Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 unveiled with edge-to-edge screen, new AI tricks, and a battery life boost

Speaking about the launch of the new Galaxy Z Flip, Samsung UK Mobile Experience VP of Product and Marketing, Annika Bizon said: "The beauty of the Galaxy Z Flip 7 is you don’t have to compromise between pocket-friendly portability and flagship power.

"The Galaxy Z Flip 7 brings together the most advanced Galaxy AI capabilities, an immersive FlexWindow and an ultra-compact design, proving that the foldables category is a long way from reaching its limit."

The first thing you'll notice about Galaxy Z Flip 7 is the expanded cover screen, known as the FlexWindow.

Samsung has increased the available screen real estate from 3.4-inches on the Galaxy Z Flip 6 to a more generous 4.1-inches on the new model. To avoid increasing the overall footprint of the handset, Samsung has stretched the FlexWindow to the very edge of the chassis — leaving a minuscule 1.25mm border around the AMOLED display, one of the thinnest on any Galaxy device.

Samsung has even wrapped the touchscreen around the dual camera system to fill every corner of the case.

And it's not just larger, the FlexWindow is also much brighter (up to 2,600-nits peak brightness) to ensure it's easily visible in direct sunlight. Samsung has also updated the panel to support a smooth 120Hz refresh rate, which should make system animations, like scrolling, appear more fluid on the outside screen.

All of these hardware improvements should eliminate any noticeable differences between the larger, foldable AMOLED display inside the Galaxy Z Flip 7 and the FlexWindow on the outside. If you don't have time to to flip open the newest Galaxy Z Flip, you'll still enjoy a top-tier experience when scrolling through your photo library, replying to a text message, reviewing statistics from your latest workout, or checking the weather and headlines.

Samsung has taken a similar approach with the new Galaxy Z Fold 7, which has been redesigned to remove any compromises from the exterior screen and triple-camera system compared to other Samsung smartphones.

To make the most of the improved screen on the outside of its new foldable, Samsung has enabled access to Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools, like Google Gemini, from the FlexWindow. Using hands-free voice commands, you'll be able to Gemini to pull-up flight details for the Boarding Pass in your Samsung Wallet, schedule reminders, or find restaurants at your location, all without opening the main screen on the Galaxy Z Flip 7.

The Now Bar, which was introduced with the Galaxy S25 lineup earlier this year, brings real-time updates from within your favourite apps, showing podcast progress or an ETA for your Uber driver, to the FlexWindow too. Samsung has worked to integrate the feature with more third-party apps, so you can check what song is playing around you, peek at the latest football scores, and more, at a glance.

When you do flip open the Galaxy Z Flip 7, Samsung has upgraded its AMOLED display to 6.9-inches with 120Hz refresh-rate and a peak brightness of 2,600-nits — the same as the bolstered FlexWindow. The new screen has a 21:9 aspect ratio, which is closer to what you'll find on a traditional smartphone.

That should make typing on the on-screen keyboard easier for those switching to a foldable for the first time.

Galaxy Z Flip 7 boasts an improved camera system, with a 50MP main camera and 12MP ultra-wide lens. Samsung’s advanced ProVisual Engine automatically optimises your camera settings before you press the shutter button — delivering crisp, detailed shots in any lighting, with no manual adjustments needed.

Samsung has added Enhanced Nightography to improve capture in challenging low-light conditions, removing noise and blurred frames. Galaxy Z Flip 7 can preview filters in real-time, so you'll know exactly what the final result will look like before you press the shutter — with no need to spend time editing after-the-fact.

At just 13.7mm when folded, this new model is the thinnest Galaxy Z Flip that Samsung has ever launched. It's also the lightest, tipping the scales at just 188 grams. For comparison, that's just a fraction more than a sharing bar of Cadbury's Fruit & Nut ...not bad for a device with two AMOLED screens and three cameras.

Despite its diet, Samsung has managed to find room inside the slimmer Galaxy Z Flip7 for a bigger battery. With a 4,300mAh lithium-ion cell — an increase of 300mAh compared to its predecessor — Samsung says Galaxy Z Flip 7 owners will be able to watch 31 hours of video on a single charge.

Galaxy Z Flip 7 ships with One UI 8, the latest mobile operating system developed by Samsung that incorporates the latest features from Android 16, which released on Pixel smartphones earlier this month. While One UI 8 remains in early testing for the majority of Samsung smartphones, this new software brings an array of new Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools and features from Samsung's own Galaxy AI and Google Gemini.

Gemini Live, which lets you interact with Google's ChatGPT competitor like a one-on-one conversation, will be accessible from the FlexWindow for the first time, letting you quickly check the answer to a general knowledge question, generate a recipe or itinerary based on your criteria, and much more — hands-free.

Information generated during a conversation with Google Gemini will be stored in Samsung Notes for easy access later. According to Samsung, these AI tools should mimic "a personal assistant, right on the cover screen".

Samsung has tweaked the design of the clock face on the FlexWindow so that it adapts and stretches to complement the wallpaper you've chosen, wrapping the font around faces or objects in the image to keep the time display clear. Whether it’s a close-up selfie or a scenic skyline, the lock screen ensures the clock remains visible without disrupting the image.

Galaxy AI can analyse screenshots for you. For example, you can ask the AI to recreate the look of a filter found on your favourite content creator's account, and Galaxy AI will replicate the effect and save it — so that it's ready-to-use in the built-in camera app.

Powering the new foldable is the Exynos 2500 processor, upgrading from the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy in the Z Flip 6. This new system-on-a-chip is built using a cutting-edge 3-nanometer process, which should unlock faster performance and better efficiency. Some might be miffed that Samsung has chosen not to use the same Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy system-on-a-chip found inside the Galaxy S25 lineup and Galaxy Z Fold 7.

Despite missing out on the latest-and-greatest from Qualcomm, the faster Exynos 2500 chipset enables Samsung DeX for the first time, so you'll be able to plug in the Galaxy Z Flip 7 to an external monitor via USB-C and use all of your installed Android apps on the big screen with PC-like multitasking and windowing.

If you don't own a laptop or tablet, this is a great way to squeeze a little more from your powerful smartphone.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 starts at £1,049 for the 256GB model, rising to £1,149 for the 512GB model — the maximum built-in storage available on the Galaxy Z Flip lineup. Available to preorder now until July 25, Samsung will treat you to double storage at no extra cost, so you'll pocket the 512GB model for the entry-level model.