News in Short

• Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 starts at Rs 1,79,999.
• The Fold 8 is lighter at 201g and introduces a new 4:3 aspect ratio.
• The Fold 8 gets a 4,800mAh battery, up from 4,400mAh on the Fold 7.
• Both phones offer flagship-grade performance, but the Fold 8 moves to the newer Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy.
• The Fold 8 is the better choice for new buyers, while Fold 7 owners have fewer reasons to upgrade immediately.

Samsung has made the Galaxy Z Fold 8 more practical, but that does not automatically make the Galaxy Z Fold 7 a bad buy. In fact, the two foldables are closer than their generation gap suggests. The Galaxy Z Fold 8 starts at Rs 1,79,999, while the Galaxy Z Fold 7 costs Rs 1,74,999. That makes the newer model only Rs 5,000 more expensive at launch.

The Galaxy Z Fold 8 brings a new 4:3 aspect ratio, a lighter 201-gram body, a larger 4,800mAh battery and newer hardware. However, the Galaxy Z Fold 7 already introduced a much slimmer design, strong performance and a refined foldable experience. So, if you are planning to spend around Rs 1.8 lakh on a Samsung foldable, which one should you actually buy?

Design: Fold 8 is more practical, Fold 7 is still excellent

The Galaxy Z Fold 7 was already a major step forward for Samsung’s foldable design. At 215 grams and 8.9mm thick when folded, it finally felt less like a bulky foldable and more like a premium smartphone. Its sturdy hinge, Gorilla Glass protection and refined construction made it significantly easier to use as a daily device. The biggest improvement with the Fold 7 was not a flashy design change but how much more comfortable it felt in everyday use.

The Galaxy Z Fold 8 takes that idea further. At 201 grams, it is 14 grams lighter than the Fold 7. Its 123.9 x 81.9 x 9.7mm folded dimensions also make it easier to carry. More importantly, Samsung has changed the aspect ratio to 4:3. The result is a foldable that feels wider and more usable when closed, while the inner screen provides a more natural canvas for multitasking. The frame also feels rigid, and the crease is less distracting during regular use.

For durability, the Fold 7 carries an IP48 rating, while the Fold 8 adds IPX8 water resistance alongside IP48 dust protection. Neither phone is designed to be treated carelessly, but both offer a reassuring level of protection for premium foldables.

Winner: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8

Display: The Fold 8’s biggest change is not just the screen

The Galaxy Z Fold 7 already has an impressive display setup. Its 6.5-inch cover screen offers FHD+ resolution and a 120Hz refresh rate, while the 8-inch inner display offers 2,600 nits brightness and the same 120Hz refresh rate. The large inner panel is excellent for watching videos, reading documents and multitasking. The crease is also barely visible during normal use.

The Fold 8 changes the experience with its 4:3 aspect ratio. Its 5.5-inch cover display runs at 120Hz, while the 7.6-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X inner screen gets a 1848 x 2448 resolution, 120Hz adaptive refresh rate and up to 3,000 nits brightness. The new proportions make websites, documents and apps feel more natural. Samsung has also further reduced crease visibility.

The Fold 7’s 8-inch panel is technically larger, so the newer phone does not win simply because it has more screen. Instead, the Fold 8 wins because the screen is easier to use. The 4:3 format gives split-screen apps more breathing room and makes the cover display less restrictive.

Winner: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8

Performance and software: Newer hardware, but both are fast

The Galaxy Z Fold 7 runs on the Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy and comes with 12GB RAM. It handles demanding apps, multitasking and gaming without major issues. One UI 8, based on Android 16, also makes excellent use of the foldable form factor with three-app multitasking, floating windows, Flex Mode and a persistent taskbar.

The Fold 8 upgrades to the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy, paired with 12GB RAM and UFS 4.0 storage. It delivered a Geekbench single-core score of 3,510, multi-core score of 9,456 and GPU score of 21,287 in testing. The gains are real, but they are not transformative in everyday use. The Fold 7 was already extremely fast, so you are unlikely to notice a night-and-day difference unless you push both devices heavily.

The Fold 8 also ships with Android 17 and Samsung’s latest One UI. Galaxy AI has become more contextual, with faster AI processing, writing assistance, note summarisation, live translation and other productivity features. Both generations are promised seven years of software and security updates, so longevity is not a major differentiator.

Winner: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8

Cameras: This is not a reason for most Fold 7 users to upgrade

The Galaxy Z Fold 7 features a capable flagship camera setup and delivers sharp daylight images, strong dynamic range and vibrant colours. Portrait photography is also reliable, while night shots maintain good detail and control noise effectively. However, zoom performance remains one of its weaker areas.

The Fold 8 continues with a 50MP primary camera but upgrades the ultra-wide to 50MP. The 10MP front camera remains familiar. Daylight images offer excellent detail and dynamic range, while portraits deliver good separation and natural-looking skin tones. Night photography also remains strong, with effective highlight and noise control.

The Fold 8 is therefore the better camera phone, particularly when using the ultra-wide camera. But the difference is not dramatic enough to make the camera alone a compelling reason for an existing Fold 7 user to upgrade. If you are buying your first Samsung foldable, however, the Fold 8 gives you the more complete camera package.

Winner: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8

Battery and charging: A meaningful improvement, but not a revolution

The Galaxy Z Fold 7 has a 4,400mAh battery and supports 25W wired charging and 15W wireless charging. In real-world use, it comfortably managed a full day, even with demanding usage. However, its charging speed was one of the phone’s biggest weaknesses, especially compared with rivals offering much faster charging.

The Fold 8 gets a 4,800mAh battery and 45W wired charging, alongside 20W wireless and reverse wireless charging. In testing, it comfortably lasted beyond a full day even with gaming, multitasking, photography and social media use. It also reached around 63 percent in approximately 30 minutes.

This is one of the areas where the Fold 8 delivers a genuinely meaningful upgrade. It does not completely transform battery life, but the additional capacity and faster charging make the phone easier to live with.

Winner: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 vs Galaxy Z Fold 7: Which one should you buy?

If you already own the Galaxy Z Fold 7, upgrading to the Fold 8 is not essential. The Fold 7 remains a powerful and refined foldable with excellent displays, strong cameras, capable battery life and Samsung’s long-term software support. The performance difference is incremental, and the camera upgrade is not dramatic enough on its own.

However, the decision changes if you are buying a new phone. At launch, the Rs 5,000 difference between the two models is relatively small considering what the Fold 8 brings. You get a lighter body, a more practical 4:3 form factor, brighter displays, a larger battery, faster charging, newer hardware and improved ultra-wide photography.

Verdict

For someone buying a premium Samsung foldable today, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 is the more sensible choice. It is not a revolutionary upgrade over the Fold 7, but it addresses some of the small compromises that remained in the previous generation. The lighter design and new 4:3 aspect ratio are particularly important because they change how comfortably you can use the phone every day.

The Galaxy Z Fold 7 only becomes the better deal if you find it at a significant discount. Otherwise, saving a relatively small amount by choosing the older model makes little sense when you are already spending close to Rs 1.8 lakh. The Fold 8 is the better premium flagship for new buyers because it offers a more practical design, newer hardware, better battery and a more refined overall experience. If you are upgrading from the Fold 7, though, it is better to wait unless the lighter design and new form factor are exactly what you have been looking for.