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Although the Samsung Galaxy Z TriFold looks like a smash hit it’s inside South Korea and quickly sold out after walking retails in the US for $2,900it’s me skeptics in the design of the foldable phone. But those thoughts changed drastically after I got my hands on it.
On paper, it looks like the Korean company is trading gear for durability, resulting in another two-in-one foldable device rather than a true all-in-one trifold phone like the Huawei Mate XT. However, I spent 20 minutes using and folding the Z TriFold at a Samsung store in Dubai, and even that brief interaction was enough to put my doubts to rest.
The Samsung Galaxy Z TriFold is a wide-screen tablet that folds into a phone to go into your pocket. It seems like a simple concept, but Samsung made a lot of design decisions here that make the Z TriFold better than its rivals.
The left hinge of the Samsung Galaxy Z TriFold is similar to the Galaxy Z Fold 7, but the right one is wider to accommodate the width of the two stacked panels.
Samsung designed the foldable with two separate hinges of different sizes so that its 10-inch screen can be folded twice. The right hinge is similar to the one seen in the Galaxy Z Fold 7but the left hinge is wider and accommodates the thickness created by two of the three sections stacked on top of each other when closed. The wider right hinge felt like a spring and popped right away when I started to unfold it. This responsiveness gives the Z TriFold a distinct ergonomic advantage when unfolding the device.
The rightmost side of the Samsung Galaxy Z TriFold (left) protrudes slightly from the other panels when fully folded. The Galaxy Z Fold 7 folds similarly in comparison.
The Samsung Galaxy Z TriFold is divided into three panels (hence the name). The rightmost panel is actually wider than the others, creating an edge that floats slightly when folded. That edge makes unfolding the phone much more intuitive because it’s easy for my finger to find and open. I struggled to unfold the Huawei Mate XT, the flat-sided Galaxy Z Fold 7, as well as the Honor the Magic V5 with its curved sides. In contrast, the protruding edge of the TriFold gives me a strong lip that makes it a breeze to open.
You need to fold the left side of the Galaxy Z TriFold first, followed by the right side. If you try to fold the latter first, its software will send an alert with haptic feedback and display a warning on the screen.
At first, I didn’t take Samsung’s notice blog post seriously when I read that the “folding mechanism is precisely engineered for easy opening and closing, with an auto-alarm that alerts the user to incorrect folding.” But in practice, the auto-alarm is smartly implemented and essential in this design. This makes the TriFold difficult for someone to misfold.
Samsung has done an admirable job of minimizing the crease depth of the Galaxy Z TriFold.
Three panels and two hinges mean the existence of not one, but two screen creases. Some people just can’t get past having a crease on their phone’s display, especially since it can become more obvious the more you bend it. I couldn’t feel any creases when running my finger across the Z TriFold’s screen. In comparison, I can clearly feel the two creases on the display of my Huawei trifold. Samsung surprised me earlier this year when it improved the hinge design of the Galaxy Z Fold 7, which, as a result, reduced the depth of the crease on its folding screen. It looks like Samsung has taken those learnings and applied them to the Galaxy Z TriFold.
Like the Fold 7, the crease is barely visible on the Galaxy Z TriFold unless you’re looking at it from an extreme angle. This may not bother most people, even when using the phone is opened in widescreen tablet mode. The light above the room can reflect on the Z TriFold’s screen and fold in a way that bothers some people.
Samsung vs. Huawei: Two different trifold designs
The two hinges of the Samsung Galaxy Z TriFold fold in the same direction, giving it a “U” shape, while the two hinges of the Huawei Mate XT fold in opposite directions, forming a “Z” shape. Ironic, isn’t it?
Samsung and Huawei took two different approaches with their TriFold phones. I find Huawei’s Z-shaped design to be more flexible than its Samsung U-shaped counterpart in terms of pure usability. Huawei chose a screen that transforms into three different form factors: a smartphone, a mini-tablet (one side not folded), and a wide-screen tablet (both sides not folded).
In comparison, Samsung has skipped the mini-tablet design entirely. The Galaxy Z TriFold can be fully folded or fully unfolded. If you unfold the Galaxy TriFold just once, it won’t let you use it for anything else. And that limits its usefulness.
The Huawei Mate XT (left) can be used on one side folded but the Galaxy Z TriFold (right) requires you to unfold it completely to use it.
After using the Huawei Mate XT full-time, I hope that Samsung’s Z TriFold phone will be the same all-in-one device. I like to use the Huawei trifold as a book-style mini tablet (with one side open) for reading and browsing on the go. But I can’t do that with Z Trifold. Samsung’s choice limits versatility, but it could be a big win for durability.
The Huawei Mate XT measures 0.1mm thinner than the 12.9mm thick Galaxy Z TriFold. Both phones feel like early-generation book-style foldables.
Huawei’s soft-folding display is visible at all times, while Samsung’s design protects the inner screen when it’s folded closed. This is a calculated trade-off: long-term stability at the expense of not having a mini-tablet mode (one side is opened). I am not in favor of it. However, I want any device I pay $3,000 to last as long as possible, so I welcome durability.
The folding screen of the Huawei Mate XT is always exposed to the outside world (left), but Samsung protects its soft display by folding it inside.
Then there are software differences between the two trifold phones. The Mate XT’s operating system runs well enough, but its UI looks dated. I had to jump through hoops to install the Google Play Store on the Huawei trifold. That’s why it’s refreshing to use the new Samsung TriFold by comparison, which runs Android 16-Based A UI 8. The software is clearly optimized for the large canvas of the Z TriFold. It lets you run three windows side by side and adds multiple pop-up windows for the ultimate form of multitasking. It also allows you to create separate workspaces (like Desktops on MacOS and Windows) with just two taps.
The Samsung Galaxy TriFold can run three apps side by side with multiple pop-up windows.
Magnets can be useful
The Galaxy Z TriFold doesn’t have a built-in kickstand (think Nintendo Switch) or support for Qi2.2 magnetic accessories (like Apple’s MagSafe). And not making it a challenge to make it work as a wide-screen tablet. Samsung should include MagSafe-like magnetic accessory support so I can add a magnetic stand (think PixelSnap Ring) and it is easy to support. Then I can pair the Z TriFold with a mouse and keyboard to use like a two-in-one laptop.
If you want to use the Z TriFold’s 10-inch screen as a tablet and be productive, you need a kickstand. Without built-in magnets, you’ll be forced to find a case with a kickstand, which will inevitably make a thick phone unusable. A snap-and-go magnetic stand would have been the perfect solution.
After my short time with Samsung’s latest foldable, I have to say that the Galaxy Z TriFold is a great device – one that might surprise a lot of people. I wish it was thinner when folded closed, but Samsung’s smart design choices make me excited for the future of folding phones.
