London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Sunday, Aug 10, 2025

Samsung launches first water-resistant folding phone and Google watch

Samsung launches first water-resistant folding phone and Google watch

New flip phones and phone-tablet hybrids, plus updated earbuds and first Google Wear OS 3 smartwatch

Samsung is taking a big step towards making folding-screen smartphones mainstream with the launch of a pair of the first water-resistant models as part of its big tech event for the second half of 2021.

The new and improved Galaxy Z Flip3 folding-screen flip-phone and Z Fold3 folding phone-tablet hybrid were announced on Wednesday during a livestreamed event, alongside a Google watch co-developed in an attempt to take on the dominant Apple Watch – the Galaxy Watch4.

Galaxy Z Flip3
Samsung’s refined next-generation flip phone squeezes a large screen into small pockets and bags.


The Z Flip3 builds on the success of its predecessor, the Z Flip, (there was no Z Flip2), which puts a large 6.7in smartphone screen in the body of a much smaller folding clamshell design, reminiscent of the late 1990s flip phones or a makeup compact.

The new phone has a 1.9in display on the outside for notifications and widgets, as well as a faster 120Hz folding display within the clamshell. The device is slightly smaller and more durable than its predecessor with tougher glass and aluminium to resist falls, plus it has faster chips and an improved dual camera on the back.

Galaxy Z Fold3
Samsung’s tablet-like Z Fold3 folds in half to the size of a smartphone and now supports the firm’s popular S Pen stylus.


The Z Fold3 improves on last year’s model with several firsts. It is made of tougher materials, has an improved 6.2in phone-shaped screen on the outside and a 7.6in square tablet-like screen that unfolds on the inside. The internal screen is 26% brighter than that on the Z Fold2 and has a new protective film that is 80% more durable, which enables the use of Samsung’s popular S Pen stylus – a first for a folding screen device that makes the Z Fold3 a direct replacement for the company’s popular Note superphones.

The folding screen also has one of the first selfie cameras hidden directly underneath the display, removing the need for a notch or hole in the screen for it to see through. The hybrid device is also thinner, lighter, has faster chips and an improved triple camera on the back.

The biggest breakthrough for the two folding devices is the introduction of water resistance to the IPX8 standard of 1.5 metres of water for up to 30 minutes, managing to match leading standard smartphone competitors despite having many moving parts.

The Z Flip3 will cost £949 (€1,049) and the Z Fold3 will cost £1,599 (€1,799), available from 27 August.

Galaxy Watch4
Samsung and Google hope the Galaxy Watch4 can successfully compete with the dominant Apple Watch.


Samsung also unveiled the Galaxy Watch4 and Watch4 Classic, which it developed with Google to relaunch the Android maker’s smartwatch efforts following Google’s Fitbit acquisition. Available in two designs and four sizes, the Watch4 improves on the circular-screen design of Samsung’s previous Tizen-based smartwatches with higher-resolution displays, slimmer bodies and faster chips, while keeping the popular rotating-bezel controllers.

The new watches are the first devices to run the new Wear OS 3 software, which features an amalgam of Samsung and Google’s apps and services, including Google Maps, Samsung’s Bixby assistant, Samsung Pay and third-party apps including offline Spotify support.

A triple sensor cluster on the back includes heart rate, heartbeat rhythm (ECG), blood oxygen and a new body-composition system capable of measuring muscle, fat and water percentages similar to some hi-tech bathroom scales. The Watch4 has advanced sleep tracking, including snore and slumber-pattern detection, and tracks 100 different fitness activities.

The Watch4 starts at £259 (€269) and will be available from 27 August.

The Galaxy Buds2 are the latest in Samsung’s line of earbuds, some of which have proven to be more sustainable alternatives to Apple AirPods.


