Highlights in the newly launched Samsung phone and watch series

At the launch event on July 22 in London, Samsung announced 6 new devices including three folding phone models Galaxy Z Fold8, Z Fold8 Ultra, Z Flip8, two watches Watch9, Watch Ultra2 and Galaxy smart glasses. Except for the smart glasses that have not yet been sold, the remaining 5 devices are available to order from July 23 and will be delivered to users on August 8.

New screen ratio Galaxy Z Fold8

Samsung added to the Fold line a completely new phone model with a more square screen ratio, which is considered a solution to Samsung’s problem of balancing experience. Over the years, many people have complained that the Fold’s external secondary screen is too narrow, while the 8-inch main screen when opened is too large and difficult to operate flexibly.

Galaxy Z Fold8 uses a more suitable 7.6-inch main screen with a 4:3 ratio, and a 5.5-inch external screen with a 10:16 ratio. Practical experience shows that the external screen feels comfortable when typing and can be used with one hand for most tasks. When open, this model also offers more suitable proportions for watching videos or playing games. With a weight of 201 grams, the device is lighter than many conventional bar phones and can fit comfortably in a shirt pocket.

Even though it is a new model, Z Fold8 is not the most advanced version in the newly launched folding phone line. The device is in the lower segment than Fold8 Ultra, an upgrade of last year’s Z Fold7, with a smaller battery, lacking a telephoto camera but similar configuration including Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 Elite chip, a 12 GB RAM version and up to 1 TB internal memory.

The launch of the Z Fold8 with a screen ratio that is said to be similar to the upcoming folding iPhone will put a lot of pressure on Apple. If “Apple” launches a folding product in September with a not too different experience and design, the company will easily be labeled “following” in technology compared to the Korean company, according to experts.

Silicon carbon battery technology

The trio of Galaxy Z Fold8, Fold8 Ultra and Flip 8 are Samsung’s first phones to use silicon-carbon (Si-C) batteries. In particular, Z Fold8 Ultra has a 5,000 mAh battery, the largest ever on the Fold line, an increase of 600 mAh compared to the previous generation but the device thickness remains unchanged. The Z Fold8 model has a slightly lower battery at 4,800 mAh.

According to Mr. BD Yang, Executive Vice President and Deputy Head of Core Component Technology Group at Samsung, the company has been monitoring this battery technology for a long time, knowing that many competitors have used it first, but the company sets high standards for the battery system so it needs to research carefully before applying it to the device.

This is also the reason Samsung equips Si-C but not at a high level like Chinese brands, the ratio of silicon to battery of Galaxy Z Fold8 is only 5%. New battery technology replaces the graphite material at the cathode with a silicon-carbon compound, which can store more lithium ions in the same volume, helping to increase capacity while still maintaining thinness. However, silicon material expands up to 300% when charging and discharging, while regular lithium-ion is only about 10%. This puts batteries with a high percentage of silicon at greater risk of battery swelling and reduced lifespan, requiring more complex structural stabilization technology to control.

Galaxy Z Flip8 upgraded with 2 nm chip

Compared to international markets, Z Flip8 sold in Vietnam is equipped with Samsung’s “homegrown” chip, Exynos 2600, instead of Snapdragon Elite Gen 5 like Z Fold8, Fold8 Ultra. This can be considered a technological advantage as the Exynos 2600 is the world’s first processor for a mobile platform manufactured on a 2 nm process.

Samsung introduces the new Exynos chip at the end of 2025 before applying it on the Z Flip8. The processor marks a transition from the familiar FinFET architecture to the new 2nm GAA process. The product also has a 10-core CPU structure that is fine-tuned to balance performance and energy savings, accompanied by an Xclipse 960 GPU thanks to the advanced RDNA structure.

The difference of Exynos 2600 also lies in the NPU cluster (Neural Processing Unit). Neural processors go beyond basic image recognition algorithms and can become the operating center for the Agentic AI era, capable of self-reasoning and processing tens of trillions of calculations per second completely locally on the device.

The smartwatch has the brightest display

Galaxy Watch Ultra2 does not change significantly in design but is a major upgrade in hardware and internal equipment. This is the smartwatch model with the brightest screen today with 5,000 nits, far exceeding the average of 3,000 nits on other high-end models. The screen panel is still 1.52 inch high resolution Super AMOLED.

In addition to the screen, Watch Ultra2 also has an 800 mAh battery, giving 2.5 days of use when the AOD always-on screen is turned on or 100 hours in normal modes. In addition, the model also has other high-end standards such as IP69K durability, the highest standard for dust resistance and high pressure water spray today. Users can also take it scuba diving when it meets international standard EN13319 allowing diving to a depth of 40 meters.

Galaxy Watch9 with 3 nm chip, survival alert feature

The two Watch9 and Watch Ultra2 models feature Snapdragon Wear Elite processors manufactured on a 3 nm process to help save power and dissipate heat better. Thanks to that, Watch Ultra2 can reduce thickness by 12% and have a large battery while Watch9 is only 8.6 mm thin and weighs from 31.5 grams.

According to Samsung, the duo is also upgraded with BioActive sensors and early survival warning functions, capturing microscopic changes (heart rate, skin temperature, blood oxygen) to detect abnormal vital signs before the body actually feels the symptoms. Prominent among these include Atrial Fibrillation Warning (AFib), Abnormal Heart Rhythm (IHRN) or Sleep Apnea Detection.

Similar to other smartphones launched in 2026, Samsung’s trio of folding smartphones all increased in price. Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra starts at 53 million for the 12 GB RAM version, 256 GB memory, 6 million VND higher than the previous generation, the 512 GB version is 59 million VND, and the 16 GB RAM version with 1 TB memory is 68 million VND, one million VND lower than the previous generation.

Galaxy Z Fold8 is sold from 47 million, the highest is the 1 TB version for 62 million VND. The Z Flip8 clamshell folding model is priced from 32 million VND for the 12/256 GB version, 38 million VND for the 12/512 GB version, 5 million VND higher than before.

Meanwhile, Galaxy Watch Ultra2 only has a 47 mm version priced at 18.99 million VND, Watch9 has two versions of 40 mm (9.99 million VND) and 44 mm (10.99 million VND).