While the BlackBerry Passport was both a critical and commercial disappointment, it was nevertheless an ambitious attempt to rethink the smartphone’s wide-screen form factor. After the Passport, other brands also experimented with wider smartphones, including Microsoft, but those devices never gained mainstream acceptance. Now, years later, Samsung is making a similar attempt to embrace the wide-screen form factor – this time with a foldable phone.
The Galaxy Z Fold 8 (starts at $1900, India price: Rs 1,79,999), unveiled at the Unpacked event in London, revisits the shorter, wider phone form factor. However, unlike earlier attempts, Samsung has a much clearer idea of who the target audience for such a device is. I spent some time with the Fold 8 in London.
Many will ask whether Samsung can finally reignite interest in the widescreen smartphone form factor, which has long remained misunderstood and underappreciated.
Here are my early thoughts on Samsung’s passport-style wide foldable.
Big, but not bulky
When I first saw the giant marketing posters of the Galaxy Z Fold 8 as I entered the demo zone, I was intrigued but also sceptical. I didn’t quite understand what Samsung could do differently that its peers had failed to achieve with the wide-screen smartphone form factor. It wasn’t until I got a hands-on demo and spent a few minutes using the device that I found myself saying, “Wow, this is something I could actually use.”
The Galaxy Z Fold 8 feels far more polished than you would expect from a first-generation product. The Fold 8 is noticeably different, and that is evident in the way the phone has been designed. I could immediately feel the difference between holding the Galaxy Z Fold 8 and the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra, Samsung’s new book-style foldable.
Folded shut, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 resembles the iconic BlackBerry Passport with its short, wide profile. (Image: The Indian Express/ Anuj Bhatia)
The Galaxy Z Fold 8 has a passport-like shape, exactly as the pre-launch renders suggested. Instead of the tall rectangular aspect ratio used by almost all smartphones, it has a shorter, wider profile when folded. Open it up, and you will find an internal display that is roughly the same size and proportions as an iPad mini. It looks very close to the dimensions of an international passport, surely not by accident.
The Fold 8 obviously reminds me of the BlackBerry Passport and the Microsoft Surface Duo. However, the Passport featured a physical keyboard, while the Duo used two internal screens separated by a visible hinge rather than a single, flexible, foldable display.
The Fold 8 features a 5.5-inch cover display with a 10:16 aspect ratio that unfolds into a 7.6-inch internal display with a 4:3 aspect ratio. When closed, it looks and feels remarkably similar to the BlackBerry Passport. That’s a really wide display. Then again, the Fold 8 is unquestionably a device designed for two-handed use most of the time.
The Galaxy Z Fold 8 is lightweight despite its wider footprint, making it surprisingly comfortable to hold. (Image: The Indian Express/ Anuj Bhatia)
The phone’s square shape can seem unusual at first, and it took me about an hour to adjust to the new screen format. However, at just 201 grams and with a thin profile, the Fold 8 never feels cumbersome to use. That said, if you are new to the wider phone form factor, it can feel a little awkward to use at first and may not fit properly in your tight jeans pocket.
All about screens
The Fold 8 still behaves like the traditional book-style foldables that have been on the market for years. However, its two displays, one on the outside and the other on the inside, make all the difference. The 5.5-inch AMOLED cover display and the 7.6-inch internal display both support a 120 Hz refresh rate. While the wider screen may not be for everyone, it’s a different experience and is great once you adapt to it.
It takes time to get used to the 5.5-inch square-shaped cover screen of the Note 8. (Image: The Indian Express/ Anuj Bhatia)
First, let’s talk about the 5.5-inch cover screen. I would say it’s very purpose-driven. It’s much easier to navigate the browser or review a spreadsheet, for example. I also felt the user interface was well adapted to the outer cover screen.
After opening the device, I was greeted by a spacious 4:3 display that feels just right for consuming content, whether watching YouTube videos, browsing the web, or reading e-books. The aspect ratio is particularly well-suited for media consumption because videos have much smaller black bars (if not completely eliminated, they are at least reduced), making the viewing experience feel more natural. That’s something that has long been missing from the traditional book-style foldable form factor.
It’s clear why Samsung chose a 4:3 aspect ratio for the Fold 8. The company seems to believe that people primarily want a foldable for media consumption, and my early impressions suggest that it actually works. Compared with taller aspect ratios, the 4:3 format is better suited for reading because it lets you see more content on the screen at once.
The difference is noticeable in everyday use. For example, Instagram feels much more natural on the Fold 8’s inner display, especially when scrolling through the app or watching Reels. I also watched the trailer for Spider-Man: Brand New Day on both the Fold 8 and the Fold 8 Ultra, and the difference was immediately apparent.
