Samsung’s summer hardware event is nearly here, and with it comes another round of foldable phones. The Galaxy Z Fold 7 is expected to show up alongside the Z Flip 7 in mid-July, continuing Samsung’s now-annual attempt to convince people that a tablet-sized screen in your pocket is worth nearly $2,000.
If the leaks hold, the Fold 7 will not be a radical redesign. But that doesn’t mean there’s nothing new. Samsung appears to be making incremental yet noticeable changes across the board, particularly in design and display technology. Here’s a breakdown of the most notable updates to watch for.
1. It’s thinner — maybe the thinnest foldable yet
Samsung seems to be focusing heavily on reducing the thickness of the Fold 7. According to reports, the foldable will measure as little as 8.2mm when folded and around 4.1mm when unfolded.
For comparison, the Z Fold 6 measures 12.1mm when folded and 5.6mm when unfolded. The thinnest foldable on the market, the Oppo Find N5, comes in at 4.21mm when unfolded. If the leaked measurements are accurate, the Z Fold 7 would be an even slimmer device than the Find N5.
Aesthetically, the Fold 7 doesn’t stray far from Samsung’s established design language. However, the company does seem to be rounding off the sharp corners of the Fold 6 for a more comfortable in-hand feel. And given the overall thinner profile, the camera bump on the Fold 7 might end up being the largest we’ve seen on a Samsung foldable yet.
2. A Slightly Bigger Display with Fewer Creases
For Fold 7, Samsung might be sticking with the same screen specs from the limited-run Galaxy Z Fold 6 Special Edition. That is, an 8-inch inner display and a 6.5-inch outer screen.
That’s a modest increase over last year’s 7.6-inch internal panel. However, resolution and refresh rates (120Hz) along with the Dynamic AMOLED 2X tech will remain the same.
What could be more noticeable is the crease, or rather, the effort to hide it. According to rumors, Samsung has reworked the hinge and display layering to minimize the center crease on the Fold 7.
A report even claims that the crease would be “nearly invisible,” but those kinds of claims tend to overpromise. A less visible crease would still be a step forward, especially when competing devices from Honor and OnePlus have made noticeable improvements in this area.
Likewise, brightness may also get a boost, with a peak rating of up to 2,900 nits. Samsung might also bring over its new “ProScaler” tech, which upscales lower-resolution content, to the Fold 7.
3. Snapdragon 8 Elite and One UI 8
No surprises here. The Galaxy Z Fold 7 is expected to run on Qualcomm’s latest high-end chip, the Snapdragon 8 Elite. This will be paired with up to 12GB of RAM and 256GB, 512GB, or 1TB of storage.
There’s no clear indication that Samsung might bump RAM to 16GB, which would make sense for a multitasking-focused foldable, but so far it looks like business as usual.
As for the software, Samsung might ship the foldable with One UI 8 based on Android 16. However, that could be a bit too soon, as Samsung has only just begun testing the new operating system for the Galaxy S25 series. If it doesn’t launch with One UI 8 out of the box, the Fold 7 will almost certainly be among the first devices to receive the update.
4. A 200MP Camera
Samsung foldables have rarely prioritized camera upgrades, but that could change this year. The Galaxy Z Fold 7 is rumored to use the same 200MP main sensor seen in the Galaxy Z Fold 6 Special Edition. Whereas its predecessor has a 50MP sensor.
There’s not much concrete information about the rest of the camera setup, which is expected to stay largely the same: a 12MP ultrawide, a 10MP 3x telephoto, and a 4MP under-display selfie camera inside. The outer selfie camera will reportedly remain at 10MP.
There’s some hope Samsung will finally address the under-display camera, which hasn’t changed much since the Z Fold 3. At best, it’s functional for video calls. At worst, it’s a compromise that still detracts from full-screen content. Here’s hoping Samsung has something better in store this year.
5. Qi2 Wireless Charging and the End of Built-in Stylus Support
There’s still no word on whether Samsung will increase the battery capacity in the Fold 7. The Fold 6 features a 4,400 mAh cell, and its successor may retain the same capacity, along with the same 25W wired and 15W wireless charging speeds.
The more interesting change here is support for Qi2 wireless charging. The Z Fold 7 might be Samsung’s first foldable to be “Qi2 Ready,” meaning it’ll support the new magnetic alignment features of the standard — but only if you use a case with magnets built in. It’s not native MagSafe-style charging, but it’s a step closer.
Another noteworthy omission is the S Pen digitizer layer. To make the phone thinner, Samsung may be dropping built-in stylus support for the first time since the Z Fold 3. There’s a rumor of a new standalone S Pen accessory with a larger body and a new tip, but it remains to be seen how functional (or convenient) it will be.
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