Samsung Introduces Lightened And AI-Powered Galaxy Z Fold 6, Z Flip 6
2min read On Wednesday, Samsung held its global product launch event Samsung Galaxy Unpacked 2024 at the Louvre Museum in Paris, France. The star products of this event were the Samsung folding screen phones Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Galaxy Z Flip 6, which are now lighter, thinner, and equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) features.
Samsung stated that both folding flagship phones feature more durable hinges, and longer battery life, and are powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen3 processor, which is optimized for AI functions.
However, the Galaxy Z Fold 6 is also more expensive, with a starting price of $1899.99, which is $100 more than the previous generation, and comes in silver, pink, and navy blue. The Galaxy Z Flip 6 starts at $1099.99 (also $100 more than the previous generation) and comes in silver, yellow, blue, and mint colors. Pre-orders for these devices will begin on Wednesday and will be available globally starting July 24th.
In addition to the lighter design, the external screen of the latest Galaxy Z Fold 6 has been increased to 6.3 inches to help improve user work efficiency. At the same time, the Galaxy Z Flip 6 features a new 3.4-inch Super AMOLED large external screen and camera system, with a 50-megapixel main camera and a 12-megapixel ultra-wide angle, supporting 2x optical zoom, promising more detail in photos.
Both folding phones are equipped with new AI features, including an updated Note Assist function that offers meeting records, meeting content summaries, recording transcription, and translation capabilities. Google's AI assistant, Gemini, is also built directly into the phones, allowing users to experience generative AI functions.
AI has been present in smartphones for many years, such as Siri and Google Assistant, but the new generative AI features aim to improve the overall user experience, especially in completing text work.
Samsung President and Head of Mobile eXperience TM Roh stated that the new prices reflect component costs but may decrease in the future. Meanwhile, Roh added that AI is deeply integrated with Samsung's Galaxy series, and Samsung has adopted a hybrid approach to privacy protection, allowing users to choose whether to execute AI requests directly on the device or in the cloud.
Price remains one of the biggest challenges for consumers to accept folding screen phones. According to data from ABI Research, the shipment of foldable phones reached 20 million units in 2023 and is expected to increase to about 28 million units in 2024, accounting for less than 3% of the total shipments.
ABI Research's Director David McQueen believes that foldable displays will also enter other mobile products, such as tablets, laptops, and smartwatches, in the coming years, but most manufacturers are currently focused on making consumers satisfied with folding screen phones.
In addition to smartphones, Samsung also released new products such as the smart ring Galaxy Ring, smartwatch Galaxy Watch 7, and Bluetooth earbuds Galaxy Buds 3.
The Galaxy Ring offers health monitoring functions, such as measuring body temperature, sleep tracking, and personalized insights. This product comes in black, silver, and gold colors, with a starting price of $399.99. According to IDC research, smart rings are the fastest-growing segment of wearable devices, with an expected compound annual growth rate of 29% over the next five years.
The new Galaxy Buds 3, starting at $179.99, now features a translation mode that allows users to translate lectures or meeting content into other languages in real time. It also adds new control functions, allowing users to play or pause music without touching the earbuds.