamic AMOLED of 22.5:18 aspect ratio and adaptive 120Hz refresh rate.

The main display also now incorporates Ultra Thin Glass (UTG) for improved image quality and a more premium feel.

The hinge is another improved area now in its third-generation design. Samsung calls it a Hideaway hinge and it employs a CAM mechanism that enables the Galaxy Z Fold2 to stand on its own from 75 to 115 degrees.

Like on the Galaxy Z Flip 5G, there's a sweeper structure in the gap between the body and the hinge to keep dust and particles out and prevent damage with time. Samsung has also managed to make the gap even smaller than the Z Flip's.

Samsung will let you customize the hinge color in select markets with the choice of Metallic Silver, Metallic Gold, Metallic Red, and Metallic Blue.

When using the Galaxy Z Fold2 in Flex mode you'll be able to use certain apps in split view on the main screen. The camera, video call UI, the gallery, calendar, as well as partner apps like YouTube will be able to recognize the main display and show actionable content on the other portion of the screen.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2

Samsung has equipped the Galaxy Z Fold2 with a triple camera on its one non-screen side. The main is a 12MP f/1.8 sensor with dual pixel autofocus, optical image stabilization and 1.8µm-sized pixels. There's a 12MP telephoto camera that does 2x zoom with 1.0µm pixels and an f/2.4 lens that's optically-stabilized. The final sensor is a 12MP f/2.2 ultrawide with 1.12µm pixels and a 12mm angle of view.

There are two selfie cameras on the Galaxy Z Fold2 - one 10MP f/2.2 1.22µm is punched into the cover screen and another 10MP f/2.2 1.22µm inside the right half of the folding main screen. You can also use the cover screen as a viewfinder and snap yourself with any of the three main cameras.

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2 is powered by a Snapdragon 865+ with 12GB of RAM. There's 256GB of UFS 3.1 internal storage.

The battery has grown from the Galaxy Fold's 4,235mAh to 4,500mAh ad it supports 25W wired charging as well as fast wireless charging and wireless PowerShare.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2 closed and opened

Naturally there's support for 5G - both mmWave and sub-6GHz. Like the Galaxy Note20 Ultra, the Galaxy Z Fold2 comes with Ultra-Wideband for spatial awareness connectivity in which you can send files quickly from the Galaxy Z Fold2 to other Android devices.

Samsung is taking pre-orders for the Galaxy Z Fold2 beginning tomorrow and will ship the phone in around 40 markets from September 18. The sole 256GB version costs £1,799/€1,949/$1,999. The only market to get different storage is China, where the Galaxy Z Fold2 will be offered in 512GB flavor starting September 9.

You will get a choice of Mystic Black and Mystic Bronze while in 21 markets, including Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom and the US, you will be able to customize the hinge in Metallic Silver, Metallic Gold, Metallic Red and Metallic Blue accents.

There's a special Galaxy Z Fold2 Thom Browne Edition that's £2,999/$3,299 and comes with the Galaxy Buds Live and Galaxy Watch 3 starting September 25.