Samsung Electronics revealed its newest foldable phones and smartwatches at the Galaxy Unpacked event in London last evening.
The company showed off three new foldable phones, the Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra, Galaxy Z Fold8 and Galaxy Z Flip8, along with two new smartwatches, the Galaxy Watch Ultra2 and Galaxy Watch9.
The new phones and watches focus on artificial intelligence (AI) that can act on a person’s behalf, as well as better health tracking. Pre-orders for the phones and watches start the same day, with the watches going on general sale from August 7.
Three new foldable phones, each built for a different kind of user
The Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra is the first phone in Samsung’s Z Fold line to carry the “Ultra” name, which the company usually saves for its top-tier devices. It has a large 8-inch screen when opened up, yet is only 4.1 millimetres thick and weighs 215 grams, making it Samsung’s thinnest foldable phone yet.
It is built for people who want to get work done on a bigger screen, and it can automatically open helpful apps at the right moment, such as adding a dinner plan mentioned in a chat straight into the calendar.
The Galaxy Z Fold8 has been redesigned with a new shape. Its screen changes how it looks depending on how you hold the phone, better suited to watching, reading or gaming. At 201 grams, it is the lightest Z Fold phone Samsung has made, and its battery can play videos for more than 26 hours on a single charge.
The Galaxy Z Flip8 is the smallest and lightest Flip phone yet, at 180 grams and 6.1 millimetres thick when open. Its front cover screen now does much more without needing to open the phone, showing the weather, schedule and notifications through a feature called Now Brief. It also has a new dual-recording mode that films both the person holding the phone and the subject they are filming at the same time.
Samsung’s Chief Executive Officer, TM Roh, described how mobile phones are changing, saying, “mobile devices will become the most personal entry point” for AI in people’s daily lives.
Two new watches built around health tracking
The Galaxy Watch Ultra2 is designed for serious athletes and outdoor adventurers. It has a bigger 800mAh battery than before, a screen bright enough to read clearly even in strong sunlight, and can now track diving depth, dive time and water temperature automatically once a person enters the water.
It also gives runners hydration advice based on how much they are sweating during a workout.
The Galaxy Watch9 is built for everyday health tracking rather than extreme sports. It has a lighter design that is more comfortable to wear all day and night, and comes in two sizes.
Both new watches include an updated Sleep Apnea detection feature, approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which studies breathing patterns during sleep and flags possible disruptions. They also include a new Heart Health Score, which turns data like activity, sleep and stress into a single, simple number that shows how healthy a person’s heart is doing.
Roh said the aim is to help people move from treating health problems after they happen to catching early warning signs before they do, noting the watches are meant to act as “a vigilant health companion” that gives users timely alerts.
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Where the products fit into Samsung’s bigger AI plans
Samsung said the new phones and watches are designed to work closely together, so that health information from a smartwatch, such as a reminder to hydrate or a report on sleep quality, can show up on the phone as well.
New Galaxy phone buyers also get a free six-month trial of Google’s AI subscription service, which normally costs $19.99 a month, including extra cloud storage.
The foldable phones and watches are available for pre-order in select markets starting July 22, and prices vary by market and storage option.
