The Galaxy Z Fold 8, Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra, and the iPhone 18 Pro all have one awesome thing in common

With the Galaxy Z Fold 8, the iPhone Duo, and the other expected flagship releases this year, 2026 has been a fantastic year for smartphones. We got new form factors, genuinely innovative features like Privacy Display and variable apertures, and one other thing that has been very important to me throughout these last few months.

I’d like to discuss something that might not be at the top of the priority list for most people, but it is something that made me stop and think about these phones this year. Something that I wouldn’t have even given a second thought to last year or any year prior.

Let’s talk smartphone colors

Last year, and all the years before it, whenever I needed a new phone, I would just get it in black. This was the easiest decision I would make when getting a new smartphone.

Black is simple, elegant, sleek, and unintrusive. It fits into my life perfectly and doesn’t call attention to itself or me. And, as someone who’s been an introvert his entire life, this suited me just fine.

That’s before smartphone manufacturers suddenly and collectively decided to discover the most beautiful shades known to man.

Lavender Galaxy Z Fold 8

I have never been a fan of white for smartphones. To me, a white smartphone was as inelegant as a smartphone could get.

When I first saw Lavender on the Fold 8, I thought it was the Cream option. And, as I saw the phone in action, I found my self very strangely drawn to it.

The Lavender Galaxy Z Fold 8 reminds me of the Nintendo DS Lite, a comparison I have previously made for the blue Galaxy Z Fold 7. And, with how fun the Fold 8 is as a device, Lavender just works.

I’m very likely going to get a Fold 8 as my daily driver soon and I can’t believe that I’m even considering anything other than the Graphite option, but here we are. I am.

Violet Shadow on the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra

Another Samsung phone, from the same lineup as well, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra offers an incredibly beautiful Violet Shadow this year. This shade, in my opinion, is insanely gorgeous.

In fact, I feel very comfortable saying that Violet Shadow on the Fold 8 Ultra is nicer than Burgundy on the iPhone 18 Pro, and I quite like the Burgundy. If I were getting a Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra, I would go for the Violet Shadow without a second thought.

And, as someone who’s always sworn by black smartphones, it still feels wrong to say that.

Burgundy on the iPhone 18 Pro

This was the color that first opened my eyes to the possibility of choosing a smartphone color other than black. I love the Burgundy shade that Apple went for, though I still think that Violet Shadow on the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra beats it by a significant margin.

Cosmic Orange didn’t do it for me last year, and neither did Desert Titanium the year before it. Ultramarine was beautiful, but not enough to make me reconsider always choosing black. The aforementioned blue Galaxy Z Fold 7 was also pretty nice, but still not enough to make me switch allegiances.

Lavender on the Galaxy Z Fold 8 is. Violet Shadow on the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra is too. Burgundy on the iPhone 18 Pro and the iPhone 18 Pro Max is as well.



All three smartphones simultaneously shipped with a color option that appealed to me more than black. Either I’m becoming more expressive and less introverted with age or Samsung and Apple just knocked it out of the park this year.

Perhaps there’s also a factor of these colors suiting the phones they’re made for. For example, though I find Violet Shadow to be the prettiest out of the three, I likely wouldn’t have gotten the Fold 8 in this shade were it available. The Fold 8 isn’t as elegant as the Fold 8 Ultra, it’s a fun device that looks more approachable in Lavender.

Does that make sense?

I really, really like the Galaxy Z Fold 8:

• Galaxy Z Fold 8 steals the spotlight from Galaxy S26 Ultra and iPhone 18 Pro
• iPhone Duo made me love the Galaxy Z Fold 8 even more

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