Samsung’s in a strange position heading into its Galaxy Unpacked 2023 event next Wednesday (July 26). For as long as we can remember, the company continues to be the industry leader when it comes to making the best foldable phones around, but rivals have been quick to release foldables of their own with seemingly no gaps when they’re closed shut.
However, a new Galaxy Z Flip 5 teaser video from Samsung gives us our closest, most official look to date at how Samsung intends to correct itself.
Next up: take your best guess at what this could mean, and answer below!#JoinTheFlipSide #SamsungUnpacked pic.twitter.com/hQp6WSa8GdJuly 21, 2023
Everyone else is doing it
If you look at Samsung's current generation foldables — the Galaxy Z Flip 4 and Galaxy Z Fold 4, which both came a year ago — you can make out a slight gap in between their displays when either device is closed. This imperfection of sorts was effectively eliminated by newer foldables that have since been released, including the Motorola Razr+ and Oppo Find N2 Flip.
In this new teaser clip, it's clear Samsung is taking this challenge seriously by doing exactly what we all were anticipating with the upcoming Galaxy Z Flip 5.
The video above only gives us a glimpse of the Galaxy Z Flip 5’s profile, showing off what appears to be no gaps whatsoever near the hinge. Having a gap-free design matters because it’s the iterative change we expect to find in foldable phones going forward. Not having being able to close completely shut simply means a foldable phone can’t be in the same conversation as everyone else.
It’s not just isolated to compact foldable flip phones like the Galaxy Z Flip 5 either. The Google Pixel Fold and Honor Magic V2 have already debuted with no-gap designs, which is impressive given their larger footprints. In fact, this new gapless design shines a spotlight on how last year’s Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 is now regarded as an imperfection of sorts — especially when people weren’t as critical about the gap at that time.
Things have changed, and rightfully so, Samsung’s poised to follow the new standard.
Perhaps a proper dust resistant design this time?
Furthermore, a gap-free design for the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 could also mean getting proper dust resistance with its construction. Since there’s effectively no gap in between the display, it could also eliminate dust and debris from perhaps getting underneath the screen — either through the hinge, or simple wear and tear around the crease.
What’s even more interesting is that no one else matches Samsung’s IPX8 ratings with its foldable phones. In comparison, the Oppo Find N2 Flip only has an IPX4 rating.
At the very least, we’ll likely see an IPX8 rating on both the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Galaxy Z Fold 5 when both phones arrive at Galaxy Unpacked. In any case, this new design makeover is exactly what the Galaxy Z Flip 5 needs in order to remain relevant even though it’s unclear at the moment if the phone would move up to an IP58 rating that was rumored a while back.
There’s an even bigger design change left unanswered
While the teaser video gives us a peek at the Galaxy Z Flip 5, the profile look hides what’s arguably its biggest design change. Again, we have to look at the current crop of foldables on the market, like the Motorola Razr+, to see that a larger sized external display is the expectation.
It’s almost certain that the Galaxy Z Flip 5 will get the same proper treatment according to the latest leaks. This would be a huge boost over its predecessor, which featured a 1.9-inch Super AMOLED external display. That strip was handy in the sense that it offered access to some basic functions without opening the phone, but the Galaxy Z Flip 5 is reportedly going to boast an even bigger 3.4-inch display.
Luckily, with Unpacked less than a week away, we won’t have to wait long to find out if all of this is true or not.
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