- 6 weeks ago
We're back at Samsung HQ for another exclusive hands-on, and we're just the second group in the world to see the new foldables at the time of filming. Alongside the fantastic @SuperSaf , we spent a few hours with the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra, the all-new Galaxy Z Fold 8 and Galaxy Z Flip 8, as well as Samsung's latest Galaxy Watch9 and the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2.
Join hosts Josephine Watson and Hamish Hector as well as Axel Metz to learn more about the latest slate of foldables from Samsung, including new hardware, cool new software features and some big changes to design that could pre-empt Apple's competition.
Join hosts Josephine Watson and Hamish Hector as well as Axel Metz to learn more about the latest slate of foldables from Samsung, including new hardware, cool new software features and some big changes to design that could pre-empt Apple's competition.
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TechTranscript
00:00If you remember when the rumors for the iPhone air were coming out, Samsung was like, here's the edge.
00:03With last year's Fold, it felt like Samsung was finally ahead of the pack with everything it was doing in
00:07terms of design,
00:08except for silicon carbon batteries.
00:09You know, the thinness is a game changer. I don't want it thicker to incorporate an S Pen.
00:12If Apple are going to be doing it here, look, we've got a solid alternative here, which is great.
00:16And, you know, Samsung have been doing foldables for the longest.
00:19The first silicon carbon battery foldable they've brought to the market.
00:22The type of content we watch nowadays, YouTube Shorts, TikTok,
00:24isn't best served by that kind of taller, narrower form factor of the Ultra.
00:27Yeah, if I've got a handful of laundry and there's an important call coming through,
00:30I would rather take the call on my washing machine than not at all.
00:38Welcome, everyone, to the 33rd episode of the Tech Radar podcast.
00:41My name is Josephine Watson, and I'm joined, as always, by Hamish Hector.
00:45Hello.
00:46Axel Metz.
00:46Hello.
00:47As well as our special guest, SuperSaf.
00:49Hey.
00:49This week, we're back at Samsung headquarters for an exclusive early access hands-on
00:54to the latest slate of Z Fold and flip phones.
00:56We're, I believe, only the second group of people in the world to see these,
01:01so it's a pretty exciting time.
01:02So here in front of us, we have the new Samsung Fold 8 Ultra,
01:05which is the same fold factor as the previous Fold 7
01:08and other clamshells in the fold range.
01:10There's also the new Fold 8, which is the long-rumored passport-style foldable,
01:14as well as the flip 8 in its familiar style.
01:16We're going to run through these phones in that order,
01:18so you can use the chapters to navigate below to the phone of your choosing.
01:22Hamish, so you're going to kick us off today,
01:23because you've been using the Fold 7 for a while
01:26and previous folds before that, I believe, right?
01:28Yep, I started with the 6.
01:29So can you tell us a little bit more about the new Fold 8 Ultra?
01:32So for me, I think the biggest upgrade is to the battery.
01:36It now has a 5,000 milliamp hour battery,
01:39and also it's a silicon carbide battery,
01:42which means, you know, it should be, you know, better,
01:45which is always good.
01:46And so we'll get onto that in a minute.
01:49The cameras have also seen an upgrade.
01:50So previously, the ultra-wide was just 12 megapixels.
01:53That's now up to 50 megapixels.
01:54And the 200 megapixel camera has some of the HDR improvements
01:58we saw in the S26 Ultra,
02:00as well as a few advantages like CineLoot,
02:03which should add new cinema stars when you're filming.
02:06But the 10 megapixel telephoto is still exactly the same as it was on the 7.
02:12The display is brighter too, at 3,000 nits,
02:16and that should help with more vivid colours.
02:18And if you didn't like some of the reflections on the display with the Fold 7,
02:23there's now an anti-reflective coating,
02:24and seeing it, that does seem to help a lot,
02:26especially with the crease,
02:28because I didn't think the crease was actually too noticeable on the 7.
02:30But because of the reflections,
02:32it can be quite obvious in certain lighting.
02:35With the Fold 8 Ultra, it didn't seem quite so present.
02:40There's also various other software upgrades
02:42that we sort of saw on the S26,
02:44things like Now Nudge.
02:46So when you're texting someone,
02:47they say,
02:48hey, do you want to come and hang out with me on Wednesday?
02:50It will say, oh, you can check out the calendar.
02:53And also the advantage is when you're using it in this unfolded mode,
02:56you'll have the,
02:57it will sort of do the multitasking automatically for you.
02:59So if you've got the text across your whole screen,
03:01it will move it to one half,
03:03and then open up your calendar in the other half,
03:05so you can scroll through and say like,
03:06oh, I'm busy on Wednesday,
03:07but I'm free Friday,
03:08and then text that back.
03:09And otherwise, though, it's fairly similar.
03:11It's a similar,
03:12it's the same size,
03:13similar weight.
03:14So it's sort of an upgrade,
03:16and I've,
03:17but it keeps a lot of the stuff that you liked from the 7,
03:20but makes it better.
03:21Very good.
03:22Very good.
03:22And as someone who's been using the Fold 7,
03:24what are your thoughts?
03:25Do you think you'd upgrade for it?
03:26I think so.
03:28I mean,
03:29I know obviously there's an advantage to being a tech journalist.
03:31You can sort of upgrade a bit more easily,
03:34but I think there are some solid enhancements
03:36in terms of the anti-reflectiveness,
03:37and I think the cameras do seem like a solid improvement.
03:40It's one of those things,
03:41it's definitely more of the same,
03:43but in the ways it's different,
03:44it's better.
03:44Oh,
03:45the hinges has got some upgrades,
03:46so it's slightly easier to open,
03:48and I found it maybe stays,
03:49I don't know,
03:50I felt when it went down to like the thinner size,
03:52the hinge just seemed a little bit flimsier at times,
03:55whereas this seems a little bit more sturdy,
03:57so I kind of like that as well.
03:58I definitely noticed how much easier it was to open as well.
04:01I've got tiny little bony fingers,
04:02and I've always struggled with that,
04:04and it's actually quite nice.
