Review: Samsung's first tri-fold phone is expensive and half-finished

 

Galaxy Z TriFold phone

Review: Samsung's first tri-fold phone is expensive and half-finished

Nearly seven years on, the era of foldable smartphones has been disappointing, but the efforts of manufacturers cannot be denied.
The Korean company Samsung was the first major company to enter this field in 2019, and has continued to develop it since then, launching four new foldable phones in 2025 alone, the latest of which was the " Galaxy Z TriFold " phone.

This phone, currently available in South Korea and soon to be released in the United States, features two screens, is foldable twice, and costs around $2,500, which is roughly equivalent to the price of two top-tier smartphones, according to a Bloomberg report seen.

Tri-fold phones are an emerging subcategory of foldable devices, pioneered last year by Chinese company Huawei Technologies. They combine the features of a smartphone and a widescreen tablet, making them ideal for watching videos. This combination of features in a single device is intended to compensate for the fact that you can now purchase an iPhone Pro Max and an iPad Pro for a lower price.

Design and user experience

But after a week of testing one of the first available Galaxy Z TriFold units in Seoul, it became clear that this experimental phone suffers from some unique design flaws that make it less refined than regular foldable phones, and perhaps even less efficient than traditional foldable phones.
The price alone, in addition to the engineering complexity it requires, confirms the device's status as a niche product, making it almost certain that it will not resonate beyond early adopters and tech enthusiasts.

Samsung's latest launch is considered quite bold, especially given its weak sales in this segment. This category, which also includes models from giants like Google and Huawei, still accounts for less than 2% of global phone sales, according to data from International Data Corporation.
Apple has remained silent so far, although it is expected to release a foldable iPhone in 2026. This makes the new year a pivotal moment for the entire sector.

Samsung designed the TriFold to fold like a wallet, with the folds dividing it into three sections when used as a tablet. If the user starts folding it incorrectly—for example, closing the right side before the left—the phone quickly alerts them with on-screen notifications and vibrations.
But the phone's durability is undeniable; Samsung's years of experience in foldable phone engineering are evident in the TriFold's construction. The device, which is the size of a 6.5-inch phone when closed, has no gaps between its three sections and feels reassuringly heavy and solid when held.
The phone's hinges also show a decent level of resistance and make a click-like sound when opening and closing, and Samsung has reduced almost every panel to just the necessary USB-C port height.

Phone flaws

Although the phone is thinner in most areas than the iPhone Air and many iPads, Samsung achieved this by integrating all the camera components into a large, heavy module. The back of the TriFold features a camera bump and three more prominent lenses, detracting from the overall slim profile the company emphasized.

As a result, the device appears unbalanced both when held in hand and when placed on a flat surface. The core idea behind foldable tablets like the TriFold is to provide the largest possible screen for the user on the go, within a compact, pocket-sized design. However, the experience is negatively impacted when the weight is unbalanced, as is the case here.

The phone's uncomfortable design makes users hesitant to hold it for extended video viewing, even though the screen's aspect ratio is perfectly adequate. Furthermore, there's no built-in kickstand for user comfort.

The 10-inch internal screen is more prone to glare and reflections than other smartphone screens. The foldable Oppo Find N5, released earlier this year, significantly outperforms this feature, proving that even flexible screens can deliver better performance.
To make matters worse, the camera performance is poor. Images taken in low light look grainy and blurry, lacking the sharpness achieved by even mid-range Android phones, such as the Xiaomi Mi 17 ($630) or Google Pixel 10 ($799).

Samsung has added additional selfie cameras to the large internal screen—which makes sense for video calls—as well as an external camera. However, the latter is unnecessary, as the phone can use the main camera in conjunction with the external screen.

Another problem lies in the semi-circular protrusions above and below each hinge, which interfere with multitasking gestures when using the screen in landscape mode. These protrusions also make side scrolling in portrait mode uncomfortable.

All these blemishes point to a lack of design refinement, which is surprising given the price and also because Samsung has proven itself capable of paying attention to detail.
Just this summer, the company launched the $2,000 Galaxy Z Fold 7, whose slim design made it look like a regular smartphone, although the high price made it impractical for most people. Samsung said in July that early sales of this phone had surpassed those of its predecessor by 50%, indicating a better reception from consumers.