[Music] I'm here in Paris checking out Samsung's new foldable phones, the Galaxy Z Fold 6, and the Galaxy Z Flip 6. So the big theme with the Fold 6 and the Flip 6 this year is that Samsung is really trying to bridge the gap between its foldable phones and its non-foldable phones like the Galaxy S24, S24 Plus, and S24 Ultra. And what I mean by bridge the gap is that usually with foldable phones, we've seen some trade-offs, some compromises that you have to make in order to have a screen that folds in half. For one, these devices, especially the Fold, can be bigger and clunkier than a regular smartphone. Sometimes they're not as durable, sometimes the camera also isn't as good as what you get from a premium non-folding phone. But with these two devices, Samsung is really trying to change that. Both phones are up for pre-order on July 10th, and the Fold 6 starts at $1,899, while the Flip 6

starts at $10.99, and both of those prices are higher than last year's foldable phone. Let's start with the design. So this is the Galaxy Z Fold 6, this is the Google Pixel Fold. I have to say this definitely feels a lot lighter, less cumbersome, probably easier to use in one hand. When I reviewed the Pixel Fold, I really liked how wide this cover screen was, but I didn't like the inner screen as much as Samsung's, and I feel like that's going to continue to be the case, especially since Samsung made the screen bigger on the Z Fold 6th generation. The bezels are a bit slimmer, you can notice it's a bit larger, and they also extended the size of the cover screen a bit too. So this, you know, again, like we don't really know until we spent a lot of time with the phone, but just my first impressions, this feels like a better middle ground between a device that feels like a regular phone and one that also feels like a tablet when you open it up.

cover screen isn't as skinny as it used to be, so it doesn't feel as cramped. So I think that can go a long way in making this device usable. Because I don't know about you guys, if you've ever used a foldable phone, but when I use a Galaxy Z Fold, I find myself using the cover screen a lot more than the internal screen. So that's really important. And the Z Fold 6 also has kind of a more squared-off edge, kind of look, kind of resembling the Galaxy S24 Ultra, which I also like. And then switching over to the Z Flip 6, there's also some design improvements here. You'll notice the camera has this nice, like little accent, kind of rim around it that matches the color of the device. The screen on the inside is still nice and big. And what I really love about this that immediately stood out to me is that you can barely notice the crease on this device. In fact, I didn't even think about it when I picked up the phone. It was kind of an

afterthought. I was like, Oh, wait a minute, there's still a crease on this phone, isn't there? And you don't really see it as much. Like, I doubt you could even see it from here. I don't really feel it as I'm scrolling, so I feel like that is another kind of big step forward design-wise for these foldables. Samsung is also doing more with the Z Flip 6 cover screen this time around. You can now add multiple widgets to the cover screen at once. That way, you can kind of make it look a little bit more like your regular home screen, where there's not just one thing on screen. You kind of have multiple things that you might want to look at at a glance. So, I'm interested to see how useful that is in everyday practice and how that kind of adds to the value of the cover screen. There's a lot more that's new about these phones other than the design. Both of them run on Qualcomm's new Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor, optimized for the Galaxy.

series, just like the Galaxy S24 lineup. And there's also some camera improvements as well, so the Z Flip 6 is getting a new 50-megapixel main camera. And that's important because resolution-wise, it should be a big step up from the 12-megapixel main camera on the Galaxy Z Flip 5. And that kind of brings it closer to, like I said earlier, to the S24 series, again, kind of trying to close that gap and make these devices feel more like a regular flagship phone that happens to fold in half. And both of the devices are also getting a new 12-megapixel ultrawide camera that should be better at shooting in dark scenarios as well. So of course, hardware is only one side of the equation. There's also software. And if you've been paying attention to Samsung at all this year, you know that they have not stopped talking about Galaxy AI, which is their suite of AI features on their latest Galaxy phones and some of their older Galaxy phones too. So what we're really

seeing here on the new foldable series is a couple of new features, but a lot of optimizations to old features. So one of these new features lets you change the style of a photo, and there are a few different styles to choose from. So I'm going to take a selfie on the Galaxy Z Flip 6, and then I'm going to turn that selfie into a different style, like a sketch or a watercolor image of myself, or a comic book image of myself, and we're going to see how it comes out. So this is the picture. I'm going to tap button hit this portrait studio button, and let's start with comic and see how that comes out. Okay, well that does not look like me at all. Okay, I think what I'm dis. Okay, that's kind of my hairstyle, but this doesn't really look like me, and I'm kind of disappointed it didn't get the hair color right. Let's try 3D cartoon instead and see if that's any better. Okay, once again, you know, the

hairstyle is kind of on point, but the color isn't. Let's, let's try generating one more time. I have faith in Samsung. I think they'll get this. It's kind of the same. This one's okay, but it doesn't look like me. I definitely don't have blue eyes. And a lot of these, oh, see, that one has brown eyes. This is probably the closest one if I had to um pick one that I think is the most accurate. And another feature lets you draw a sketch on top of an image and let the generative AI actually make it part of the image and work it in seamlessly. So these features are a lot of fun to play around with. I won't really know how useful they are and and how accurate they are until I've had more time with these phones, but it it's definitely uh a fun Edition so far. And just like in the past, language translation is also a big area of focus for Samsung's software updates this time around. So one of these features lets you

use these foldable phones to have a two-way conversation. Someone in a different language, so if I was speaking with someone that speaks French, for example, since we're in Paris and I don't speak French, I can open up the device like this. I can say what I'm going to say, and then the other language would come. So French in this case would show up on the outside that the person that I'm speaking to can see it while I would be able to see what they're saying in response on my end. So it's really interesting. It's very, very similar to something that Google has launched on the Pixel Fold in the past, but again, I do enjoy seeing companies like Samsung kind of think about how you can use these foldable designs in interesting ways. So overall, I do think the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Galaxy Z Flip 6 are steps forward. I really love the design changes more than I expected, but I am a little bit disappointed about the price hike. I think foldables in general are already pretty expensive. I think

raising the price um makes that sell even harder. Of course, there's always trade and Deals, usually when new phones come out, but it's still a pretty hefty price and a big commitment. I was also hoping to see a bit more from the new AI features that Samsung announced. I think these features are interesting and kind of fun to play around with, but I think it's going to take some time before we really get what I'm looking for, which is like truly unique features that really think about what you can do with a phone that has two screens instead of one. So once again, we're here in Paris checking out Samsung's new foldable phones. Don't forget to check out CNET for more details. Thanks for watching, and I'll see you next time.

Galaxy Z Fold 6, Z Flip 6 First Impressions: What Stood Out to Me Most

CNET is the premier destination for explaining and navigating the changing world around us. Through news, product reviews, price comparisons, and more, we’ll tell you what’s new in the parts of modern life that increasingly matter more — from health, home, and money to tech, culture, and climate — and how to get the most out of them.