Inside Samsung HQ: An Early Look at the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Hints at the Future of Foldables

Our expert, award-winning staff selects the products we cover and rigorously researches and tests our top picks. If you buy through our links, we may earn a commission. If not for the massive “Samsung” display hanging in the vast, minimalist lobby, it would have been hard to tell I was standing inside the headquarters of one of the world’s largest mobile brands.

Safety signs throughout the shimmering steel-and-glass building warned against using phones while walking or riding escalators. I had to reconcile the lack of glowing screens in people’s hands with the reality that I was at the heart of Samsung’s mobile research and development operations in Suwon, South Korea, roughly 20 miles from Seoul. Here, on a sweltering mid-June day, I’d be one of the first people outside the company to see its upcoming foldable phone lineup.

Standing outside Samsung’s research and development building at its global headquarters.Samsung In a sleek wood-paneled room called the Mobile Studio, I got my hands on three unreleased devices, one of which stole the show. The Z Fold 8, which rumors leading up to its reveal dubbed the Fold 8 “Wide,” has a 4:3 aspect ratio and a palm-sized design.

The emphasis on a wider rather than taller layout makes it feel fun and fresh, like a pocket-sized notebook a movie character might pull from their coat to jot down a clue. The room at Samsung’s headquarters in Korea where we were the first people to learn about the Galaxy Z 8 series.Samsung Meanwhile, the book-style Z Fold 8 Ultra is the modestly upgraded follow-up to the Z Fold 7 (with a noticeably less prominent crease).

The clamshell Flip 8 similarly packs more subtle upgrades to last year’s phone. But throughout the hour I spent holding and photographing the devices, I couldn’t stop thinking about the Z Fold 8’s bold, squarish redesign. It’s a first-ever move for Samsung, but one that may hint at the future of foldable phones.

You can turn the Z Fold 8 to optimize for the media you’re consuming. Turning it vertically is ideal for watching short-form video.Samsung A fresh take on the Galaxy Z Fold Before seeing the Z Fold 8, I wasn’t sure I’d be interested in a device with a 4:3 aspect ratio, since it’s so different from a regular phone.

After all, the Z Fold 7 was my favorite foldable I reviewed last year, thanks to its slim profile and a cover display that felt remarkably like a standard slab phone. That configuration helped it land a CNET Editors’ Choice Award. But after getting my hands on the newly reimagined Z Fold 8, which is around the size of a passport when closed, I understood the appeal.

It’s a refreshing, versatile format that appears ideal for browsing through content and watching videos while still being pocketable. The compact size also makes it flat-out adorable; I had to resist the temptation to walk out with it. I liked using the Z Fold 8’s cover screen to scroll through vertical social videos.

Samsung In portrait mode, the 7.6-inch inside display is optimized for streaming movies, watching YouTube videos and playing video games. Turning it to portrait mode is best suited for scrolling through vertical social videos, browsing the web or reading an e-book.

I look forward to using the phone in my everyday life and seeing how often I opt for the inside display over the 5.45-inch cover screen. “There is not one type of foldable user,” Minseok Kang, Samsung’s head of smartphone product planning, told me.

“We found some great opportunities regarding consuming media, including social media and videos.” The Z Fold 8’s main screen is suited for watching videos and simultaneously reading comments.Samsung Supplementing rather than replacing a more standard foldable shape, like the Z Fold 8 Ultra, the Z Fold 8 gives people more options.

Those willing to spend the most to get the best cameras and battery life won’t hesitate to shell out for the Ultra. If you’re looking for a more versatile configuration and want to try something new, the Fold 8 may be more alluring. “The new Fold gives you the best of both worlds, both from a productivity perspective, but more so from a content consumption perspective,” said Carolina Milanesi, president and principal analyst at Creative Strategies.

“[Releasing the Z Fold 8] now as an extra product versus changing the Fold is absolutely the right thing to do, because there is a market for both.” Reshaping the foldables market The Z Fold 8’s 4:3 aspect ratio isn’t entirely new. Several earlier foldables had similarly squarish displays, including the Microsoft Surface Duo, original Oppo Find N and the first Google Pixel Fold, which had a larger 6:5 aspect ratio.

Those devices were widely praised for their compact, palm-sized design. More recently, book-style foldables with proportions closer to traditional slab phones have become the dominant design, though there are exceptions like the wide-format Huawei Pura X Max. That trend may be shifting.

Samsung’s latest foldables arrive as speculation builds that