04:05But I think it's being dubbed by Samsung
04:06as the choice for productivity users,
04:08right?
04:08It's got speedy performance
04:09with the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5.
04:12Like you were saying,
04:13it's the first silicon carbon battery foldable
04:15they bought to the market,
04:16and 600 milliamps per hour more battery than the 7.
04:18And I think that is kind of boringly,
04:21quote unquote,
04:21one of the most exciting upgrades here.
04:23Recent poll we did of our readers
04:25said that was the thing people wanted the most.
04:2728% of people said that was the thing they wanted the most.
04:29The next most popular thing with 19%
04:32was the return of the S Pen.
04:3316% said better batteries.
04:3613% said more affordable.
04:38More affordable price was 13%.
04:39And then there were a lot of,
04:41everything else was quite low
04:43with faster charging,
04:45more A features,
04:46and better chipset all at the lowest end.
04:48But again,
04:48I think it's,
04:49for those things,
04:49though,
04:49better battery,
04:50better cameras,
04:51it definitely ticks both of those points.
04:54And on the battery point,
04:56I think that's maybe my biggest frustration
04:58with the 7.
04:59I mean,
05:00I use it a lot.
05:01And I don't know what,
05:02I don't know why,
05:03even though the 7 is meant to have
05:04better battery than the 6.
05:06Anecdotally,
05:06I've always found it's just a little bit less,
05:10less usage time.
05:11And I've spoken to several other people
05:12that use it regularly,
05:13and they've all said the exact same thing.
05:15And so I'm very happy that the Fold 8 will have,
05:19Fold 8 Ultra will have more battery to it.
05:21Because,
05:22you know,
05:22that's what you want.
05:23You don't want it running out halfway through the day.
05:24You want it going all the time.
05:26I think as well,
05:26I'll just say that we've been waiting
05:27for silicon carbon batteries
05:28in a Samsung phone for a long,
05:29long time.
05:30And the Chinese phones
05:31have been doing it for a few years.
05:33And then with last year's Fold,
05:34it felt like Samsung was finally ahead of the pack
05:36with everything it was doing in terms of design,
05:38except for silicon carbon batteries.
05:39So for me,
05:40that's the biggest upgrade,
05:41I think.
05:41And it'll be interesting to see
05:42how it performs in reality.
05:43And then Saf,
05:44welcome to come away.
05:45Lovely to have you.
05:46Thank you for having me.
05:47What about you?
05:48What do you think is the most exciting upgrade
05:49to the Ultra?
05:50Well,
05:51I'd say,
05:51as the guys have been saying,
05:53finally,
05:53we've got silicon carbon.
05:55I've been ranting my videos
05:56of the Folds
05:57and the S-series
05:58that everybody else
06:00is using silicon carbon,
06:01but it's great
06:03that Samsung's finally here at the game.
06:05And having that extra battery life
06:06is amazing for a Fold.
06:08When you're using that larger screen,
06:09which is what you really want to do with it,
06:11you do go through the battery very quickly.
06:13So having that larger battery,
06:14I would have liked it to be a little bit bigger
06:16if I'm honest with you,
06:17because again,
06:17when we're looking at the competition,
06:18some of these other foldables
06:20are going up to the 6,000 mark,
06:21but nevertheless,
06:22at least it's here and it's 5,000,
06:24so I'm pretty happy about that.
06:25Very nice.
06:26But no S-pen.
06:28Now,
06:28we were talking about that beforehand.
06:29Yeah.
06:30Hamish is an S-pen hater,
06:32I guess.
06:32I don't even know where to go with you on that one.
06:35Well,
06:35because I've been using it in the S26 Ultra
06:37and I kind of see some of the appeal,
06:39but I think that
06:40because the S-pen,
06:42it's not that thick,
06:43but it's thick enough
06:43that it couldn't slot
06:44inside the current form factor
06:46of the Fold.
06:47And the thinness is so important,
06:50especially going from the 6 to 7
06:51where it really shrunk down.
06:54That was,
06:55you know,
06:55the thinness is a game changer.
06:56I don't want it thicker
06:57to incorporate an S-pen.
06:59But then you had a good point on that,
07:00didn't you?
07:00Yeah,
07:01my counter argument to that
07:02is the Fold's never had
07:03an embedded S-pen.
07:04It's always been
07:05an external accessory.
07:06So for those people
07:07who do want an S-pen
07:08can just go and get an S-pen case.
07:11We've seen,
07:12again,
07:12the competition,
07:13you know,
07:13the likes of the Find N6,
07:15which have an S-pen,
07:17well,
07:17a pen,
07:18which can be used
07:19not only on the main display,
07:20but also on the cover display.
07:22And the case is actually
07:23pretty compact too.
07:25And the S,
07:26the pen also charges.
07:28Within this case,
07:29it can be used remotely
07:30with Bluetooth.
07:31So there are all of these things
07:32that,
07:32you know,
07:33we are seeing the competition.
07:34This is something
07:34that I would have liked
07:35to have seen for the Fold 8,
07:37but maybe we'll see it
07:38for the Fold 9.
07:39Well,
07:39especially as well,
07:40they were talking about
07:40this being the sort of
07:41productivity use case phone,
07:43right?
07:43And one of the features
07:44they were talking about
07:45was notebooks in Gemini,
07:46where it can pull in
07:47your photos,
07:49it can pull in audio files,
07:50it can pull in the notes
07:51that you've drawn on your phone
07:52and collate them
07:53into one big project page.
07:54It can even make these
07:55like really cool
07:56different designed pages.
07:57I think that's a really
07:58cool feature,
07:58but it's one that I would
08:00want an S-pen for
08:01because I do most of my notes
08:02as scribbles.
08:03I'm not a typer necessarily,
08:05I'm a doodler.
08:06So it would be nice
08:07to be able to have
08:07that utility back.
08:09I think one of the points
08:10we've landed on before
08:11is also that it's to do
08:12with the display thinness too,
08:13not just about whether
08:14or not you can embed the pen.
