What the reviewers said
Tech Advisor
3.5/5Aug 31, 2026A small but meaningful upgrade making it the best book-style foldable, but the cheaper wide Fold 8 is the better buy for most people.
- Gorgeous, bright inner and cover displays with reduced glare
- Superb performance and strong multitasking and gaming
- Titanium hinge reduces crease visibility and improves durability
- Strong main camera and capable 3x telephoto
- Seven years of OS and security updates
- Boxy 10:9 inner display poor for video
- Only IP48 rating, vulnerable to fine sand
- Still no 5x telephoto camera or built-in Qi2
- Very expensive at $2,099.99 launch price
- 480Hz PWM dimming may cause eye strain
A comprehensive upgrade over the Z Fold 7, with a much bigger battery and better cameras, though it barely feels like an Ultra and costs $100 more.
- Substantially larger 5,000mAh battery that easily lasts a day
- Improved 200MP main camera and added 3x telephoto
- Thinner, lightweight design with a nearly invisible crease
- Brighter displays peaking at 3,000 nits
- Seven years of software support
- Only IP48 dust and water resistance
- No S Pen support or Privacy Display
- Not much visually different from the Z Fold 7
- Costs $100 more than last year's model
- Not Qi2 magnet-equipped; needs a case for fast wireless charging
TechRadar
4.75/5Aug 5, 2026A flatter, lighter, better-equipped foldable that remains the best-overall folding flagship, though pricey and less exciting than the smaller Z Fold 8.
- Virtually flat unfolded screen with a much less visible crease
- Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 performance
- Upgraded cameras, with a 50MP ultra-wide
- Bigger 5,000mAh battery
- Easier to unfold thanks to chamfered edge
- Camera bump stops tablet from lying flat
- Expensive at $2,099.99 starting price
- No digitizer layer for S Pen
- Telephoto only 3x optical zoom
Engadget
8.8/10Aug 3, 2026A refined, excellent foldable with brighter screens, stronger performance and better battery, but upgrades are too modest to justify replacing last year's model or the cheaper base Fold 8.
- Class-leading performance with Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy
- Much longer battery life, 32 hours on the video rundown test
- Brighter inner and cover displays, up to 3,000 nits
- Keeps three rear cameras including a true 3x telephoto
- Faster wired and wireless charging, 45W and 25W
- Expensive, starting at $2,100
- Design is largely unchanged from last year
- No built-in magnetic ring for Qi2 accessories
- Nearly square inner screen letterboxes movies and shows
Tom's Guide
4.5/5Jul 30, 2026A major upgrade for Samsung's foldable line, with strong battery, performance, and a brighter screen, though weak telephoto, no S Pen, and a price rise hold it back.
- Brighter, anti-reflective display
- Excellent battery life for a foldable
- Strong cameras overall
- Flagship-level performance from custom Snapdragon chip
- Helpful new AI features
- Telephoto camera quality is poor
- No S Pen support
- $100 price increase, third year running
- Minimal design changes from predecessor
Verdicts, pros and cons are short summaries in our words of each publisher's review; scores are as the publisher gave them. Specs are taken from the reviews' spec boxes — where they differ, we show the value most of them give; price is the US launch price of the base model. Read the originals for the full picture.