The best foldable phones to buy – updated January 2022

The best foldable phones to buy – updated January 2022

Technology is impressive. It really is, but sometimes, it takes a while before it becomes something amazing. We remember the first foldable phone, the Royole Flexpai, and it was impressive but at the same time, we were disappointed to find out it has flaws that would make it non-daily. But since then, the tech has improved by a good margin, and while it’s still not perfect, you can actually daily drive such a device. Foldable phones have come a long way since their commercial debut, and we’ve picked the best ones below. 

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3

We’ll start with our Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 review. This specimen is of great interest to most of us since it’s what most people imagined we’d use a foldable phone for – screen real estate. And real estate it does well. The phone was just released and keeps the thick and heavy feel of its predecessor that was deprecated but is way more durable and functional, with a massive 7.6-inch main display. 

The phone follows a book design, meaning that the display folds in and is protected from the outside where you’ll find another screen which is rather useful if you don’t really want to unfold this big boy. And on the topic of unfolding, this particular model sports Samsung’s new upgraded hinge and display layering design that makes it much tougher than its predecessor the Z Fold 2.

There are of course more reasons to like this phone, from its flagship Snapdragon 888 SoC to its two 120Hz displays and multiple camera system capable of video up to 4K at 60fps. The true added value, however, are the unique features no other foldable phone has – an S Pen stylus support and a hidden selfie camera – that make the Galaxy Z fold 3 truly stand out as the best foldable phone out there. 

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Oppo Find N 

This is the newest big foldable phone on the block. The Oppo Find N is the surprise of the season, with its new concept of what a foldable phone should look like. It improves on the OG Galaxy Z Fold concept by being more pocketable while keeping key functionality and practical features. Its looks closely resemble other Oppo flagships, which means the phone is more conservative, and when closed, it doesn’t stand out so much from the regular phones.

The Oppo Find N has a 7.1-inch LTPO AMOLED folding display with a 120Hz refresh rate. The display is almost a perfect square, but unlike the Galaxy Z Fold 3, it is wider, making it better suited for entertainment. The outer display is a 5.49-inch AMOLED panel which is also wider than Samsung’s. This means it doesn’t have the Galaxy’s weird tall aspect ratio and feels and looks more like any regular smartphone screen.

As for the other specs, this phone packs a Snapdragon 888 processor, a 50MP triple-camera system, and a 4,500mAh battery. This phone is definitely worth your time to consider, as it looks to have excellent built quality and offer good value for money. Unfortunately, for now, it is only available in Asia, but we hope in time the Oppo Find N will come to other markets too.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 5G

Motorola isn’t the only manufacturer to make foldable flip phones. Samsung has its own which we review as the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 5G. It is, as you might have noticed, the same yet different phone. You get a larger external 1.9 inch OLED display and an internal folded display coming in at 6.7 inches, covered by a very thin layer of glass much like on the Z Fold 3, plus a sturdier hinge design. 

It, too, comes with the top-of-the-line, at least when it was released, Snapdragon 888 SoC, and a camera system capable of video recording up to 4K at 60fps. It’s better than the Razr, especially if you consider the fact that it’s now much cheaper, starting at just $999, the first foldable phone to break the $1000 price barrier southwards.

The Honorable Mentions

Xiaomi Mi Mix Fold 

Xiaomi released its first foldable phone back in April, and it was an impressive first try at the concept. The Mi Mix Fold closely resembles Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold phones in terms of its looks and size. That’s not something bad though, as Samsung’s way proved to be right. The Mi Mix Fold has a relatively big 8-inch 120Hz AMOLED foldable screen, and a very tall 6.52-inch 90Hz outer one. In fact, the outer display has such a tall aspect ratio that we imagine it is pretty hard to work with a single hand.

Still, the Xiaomi Mi Mix Fold is sacrificing ease of use for looks. This phone is very pretty, and it looks very businessman-oriented. The Mi Mix Fold is powered by the Snapdragon 888 SoC, coupled with 12 or 16GB of RAM. It features a 108MP triple-camera system on the back, and it packs a 5,020mAh battery with 67W blazing fast wired charging.