08:15So we'll see,
08:16maybe that'll make a comeback.
08:17Yeah,
08:17it's that digitizing layer,
08:18isn't it,
08:18that goes underneath the display.
08:19But you wouldn't think
08:20that would add too much thickness.
08:21But also as people have said,
08:22you know,
08:22it's got to be a case,
08:24it's an external thing.
08:24And, you know,
08:25I really like the caseless look.
08:28Again, you know,
08:28that's kind of a thing
08:30where I don't need to worry
08:30too much about it.
08:31And I try not to,
08:32in fairness,
08:33I am pretty careful with my phone.
08:34But it's one of those things
08:36where I wouldn't want to
08:37lose any of that
08:38by putting a case on it
08:39to get the S-pen experience.
08:41Because again,
08:42I kind of do where
08:43people are coming from,
08:44but I think I so rarely,
08:46even though I often
08:47have both phones on me,
08:48I so rarely will go to scribble out.
08:50I don't mind typing,
08:51especially with the larger screen,
08:52because you can just type
08:53like you're properly on a keyboard
08:54because it's so much bigger.
08:55Yeah.
08:55I don't think we've talked yet
08:56about the Flex Titanium technology
08:58in here either.
08:59We talked about the new hinge,
09:01but there's a more immersive,
09:02durable and portable layer.
09:04Well, two layers,
09:05technically, right?
09:06The titanium alloy film
09:07and then the titanium plate underneath,
09:10which makes it flatter
09:10and more stable.
09:12Yes, that's the thing
09:13that's quite noticeable
09:13because the Fold 7
09:14can go pretty much flat.
09:17But if you do really look at it,
09:19there's a very slight V to it.
09:20Whereas on the Ultra,
09:22it is properly flat.
09:24Yeah.
09:24And I think that again
09:24will help make that crease
09:26disappear a little bit more
09:27along with the reflective coating
09:28and obviously newer displays.
09:31Yes.
09:31And that is also
09:32in the new Fold 8,
09:34which is the next phone
09:34we're going to talk about.
09:35Axel, why don't you run us
09:36through the headlines
09:37on the Fold 8?
09:38I think, yeah,
09:38they just serve fundamentally
09:39different users.
09:40So, you know,
09:40I think this product
09:41and its wider form factor
09:42is an,
09:44I want to say admission,
09:45but it's probably
09:45an acknowledgement
09:46that the type of content
09:47we watch nowadays,
09:48YouTube Shorts, TikTok,
09:49isn't best served
09:50by that kind of taller,
09:51narrower form factor
09:52of the Ultra.
09:53So, and I think as well,
09:54maybe it suggests
09:55that Samsung thinks
09:56this form factor
09:57is going to be
09:58the new mainstream form factor,
10:00which is part of the
10:00naming convention,
10:01which we'll talk about
10:01in a minute.
10:02Yeah, so if you open it up,
10:037.6 inch main display,
10:054 by 3,
10:07if you turn it one way,
10:083 by 4 if you turn it
10:08the other way,
10:09and then a 5.5 inch cover display
10:11with a 10 by 16 aspect ratio,
10:13I think.
10:14So that's the one
10:15when you're using it closed,
10:16it's going to be way easier
10:17to watch short form content,
10:19basically,
10:19which is what people do
10:20at the time.
10:2050 megapixel main camera,
10:2250 megapixel ultra wide camera,
10:23you do lose the telephoto,
10:24and again,
10:25the main camera on the Ultra
10:27is a 200 megapixel, right?
10:284,800 million battery,
10:30so a little bit smaller,
10:31but again,
10:31it's a smaller display,
10:32so the battery life jump
10:34shouldn't be too different.
10:35I think in the stats
10:36that Samsung gave us,
10:37I think it was 27 hours
10:38on the Ultra
10:38to 26 hours
10:40on the regular model.
10:41So, yeah,
10:42about an hour's difference
10:43on the video playback
10:44that Samsung does internally.
10:46And then in terms of internals,
10:47otherwise,
10:47it's 12 gigabytes of RAM,
10:4916 if you go up
10:50to the 1 terabyte version,
10:51and a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset.
10:53So in terms of power,
10:55it's the same across the board.
10:56So it's really just
10:57that wider form factor
10:58and the camera difference.
10:59And like you say,
11:00I think the Ultra
11:01is definitely going to be
11:02for performance-focused people,
11:03camera-focused people,
11:05productivity,
11:06and everyone else,
11:07which is the kind of majority
11:08of the population
11:09you would think
11:09would go for that smaller
11:11entertainment,
11:12I suppose,
11:12focused form factor.
11:13Yeah, and you were saying
11:14there as well
11:14about this sort of like
11:15this being perhaps
11:16the one that they're saying
11:17is the most appealing to people.
11:19It's not the first time
11:20we've seen a passport-style
11:22foldable.
11:23The Oppo Find N in 2021,
11:24the original Pixel Fold
11:26in 2023,
11:27and more recently as well,
11:28the China-exclusive
11:30Huawei Pura X Max.
11:31Yes.
11:32So many letters.
11:33Every episode,
11:34it gets me.
11:34Saf, why do you think
11:35we're seeing a return
11:36to this shape?
11:36Firstly, I think it's interesting
11:37that we're going back
11:38to 4x3.
11:39Because for those of you
11:41who are old enough
11:42would know that,
11:43you know,
11:43we used to be on 4x3
11:45and then we went to 16x9
11:46and then we went to 21
11:48and whatever.
11:48Now it's like going back to that.
11:50So it's quite interesting.
11:51I like to see variety
11:52and it's not that
11:53they're replacing
11:54the form factor
11:55that we're used to
11:56with the Fold 8 Ultra.
11:58It's nice,
11:59but it also makes me question
12:01the fact that
12:02we are hearing rumors
12:03of what Apple might be doing.
12:04So is this like the edge?
12:06Because if you remember
12:08when the rumors
12:08for the iPhone
12:09ever coming out,
12:10Samsung would be like,
12:11here's the edge.
