7You Creative Lead: ‘The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 might just be the most important phone released this year’

Nearly two decades ago a device got pulled out of a pocket that changed our relationship with tech forever.

And today our smartphones are as much about an expression of our personality as they are a functional piece of tech.

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 is far from ‘meh’ in fact I would argue it’s the most important phone released this year. Period.

When the Fold 8 is in its closed state , it’s the size of a passport and about as thick as a packet of Extra gum — two things designed to comfortably fit in your pocket.

There are a long list of specs that make this phone great but I thought it’s good to dwell on this for a second. It fits in your pocket.

I find myself really enjoying the one-handed capability of the phone in its folded state, all the normal ‘phone stuff’ like sending a text, making a call etc requires a lot less thumb gymnastics then with other modern slab phones.

The 5.5 inch outer screen is bright and beautiful, it does feel small but is still perfectly useable for most apps and when you eventually do want more screen real estate, you can open the Fold 8 to reveal a massive 7.6 inch display.

When opened up, the internal screen is a massive 4:3 display with a small hole for the front facing camera .

And the folding screen on both the Fold 8 and Fold 8 Ultra are reinforced with a specialised titanium alloy which improves durability without compromising on size and weight.

One thing to be aware of though is the internal flexible display is not as scratch resistant as your typical smartphone glass.

This is a tradeoff that is hard to avoid with folding displays but shouldn’t be an issue unless you’re putting your unfolded phone in your bag with keys and coins.

Samsung have done a very good job at hiding the crease in the middle of the screen and the neat and tidy bezel around the display looks great. Pair this with the 4.5mm thickness and you genuinely feel like you’re holding something special.

I’ve been using the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 since launch as my daily driver and it still feels special.

One of the big challenges with making phones thinner has always been what to do with the battery.