If the rumors are to be believed, we are creeping closer to the launch of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7, likely happening in July once we get past the launch of the Galaxy S25 Edge, which is very likely to make an appearance at a Galaxy Unpacked event on May 12.
As is the case with a lot of the best phones these days, the changes expected for the next-generation Galaxy foldable phone are set to be somewhat incremental: a specs boost, an improved main camera, potentially improved battery life, and maybe a few nips and tucks to the design. Not a bad suite of upgrades, but it’s almost certainly the classic story of evolution over revolution.
Now this isn’t necessarily bad news. I’ve used a couple of generations of Galaxy Fold phones and rather like what they offer. I currently have a Galaxy Z Fold 4 on my desk as I write this, and genuinely enjoy using it as a secondary phone; afraid I’m still an iPhone 16 Pro Max user despite how boringly good Apple’s phones are and me missing the quirks of Android.
So there’s arguably not a lot to get excited about with the next-generation Fold; it’ll almost certainly be a contender for a high spot on our best foldable phones list, but it may not be a phone I’d lust after.
Unless artificial intelligence is at its core.
Aim high with AI
Now I’m not a 100% generative AI convert, so my flirtations with Galaxy AI, ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and so on have been sporadic. But I do appreciate how AI can make my smartphone life easier.
However, outside of the Google Pixel 9 series, I think AI hasn’t been well baked into smartphones; Apple Intelligence being a notably messy launch and integration, especially from a company that’s usually so good at slick software.
As Senior Editor Philip Berne noted in his Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra review, Galaxy AI has improved over the past 12 months, but still has scope to better integrate into the overall phone experience. And while Galaxy AI is evolving, it still feels like it has some way to go to be genuinely useful on a daily basis.
My hope is that Samsung knows this and, with the Galaxy Z Fold 7 and Galaxy Z Flip 7, the AI tools and experience are given an overhaul. I especially think this could be the key to getting more out of the extra screen space foldable phones offer.
For example, when it comes to slick multitasking and having multiple apps and windows open on the display of a Fold phone, I find it a thoroughly awkward and borderline irritating experience to get everything sized correctly and neatly positioned. So I’d love for Galaxy AI to be integrated into One UI so that it can figure out how I want my multitasking display to look, or at least serve up options.
I’d also like to see some form of AI upscaling or clever resizing of videos to better fit the esoteric aspect ratios of Fold main displays, to make what I’m watching on the screen without cropping in.
In short, I don’t want to hear more about how Galaxy AI can totally rework photos or better organize the Photos app, but I do want to hear how AI can help me get more out of solid foldable phone hardware and let me do more at speed.
Ultimately, I want AI on all sorts of phones to go this way, but I reckon the most potential is on the foldable front; what do you think? Let me know in the comments.