12:12We got in here first.
12:14So it's kind of like,
12:15it also,
12:16you know,
12:17maybe it's like,
12:18okay, look,
12:18if Apple are going
12:19to be doing it here,
12:19look,
12:20we've got a solid
12:20alternative here,
12:22which is great.
12:23And, you know,
12:23Samsung have been doing
12:24foldables for the longest
12:26and they've got
12:27all of that DNA
12:28from the Folds,
12:30from previous,
12:30from the Fold 8
12:32all the way down
12:33to the Fold,
12:33the original Fold,
12:34which I've been using
12:36every single Fold
12:37since they've been released.
12:38So it's nice to see
12:39that we've got
12:39this different form factor
12:40and I think it's going
12:41to appeal to a different audience,
12:42yes.
12:42Do you think it would appeal
12:43to you as someone
12:44who's been using
12:44more of the taller style?
12:46If I'm honest,
12:46I'm probably mauling
12:48towards the Ultra myself
12:48and that's purely
12:49because of my usage
12:52and I do want
12:53a dedicated telephoto camera,
12:55but I think this will appeal
12:57to a different type
12:58of an audience,
12:58but I'm going to have
12:59to use it to review it anyway,
13:01so hey.
13:01There you go,
13:02I'll have to give it a try.
13:03Well, I had a question
13:03for you, Josie,
13:04because we've talked
13:04about how,
13:05when we've talked
13:06about foldables
13:06in the past,
13:07obviously that flip,
13:08smaller form factor,
13:10you know,
13:10it's better for smaller pockets,
13:12which women typically have
13:13and it's sort of
13:13just easier to hold
13:15and I guess sort of,
13:16again,
13:17whereas the proper fold
13:18can just feel
13:19a little bit big
13:19and chunky,
13:20I was wondering
13:20how you felt
13:21about the,
13:22sort of the current Fold 8,
13:24which is sort of
13:25a little bit smaller,
13:26stubby,
13:26bit stubby.
13:27I was wondering,
13:27does that make a fold
13:29a little bit more appealing
13:30to you compared to the flip?
13:31Yeah, it's funny,
13:31when, you know,
13:32we've heard rumours
13:33about these sorts of things,
13:34I've seen some of the other
13:34passport style ones
13:35coming out,
13:36it's not necessarily
13:37been something
13:37I've been drawn to.
13:38Trying it today,
13:39it was quite nice.
13:40I don't know
13:40that I would use
13:41the cover screen
13:41as I would as much
13:42the unfolded screen,
13:43but it's the same for me
13:44with the flip as well,
13:45right,
13:46where that cover screen
13:46is not to be used
13:48as you would
13:49a full length phone necessarily.
13:50I am still more
13:51of a flip girly
13:52and we'll get into that
13:53in a moment.
13:54I love some of the changes
13:55that's come to that
13:55flex window.
13:56I feel like the Fold 7
13:58and then the Fold 8 Ultra,
14:01there's a lot of time
14:01where I can forget
14:02that it's a foldable.
14:02The screen is a pretty
14:04normal size
14:04and it's very usable
14:05and I do open it up,
14:06but, you know,
14:07I don't feel like I need to,
14:09whereas I feel like
14:09the Fold 8 now,
14:11I don't think you need
14:12to open it up,
14:13but I think I can see people
14:14almost opening it up more
14:15because then it becomes
14:16a proper tablet screen size,
14:17but it's also like
14:18kind of a manageable size
14:20in one hand.
14:20I'm kind of interested
14:21to see like how that feels
14:23as people get it
14:24into their hands
14:25and start using it regularly
14:26rather than just sort of
14:27the hour or two
14:28that we've had
14:28to sort of demo them
14:29here in the studio.
14:30And I think the other thing
14:31that would be interesting
14:31to see for me
14:32is about app compatibility
14:33and optimisation.
14:35I think that's been a problem
14:36in general with foldables.
14:37When it comes to Apple,
14:38obviously they've got
14:39the closed ecosystem,
14:39it's a lot easier
14:40to probably roll out
14:41the dev kit that works
14:42just for that one kind,
14:44whereas when you come
14:45to Android,
14:46you've got so many
14:46different things.
14:47When I used the Fold 6,
14:48I had a lot of problems
14:49where the apps I wanted
14:50didn't necessarily
14:51have the right optimisation,
14:52but I imagine
14:53it's come along
14:53where you can spend.
14:54In the 7,
14:54it's been a lot better.
14:55There's occasionally,
14:55it cuts off a bit weirdly
14:57at times,
14:57but I've found that
14:59some of the issues
14:59I have with the 6
15:00with apps
15:01is sort of pretty much
15:02gone now with the 7.
15:03It'll be nice to see
15:03if it's the same
15:04with the new 8.
15:06It's going to be very confusing
15:07because I'm still going
15:07to want to refer to that
15:08as the 8,
15:09but I'll get there.
15:10I'll get there.
15:10But I think also
15:11the 4 by 3 aspect ratio
15:13is quite interesting
15:14because if we look
15:15at the tablet form factor,
15:16you know,
15:17Android,
15:17there have been lots
15:18of 16 by 9
15:19or 9 by 16
15:20form factor tablets
15:22which haven't worked
15:23as well
15:23because generally
15:24when you are
15:25in a tablet form factor,
15:26you're not only
15:26watching videos,
15:27you're browsing
15:28the internet,
15:29you're reading books,
15:30things like that,
15:31which that 4 by 3
15:32or 3 by 4,
15:34if it's in portrait,
15:35form factor
15:36lends itself better to.
15:37I think also
15:38it's worth noting
15:38this is the lightest
15:39Galaxy Fold yet
15:40as well
15:41at 201 grams.
15:42I don't know,
15:42remember if you mentioned
15:43that in your
15:44discussion point,
15:45but I think it's quite nice
15:46to have something
15:47that looks like
15:47it's going to be
15:48larger and bulkier
15:49actually be quite nice
15:50and small.
