Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7

The biggest, best, most exciting products in technology - reviewed and rated

- JOHN VELASCO

I've used many foldable phones over the past couple of years, but none has tempted me to buy one myself. Until now.

For the Galaxy Z Fold7 is not just another iterative upgrade. Thanks to aggressive slimming down and re-engineering, Samsung's latest folding design finally manages to feel like the best of both worlds, not a clunky trade-off between a phone and a tablet. It's deliciously thin and light, yet offers masses of screen space, excellent cameras and no compromise in raw power.

Now, let's get the difficult part out of the way. At £1,799 inc VAT, this is one of the most expensive phones you can buy. And that price is for the base model with 256GB of storage and 12GB of RAM; you'll pay £2,149 for 1TB of storage and 16GB of RAM.

In return, you're buying a real prestige phone. It looks great whichever of the four colours you choose: if you want to stand out, pick the bold Blue Shadow option. If you don't like that, go for Jetblack or Silver Shadow. There's also a Mint colour exclusive to buyers on samsung.com.

Thin, light and sturdy

Whichever finish you go for, the design is such a huge improvement over the Z Fold6 (see issue 360, p72) that it feels like a totally new device. It's so lightweight I was pleasantly surprised every time I picked it up.

At the same time, Samsung claims that it has made the Fold7 far more durable, with a new hinge that distributes stress more evenly, plus stronger materials for the frame and display. It feels robust in the hand, despite being only 4.2mm thick when unfolded, and I love how the hinge barely protrudes when closed.