The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2 Review: A Premium Device for Early Adopters

As I spent two weeks with the Galaxy Z Fold 2, I couldn't help but feel that this device is not just a phone, but an experience. The foldable design is still a novelty, and Samsung has managed to make it both functional and aesthetically pleasing. However, as exciting as the device is, there are some limitations and compromises that come with being one of the first devices to popularize a new form factor.

One area where I noticed a significant difference between the Galaxy Z Fold 2 and its predecessor was in terms of noise levels. The original foldable phone was noisier than expected, but the Z Fold 2 is significantly quieter. This is a testament to Samsung's engineering prowess and their ability to improve upon previous designs.

In comparison to other high-end smartphones like the Note 20 Ultra, I found that the Galaxy Z Fold 2's camera performance was largely on par. While it did not surpass the Note 20 in every aspect, it still delivered excellent results in a variety of lighting conditions. The wide-angle lens and ultra-wide lens both performed well, although the latter had some issues with color accuracy.

One area where the Galaxy Z Fold 2 truly shines is in its ability to capture portraits. In low-light conditions, the phone's camera did an excellent job of bringing out details in the subject's face, making it a great option for photography enthusiasts. Additionally, the phone's ability to produce crisp and clean images even in challenging lighting conditions makes it a great device for capturing everyday moments.

However, when it comes to photographing people at night or using super shallow depth of field, I found that other phones performed equally well. The Galaxy Z Fold 2's camera may not have been as impressive in these scenarios, but it still delivered high-quality results that were worthy of sharing on social media.

The phone's performance under low-light conditions was another area where I had mixed feelings. While the camera did a great job capturing portraits, the phone struggled to produce bright and clear images in extremely dark environments. This may be due to the device's hardware limitations or software optimizations that are still being worked out.

Despite these limitations, I found the Galaxy Z Fold 2 to be an excellent camera phone for everyday use. Its ability to capture high-quality photos and videos makes it a great option for those who want a reliable device without breaking the bank.

One of the most interesting aspects of the Galaxy Z Fold 2 is its secondary display on the cover screen. This feature allows users to take selfies, use face unlock, or even make video calls with ease. I found this feature to be incredibly useful and convenient, especially during my testing phase when I was often taking photos and videos.

The phone's battery life was another area where I was pleasantly surprised. Despite its large display and power-hungry hardware, the Galaxy Z Fold 2 managed to last me a full day of moderate use with ease. Charging times were also reasonable, although Samsung's optional 45W fast charger did significantly reduce charging time.

However, there is one aspect that may not sit well with everyone: the device's price tag. At $1,980, it's clear that this phone is designed for early adopters and tech enthusiasts who are willing to pay a premium for cutting-edge technology.

But if you're one of those people who have been excited about the foldable design since its inception, I can assure you that it's worth every penny. The Galaxy Z Fold 2 is not just a phone; it's an experience that combines style, functionality, and innovation in a way that's hard to match.

Whether or not you'd consider spending your own money on the device depends on your individual needs and priorities. If you're looking for a high-end smartphone with advanced features and a unique design, then the Galaxy Z Fold 2 may be worth considering. However, if you're on a budget or prefer more established technology, there are other options available.