15:50I did notice
15:51putting all of them
15:52in my pocket,
15:53doing the girl pocket test
15:54as I always do.
15:55It was,
15:56I was a little bit
15:57of a question mark
15:59at first,
15:59but it actually was
16:00quite comfortable
16:00in the pocket.
16:01It's very light,
16:01easy in there.
16:03The tall one's still
16:04not for me in the pocket,
16:05but we live,
16:05we live.
16:06I wanted to also
16:06give a little bit of time
16:07to talk about the Flip 8.
16:09There's not as many
16:10sea changes,
16:10I think,
16:11as we've seen
16:11in the foldable range,
16:13but they're billing
16:14this one still very much
16:15as that customizability king
16:17and that's probably
16:18what draws me
16:18towards it right.
16:19I love the fact
16:20that the cover screen
16:20can very much become
16:21part of the identity
16:22of the phone
16:23and with this new one,
16:24there's also some
16:25new optimizations
16:25around the AI side
16:27of things.
16:28So you've got
16:29the Now Nudge,
16:30Now Brief
16:30that you've already
16:31talked about.
16:32That can actually come up
16:33on the cover screen
16:34quite nicely
16:34and also if you're
16:35receiving a call,
16:36it can pull up context
16:37that you might need
16:38for that call.
16:39So if you're getting
16:39a call from a restaurant
16:40where you've got a reservation,
16:41it can pull up
16:42that reservation information.
16:43Other than that,
16:44smaller bezels,
16:45quite nice.
16:46I don't know if any of you
16:47here are Flip fans
16:48or are you all more
16:50on the fold side,
16:50I feel.
16:51Yeah,
16:52we're definitely
16:52more fold.
16:53You're not the target market
16:54of this beautiful thing,
16:56but is there anything
16:57in there that interests you
16:58about the Flip?
16:58I think the Flip generally,
17:00you know,
17:01we do see updates
17:02year on year
17:03and there is a specific
17:04audience for the Flip.
17:05I am not that audience,
17:07although I do like the Flip
17:08and I think it's a nice option.
17:10For me,
17:10you know,
17:11some of these AI features
17:12when you can have
17:13the device closed,
17:14the fact that it's now
17:15full screen as we've had
17:16and even smaller bezels,
17:19I think it's still going
17:20to be very appealing
17:20to a lot of people.
17:21Definitely.
17:22You guys?
17:23Yeah,
17:23I think I'm similar.
17:24I mean,
17:24like I said,
17:24I'm a fold user mainly
17:26or a regular phone user,
17:27but of all the ones
17:28we've reviewed,
17:28in terms of flip phones,
17:30the Samsung Flip 6
17:32had amazing hardware
17:33and our only real criticism
17:34was that kind of
17:34flex window optimisation,
17:36whereas now,
17:36they've redesigned it,
17:37there's those AI features,
17:38it's much more usable
17:39as a closed phone.
17:40Yes.
17:41So yeah,
17:42I'm excited to try that,
17:43I think.
17:43And there's customisable cards
17:44now as well,
17:45isn't there,
17:45with Switch?
17:46Yeah,
17:46customisable Now Brief cards.
17:47Yes,
17:48yeah,
17:48yeah.
17:48Which I'm happy with
17:49because I really like
17:50Now Brief as it exists
17:52on the current phones
17:54and especially now
17:55that I've got a Galaxy Watch,
17:56it's fun to have all of that
17:57sort of integrated in
17:58so I can get my data
17:59all in one place
18:00and so to sort of
18:01be able to then tune it
18:03to be like,
18:03okay,
18:03I don't have hay fever
18:04but I know my partner does
18:05and so she could put it
18:07in her Now Brief
18:07and be like,
18:08okay,
18:08I need to know the hay fever
18:08data for today,
18:09do I need to take my pills
18:11this morning
18:11or can I go without?
18:12I think that's us moving
18:13towards the kind of AI
18:14that's actually useful
18:15for individual people.
18:17You have to be able
18:17to customise it
18:18to what you want
18:19rather than just having
18:20weather widgets,
18:21stock market widgets,
18:22who uses the stock market widget,
18:23right?
18:24Definitely not me.
18:25On the software side as well,
18:26I think it's worth mentioning
18:27there are a couple of features
18:28in there that we talked about today.
18:29I definitely appreciate
18:31the fan cam feature.
18:32I wasn't sure
18:33how I was going to feel
18:34about it at first
18:35but as someone who goes
18:35to a lot of gigs
18:36and is terrible
18:38at aiming a camera,
18:39it's really nice.
18:40It can basically crop in,
18:41it can do subject tracking
18:42and then cut in
18:44on the subject
18:45that you want to follow.
18:46So say you've gone
18:47to your kid's football game,
18:48they're kicking around the ball,
18:50you don't want to have
18:50all these other people's kids,
18:51you don't care about them,
18:52you just want to see
18:53what yours is doing
18:54and it crops in
18:55to whatever aspect ratio
18:56you want
18:56and follows them through.
18:57We tried it,
18:58it was quite good.
18:59It's like in a spy movie
18:59when they tap into
19:00the CCTV camera
19:01and they're looking for someone
19:02and then it crops into their face.
19:03That's what it's like.
19:04On the software side,
19:05anything else stood out
19:06to you guys?
19:06I think for me in particular
19:08when it comes to Samsung phones,
19:09firstly just the fact
19:10that you've got
19:11seven years
19:12of security updates
19:14and seven generations
19:15of OS updates
19:16which is brilliant
19:16but also with Galaxy AI
19:18there is so much out there.
19:19Now what I normally mention
19:20is that
19:21you might not use
19:22every single feature
19:23and you know
19:24we're talking about this feature
19:25and somebody's
19:26probably listening
19:26thinking I'm never
19:27going to use that
19:28and that's absolutely fine
19:29because there's like
19:30so many other features
19:32which you might actually use
19:33so I think it comes down
19:34to the individual
19:35but the fact that we have
19:37all of these AI features
19:39and it's a very complete package
19:40which is what I personally love.
