Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 REVIEW: Revolutionary

Everything you need to know about the Galaxy Z Flip 3. Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3: it's truly revolutionary. Here is the complete and in-depth review, with PROS and CONS

Galaxy Z Flip 3 REVIEW

In recent weeks I had the opportunity to test the new top-of-the-line foldable smartphone Galaxy Z Flip 3 with Android operating system.

In this article I want to share with you my impressions, with PROS and CONS of this phone, in order to help you understand if this device is right for you or not.

Without chatting, let's see what I think of the Galaxy Z Flip 3.

VIDEO REVIEW

For those who don't have time or desire to read, here is the video review.

TECHNICAL SHEET

PACKAGING

DESIGN AND MATERIALS

Simply spectacular, surprising, unique.

Top quality materials and assembly, as Samsung has always accustomed us to. The two-tone external cover is beautiful, allowing you to create truly unique combinations of lights and colors.

The design is truly stunning: on first use you are afraid to bend the phone to avoid breaking it, but in a few seconds you get used to it. It is a modern, chic, elegant, sophisticated and striking device without a shadow of a doubt.

To be precise, the smartphone is made of aluminum and the shells are made of Gorilla Glass Victus glass.

In this trial month, all the people who have seen it have asked me to be able to see and touch it. It is a smartphone that attracts attention, there is no doubt.

I really like that the external cameras are flush and not protruding. The feedback from the buttons is excellent, even if the volume ones are a little high to press when we use the phone with one hand.

Being foldable and weighing only 183g, keeping it in your pocket is something fantastic: when closed it is small, compact and very comfortable to carry, but it opens in an instant and provides us with a huge and beautiful display. Another non-foldable 6.7-inch screen phone would be awkward in both the pocket and the hand.

Excellent that it is IPX8 waterproof, unlike the previous model.

The rigid hinge is also very convenient, which allows you to tilt the screen freely and at any angle.

I'd like to point out just one drawback: it's very slippery, better to protect it immediately with a cover.

Doubt: will it break in the future? Difficult, impossible to say. The certainty is that the hinge has been redesigned and now feels very much like an integral part of the phone, insured for 200,000 closures.

DISPLAY

The one inside is stunning. The colors are those of a classic Samsung AMOLED, very beautiful, bright, fired but not too much.

The 120Hz adaptive refresh rate makes the user experience always smooth, lean and snappy. Present Always-On display and very customizable.

The fact that it is "stretched" (22:9) makes it perfect for scrolling through the social feed, but it is impossible to reach the top with one hand.

It is useless to deny it: the crease in the middle is there, you can feel it slightly when you pass over it and you can see it in some cases, but after the first few days you get used to it and you hardly notice it anymore. Of course, all this is subjective, but it is undeniable that Samsung has created a truly excellent screen, in which the crease is hidden from both sight and touch in the best possible way.

Personally, I can guarantee that after the first few hours of use, styling has never caused me any discomfort or problems. It is noticeable, yes, but I prefer a 6.7-inch folding screen of this quality rather than a non-folding pan that I can't even fit in my pocket.

No problem even in direct sunlight: excellent brightness (1200 nits) and exceptional readability.

SECOND DISPLAY

There is also an external display: 1.9” (260 x 512 pixels, 302ppi), Super AMOLED, 302ppi.

On this secondary screen, you can view notifications (but not respond), you can preview shots and videos, and you can add widgets (music control, calendar, timer, alarm clock, weather, Samsung Health, voice recording ).

This second display isn't essential, but it's handy in certain situations, especially if used "as a mirror" when we want to take selfies.

HARDWARE

It is a top-of-the-range smartphone from every point of view.

We have a 2.84 GHz octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 processor, an Adreno 660 GPU, 8 GB of RAM and 128 or 256 GB of non-expandable UFS 3.1 internal memory. There is space for 2 nanoSIMs and eSIM support.

Excellent connectivity: 5G, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.1 and NFC.

Unfortunately there is no video output, but there is still stereo audio.

The fingerprint reader on the right side is nestled in the power button and works well.

SOFTWARE

On the software side we have Android 11 (very soon 12) with OneUI 3.1 interface customized by Samsung. It is useless to waste time analyzing it since it is the same one already seen on all Galaxy S21s.

In addition to the classic Android functions, there are all the "smart" ones from Samsung, such as:

Overall I can say that the software, exactly as expected, runs smoothly, fast and snappy in any situation. Never a stutter, lag or slowdown.

Samsung is very quick to release security patches and Android updates.

GAMING

We are at the top. All games launch quickly and run smooth and fast even at maximum settings.

The smartphone warms up a bit during the most intense gaming sessions, but nothing exaggerated.

BATTERY

It's the only real drawback of this smartphone, but we already knew it.

3300mAh are not enough to cover a whole day, unless the smartphone is always placed on the desk (open or closed it makes no difference). With very light use you get less than 4 hours of screen on, with normal use you get 3 and a half, with intense use you hardly get to 3.

All this to say that in 90% of cases the smartphone will need a charge in the mid-afternoon to cover dinner and after dinner too.

In my case, I unplug it from the charge at 7 in the morning, stay in the office (using it very little) until 5, go to the gym, come home for dinner and go to bed with the battery completely flat. As already mentioned, with more intense use it should be plugged in for a quick charge in the middle of the afternoon.

Slow charging compared to competitors: 15W wired, 10W wireless. There is also reverse wireless charging, but we will hardly use it.

CAMERA

Like Galaxy S21, but clearly inferior to S21 Ultra and iPhone 13. Overall very good, as a high-end smartphone, but not as an absolute top of the range.

Sensor side we have:

The zoom is missing, and you can feel it a bit.

However, the photos are of the highest quality in all light conditions.

Selfies with the 10MP front camera are also good, although it is much more convenient to take them with the smartphone closed and using the rear camera and external display.

It is absurd that, months after its launch, with the smartphone closed you can only take pictures and shoot videos in square mode. It really doesn't make any sense.

The videos are also good, in 4Ka 60fps.

AUDIO AND RECEPTION

All passed with full marks. Ok WiFi, GPS and bluetooth. Ok reception, very good at least in my area and compared to the competition.

Good audio on call and speakerphone: they hear us well, we hear well.

Present stereo speaker that offers a fairly high volume, even if slightly lower than its competitors.

PRICE

Launched at €1099, it is now available online at prices around €830. Furthermore, with the latest Black Friday offers, I have also seen it for €700 or a little less.

BUY IT NOW ON OFFER

DIFFERENCES WITH THE PREVIOUS MODEL

To remove any doubts, on the new model we find these innovations compared to the previous one:

CONCLUSIONS

Well, we have come to the conclusions of this review of the Galaxy Z Flip 3. What do I think? I liked it? Do I recommend buying it or not?

Yes, I loved it. She surprised me in every way and made me fall in love. Too bad for the battery that doesn't last long, otherwise it would have been the perfect and definitive smartphone.

However, it is the leaflet for everyone: reliable, tested, improved from various points of view, beautiful, perfectly assembled, able to offer an impeccable user experience.

And finally we are dealing with a smartphone that manages to combine a large screen and extreme portability. Honestly, I'd much rather have a phone that opens and closes than carrying around a frying pan that won't fit in my pocket.

I really recommend this Galaxy Z Flip 3 to anyone, apart from those who want an infinite battery or top-notch photos.

Well done Samsung: while Apple still places a notch the size of my finger on the screen of the iPhone 13 (and also of the MacBooks), you have created a small masterpiece and continue to innovate.

This Galaxy Z Flip 3, as you can guess, I really liked!

PROS

CONS