In conclusion, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2 is a premium device that offers an unparalleled experience for early adopters and tech enthusiasts. While it may not be perfect, its combination of style, functionality, and innovation make it a great option for those who want to be at the forefront of technological advancements.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enhere i am again watching a video about a phone i can't afford is a post i often see in the comments section of this channel but it's true isn't it not being able to afford something has never stopped anyone from wanting to know more whether that be about a luxury vacation spot or a fancy sports car and for many of us that also applies to the samsung galaxy z fold 2 one of the most expensive smartphones that you can buy today but also one of the most interesting so whether you're here today maybe just interested or if you're lucky enough to afford one then join me as we take a look at what could possibly be the most important phone of 2020. hi i'm michael josh you're watching gadget match this is our samsung galaxy z fold 2 review i get it anyone willing to spend this much on a smartphone will want to make sure that it's durable and the good news is on its second iteration samsung has done everything to make this phone tough eight cam mechanisms make up this new and improved hinge so you can open it up to any angle and it stays put you couldn't do this on the original fold and like on the z-flip there are sweeper brushes that keep dirt out the screen is made of ultra thin glass a composite of glass and plastic with a screen protector pre-installed on top of it this screen protector can be removed or replaced but samsung says let them do it for you for a limited time the company also offers a one-time screen replacement for a reduced 150 fee during your first year of use when folded shut there's still a noticeable gap between the two displays but these ramp-like accents have been added to minimize this magnets on the device keep it shut and give you that satisfying thump when you snap it close and then there's something to be said about the brushed metal finish and design cues taken from the note 20 ultra overall the fold 2 feels more classy premium and feels much sturdier than the first fold and once you get over that iffy feeling of folding a display in half and start using it on the regular you then learn to start trusting the phone and its durability that said treat it with caution like going to the beach might not be a good idea imagine sand caught in the middle of this display no no and when it starts to rain you might want to put the phone away because it doesn't have an ip rating i've been reviewing a couple of foldable phones lately and i can't help but feel giddy about exploring new ways of doing things on new devices and while the fold 2 and microsoft surface duo are obviously smartphones i found myself having to approach these reviews differently because these are inherently a new breed of devices and both require that you adopt a new way of thinking and doing things the fold 2 offers a different form factor unlike any other samsung smartphone today it's tall and narrow and thick almost like a nokia communicator back in the day a part of me wishes that when folded it would resemble a typical smartphone just like huawei's mate xs does that said the good news is the entire front or cover display as samsung calls it is now all screen unlike the original fold that only had a tiny window for quick tasks while not quite what we're used to the screen is big enough to scroll through your twitter or instagram feed chat with friends even read and reply to emails anything that has to do with typing or texting is definitely much more comfortable on a wider device but it's still very doable on the fold nonetheless of course because of its unique aspect ratio some things might look squished but for the most part you'll be able to do everything on this display satisfactorily in fact i challenged myself to use only the cover display for a full day and i survived without feeling like my experience was restricted that experience however made me appreciate the fact that the fold opens up to be a tablet offering multiple ways of doing things and that my friends is our cue to open it up isn't that a beauty this by the way is an exclusive gadget match wallpaper that you can download from gadgetmash.com wallpapers i'm so happy that samsung removed that ugly selfie camera module that got in the way of what would have otherwise been a pretty awesome tablet experience that's been addressed on the fold too with only a punch hole selfie camera sticking out something that you'll get used to and when you do will fade away into the background i love being able to start an app on the cover display and pick up where i left off on the inner display for it to work the other way around though you'll need to go into settings and select which apps you want to enable i get it shutting it closed should mean the same thing when i slam down my laptop when someone walks by i don't want you to see what i'm working on i'm also always asked about the crease it's there you can feel it and in certain angles see it also but when the device is in front of you like you normally would have it it's not as obvious and again it doesn't distract from the experience i've seen a lot of strong worded comments about it but guys it's not that big of a deal as some of you think and if you really want a foldable display then you'll have to live with a crease until the technology becomes better the larger display is great for a lot of things things i enjoy doing on my ipad reading books on my kindle app comics using marvel unlimited or the september issue of vogue on zinio this larger screen is great for reading of any kind it also comes in handy for viewing the desktop versions of web pages sometimes you need to like that one time when i needed to cram my german lessons in the car and gotha's online learning platform required a desktop browser the screen was big enough to accommodate that google maps is so much better with an even bigger screen meanwhile since videos are usually wide you're not necessarily getting a bigger screen for movies if you take away those black bars disney's mulan on the fold 2 is roughly the same size as on the note 20 ultra netflix and disney plus will let you pinch out to fill the screen but expect a crop most games on the other hand will stretch to fit but not everything is optimized for this aspect ratio yet and speaking of games the fold 2 is packed with enough power to handle any of them when my full 2 arrived i bought a little stand for it thinking i'd be able to use that bigger screen for playing games using xbox game pass ultimate but just like movies as console games are designed for a wide screen this larger display doesn't mean a big screen gaming experience of course one of the benefits of a bigger display is multitasking and i firmly believe that true multitasking