19:42Yeah, I'm very excited
19:43to try some of them in practice.
19:44What about you guys?
19:44Anything in there?
19:45I don't know if it counts as software
19:47if there's a hardware element to it
19:48but I think one of the silent wins
19:50of the S26 series
19:52was the Super Steady Cam.
19:53Yes.
19:54And so that if you remember
19:56was you basically lock in on a subject
19:58and even if you sort of turn your phone
20:00like 90 degrees
20:01in another direction
20:02it will still look like
20:03you've just recorded it flat.
20:05Super handy for action shots
20:06especially you know
20:07if you're on the move
20:07and you're trying to film someone
20:08that's on the move
20:09and that's in these phones as well
20:11and I think it's one of those things
20:13that was sort of in the S26
20:14people didn't really
20:15pay too much attention to it
20:16but it is really handy
20:18if you just like taking quick films
20:19and photos of stuff
20:20so very happy
20:21that it's been added here.
20:23And again calling out my fave here
20:24the fact that you can also do that
20:25with the camcorder mode
20:26and the flip
20:27is a lot easy
20:28to sort of navigate
20:29and I feel like that
20:30I'm definitely going to make use of that.
20:32Also in the mix
20:33of the new devices
20:33were the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2
20:35and the new Watch 9.
20:37A couple of interesting
20:38and exciting new updates
20:39to the Watch Ultra 2
20:40it's faster
20:41more accurate and smoother
20:42with the Snapdragon Wear Elite Pro processor
20:44it's got a 5000 nit AMOLED display
20:46which they're calling
20:47the brightest ever
20:48it's a 1.5 2 inch display as well
20:50but thinner by 12%
20:52there's also some cool new features in tow
20:54some trail running related features
20:56some dive features
20:57which we'll talk about
20:57in just a second
20:58and then on the other hand
20:59you've got the Watch 9
21:01that has a 20% battery improvement
21:03over the Watch 8
21:04it's also got a Qualcomm Wear Elite processor
21:063000 nit peak brightness
21:08as well as some cool improvements
21:09like the fact you can now
21:10raise the watch
21:11to speak to Gemini
21:12quite nice
21:14you've got a lot more
21:15coming to the health app as well
21:17so there's already been
21:17a bit of an overhaul
21:18to that area
21:19but now they're being
21:20a lot more proactive
21:21with the key metrics
21:23for your vitals
21:24your heart health score
21:25daily cardio load
21:26fitness index
21:27recommendations
21:28what kind of fitness
21:29you should do
21:30based on all of your scores
21:31your VO2 max
21:32BIA
21:32heart rate
21:33and activity time
21:34so all round
21:35this move from being
21:37reactive to a lot more
21:38proactive with your health data
21:40there's now that kind of like
21:41hydration tracker
21:42it can basically track
21:43how much water you need to drink
21:44and how much you've lost
21:45and I need to be reminded
21:46to drink water all the time
21:47so if my watch can do that
21:48I'm all in
21:49yeah it was part of the
21:50new trail package features
21:52wasn't it
21:52as well as also new dive features
21:54if you're a diver
21:55I'm not
21:57but given that we went on
21:58a hike last year
21:59in which I very nearly
22:01dehydrated myself
22:02like a sponge
22:03very well could have done
22:04with that feature myself
22:05I think
22:05yeah well some sort of
22:06things should be going in
22:07on the diving thing a bit
22:08because obviously
22:09with the S26 Ultra
22:11I know there was some
22:11like diving specific
22:13camera features
22:13yes
22:14so I think it's interesting
22:15to sort of see
22:16continuing that
22:17oh and I think
22:18the Ultra original
22:19was a bit diving as well
22:20but I mean we're sort of
22:21talking around it a bit
22:22because we don't have
22:24Matt Evans
22:24who's our wearables expert here
22:26so it's sort of
22:27it's one of those things
22:27like we sort of did this
22:29you know we use it
22:30a bit more
22:30diving right
22:31yeah
22:32so he knows a bit more
22:33of that as well
22:33nope
22:35I dive onto my bed
22:37same
22:38same
22:38that's about it
22:39was there anything
22:40in the watches
22:41that excited you
22:41particularly out of interest
22:42I think yeah
22:43some of these
22:44some of the new
22:45health features
22:46I personally
22:46I'm a Galaxy Ring user
22:48I'm not much of a watch user
22:49and having everything
22:52synced up
22:53and being able to give you
22:55those reminders
22:56I think that's
22:57that's what's key
22:58I mean personally for me
22:59having my sleep score
23:00and things like that
23:01all within the health app
23:02is super useful
23:03having that ecosystem
23:05of different connected devices
23:06all together
23:06is pretty cool
23:07and it's amazing
23:08how smartwatches
23:09have come from
23:09phones on your wrist
23:11to like personal doctors
23:12on your wrist
23:13like they are completely
23:13health products now
23:14yeah I mean
23:15that was one of the
23:16sort of taglines
23:16of today as well
23:17it's moving towards
23:18preventative
23:18when it comes to
23:19sort of health information
23:20and that's a good place
23:21to be
23:22especially if you can
23:23start moving towards
23:24that genuinely interventional
23:25when it comes to
23:26heart related issues
23:28and that was a whole
23:28part of this package
23:29as well
23:30as looking at
23:31like your cardio load
23:32having that fitness index
23:33that you were talking about
23:34heart health score
23:35I think that's all
23:37very very useful
23:38and again with this
23:39now nudge side of things
23:40as well
23:40with now brief
23:41getting all these improvements
23:42I can genuinely see
23:43how the ecosystem's
23:44coming together
23:45to be super super
23:46informative and useful
23:47and really trying to
