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It's been a long time coming, but we are finally getting some important camera upgrades with Samsung's Z Flip series. The new Galaxy Z Flip 6 comes with not one but two new camera sensors: one for the main camera and one for the secondary ultra-wide.
Galaxy Z Flip 6: up to $650 off with a trade-in
Get the Galaxy Z Flip 6 at the official Samsung store, and you can save up to $650 on the newly released clamshell phone with eligible phone trade-ins. Alternatively, get it via the Samsung Shop app at $150 off before trade-ins.
Samsung's Galaxy Z Flip 6 finally boasts a 50MP wide camera. This upgrade offers sharper images thanks to its higher resolution and quad-pixel binning. While regular photos remain at 12MP, you'll enjoy better low-light performance and dynamic range. You can also manually switch to 50MP for even more detail.
Specs
Galaxy Z Flip 6
Galaxy Z Flip 5
Main camera
50MP, F1.8, 1.0 μm pixel size
12MP, F1.8, 1.8 pixel size
Ultra-wide camera
12MP, F2.2, 1.12 μm pixel size
12MP, F2.2, 1.12 μm pixel size
Front-facing camera
10MP F2.2
10MP
The selfie camera that's embedded inside the foldable display remains the same as last year. No real reason for an upgrade here, as Galaxy Z Flip phones have always outputted more than decent selfies.
Furthermore, the refreshed Galaxy AI plays a role in the Z Flip 6's camera system, and it is used to improve the 10x digital zoom (which is the maximum). The AI also helps improve image quality by reducing noise (making clearer images) and enhancing HDR performance.
Samsung states that you can even use the night capturing feature in-app on Instagram, so you can take photos at night and message or share them directly from within the app.
Galaxy Z Flip 6 Camera Score compared to its rivals
Phone
PhoneArena Camera Score
Photo Score
Video Score
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6
137.1
141.3
133
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5
136
136.5
135.5
Motorola razr Plus (2024)
117.2
124
110.4
Samsung Galaxy S24
152.2
157.1
147.3
According to our new camera benchmark tests, the Galaxy Z Flip 6 improves in the regular photography department, scoring a notable improvement in comparison with its predecessor, the Galaxy Z Flip 5. Interestingly and unfortunately at the same time, it also scores a slight downgrade in video.
At the same time, the Galaxy Z Flip 6 decidedly bests one of its major rivals from Motorola, the razr 50 Ultra, which achieves a significantly lower score in our camera benchmark, indicating its camera is not up to speed.
Yet, a regular standard flagship like the Galaxy S24 has an easy time beating the Galaxy Z Flip 6 due to its dedicated 3X telephoto camera, which significantly boosts the versatility of the overall package. Otherwise, don't expect a massive image quality difference between the Galaxy Z Flip 6 and the Galaxy S24's main cameras.
Pros
Natural and very true-to-life colors
Good skin tones
Great portraits
AI-assisted digital zoom is decent
You can take very high-quality selfies with the main camera
Cons
Room for improvement in detail capture
Some noise and detail issues in low light
Although good, digital zoom can't compare to real optical zoom
Some oversharpening issues with videos
Main camera
The main 50MP camera of the Z Flip 6 is not exactly the sharpest in the world, but it definitely gets the job done. Even thought it leaves us wanting a bit more in terms of detail, HDR performance appears to be pretty good, and we love the more natural colors. It does a very decent job at delivering great dynamics and realistic colors, which fortunately have little to do with the unsightly oversharpened and overly vivid style of Samsung phones from the not so recent past.
For a phone that does not have a dedicated telephoto camera, we are a bit surprised how good the zoom is on the Z Flip 6. Even at 10X zoom, the text and overall image seem to be clear enough to make out the details in it. We wish the same was true during video-recording, but we will get to that later…
Ultra-wide camera
Thankfully, much of what's great about the 50MP main camera on the Z Flip 6 also carries through to the—what Samsung claims is—new 12MP ultra-wide camera. The colors and HDR performance appear to be the same. The only downside is the low resolution and the blurry corners, but those are to be expected.
Front Camera
Even though you should probably opt for the main camera when you want to take selfies (as it is much better), the embedded selfie camera in the foldable display also offers great image quality. We are happy with the detail and colors, as well as the HDR performance.
Main camera - Video
The Galaxy Z Flip 6 takes good videos with the main camera, but there are some big issues with the sharpness and overall detail, which feels like a downgrade in comparison with the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Galaxy S24. The oversharpening here is timid.
Zoom Quality - Video
5X digital zoom
At 5X digital zoom, videos are grainy and with many artifacts, but still usable for the most part.
10X digital zoom
Punch things up to 10X, and you get videos with plenty of color artifacts, zero details, and just a vague idea of what you're recording.
Ultra-wide quality - Video
Ultra-wide videos taken with the Galaxy Z Flip 6 are soft in the corners and lack finer details. Expect some color and noise artifacts in low-light conditions.
Front camera - Video
Of course, most people would take selfie videos with the main camera of the Galaxy Z Flip 6 in folded mode, but we should not forget that there's an internal selfie snapper as well. It does a good job at capturing a pretty true-to-life video with lots of detail but some oversharpening as well.
Conclusion
For all intents and purposes, the Galaxy Z Flip 6 has an adequate camera for a foldable phone.
It delivers mostly similar image quality as the Galaxy S24, so we get natural colors, good image dynamics, lots of detail out of the upgraded main camera. Although the ultra-wide is also improved, we don't see a noticeable upgrade in image quality.
The lack of a telephoto camera is one of the key missing pieces on the Galaxy Z Flip 6; however, there are other some image processing issues in more challenging situations, like low-light conditions and video recording, which also drag the device down in our camera test.
Overall, the Galaxy Z Flip 6 is not a device you'd buy for the camera, but it's worth knowing that it does a decent job if you don't expect too much out of it.
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Aleksandar is a tech enthusiast with a broad range of interests, from smartphones to space exploration. His curiosity extends to hands-on DIY experiments with his gadgets, and he enjoys switching between different brands to experience the latest innovations. Prior to joining PhoneArena, Aleksandar worked on the Google Art Project, digitizing valuable artworks and gaining diverse perspectives on technology. When he's not immersed in tech, Aleksandar is an outdoorsman who enjoys mountain hikes, wildlife photography, and nature conservation. His interests also extend to martial arts, running, and snowboarding, reflecting his dynamic approach to life and technology.
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