is the holy grail for mobile devices it's a bit tricky though in the android world as android isn't optimized for tablets neither is it optimized for dual screens so samsung has had to build the functionality itself with one app open swipe in from this floating tab to bring up apps edge and from there select the second app you'd like to use you can use them side by side for this layout i like to have my favorite chat app open on one window and whatever it is i'm working on on the other reading a news article or checking on some emails or for example while writing the script i kept the fold to spec sheet open on chrome while i wrote the script on the other you can also have apps open on top of each other which is ideal for watching a video while doing something else you can if you want to open a third window or have it open as a floating window in pop-up view but that's asking a lot of this screen size now remember when i said that android isn't optimized for tablets and dual screens and samsung has had to build this functionality itself this means most android apps aren't optimized for it either most apps will either take up the entire display but not really make the most of that extra screen real estate samsung lets you go in and tell certain apps that you're using a tablet so that when held this way gmail or outlook for example will list your emails on one side and the email you're perusing on another on the flip side there are apps like facebook which is just meh in the middle some apps refuse to work in split screen mode like shocker instagram there's also supposed to be drag and drop functionality but it only works between microsoft office apps or the gallery app and samsung's own messaging app but this isn't a samsung problem it's an android problem and hopefully as more devices like the fold 2 become commercially available more developers become incentivized to rethink the way their apps work on the devices of tomorrow the galaxy fold 2 has three 12 megapixel cameras an ultra wide wide and 2x telephoto lens as with any of our reviews we did some comparisons first with its predecessor in my tests they performed the same using the ultra wide angle lens whether it was an architectural shot or a portrait shot directly against the sun but where the improvements are really evident is when it comes to night mode and low light performance i shot this next photo in a really dark room with night mode you'll find that the photo from the fold 1 is much more noisier than on the fold 2. i've also compared it to the note 20 ultra arguably one of samsung's best camera phones today in broad daylight there's hardly a difference between the fold and the note 20 in both wide and ultra wide shots although in this portrait of chai taken close to sunset you'll find the note did a better job at bringing out the blues of the skies it was also kinder on her face although both did a good job at cut out this next example with super shallow depth of field was taken as the sun had almost completely set both phones did an equally good job which i guess is the point here the fold is a pretty darn good camera phone also this one's always tricky photographing people at night try kept still and we used night mode both photos are instagram worthy but if you zoom in close on chai's face the notes photo has more detail this next one was tough for me to take as it started raining and i didn't want the fold to get wet completely unrelated but here's where an ip rating would have come in handy the note 20 ultra produces the brighter photo but trust me many other phones i had that night it didn't take as good a photo as the fold did and finally an extreme low light scene from my bathroom the fold did a good job considering there was hardly any light to work with but the note 20 ultra brought out more colors in the scene and is a cleaner and brighter photo overall alright enough comparisons why don't you just sit back and enjoy a few more photos so that you can fully appreciate what the galaxy z fold 2's camera can do by the way the fold two has two selfie cameras one on the cover display and the other over here on the inside they're there for face unlock and so that you can take a video call either way when it comes to taking selfies my recommendation is to use the cover screen as a monitor just tap here to turn on the cover screen preview raise your palm to trigger your shutter and click there much better with its large screen second display and fast refresh rate one might think that the fold two is power hungry but on the contrary it isn't in my two weeks of use its battery did a decent job of lasting me a full day of moderate use charging times are okay too with its bundled 25 watt adapter 45 in 30 minutes 85 and 60 and a full charge in one hour and 25. with samsung's optional 45 watt charger however speeds are even faster and just in case you're wondering the phone also supports wireless charging and here are what charging speeds are like with samsung's 15 watt fast charger before we wrap up it's time for quick fire q a at gear diary asks is it worth two thousand dollars if you think about it probably not but what you're paying for is a premium for that early access to tech that's not really ready for mainstream just yet at jblair82 would you spend your own money on it i already have i've ordered mine in mystic black with a custom blue hinge speaking of hinge customizations that's available as an option in these countries alvin asks are the stereo speakers as loud as the s20 actually much louder kim would you use this as your main device i'd consider it so is the galaxy z fold 2 your gadget match it's hard to recommend a 2 000 smartphone to anyone unless you're one of those people who have lots of money to spend on expensive hobbies the fold 2 is a luxury device meant for those who want the finer things in life early adopters who get a high from using tech on the bleeding edge and techies like many of my friends and i who just have to have it that said if you've been excited about the fold since it was first teased more than a year ago what it is today is already a superb refinement of the original it's built well more durable performs great and for the most part gets the job done the hardware is ready now all we need is for the platform to catch up that said i truly believe that this is a step forward toward a new kind of mobile computing it might not make sense now but what i have in my hands is the best glimpse of what the future might look like and that was our samsung galaxy z fold 2 review what do you think of the phone and is it a phone that you'd like to use let me know by sending off in the comments section below as always subscribe to this youtube channel and hit that bell icon please we have a lot of videos coming our way and by hitting that notification bell you will be notified first follow me on social media for all the behind the scenes fun stuff and as always make gadgetmatch.com your daily habit until the next video i'm michael josh thanks for dropping by oh\n"