23:48promote you
23:48having across everything
23:50because then it all
23:51integrates
23:51really well together
23:52I mean as
23:53slowly adding
23:54Samsung things
23:55to my
23:57personal ecosystem
23:57I have noticed
23:58it is
23:59a massive improvement
24:00over having
24:01some of these
24:01third party things
24:02it just
24:03comes together
24:04so much better
24:04and with things like
24:05now brief
24:05it just takes time
24:06you have to just
24:07use it for months
24:07and months
24:08and months
24:08so it learns you
24:09and your routine
24:09and then it becomes
24:10really effective
24:10it's funny
24:11because I've got
24:12my dryer
24:13so I was with my
24:14S26 Ultra
24:15and I need my dryer
24:16and it says
24:16hey do you want to
24:17connect your dryer
24:18to your phone
24:18and I'm like
24:19okay
24:20I guess
24:21if you want to
24:22then
24:23but yeah
24:23just having that
24:24ecosystem
24:24if you are in
24:25the Samsung ecosystem
24:26things do connect
24:28very well
24:28easily
24:29with your TV
24:30with your dryer
24:31your washing machine
24:32it's pretty cool
24:33I remember the first time
24:34someone demoed
24:35the whole answering
24:36a phone call
24:36on your washing machine
24:38and it took me a second
24:40but then I was like
24:41yeah if I've got
24:41a handful of laundry
24:42and there's an important
24:43call coming through
24:44I would rather
24:45take the call
24:46on my washing machine
24:47than not at all
24:48but you know
24:48it's niche things
24:50very niche
24:50another thing
24:51that's sort of
24:51coming
24:51I mean
24:52it's coming to the UK
24:53at some time
24:55in the near future
24:56we've been told
24:56but no specifics
24:57at the time of recording
24:58which is the sort of
24:59automation
25:00so you can set up
25:01like we saw
25:02with the S26 Ultra series
25:04you can set up
25:05okay I need to book
25:06an Uber for this time
25:07and rather than having
25:08to manually go through
25:09all the process
25:10you can basically
25:10have your app
25:11doing it in the background
25:12and then it'll just
25:13pop in and say
25:13oh hey we need you
25:14to make a decision
25:15so it's not like
25:15ordering an Uber
25:16for you entirely
25:17on its own
25:18and it's suddenly
25:19going to send you
25:20off somewhere
25:20completely wrong
25:21I think you can
25:22kind of pause
25:22and take part control
25:23as well
25:23but it means
25:24that if you're
25:24watching a video
25:25you don't need
25:26to completely
25:26distract yourself
25:27for a minute
25:28you can keep
25:29watching
25:29and then it'll
25:30just come
25:30and be like
25:30oh hey do you need
25:31this
25:31like a sort of
25:32personal assistant
25:33type thing
25:35it'll only work
25:35for a few apps
25:36at first
25:37I think they
25:37mentioned Uber
25:38and Just Eat
25:38as a couple
25:39that we might see
25:39and I assume
25:41over time
25:42as it comes
25:42to more places
25:43we'll see more
25:44things
25:45I mean I'm
25:45kind of interested
25:46in it
25:46I'm not
25:47I'm still
25:48sometimes a bit
25:48nervous to fully
25:49trust AI
25:49in these ways
25:50but I think
25:51as it is
25:52here for longer
25:53and I can try it
25:54more I'm sure
25:54I'll sort of
25:55come around
25:55in it
25:55I think as soon
25:56as you make
25:56that first purchase
25:57with AI
25:57you know an agent
25:59the genie's out
26:00the bottle then
26:00once you've done
26:00it once
26:01you just need
26:01to give it
26:02the reins once
26:02I did try it
26:04on my Alexa
26:04the other day
26:05to buy a colouring
26:06book
26:06and she did not
26:07order me a colouring
26:08book
26:08and yes it was
26:09for me
26:10but that's Alexa
26:10rather than Gemini
26:12well and that's
26:12that's the difference
26:13almost certainly
26:14that's the difference
26:17I have some beef
26:18with Alexa
26:18she's not doing well
26:20anyway
26:21enough on Alexa
26:22I think a fun game
26:23to do would be
26:24seeing as we don't
26:25know pricing
26:26where do we think
26:27things are going to land
26:29I think we are
26:30going to see an increase
26:31as we have been
26:32seeing across the board
26:33so a slight increase
26:35I would say
26:35potentially
26:36is what my prediction
26:37would be
26:37I think the 8
26:39might stay
26:40a similar price
26:42to what the 7
26:43to what the 7
26:43was
26:44because obviously
26:45there are a couple
26:46for example
26:46it has one fewer
26:47cameras
26:47and so
26:48overall small display
26:50even though the size
26:51is different
26:52so I can see that
26:53staying a similar price
26:54I think that's
26:54obviously unfortunate
26:55I think though
26:56there was a world
26:58without RAM crisis
26:59where maybe the 8
27:00comes in at a lower price
27:01but I think the reality
27:02is tech's going up
27:03so I'm hoping
27:04it'll be similar
27:05though again
27:06we don't know
27:07maybe it'll be
27:07slightly higher
27:08but I'm hoping
27:08that'll come in
27:09and then the Ultra
27:10I think will obviously
27:10be a little bit
27:11more expensive
27:12maybe the flip
27:13will go up as well
27:14yeah I think we alluded
27:15to what Apple
27:15might be doing
27:16later in the year
27:17and I think
27:17if that happens
27:18then Samsung
27:19kind of has license
27:20to charge what they
27:20want for the Ultra
27:21because Apple
27:22won't have one
27:22so I think that was
27:23also part of the
27:25I'm speculating
27:26that that was the reason
27:26why they kind of
27:27ditched the moniker
27:28for the middle one
27:29the middle one
27:30the Z Fold 8
27:31and then kept the Ultra
27:32for the most expensive one
27:33because that's something
27:34you just can't get
27:34from anyone else
27:35at the moment
27:36yeah I don't think
27:36you can avoid the fact
27:37that they'll see
27:38some sort of price increase
27:39we can hope for smaller ones
