Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra brings iterative but meaningful upgrades

Samsung has released the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra, its first foldable to carry the Ultra name. Rather than being a boosted version of the standard Fold 8, it keeps the tall, narrow shape and near-square inner display familiar from earlier Fold generations.

Closed, the phone has a 6.5-inch cover screen; opened, it reveals an 8-inch flexible display with a nearly square aspect ratio. Compared with last year's Z Fold 7, the size and shape are almost unchanged, with the device only fractionally thinner at 4.1mm when open. Both screens are now brighter, reaching 3,000 nits of peak brightness, and the inner display gains an anti-reflective coating that, combined with a new titanium alloy film, makes the crease far less visible.

Battery is the standout upgrade

The most significant change this year is the battery. Samsung has for the first time used silicon-carbon battery chemistry, allowing capacity to grow from 4,400mAh last year to 5,000mAh while the phone remains slightly thinner. Charging speeds have also improved, to 45W wired and 20W wireless, though the device only supports the Qi2 Ready standard without built-in charging magnets.

The phone carries only an IP48 rating for dust and water resistance, a step below some rivals. It also lacks S Pen stylus support and the Privacy Display technology introduced on the Galaxy S26 Ultra.

Cameras set it apart from the standard Fold 8

Unlike the regular Z Fold 8, the Ultra features three rear cameras: the same 50-megapixel ultrawide, a substantially improved 200-megapixel main sensor, and a new 10-megapixel 3x telephoto lens that adds versatility, although zoom quality degrades noticeably beyond 6x.

Software changes this year are relatively minor, including a new My FanCam video-editing feature that uses AI to crop footage around a specific person. The Z Fold 8 Ultra is priced at $2,100, $100 more than its predecessor.