Flip 8, Fold 8 (new) and 8 Ultra have arrived!

Samsung used its July 2026 Unpacked event to reshape its foldable lineup in a bigger way than usual. Instead of one book-style foldable and one clamshell, we now have three devices: the familiar Galaxy Z Flip 8, an all-new "wide-screen" Galaxy Z Fold 8, and for the first time ever, a Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra sitting above it. Here's how each one shakes out after going hands-on.

Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra: the new flagship foldable

The Fold 8 Ultra is the headline act this year, and it's easy to see why. Samsung has built the thinnest Z Fold ever, coming in at just 4.1mm when unfolded and 215 grams total, while still packing an 8-inch main display. That's a genuinely impressive engineering feat for a book-style foldable, and it makes the phone feel far less bulky in daily use than any Fold before it.

The internal display gets a real resolution bump too, jumping to 2504 x 2256 pixels (about 422ppi), up from the Fold 7's 368ppi, alongside a 6.5-inch cover screen. Both panels now include an anti-reflective coating borrowed from the Galaxy S Ultra line and can hit a much brighter 3,000 nits peak — a genuine quality-of-life upgrade for anyone who's fought with foldable glare outdoors.

Under the hood, the Fold 8 Ultra runs the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy, paired with up to 16GB of RAM and storage options up to 1TB. Camera-wise, it sticks with a 50MP main and 50MP ultrawide setup, though the telephoto here is a more modest 10MP sensor. Battery capacity lands at 5,000mAh with a silicon-carbon cell, 45W wired charging, and 20W wireless. As the "Ultra" name implies, this is meant to be the maximalist choice - most powerful chipset, most premium materials, priciest price tag.

The trade-off: all that thinness and premium build comes at a cost, starting around $2,099 in the US. It's the most expensive foldable Samsung has ever sold, and it noticeably undercuts nothing, it's a spend-more-get-more proposition.

Galaxy Z Fold 8: a genuinely different shape

The standard Z Fold 8 is the more interesting story from a design perspective, because Samsung didn't just make a cheaper Ultra, it gave this phone an entirely new "wide-screen" form factor that's shorter and wider than any previous Fold. Think less "narrow candy bar that unfolds" and more "passport-style" proportions, which changes how the phone feels both folded and open.

Specs-wise, it's still a serious flagship: Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy chipset, up to 16GB RAM, up to 1TB storage, a 4,800mAh battery, and 50MP main and ultrawide rear cameras. It also picks up the same anti-reflective coating and 3,000-nit peak brightness as its Ultra sibling.

Pricing starts at $1,899 for the base 256GB configuration, a real jump from prior Fold generations, but still $200 less than the Ultra. Samsung is backing it with up to seven years of software updates, which continues to be one of the best longevity guarantees in the Android world.

Who it's for: if the new wide-screen shape appeals to you and you don't need the absolute thinnest, lightest hardware or the top-tier RAM/storage ceiling, the standard Fold 8 is the more sensible buy of the two book-style models.

Galaxy Z Flip 8: solid, but a cautious upgrade

The Flip 8 is the least dramatic update of the three, and that's both its strength and its weakness. Samsung kept the clamshell formula intact: a 6.5-inch inner AMOLED display and a roughly 4.1-inch cover screen, both running at 120Hz, in a chassis that's now about 13% thinner (6.1mm unfolded, 13.1mm folded) and 8 grams lighter than the Flip 7, at 180 grams.

The bigger change is under the hood — Samsung returned to Qualcomm silicon after last year's Exynos-only Flip 7, fitting the Flip 8 with the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy and 12GB of RAM. It also introduces silicon-carbon battery tech to the Flip line for the first time, which is how Samsung managed the slimmer body without shrinking capacity. Camera specs, however, are essentially unchanged from last year: a 50MP main sensor, 12MP ultrawide, and 10MP selfie camera, all with identical apertures — so don't expect a big leap in photo quality.

Where Samsung did put in real effort is the cover screen software experience. The FlexWindow now supports more apps and deeper Gemini-powered AI features, including screen automation, a new mirror mode, dual recording with cover-screen preview, and Super Steady video with horizontal lock for vlogging-style shooting. If you shoot a lot of video with your phone, the Flip 8 still has a genuine edge over both Fold models thanks to its form factor.

The catch is price: the Flip 8 starts at $1,199, a $100 increase over the Flip 7, largely attributed to rising memory costs across the industry. For that money, buyers get a nicer cover-screen experience and a faster chip, but not a meaningfully different camera or a bigger battery — which makes the upgrade case for existing Flip 7 owners fairly weak.

The bottom line

Samsung's 2026 foldable strategy is really a story about choice. The Z Fold 8 Ultra is for people who want the best foldable money can buy and don't mind paying flagship-plus prices for it. The standard Z Fold 8 offers a genuinely new, wider form factor at a more approachable (if still steep) price. And the Z Flip 8 remains the most pocketable and video-friendly of the three, even if this generation's upgrades are more about refinement than reinvention.

If you're due for an upgrade and want the most polished foldable experience Samsung has ever made, the Fold 8 Ultra delivers. If you just want a great everyday foldable without paying Ultra prices, the standard Fold 8's new shape is worth a look. And if you already own a Flip 7, this year's Flip 8 gives you very little reason to switch.