Why I picked up (and am in love with) the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5

I used to be far worse with phones. I swear I was. I worked for Sprint before starting Chrome Unboxed and that was right around the time Chromebooks became an actual thing; albeit with a very quiet existence. At that time, my tech obsession (along with everyone else) was smartphones. The market was volatile, the future was uncertain, and believe it or not, there were multiple players and multiple OS choices back then.

The latest, greatest thing was sometimes a gimmicky failure (um, HTC Evo 3D??), and other times it was a true revelation (Samsung’s introduction of OLED to the phone market). But it didn’t really matter. We were all chomping at the bit just to see what was next and it was a crazy time to be in the mobile phone business.

But those days are long behind me at this point. And they are long behind the industry as well. Smartphones are more commodity than tech breakthrough at this point, and there’s no denying the fact that a lot of the wild excitement we all once felt in the mobile market has waned quite a bit.

And urge for something new

So it makes a lot of sense that I’ve been very, very interested in the idea of a great folding phone that I could carry in my pocket and use as a small tablet when needed. I’ve been disappointed more than anything, however, in my attempts to find a phone that does this without some pretty severe trade-offs.

I tried the original Galaxy Z Fold, but the ridiculously-small outer screen was terrible to use and though it was better on the Z Fold 3, I was still frustrated by the narrow nature of that outer display, too. My next attempt was the Pixel Fold, and it’s very-standard outer screen was so good that I had a hard time finding reasons to open the phone up at all. It’s unfolded layout makes the gyro in games I play act wonky (rotated 90 degrees) and at the end of my time with it, I was just tired of using it altogether.

But the other day, I saw that T-Mobile was offering a $1000 discount on trade for an old phone I had at the house, and I was interested. The Z Fold 5 isn’t much different than the Z Fold 3 I’d had before, save the fact that it finally closes nice and flat and has the latest Snapdragon SoC inside. That outer screen was still narrow and I wondered if it would still bother me.Turns out, a bit of time can change a man.

I love this phone

After having the Pixel Fold’s somewhat-perfect outer screen, I was again interested to see what a small, purpose-built outer screen would feel like in the lighter, slimmer Z Fold 5. And I’ve not been disappointed. Sure, that narrow screen makes the keyboard a little cramped, but the inside of this phone is so infectious to use that I want to open it up all the time. Where the Pixel Fold felt a bit large and clunky, the Z Fold 5 and its razor-thin bezels make the inner screen feel sleek and immersive.

For quick replies and simple tasks, I use the outer screen, keenly aware the entire time that it makes me want to open up the Z Fold 5 and use the big screen. And when I do, the fully-flat inner display looks amazing and the slightly-portrait layout you get upon opening it up plays better with most Android apps. Turn it on the side and all my games look amazing and the gyro works just as it should.

Reading, browsing, and multitasking are all a treat, too; and I especially love the ability to drag an app icon to the center of the screen to use it in a pop-up window. Split-screen is fantastic, the dock works incredibly well, and over and over again I continue to be simply delighted to use this phone every time I pick it up.

I’m gaming far more than I was, I’m reading more, and enjoying YouTube videos with far more regularity than I have been on a mobile device in quite some time. I was on the hunt for a small tablet for these types of things over the past few weeks, but that hunt is over. I’ve found my small tablet, and the best part is it fits right in my pocket without taking up much space at all. Without doubt, this is the first folding phone I’ve used and truly loved having with me, and I think I’ve found a keeper this time around.