The Xiaomi Mi Mix Fold might pack plenty of impressive specs, but all of this comes at a price. This device is heavy and thick. It has a Ceramic version, which weighs 332g. When folded, the Mi Mix Fold has a 17.2mm thickness. This thickness is laptop territory, which for sure makes the device feel very bulky. But the Mi Mix Fold’s pros and cons don’t even matter in the end, as this device isn’t sold outside of China. We expect its successor to arrive later this year and have better availability.

Huawei Mate X2

Even if Huawei was banned from dealing with the US, that still doesn’t stop them from making impressive devices. One such device is their foldable Mate X2. Much like the Z Fold 2, it folds towards the inside and boasts a large tablet-like screen. When folded, you’ll find a glass-covered display on the outside which is 6.45 inches and when you unfold the phone, it spreads its inside screen to 8 inches.

The technology of this display is OLED much like on the rest of the foldable devices so colors won’t disappoint and it boasts a refresh rate of 90Hz which is cool. There is a drawback to this device though. Since this is a Huawei device, it does not have support for Google Play services which can be a nuisance if you’re used to that ecosystem. 

Besides that, this device is running with a Kirin 9000 SoC which would make it quite a good performer and you get a camera system capable of video recording up to 4K at 60fps. It’s honestly quite good.

Motorola RAZR 5G

So now we move on to the Motorola RAZR 5G which sports a different ideology for what a foldable phone is. This one folds like a flip phone and we think that’s pretty cool. It might not sport a massive display but the tall 6.2-inch screen is pretty cool by itself.

There is also this weird chin on the bottom which we kind of dig since it sits flush when you do the satisfying slap to close your phone. Additionally, if you just wanted to check the time or see if you have any messages, there is an external 2.7 inch OLED display to tell you the time and sеe your notifications. But we should add that this same chin is also a slight pain. When we covered it with a hand, we regularly dropped our Wi-Fi connection which is something you don’t want to see on any phone.

Camera-wise you’re getting a rather capable phone with the ability to record up to 4K at 30fps, it’s certainly not as great as the rest of the phones in this lineup, but it should do the job. Performance-wise, this device is weaker than the Z Fold 2 since it sports a Snapdragon 765G and if that wasn’t enough, it also thermal throttles to oblivion leaving you with no power for games and the like. As you might’ve guessed, this isn’t a flagship phone spec wise and even if the design is supposed to carry it into that title we’d still stay a bit away from it.

Huawei P50 Pocket

Huawei’s first clamshell-style smartphone was announced less than a month ago. The phone looks very stylish with its circular outer display and camera module and its two textured color options. This phone also has a third matte black option which isn’t textured. We should admit that other than the black color option, the rest look to target mostly the women demographic. That’s not something bad though, as it really looks like it will be very desirable for the ladies.

Other than its pretty looks, the Huawei P50 Pocket has an impressively big 6.9-inch OLED display, a 40MP triple-camera system, and a 4,000mAh battery. The phone is powered by the Snapdragon 888, which means it should be great in terms of performance. What’s not so great though is that it doesn’t have 5G. Another concerning fact is that this phone runs HarmonyOS 2.0, and as our Huawei MatePad 12.6 review showed, it isn’t the best software for outside of China as of yet.

What’s good about the P50 Pocket is that it supports 40W fast wired charging, which is one of the best among foldable phones. You even get the charger in the box. Unfortunately, for now, it is a China-only device, but it is expected to arrive in Europe soon.

Foldable phones are fun

This has been a quick cover of the best foldable phones out now, which will only grow with time. We are kind of more inclined to use the Z Fold 3, since it is the most solid out of the bunch, while also being a true foldable. The Oppo Find N is definitely worth a look too, so stay tuned for our review. But if we had to choose something more innovative or fun, the Galaxy Z Flip 3 5G is quite the cool little device since it unfolds to a decently sized phone, while also bringing back that sweet sweet nostalgia.