Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 launches with an upgrade everyone wanted and an Exynos gamble

The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 is here, and it’s better than ever. The clamshell arrives with the biggest “Flex Window” (cover display) ever seen in the lineup, along with a larger main screen. Beyond just more display space, Samsung has refined the phone’s dimensions, added smarter software features, boosted battery life, and embraced more sustainable materials. One of the biggest shifts this year is Samsung’s decision to go all-in on its homegrown Exynos chip, even in the US market. Yes, there’s no Qualcomm Snapdragon on the Flip 7 anywhere in the world. While the move will certainly raise some eyebrows, the new Exynos 2500 means business, and so does Samsung with its seventh clamshell phone. Here’s what’s on offer.

• Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 256GB: $1,099/£1,049
• Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 512GB: $1,219/£1,149

The Galaxy Z Flip 7 comes in four stylish color options, including Blue Shadow, Jet Black, Coral Red, and Mint (Samsung online exclusive). It launches at the same $1,099 starting price for the 256GB model as last year, which is a pleasant surprise given the recent fluctuations in US tariffs and the solid upgrades packed into this new Flip. If you need more space, there’s also a 512GB version available. Sadly, unlike the Galaxy Z Fold 7, the Flip 7 doesn’t offer a 1TB storage option.

You can preorder the Galaxy Z Flip 7 starting today (or the Fold 7 if you’re after the more premium experience). While general sales begin on July 25, getting your preorder in now ensures you’re among the first to experience Samsung’s latest foldables.

Samsung has expanded the Z Flip’s display horizons with a 6.9‑inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X (meaning 120Hz) folding screen, the largest ever in the Flip lineup. This eclipses the 6.7-inch panel of the Galaxy Z Flip 6, and is now matched by an equally brilliant 2,600 nits peak brightness. Unfolded, the phone measures 6.5mm, making it a tad slimmer compared to its predecessor.

The cover display, or as Samsung calls it, “Flex Window,” is also getting a significant upgrade. It’s not only larger than ever at 4.1 inches, but now supports a 120Hz refresh rate and includes Vision Booster tech for brighter, more vivid visuals. The Flex Window also now encapsulates the dual camera setup on the phone. This is a big step up from the Z Flip 6’s 3.4-inch, 60Hz, folder-style cover display.

Samsung is also giving you more power when it comes to personalizing this space. The Flex Window now supports features like the “Now Bar” and “Now Brief” in the form of widgets, AI-generated wallpapers, Gemini Live, and the new dynamic, shape-shifting clock font we saw on the One UI 8 beta. Samsung has clearly heard its users who want the cover screen to be more useful, and we’re all for it.

As for the build, the Galaxy Z Flip 7 boasts a slimmer Armor Flex hinge that Samsung claims is 30% thinner than the previous generation. This aligns with the company’s overall design evolution for its foldable phones, making the new Flip 7 sleeker and more refined. Whether the new hinge also results in better durability is something we’ll have to wait and watch.

Speaking of durability, the Galaxy Z Flip 7 is once again IP48 rated. That means while it’s decently protected in case of water immersion (1.5 meters of fresh water for 30 minutes), its dust protection isn’t as great as the IP68 or IP69 flagships, and dust particles can still enter the device, though not in very harmful quantities.

Samsung has also introduced several environmental upgrades on the Galaxy Z Flip 7. The phone features a battery with 100% recycled lithium in its cathode, and incorporates recycled cobalt, plastics, gold, and aluminum throughout.

Under the hood, the Galaxy Z Flip 7 introduces Samsung’s latest 3nm processor, the Exynos 2500. This is a major shift from the Qualcomm-powered Flip 6, and with no Snapdragon variant available, even in the US, Samsung is taking a big bet on its homegrown SoC.

Specs-wise, the Exynos 2500 includes a high-performance Cortex-X5 core (a.k.a. Cortex-X925) running at 3.3GHz, backed by a mix of Cortex-A725 and Cortex-A520 cores. Graphics are handled by the Xclipse 950 GPU, which brings hardware-accelerated ray tracing to mobile gaming. The included Exynos 5400 modem also enables satellite connectivity, making the Galaxy Z Flip 7 the first Samsung clamshell to get the ability to communicate with low-orbit satellites.

The phone’s battery capacity has been bumped to 4,300mAh (up from 4,000mAh), which Samsung claims can deliver around 31 hours of video playback. While we didn’t have official charging specs at the time of writing this article, we expect to see 25W wired and 15W wireless charging carry over from the Flip 6.

As for software, the Galaxy Z Flip 7 comes with One UI 8 based on Android 16. This is noteworthy as it’s the first time Samsung has debuted a new OS version update on a foldable device rather than its flagship Galaxy S series. Meanwhile, Samsung’s update support remains strong, with seven years of OS and security updates, on par with the Galaxy Z Flip 6.

One nice surprise is that the Galaxy Z Flip 7 finally brings full support for Samsung DeX. The Flip 6 missed out on this and features a handy desktop mode instead.

Samsung is sticking with a proven trio of 50MP main, 12MP ultrawide, and 10MP selfie sensors, similar to Flip 6, but now integrates them via a next-gen ProVisual Engine. Samsung told us the Z Flip 7 also supports 10-bit HDR video recording by default, and we’re guessing this applies to the rear cameras.

We’ll soon review whether the Galaxy Z Flip 7’s camera performance has improved compared to its predecessor, but we’re largely expecting similar results to the Flip 6, with some additional processing enhancements.

The upgraded Flex Window on the Galaxy Z Flip 7 can now handle real-time filters and has a handy zoom slider, something Flip 6 users only accessed from the unfolded main screen. Flex Mode also brings back Auto Zoom, which smartly adjusts framing based on detected subjects like people or pets.

Moreover, Samsung is introducing Cover camera effects that display light rings around the rear camera cutouts to indicate when recording is in progress. This isn’t the privacy enhancement you’re thinking it is. The aim is not to let others around you know when the camera is active. It’s just an effect that appears around the cameras momentarily when using the cover screen to shoot images.

We’ll reserve a final verdict for our full review, but the Galaxy Z Flip 7 already appears to be a solid step forward. It’s not a dramatic overhaul, but the larger displays, slimmer build, more customizable software, more usable cover display, DeX support, and greener materials are all very meaningful upgrades we appreciate.

That said, the switch to the Exynos 2500 is a gamble. Samsung’s Exynos chips haven’t always lived up to expectations, so we’ll need to see how this new one performs in real-world usage before fully endorsing the change.

The Flip 7 also commands a premium price, though buyers looking for a more affordable alternative can consider the $899 Fan Edition or even last year’s Galaxy Z Flip 6, which is going for $799 right now. But for those who love the flip form factor and want the latest refinements, the Galaxy Z Flip 7 is the most compelling clamshell Samsung has released to date. What do you think?

Stay tuned for our full review to see how the Galaxy Z Flip 7 performs and how it stacks up against the competition.