Samsung’s new Flex Titanium hinge helps reduce the crease while making the Fold 8 thinner and more durable. (Image: The Indian Express/ Anuj Bhatia)
The Fold 8’s wider 4:3 display delivered a more natural viewing experience with smaller black bars. Even the interface appears to have been designed around the 4:3 aspect ratio. I have always wondered why the user experience on regular book-style foldables was never properly optimised for their aspect ratios, often making the interface feel disjointed. On the Fold 8, everything feels purpose-built.
The bezels on both the cover screen and the internal display have been significantly reduced, making the extra-wide foldable easier to use. I also enjoyed the tablet-like experience; it feels as though you are holding an iPad mini. The two apps can be run side by side, or multiple apps can be opened simultaneously. I haven’t yet tested how every app adapts to the new screen format, but naturally, Google and Samsung apps designed for Android work exceptionally well with this layout.
Powerful hardware
The Fold 8 is a powerful smartphone, both inside and out. Samsung says it uses new Flex Titanium technology, which features a titanium-based display structure designed to make foldable devices thinner and more durable. By combining a titanium-alloy film with an improved titanium plate, the technology enhances display support, reduces crease visibility, and helps the device open more smoothly through improved hinge balance.
Watching videos on the Fold 8 results in noticeably smaller black bars than on traditional book-style foldables. (Image: The Indian Express/ Anuj Bhatia)
It may sound like a marketing term, but during my time with the Fold 8, I could clearly see the benefits firsthand. The new technology appears to have reduced the display crease, and I never felt any hesitation when opening or closing the device.
Inside, the Fold 8 is powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5. It also features a dual rear camera system with 50-megapixel wide and 50-megapixel ultrawide cameras, while 10-megapixel selfie cameras appear on both the inner and outer displays. Battery capacity comes with a 4,800 mAh, a new type of silicon-carbon battery with support for 45W fast charging. New AI updates also included for the camera including, My FanCam feature which automatically tracks a selected subject and reframes the footage into the user’s preferred aspect ratio.
No form factor is perfect
I tried both the Fold 8 and the Fold 8 Ultra, and I concluded that no form factor is suited to everyone. For some people, the wider design might feel a bit inconvenient. For others, it could be exactly what they have been looking for.
Perhaps my biggest takeaway from using two different foldable phone styles is that I would use them in completely different ways. To be honest, using the passport-style Fold 8 requires some adjustment. You need to retrain your muscle memory around the interface, rethink how you open and use apps, and consider whether you need to change the way you interact with your mobile device.
The Galaxy Z Fold 8 (left) alongside the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra, highlighting Samsung’s two distinct foldable form factors. (Image: The Indian Express/ Anuj Bhatia)
I get that. The Fold 8 is Samsung’s best attempt to appeal to those who can afford an ultra-high-end foldable phone but want it to be more of a lifestyle device. There are trade-offs, though. To make the inner display feel perfect, the phone has to be wider. That means it can feel a little bulky in your pocket, and using it with one hand can be challenging. Even typing one-handed may take some adjustment, while using both hands might still feel awkward for some users. The question is: how much will you use the outer display compared to the main screen?
As a concept, the wider Fold 8 works and delivers the kind of differentiated experience the smartphone industry desperately needs, especially at a time when the memory crisis is putting pressure on the industry, driving up costs, and making phones less accessible to many consumers. It has also made brands more hesitant to take risks and experiment with new ideas.
Still, I am glad Samsung is taking a risk on a new phone form factor. This time, it is not targeting only business users but everyday consumers who are ready to pay a premium for a smartphone with its passport-like shape and 4:3 screen.
Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 8 introduces a passport-style design with a wider cover display and a 4:3 inner screen. (Image: The Indian Express/ Anuj Bhatia) 
Folded shut, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 resembles the iconic BlackBerry Passport with its short, wide profile. (Image: The Indian Express/ Anuj Bhatia)
The Galaxy Z Fold 8 is lightweight despite its wider footprint, making it surprisingly comfortable to hold. (Image: The Indian Express/ Anuj Bhatia)
It takes time to get used to the 5.5-inch square-shaped cover screen of the Note 8. (Image: The Indian Express/ Anuj Bhatia)
Samsung’s new Flex Titanium hinge helps reduce the crease while making the Fold 8 thinner and more durable. (Image: The Indian Express/ Anuj Bhatia)
Watching videos on the Fold 8 results in noticeably smaller black bars than on traditional book-style foldables. (Image: The Indian Express/ Anuj Bhatia)
The Galaxy Z Fold 8 (left) alongside the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra, highlighting Samsung’s two distinct foldable form factors. (Image: The Indian Express/ Anuj Bhatia)
Share