Finally, Samsung also announced a successor to its popular Bluetooth earbuds, the Galaxy Buds2. The new earbuds are smaller, lighter and cheaper at £139 (€149), but have active noise cancelling and ambient sound modes, separate woofer and tweeter speakers, and automatic switching between Samsung devices.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Street justice isn’t pretty but how else do you deal with this kind of insanity? Sometimes someone needs to standup and say something
Armenia and Azerbaijan sign U.S.-brokered accord at White House outlining transit link via southern Armenia
Barcelona Resolves Captaincy Issue with Marc-André ter Stegen
US Justice Department Seeks Release of Epstein and Maxwell Grand Jury Exhibits Amid Legal and Victim Challenges
Trump Urges Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan to Resign Over Alleged Chinese Business Ties
Scotland’s First Minister Meets Trump Amid Visit Highlighting Whisky Tariffs, Gaza Crisis and Heritage Links
Trump Administration Increases Reward for Arrest of Venezuelan President Maduro to Fifty Million Dollars
Armenia and Azerbaijan to Sign US-Brokered Framework Agreement for Nakhchivan Corridor
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
OpenAI Launches GPT‑5, Its Most Advanced AI Model Yet
Embarrassment in Britain: Homelessness Minister Evicted Tenants and Forced to Resign
President Trump nominated Stephen Miran, his top economic adviser and a critic of the Federal Reserve, to temporarily fill an open Fed seat
The AI-Powered Education Revolution: Market Potential and Transformative Impact
Chikungunya Virus Outbreak in Southern China: Over 7,000 Hospitalized
French wine makers have seen catastrophic damage to vines that were almost ready to be harvested after the worst fires in more than 70 years burned through the south of the country
US Lawmaker Probes Intel CEO’s China Ties Amid National Security Concerns
Brazilian President Lula says he’ll contact the leaders of BRICS states to propose a unified response to U.S. tariffs
Trump Open to Meeting Putin as Soon as Next Week, with Possible Trilateral Summit Including Zelenskiy
Katy Perry and Justin Trudeau spark dating rumors, joining high stakes world of celeb-politician romances
US envoy Steve Witkoff arrived in Moscow to seek a breakthrough in the Ukraine war ahead of President Trump’s peace deadline
WhatsApp Deletes 6.8 Million Scam Accounts Amid Rising Global Fraud
Nine people have been hospitalized and dozens of salmonella cases have been reported after an outbreak of infections linked to certain brands of pistachios and pistachio-containing products, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada
Karol Nawrocki Inaugurated as Poland’s President, Setting Stage for Clash with Tusk Government
Trump Signals JD Vance as ‘Most Likely’ MAGA Successor for 2028
US Charges Two Chinese Nationals for Illegal Nvidia AI Chip Exports
Texas Residents Face Water Restrictions While AI Data Centers Consume Millions of Gallons
U.S. Tariff Policy Triggers Market Volatility Amid Growing Global Trade Tensions
Tariffs, AI, and the Shifting U.S. Macro Landscape: Navigating a New Economic Regime
Representative Greene Urges H-1B Visa Cuts Amid U.S.-India Trade Tensions
U.S. House Committee Subpoenas Clintons and Senior Officials in Epstein Investigation
Sydney Sweeney Registered as Republican as Controversial American Eagle Ad Sparks Debate
Trump Accuses Major Banks of Politically Motivated Account Denials and Prepares Executive Order
TikTok Removes Huda Kattan Video Over Anti-Israel Conspiracy Claims
Trump Threatens Tariffs on India Over Russian Oil Imports
German Finance Minister Criticizes Trump’s Attacks on Institutions
U.S. Proposes Visa Bond of Up to $15,000 for Some Applicants
U.S. Farmers Increase Lobbying Amid Immigration Crackdown
Elon Musk Receives $23.7 Billion Tesla Stock Award
Texas House Paralyzed After Democrats Walk Out Over Redistricting
Mexican Cartels Complicate Sheinbaum’s U.S. Security Talks
Mark Zuckerberg Declares War on the iPhone
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
OpenAI’s Bold Bet: Teaching AI to Think, Not Just Chat
Tesla Seeks Shareholder Approval for $29 Billion Compensation Package for Elon Musk
Nvidia is cutting prices on its RTX 50-series graphics cards after sales slowed and inventories piled up
Ghislaine Maxwell Transferred to Minimum-Security Prison Amid Ongoing DOJ Discussions
U.S. Tariffs Surge to Highest Levels in Nearly a Century Under Second Trump Term
×