Back in July, Samsung unveiled the Galaxy Z Fold 6, the sixth generation of its book-style foldable.
Since then, however, several rivals have emerged that have somewhat pushed Samsung’s phone into the background.
The answer from Samsung is the Galaxy Z Fold Special Edition, which improves on several aspects of the standard model to go up against the likes of the Honor Magic V3 or Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold.
Let’s see what both models have to offer.
When will the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 be released?
Samsung revealed the Galaxy Z Fold 6 at a Galaxy Unpacked event on 10 July 2024. The phone is on sale now, having been released on 24 July 2024.
As a reminder, here’s when the previous generations were released:
- Samsung Galaxy Z Fold: September 2019
- Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2: September 2020
- Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3: August 2021
- Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4: August 2022
- Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5: July 2023
The Galaxy Z Fold Special Edition (SM-F958NZKAKOO), an improved version of the standard model, was officially announced on 21 October 2024. However, it’s only available in South Korea where the site says ‘coming soon’ at the time of writing.
We’ve compared the Galaxy Z Fold Special Edition with the Z Fold 6 to see how they are different.
How much will the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 cost?
The standard Galaxy Z Fold 6 starts at £1,799/$1,899.99 for 256GB of internal storage. It’s also available with 512GB for £1,899/$1,999.99, or as a 1TB model for £2,099/$2,199.99.
The Galaxy Z Fold 6 Special Edition is priced at KRW 2,789,600 (approximately £1,654/$2,028). It’s available in a 512GB capacity only.
Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry
Here are the starting prices of previous generations:
- Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 – £1,748/$1,799
- Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 – £1,649/$1,799
- Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 – £1,599/$1,799
As you can see, prices went up £50 in the UK and up $100 in the US for all of the storage options.
Interested in buying one? See our guide to the best Galaxy Z Fold 6 deals.
What specs and features does the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 have?
Design
The Galaxy Z Fold 6 continues Samsung’s trend of refining its foldable design, offering a lighter and more compact form than its predecessor, the Z Fold 5.
Weighing 239g, it’s 14g lighter than the Fold 5 and 24g lighter than the Z Fold 4. When closed, it measures 12.1mm in thickness and 5.6mm when opened, making it the thinnest and lightest foldable Samsung has released to date.
A new slimmer S Pen case allows for secure docking of the stylus, enhancing productivity. The IP48 rating, a first for foldables, ensures durability by offering protection against dust and water.
The phone is available in Silver Shadow, Pink, Navy, and Crafted Black and White finishes, with the latter two being exclusive to Samsung’s official website.
Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry
In contrast, the newly announced Galaxy Z Fold Special Edition is even more streamlined, measuring just 4.9mm when unfolded and 10.6mm folded, making it slimmer than the standard Z Fold 6.
Additionally, it’s slightly lighter at 236g, but lacks S Pen support due to its slender profile. It is available in a single Black Shadow colour.
Display
The Galaxy Z Fold 6 features a 6.3-inch HD+ AMOLED (2316 x 904) cover display, upgraded from 6.2 inches, offering a 120Hz refresh rate with minimized bezels.
The inner display is a 7.6-inch QXGA+ AMOLED (2208 x 1768) panel with a 120Hz refresh rate and adaptive brightness technology that reaches 2600 nits of peak brightness.
Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry
On the Special Edition, Samsung has increased the size of both screens.
The cover display is now 6.5 inches with a 21:9 aspect ratio, making it more akin to a regular bar phone. The main screen has expanded to 8-inch with a 10:9 aspect ratio.
Both screens maintain a 120Hz refresh rate, with Gorilla Glass Victus 2 protection on the cover display. However, there’s no mention of the rumored switch to Ultra Flexible Glass (UFG).
Performance
Both the Z Fold 6 and Z Fold Special Edition are powered by Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy, an optimised chip specifically designed for Samsung devices. The standard Z Fold 6 offers 12GB of RAM and internal storage options of 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB.
The Special Edition model, however, offers a more premium configuration with 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage. This edition also features Wi-Fi 7 support for faster connectivity, a feature that is not yet available on the standard Z Fold 6.
Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry
Both phones also includes a 1.6x larger vapor cooling system than the Z Fold 5, which should make for more efficient heat management during intensive tasks such as gaming. This works in tandem with Samsung’s ‘Vulcan AI’ optimisations to maintain high frame rates.
Cameras
The Z Fold 6 comes with a 50Mp main camera, a 12Mp ultrawide camera, and a 10Mp telephoto sensor with 3x optical zoom. On the front, there’s a 10Mp cover screen camera and a 4Mp under-display camera on the internal screen.
Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry
The Z Fold Special Edition makes significant upgrades in the camera department. The main shooter is now a 200Mp sensor with OIS, replacing the 50Mp camera of the standard model, and offering much sharper and more detailed photos.
The 12Mp ultrawide lens now features autofocus, and the 10Mp telephoto remains the same. Both devices maintain the same dual selfie camera setup with a 10Mp sensor on the cover and a 4Mp under-display camera.
Battery & charging
Both the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and the Special Edition share a 4400mAh dual-battery setup – the same as the Z Fold 5. If that phone is anything to go by, you should expect solid, all-day battery life.
However, charging speeds are still limited to 25W, and there’s no charger included in the box. Using a compatible adapter, Samsung says you can get around 50% charge in 30 minutes on the standard Galaxy Z Fold 6.
Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry
They also support wireless charging at 15W and 4.5W reverse wireless charging (known here is ‘Wireless PowerShare’), allowing you to charge other Qi-enabled devices.
Software
In terms of software, the both phones run on Android 14 with the Samsung’s One UI 6.1 overlay, though it shouldn’t be long before it gets an update to Android 15.
One big milestone is that the phones will receive seven years of updates, making it (alongside the Galaxy Z Flip 6) the first foldables to receive such extensive software support.
Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry
The exclusive features that were specific to the Galaxy Z Fold 5 will be available on the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and its Special Edition. They will also be a great device for using Galaxy AI, thanks to the implementation of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 and several enhancements.
Key features include Live Transcriptions in Samsung Notes, Sketch to Image, Browser Assist, Equation Solving and many more advanced AI features. There’s also Chat Assist, which understands your tone of voice and helps craft specific messages, emails and social media posts.
Additionally, both phones supports live translation in 16 languages and 23 local dialects, making them powerful tools for global communication. This feature is integrated into third-party apps, too.
Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry
That’s all. Be sure to check out our articles on the best foldables and best Samsung Galaxy phones, plus everything that Samsung has unveiled about the Galaxy Z Flip 6 to know more.
Author: Artur Tomala, Mobile Writer, Tech Advisor
Artur is a Mobile Writer at Tech Advisor, where he covers a range of smartphone, tablet and smartwatch-related topics. He has been working in the tech industry since 2021, including time spent leading a team focused on mobile news, reviews and product rankings. As an ambassador for the productivity app Notion, he runs training workshops and creates advanced templates to help people stay organised and productive.