If you haven't been paying attention, Samsung has a lot of phones coming out very, very soon. Aside from the Galaxy Note 20, there's the Galaxy Fold 2 and a new 5G-compatible version of the Galaxy Z Flip — a foldable phone that released earlier this year that we happened to like very much.
Today we received yet another indication that the new Galaxy Z Flip 5G is right around the corner, courtesy of SamMobile. Multiple versions of the Z Flip 5G, customized for different networks' bands, have appeared on the Bluetooth SIG certification database, which is a critical step in the run up to any device's launch.
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According to the listings, the Galaxy Z Flip 5G will make its way to AT&T, T-Mobile and Sprint, leaving out only Verizon as the lone U.S. carrier that will not offer the device. That's likely because the new Z Flip won't support the millimeter-wave 5G infrastructure Verizon currently relies upon fully for its 5G network, though that's merely an educated guess at this point.
The Galaxy Z Flip 5G is expected to be similar to its predecessors in most ways, save for a new system-on-chip that will allow it to connect to 5G networks. The Snapdragon 865 is Qualcomm's latest, best mobile processor, featured in cutting-edge Android handsets like the OnePlus 8 Pro and Galaxy S20 Ultra, and it's believed that this chip will make its way to the Z Flip 5G as well.
The current Galaxy Z Flip that is relegated to LTE towers features a Snapdragon 855 Plus processor, which is slightly faster than the 855 packed into last year's flagship Android products, though not as fast as the 865 generation.
Otherwise, we're not expecting massive changes for this Z Flip variant. The new device's chassis will probably be indistinguishable from the first model's, so we anticipate the battery will be about the same 3,300-mAh size. Hopefully those faster 5G networks won't draw excess power and shorten the phone's longevity on a charge. With a web streaming runtime at a shade over 8 hours and 15 minutes in Tom's Guide's custom battery test, the current Z Flip doesn't last particularly long to begin with.
Rumors suggest Samsung will hold an Unpacked event on August 5 where it will officially unveil the Galaxy Z Flip 5G, as well as a smattering of other phones and accessories. That said, given the pace at which Samsung's upcoming devices are leaking, we'll likely have all our questions answered well before then, over the next few weeks.
