There have been plenty of reports, including our own exclusive, indicating that Samsung is bringing the Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Galaxy Z Flip 5 to market earlier than expected, and it seems that also means the leaks could start pouring in at a higher frequency going forward. To kick things off, high-quality Galaxy Z Fold 5 renders have been published online by the folks over at Smartprix to, well, confirm how a design change is not on the cards this year.
Say hi to the Galaxy Z Fold 4 Galaxy Z Fold 5
As you can see from the images, the Galaxy Z Fold 5 more or less looks the same as the Z Fold 4. Again, that doesn't come as news – Samsung is rumored to bring a design refresh with the Galaxy Z Fold 6 in 2024, but we're too far out to be putting much stock on those rumors when Samsung hasn't yet launched this year's model.
Samsung sticking to a similar design as last year might be a result of the company trying to save some costs (which is critical right now). The Z Fold 5 doesn't even seem to have individual camera rings at the back, a design element Samsung has adopted for most phones this year, including the Galaxy S23 series. We guess Samsung is taking into account the fact that the Galaxy Z Folds are nowhere close to big sellers so it can get a new device out with the same design and leave big changes for a later time.
However, there will be some tangible changes. The Z Fold 5 is rumored to adopt a waterdrop-style hinge mechanism that will allow the device to fold shut without leaving any gaps between the two halves, reducing the chances of accidental damage to the plastic folding screen. That, in turn, will result in a slightly thinner body when the device is folded, though whether or not the reduced thickness will be a boon for everyday use (or for the device's toughness) remains to be seen.
Even if the Galaxy Z Fold 5 has no (or not enough) fancy upgrades or features, the usual year-on-year spec upgrades it will get should make it a compelling device. The most interesting spec bump would be to the processor. The Z Fold 5 will be powered by Qualcomm's Samsung exclusive Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 (For Galaxy) chipset, which will likely bring noticeable performance and power effiency enhancements over previous Z Fold models. As for returning features, S Pen support and IPX7 water resistance deserve a mention, as they elevate Samsung's foldable phones above what the competition is offering, even if they can't match some of the competing devices spec to spec.
