Samsung has announced a brand new lineup of Galaxy Z Foldable smartphones, Watches and Tablets, all from their live event taking place in Seoul, South Korea, for the very first time. The massive announcement includes two smartwatches, three tablets and the fifth generation of the Galaxy Z Foldable smartphones.
Watch 6
The event opened with the new Watch 6 and Watch 6 classic. Samsung fans will be most excited for the return of the classic rotating bezel along with a sporty-looking Watch 6 that puts a focus on health, fitness activities and sleep tracking. The addition of the ability to pick up on irregular heart rates looks to be far more advanced than current watches currently provide.
This goes hand in hand with a massive update from Wear OS for existing apps that will make them work better with the Galaxy watches.
The brand-new Samsung Galaxy tablets come in three variants; the S9, S9 Plus and S9 Ultra. All have been upgraded with beautifully crisp OLED screens and are finally dust and water-resistant IP-68 rating. This is undoubtedly a huge leap forward for Samsung in the Android tablet range and are in a great position to justify the premium price tag.
S9 Tablet
The new tablets are all powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, alongside Samsung’s version of Qualcomm’s top-operating processor. Thankfully, you can expand the storage on all three using a microSD card. The S9 comes with storage options of 128GB or 256 GB, while the Tab S9 Plus is available in either 256 GB or 512 GB and the Ultra comes in at a whopping 1TB.
The S9 Plus and Ultra will come with 5G capability, but this will depend on your provider and country (we will keep you updated).
The S Pen still comes included, along with in-screen fingerprint scanners that really define the Galaxy tablet ecosystem. This time around, the speakers are 20 per cent larger than previous models and come with Dolby Atmos.
The colour options in all models come in either graphite or beige.
Galaxy Z Foldables
The highlight of the show was the announcement of the next generation of Samsung Galaxy Z foldable phones. Titled the Z Flip and Fold 5, they boast a brand new Flex Hinge that claims to allow the phone to go completely flat and then close without any gap. It certainly looks like a massive step forward both visually the aesthetic while providing a way for the screen to fall completely flat. It has undoubtedly been the biggest complaint about hinge phones since their release.
“Samsung is revolutionising the mobile industry with foldable by setting the standard and continually refining the experience,” said TM Roh, President and Head of Mobile eXperience Business at Samsung Electronics. “Every day, more people choose our foldables because they offer an experience people want that they can’t get on any other device. Galaxy Z Flip5 and Galaxy Z Fold5 are the latest devices that prove our commitment to meeting the needs of our customers through innovative technology.”
The Galaxy Z Flip 5 boasts a 3.4-inch cover display (similar to the Motorola Razr Flip) that can also run full Android apps. There are 13 widgets available on launch for this screen and allows for all notifications to be accessed through this front screen. You can customise the colours, background, and displaying notifications and looks like you can spend some time delving into this (there are some also great cases) On the inside, it has been upgraded to Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip with the storage upgraded to 256 GB.
The cameras have been enhanced by the software once again, in addition to portrait modes that can be used via the front screen, so you can see your selfie without needing to open your phone. There is a tracking device that will allow you to centre yourself in the middle of a video and will keep you in the middle of the shot the whole time with tracking. It looks to work beautifully well with the demos shown and I can’t wait to try it out.
The Galaxy Z Fold 5 is the centrepiece of the presentation, showcasing a massive 7.6-inch screen when open, that has increased brightness up to 30% from the last model, allowing up to 1750 nits. It also sports the same Flex Hinge allowing for the phone to fold shut with no gap, along with the same Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Mobile chip for Galaxy and a large focus on multitasking capabilities as well as the new gestures to shrink and resize apps on the large screen when unfolded looks to be a multitasker’s dream.
The Galaxy Z Flip 5 comes in a variety of colours, including Mint, Graphite, Lavender and Cream. The Galaxy Fold 5 comes in Cream, Black and Icy Blue.
The Galaxy Z Flip5 and Galaxy Z Fold5 will be available for pre-order in Australia from July 26, with general availability starting August 18.
