Following on from the recent launch of the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6, you may be wondering whether it’s worth upgrading from its predecessor, the Galaxy Z Flip 5.
To help you decide whether to upgrade to the latest clamshell or not, we’ve compared the specs and our own reviews of the Galaxy Z Flip 6 to the Galaxy Z Flip 5.
Keep reading to discover the differences between the two Samsung handsets.
Design
Compared to its predecessor, we found the hinge of the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 to be stronger and more impact resistant. In fact Cam Bunton said in his review that it’s the most “stable-feeling foldable flip phone” he’s tested, thanks to its solid, flat aluminium edges and the tighter mechanism.
Even so, Mobile Editor Lewis Painter concluded in his review of the Galaxy Z Flip 5 that the handset has “the right amount of resistance”, allowing itself to be opened with one hand yet stay half-folded when necessary.
While neither handset boasts complete dust and water resistance, the Z Flip 6 does take the lead with its improved IP48 rating, which means it’s both water resistant in up to one metre of water for up to 30 minutes and can stop particles larger than 1mm from getting inside. The Z Flip 5 instead has just an IPX8 rating, which means there wasn’t data to determine its dust resistance.
Screens
Upon its launch, the Z Flip 5 was the first Samsung clamshell that had a usable 3.4-inch cover screen, which the Z Flip 6 has retained. Yet the small size of both feels quite restrictive, especially when compared to the Motorola Razr 50 Ultra‘s 3.6-inch cover screen, as you can only load a select few apps to use on the display.
Not only that, but to get the few apps to work on the cover screen, you’ll need to dig deep into Samsung Labs to enable this feature.
Both Z Flips also have a 6.7-inch AMOLED internal, foldable display, with the Z Flip 6 boasting a smoother 120Hz refresh rate compared to the Z Flip 5’s 60Hz.
Camera
The Z Flip 6 has seen a significant camera upgrade to the Z Flip 5, boasting the same 50MP main lens that’s found in the Galaxy S24. We found this lens performs admirably across most lighting situations, although images can appear slightly over-processed in true Samsung fashion.
The Z Flip 6 also includes a 13MP ultrawide lens which although is arguably weak when compared to the main lens and works best in bright light, is still capable of matching colours well.
The Z Flip 5 sports the same camera setup as its predecessors, with 12MP main and 12MP ultrawide rear lenses. Although this may sound significantly lower than the Z Flip 6, it’s worth noting that we still found both lenses to be capable of capturing images with plenty of detail and vivid colours, especially in bright light.
With both handsets however, their foldable nature means capturing images is even easier. By folding either the Z Flip 5 or 6, you can create your own makeshift tripod and use the cover screen to check your framing. There’s also gesture support to remotely activate the shutter once you’re ready too.
Performance
Naturally as the newer handset, the Galaxy Z Flip 6 runs on the more up-to-date Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy chipset, whereas the Z Flip 5 runs on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy. In general, we found both handsets to be especially speedy in general use, with apps instantly loading and minimal lag even when running power-intense AAA games.
As shown below, our benchmark tests showed that the Z Flip 5 actually boasts a higher single core score at 1991, compared to the Z Flip 6’s 1910. However, the Z Flip 6 has the higher multi core score at 6264 whereas the Z Flip 5 falls short at just 5046.
Both handsets do tend to get warm over longer periods, which make both less suited to dedicated mobile gamers.
Battery Life
Neither handset boasts a particularly hefty battery capacity, although the Z Flip 6’s cell is slightly larger at 4000mAh compared to the Z Flip 5’s 3700mAh.
Even though this difference may seem negligible, we were impressed with the Z Flip 6’s ability to retain battery. In fact, after casual usage with around three hours of screen time, we found the handset ended the day at around 35-40%. Not only that but when the Z Flip 6 is not in active use, it’s conservative with its battery juice.
This is especially interesting when compared to our time with the Z Flip 5. We found that a casual day with three hours of screen time saw the phone end the day with just 15% of battery remaining.
Verdict
Due to its updated chipset, long-lasting battery life and upgraded camera set-up, we’d have no trouble recommending the newer Galaxy Z Flip 6 over the Z Flip 5. Although their displays are the same, the Z Flip 6 also boasts extra durability with an IP48 rating. You can compare prices of the two models below.