27:41especially with the flip
27:42I feel
27:43and maybe the Fold
27:44but I think the Ultra
27:47expect to see
27:48a loftier price
27:49I mean my dream
27:50is that it doesn't
27:51my dream is that
27:52the 8 Ultra
27:52is what the 7 was
27:54but I think that
27:54the reality is
27:56that's probably
27:57not going to happen
27:58and again
27:58Samsung hasn't told us
27:59anything
27:59they haven't made any
28:01I think it would have
28:01been the case
28:02if it wasn't
28:02for the storage
28:03and RAM crisis
28:04I think they would have
28:04kept the same
28:05as they have done
28:06in previous years
28:06but I think
28:07because of the
28:09situation
28:09it's not Samsung's fault
28:10it's unavoidable
28:11it's unavoidable
28:12yeah
28:13no one likes
28:14to hear about it
28:15no one loves it
28:16but that also
28:17includes the manufacturers
28:18I feel
28:18in some ways
28:20so it is what it is
28:21it'll be interesting
28:21to see
28:22and the silver lining
28:23is that
28:23if you do spend
28:24all that money
28:24on one of these products
28:25they now last longer
28:26than they would have
28:26done 5 or 10 years ago
28:28and they're coming
28:28with things like
28:2912 gigabytes of RAM
28:30or 16 if you go
28:32for the 1 terabyte model
28:33in the Folds case
28:34so again
28:35I think that that is
28:36you know
28:36we're seeing that
28:3712 gigabytes
28:37seems to be the cutoff
28:38for some of these
28:39AI features
28:39so the fact that
28:40you are sort of
28:41getting that as the default
28:42rather than it being
28:438 gigabytes
28:44means again
28:45as I was saying
28:45this should hopefully
28:46last year
28:47as new features come out
28:48you hopefully won't be
28:49too locked out of things
28:50and I think definitely
28:52with the new titanium
28:52layers as well
28:53I think that's going to be
28:54giving a level of durability
28:55that we probably haven't seen
28:57even in the 7s case
28:58so
28:59fingers crossed
29:00it's still going
29:00it's still going
29:02it's surviving
29:02it's still going
29:02I mean it's only like
29:0310 months old
29:04yeah
29:05it should still be going
29:06hey which
29:07yeah although you don't
29:08have a case on it
29:09so
29:09yeah exactly
29:10miracle
29:10it just takes a few
29:11it takes a few bumps
29:12every so often
29:13I could never
29:13I could never
29:14just as we were packing up
29:15we did get confirmation
29:16on the prices
29:17the Flip 8 is priced
29:19at $1,149
29:21the Fold 8 is $1,699
29:23and the Fold 8 Ultra
29:25is $1,899
29:26and that's all in GBP
29:28so
29:28how are you feeling
29:30about that
29:30is that sitting
29:30where you guys were thinking
29:31I think the
29:32the key positive there
29:33is that the Z Fold 8
29:34the wider one
29:35is cheaper
29:36I think as you said
29:37than the Z Fold 7 was
29:38and if
29:38like I said earlier
29:39that that is going to be
29:40the kind of new
29:41mainstream form factor
29:42at least that's now
29:43the benchmark
29:44for the mainstream
29:44foldable price
29:45which is less than
29:46it was last year
29:47that's a positive
29:48I suppose
29:48it's not as bad
29:49as we thought it would be
29:50yeah
29:50I mean
29:51so yeah
29:51the Z Fold 7
29:53comes in at
29:53£1,799
29:55so the Fold 8
29:56and the Fold 8 Ultra
29:57literally sandwich it
29:58I mean
30:01I wouldn't have been surprised
30:02if the Fold 8 Ultra
30:04came in with a 2
30:05at the start
30:06because it's just
30:07tech prices have gone up
30:09so massively
30:09we've seen everywhere else
30:11and so
30:12to have it
30:13only go up by £100
30:14I think is
30:15pretty
30:17fantastic
30:17yeah
30:18and yeah
30:19the 8
30:19regular coming in
30:21at £100 cheaper
30:22is also really good news
30:24especially when
30:26that's pretty uncommon
30:27for things to come in
30:28even at the same price
30:30now
30:30we're seeing tech
30:31that's been out
30:33getting price rises
30:34to see something
30:35that's new
30:35getting a price drop
30:36in a way
30:37it is obviously good
30:38especially because
30:39it does come with
30:40things like a few
30:41one less camera
30:42and the like
30:43so
30:43I would have
30:44expecting it
30:45to cost the same
30:46as the 7
30:47so I'm happy
30:48that it comes in lower
30:49that's the thing
30:50it's definitely not cheap
30:51but it's
30:51better than it could have been
30:53I think
30:53yeah
30:53that's basically where I was at
30:54I was fully expecting
30:55the Ultra to be coming in
30:56at GK Plus
30:57so I am very happy
30:59to see that
31:00sitting comfortably below still
31:02a little bit of wiggle room there
31:03obviously the flip has
31:04gone up by £100
31:05I think that that is
31:07maybe more what I was expecting
31:09from the Fold 8
31:10to a certain extent
31:11but I think that
31:13you know again
31:13£100
31:14it's
31:14£100 is obviously
31:16going to be a bit disappointing
31:17if you're after something
31:18more budget
31:18but I think you know
31:19it does offer
31:20some solid improvements
31:21and again
31:22I think we're in this world
31:24of there is RAM
31:25and storage crisis
31:28cost increases
31:29and I think you know
31:30£100 increase
31:31is maybe not the most
31:32that could have been
31:33it seems to be kind of
31:34the benchmark
31:35where a lot of places
31:35are sitting at
31:36I mean even when we
31:37did our building a PC
31:38project recently
31:38the flat rate of increase
31:40for RAM
31:41was £100
31:43so
31:43kind of makes sense
31:45that is all we have time
31:47for in this week's episode
31:48thank you so much
31:49to SuperSuff
31:49for joining us this week
31:50thank you for having me
31:51and thank you as always
31:52to Axel and Hamish
31:53for putting up with it
31:56we'll see you
31:56in the next episode
31:57where we'll be filling you in
31:58on the latest
31:59and greatest tech news
32:00see you there
32:01bye
32:02bye
32:02bye