Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 8, a phone that folds open like a book to reveal a tablet-sized screen, arrives with a wider shape, a new anti-glare coating, and titanium layers inside its folding display, according to Engadget's full review published July 28, 2026. The device also opens fully flat to 180 degrees, a one-degree improvement over the Z Fold 7's 179-degree maximum. Engadget

The biggest change is the phone's shape. When unfolded, the Z Fold 8 is 34.5 mm shorter and 18.2 mm wider than the Z Fold 7. That matters because previous models had a cover screen (the one you use when the phone is folded) that felt too narrow, like a remote control rather than a normal phone. The wider design fixes that. The cover screen is a 5.5-inch AMOLED panel, and the main interior display is a 7.6-inch AMOLED. Both the Z Fold 8 and the Z Fold 8 Ultra reach a peak brightness of 3,000 nits, meaning the screen can get very bright for outdoor use. Engadget Engadget Engadget

The Ultra version has a larger interior screen at 8 inches. Interestingly, the Z Fold 8 is wider than the Z Fold 8 Ultra is tall, an unusual size relationship between two phones in the same family. Engadget

Samsung has added a new anti-glare coating to the Z Fold 8's screens, a first for the Fold line. It helps with outdoor visibility and cuts down on fingerprint smudges, both of which have been annoyances on foldable phones since they first appeared. The crease, the visible fold line down the middle of the interior screen, is less obvious than on the Z Fold 7. Samsung has been gradually improving this, though it remains the most visible drawback of folding screen technology. Engadget

For durability, the Z Fold 8 has an IP48 rating, which means it resists dust and water. The frame is Armor aluminum, and the exterior uses Gorilla Glass Victus 2 and Gorilla Glass Victus 3. Inside, Samsung has added titanium layers to make the folding screen sturdier. Titanium is the same lightweight, strong metal that other premium phone makers have been turning to recently. Engadget

When folded shut, the Z Fold 8 is 9.7 mm thick and the Ultra is 8.9 mm. Samsung says the Z Fold 8 is the lightest foldable phone ever, though that claim comes from Samsung's own product page rather than independent testing. Samsung Engadget

The hinge, the mechanical part that lets the phone fold, has been redesigned, and the changes cut both ways. The Z Fold 8 opens fully flat to 180 degrees, removing the slight gap the Z Fold 7 left when open. But the new hinge cannot hold a 90-degree position, the L-shape you would use to stand the phone on a table. Previous Fold models used that tabletop position for hands-free video, photography, and split-screen multitasking on a flat surface. Losing that is a real trade-off for people who relied on it. Engadget

The fingerprint sensor is on the side, built into the lock button, the same approach Samsung has used since the Z Fold 3. There is no fingerprint sensor hidden under the interior screen. Engadget

Color options include Pistachio on the Z Fold 8 and Green Shadow on the Z Fold 8 Ultra, both available only on Samsung.com. Samsung

The broader context here is that Samsung is steadily closing the gap between its folding phones and regular phones. The wider shape brings the cover screen closer to the feel of a normal smartphone, which has been the most common complaint about these devices since the Z Fold 2. The titanium layers and anti-glare coating improve durability and outdoor use, two areas where folding phones still lag behind standard phones. And the 3,000-nit brightness now matches what the best non-folding phones offer.

What remains unresolved is the hinge trade-off. The inability to hold 90 degrees is not a minor detail for people who used tabletop mode regularly. Samsung apparently decided that opening fully flat and having a less visible crease were worth giving up tabletop stability. Whether that was the right call depends on how many people actually used tabletop mode versus how many just wanted the phone to close more neatly. The pattern is familiar: each new generation of foldable phones fixes one problem while creating another, and the question is whether the fix matters more than the new drawback. On paper, a wider screen, titanium reinforcement, anti-glare coating, and a less visible crease together add up to a bigger improvement than the Fold line has seen in several years.