Bli plusmedlem
Logga in

Last year's model with a new name

Review: Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 FE - A cheaper foldable

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 FE is in most ways last year's foldable model with a new name. We go through how it compares to the Z Flip 7 and Z Flip 6.

Elias Nordling
Published

When Samsung launched this year's foldables, there were not two but three models. Galaxy Z Fold 7, Z Flip 7, and then the cheaper Z Flip 7 FE.

But how new is the Z Flip 7 FE really? Samsung makes no secret that it is identical in format to last year's Galaxy Z Flip 6. The screens are the same, as are the cameras and the physical construction itself. The differences from the Galaxy Z Flip 6 are easy to list: Z Flip 6 has the Exynos 2400 chipset instead of Snapdragon 8 gen 3 for Galaxy, 8 GB of RAM instead of 12 GB, comes in fewer colour options, and is pre-installed with Android 16 and One UI 8 instead of Android 14 and One UI 6.1. As for the latter, of course, the Z Flip 6 will also get the latest system version shortly, so it's more about the Z Flip 7 FE getting promised system updates for seven years ahead while the Z Flip 6 has used up one year and has six years left of system updates.

The differences from the Z Flip 7 are greater. The differences in format may not look like much on paper, but they are noticeable in practice, the Z Flip 7 really feels like a sleeker phone with a larger screen. The Z Flip 7 FE becomes bulkier in the pocket. The screen on the Z Flip 7 FE is not only smaller but also more elongated, which makes it feel more impractical. The outer screen is significantly smaller on the Z Flip 7 FE but that matters less. The hinge also feels noticeably stiffer on the Z Flip 7 FE than on the Z Flip 7. If you come from an older Z Flip and are happy with the format and want more of the same, the Z Flip 7 FE will not disappoint you, but if you have just tested the Z Flip 7 and move on to the Z Flip 7 FE, it actually feels a bit like a downgrade.

A bit slower

The Exynos 2400 chipset is the same as that in the Samsung Galaxy S24 and is a top chipset of the same generation as the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 found in the Z Flip 6. In practice, the phone doesn't perform quite as well as either the S24 or Z Flip 6, which could partly be due to less RAM, but more likely because the Exynos 2400 has poorer heat dissipation than the Snapdragon chipset, and therefore the phone has to throttle performance more during overload. This is mainly noticeable in demanding applications, such as when playing games or recording high-resolution video. In regular use, the Z Flip 7 FE feels as fast as the latest top models. We are still talking about top model performance.

You don't need to worry about the cameras, they are familiar. You find the same cameras as in both the Z Flip 6 and Z Flip 7 in the Z Flip 7 FE, and for that matter, they are the same cameras that were in the Samsung Galaxy S22 to S25 minus the telephoto camera. The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 FE thus takes good pictures in both light and dark with fine but slightly exaggerated colour reproduction. The wide-angle camera is noticeably worse in most respects than the main camera, and there is no telephoto camera, so zoomed-in images stop being sharp after two times zoom.

Android 16 does not contain many new features compared to Android 15, and the major updates in Samsung's interface came with One UI 7, which the Z Flip 6 has already received, so no major differences in user experience there. Samsung's Android version is pleasant to use with a clean user interface. With One UI 7, the quick shortcuts and notifications have been separated, but if you prefer it the way it was before, you can change it in the settings. I think the handling of notifications has especially improved with the change. Two other new features are Now Brief and Now Bar. Now Bar is an automatic widget button that shows music players, Now Brief, and more. Now Brief, in turn, is intended to be an AI-generated summary of information you might need during the day. In practice, the phone doesn't find much useful information, so I mostly get cheerful messages like “The day is rolling on” combined with weather forecasts. 

Limited outer screen

Related articles

The outer screen can be used as a camera viewfinder for selfies, and for some widgets and a few apps that have been adapted to the format, where really Google Maps is the only useful one. If you install Samsung's official app Good Lock, you can add any apps and run them on the outer screen, but few apps really work well on such a small screen in this format. Samsung has not added a function to continue running an app when you switch between open and closed mobile. In practice, you have to open the mobile every time you want to use it, and now that I have the Z Flip 7 to compare with, I think the hinges are too stiff, which creates both a figurative and actual resistance to using the mobile.

It's difficult to recommend buying the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 FE at full price. Not because the Z Flip 7 is a better alternative. It is, but also more expensive, and the two phones feel like clear alternatives to each other with trade-offs in price versus features.

The problem is rather the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6. You can get it cheaper than the Z Flip 7 FE, or at the same price but with more storage space. It also has more RAM and slightly faster processors, the only downside is that you get six years of system updates instead of seven. In six months, however, the Z Flip 6 is likely to be harder to find while the Z Flip 7 FE is available at a reduced price, then it becomes a more interesting alternative.

Questions and Answers

How is the fingerprint reader? It's located in the power button and can be used to unlock the phone both when it's open and closed. It's so narrow that you need to swipe your finger over it rather than just hold it to unlock the phone.

How are the speakers? Stereo speakers that are not quite balanced but with good sound width.

Battery life? Acceptable but not great. Z Flip 7 seems to last longer on a charge.

An alternative

We have mentioned Z Flip 6 as an alternative. Another is the Motorola Razr 60. It is slightly cheaper but has slightly lower performance. 

Camera example

The cameras are reliable but do not stand out.

product reviews android phone samsung product tests samsung galaxy z flip 7 fe

Latest reviews

Top How-tos

100 latest articles