Review: Samsung Fold6 folding phone

Ever wish you could have a large display on a phone that still fits in your pocket? The Samsung Fold6 (which as of January 8, 2025, costs £1498 on Amazon) is the answer.

Design

I like the way the phone "unfolds" to have a larger display. The device is a cross between a [mini] tablet and a slab phone phone.  This phone is the best of both worlds since if you need a large display, you can simply unfold it, and when not in use, it folds down to a compact device that easily fits in your pocket.

This makes it an ideal media consumption device. I found myself using the fold more than my tablet, even around the house, since it's compact enough to put in my pocket when I'm out and about and then use it to play media when I'm cooking.

Additionally, the large inner screen makes it easy to read emails, news articles, websites, and other content. No more squinting and trying to zoom around on a website.

As with other Samsung phones, the display is quite bright and vivid, and despite its size, the phone is quite light.

The large display also makes it an ideal note-taking device with an S-Pen. I've used the Fold to take notes during courses.

Performance

The phone is quite fast and doesn't display any lags.

The camera on this device is also quite decent, and you can’t tell the difference between a picture taken by the Fold and one taken by Samsung’s other flagship devices.

One drawback of the phone is that the battery is smaller compared to traditional phones at just 4400 mAH, though there are battery improvements compared to previous generations.  However, in my experience, the device lasts about a day and a half before having to charge up again.  But again, your mileage may vary depending on your use pattern and device installed.

Usability

In Fold6, Galaxy AI is front and center, taking up space in the menu item.  I haven't fully used all the features of Galaxy AI, but I frequently use the feature to remove items like people in the background from photos that I have already taken.

Galaxy AI also has a sketch-to-image mode, which looks quite fun. I haven't used the feature extensively, but I can see where it could be useful.

One area where Samsung devices shine is the Samsung Dex feature. On my recent vacation to Scotland, I forgo my laptop and brought a touch-screen monitor, which I plugged into my phone.  This greatly reduced the number of devices I had to carry around and keep track of.  Plus, I could play media content from my phone.

Durability

One of my concerns about getting a folding phone was its durability. In my time with it, it has withstood the rigors of daily life. Unlike previous generations, the hinge looks robust, and the device folds flat, which leaves a small gap between the two screens.

The phone has an IP48 rating, which means it should be resistant to water and dust, for the first time.

Summary

In summary, the Fold6 is a good all-round device.  Though its battery life may not be that good or the camera that great, its biggest strength is compactness.  It offers the benefits of a large screen without the bulkiness.

Review: Huawei Nova 5T. Great phone, camera letdown

I received this product as part of a review program in return for an unbiased review.

Pros:

• Flagship level performance
• Crisp clear screen
• Fingerprint reader on the power button
• Large screen
• Great value for money
• No notch
• Long battery life
• Dual sim capability

Cons:

• No waterproofing
• Camera is OK
• No wireless charging
• No headphone jack
• Punch hole camera does not provide 3D facial recognition.  Also, face unlock doesn't work without ample lighting

On paper, the Nova 5T has an impressive specs sheet.  It shares the same Kirin 980 processor and memory size (6 GB ram and 128 GB storage) as Huawei's other flagship phones.  It also packs a camera with a quad-camera layout:

• 48 MP, f/1.8, 28mm (wide), 1/2.0", 0.8µm, PDAF
• 16 MP, f/2.2, 13mm (ultrawide), 1/3.1"
• 2 MP, f/2.4, 27mm (wide), dedicated macro camera
• 2 MP, f/2.4, depth sensor

And it is almost half the price of Huawei's flagships.

But this is where the similarities end.

Design

The Nova 5T has a notchless 6.26 inch 19.5:9 screen.  Instead, it sports a punch out in the left corner of the screen for the 32 MP front-facing selfie camera.  The display is crisp and bright.

The back of the phone is clad in 2.5d hard glass, and there is a distinct camera bump for the 3 cameras + LED flash and depth sensor.  However, despite the metal backing, the phone doesn't have Qi wireless charging.

Overall the design of the camera is curvy and easy to hold.  The only concern I have is with the bump which juts out from the phone.  Therefore, the phone doesn't sit flat on the table.

On the side of the phone is the power button, which also doubles as a fingerprint reader.

The reader works like a charm.  It quickly and accurately unlocks the phone.

Camera

This phone has 3 cameras and one depth sensor.  In theory, the 48 MP camera would mean great pictures, but in practice, I noticed that the camera quality is a bit lacking.

Fruit taken with adequate lighting

Nova 5T night mode.  Blurry as hell

Picture of the peg taken under daylight

Nova 5T 48 mp (Ultra Clarity mode)	Shot of my neighborhood (48 mp)
Mate 20 Pro	Google Pixel 4

The camera performs well under adequate light, but once lighting drops, the phone starts to struggle.  Also, unlike the Mate 20 Pro, the Nova doesn't perform that well if your subject is close to the lens.

The front-facing camera lacks 3D sensing capability.  Therefore, the face unlock won't work in dull lighting.  However, the aforementioned fingerprint in the power button makes a nice backup.

Performance

Nova 5T is powered by Kirin 980 and has 6 GB of ram and 128 GB of storage.  This is the exact same specs as in Huawei's flagship phones.  Thus, the interface is as smooth as butter.  One thing I like about this phone is that it has dual sim capability.  That means that I can have two sims in the device, one for my main phone and one for a back up.  Therefore, I can use different network providers to improve my coverage.

Summary

This is an excellent device with flagship-level performance.  However, its camera is a bit poor, especially in low lighting.

Review: VicTsing 3 in 1 Clip-On Lenses for Mobile Phone

Disclaimer: This product was provided by VicTsing in exchange for an unbiased review.

Update: On request to VictTsing I have re-reviewed the wide angle lens.  This time I have opted to use the Xperia Z5 Premium for the test.  As seen in the photograph below I could certainly see more.  However, the original problem with the black rings

Photo of Halbullock View without the lens

The black splodge in the right hand side is due to the edge of the wide angle lens, which I have simply slid away from the camera aperture.

Wide angle shot with VictSing lens

As you can see from the reshoot the wide angle lens certainly gives a wider view.  But the problem of black rings is still present.  Also it seem to me that the picture is less clear with the wide angle shot.

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I received the VicTsing 3 in 1 Clip-On Lenses for Mobile Phone from Amazon.  I was quite skeptical over whether the product would work or not.  After testing it, I got mixed results.  The micro and fish eye lens worked quite well but the wide angle lens didn't.  I couldn't see a difference between the picture shot with the lense and one without.

Box content: Fish Lens, Micro / Wide Angle Lens, Manual, Clips to hold lens, carrying case

Test shots:
I took the pictures using the well renowned Sony Xperia Z3 running the experimental Android N Beta 3.

First up are the macro shots.  The macro and wide angle lenses are combo lens.  Unscrewing the wide angle bit gives you the macro lense.

I tried to take the shots using the same distance from the subject, an unappealing orange.

Macro lens

Orange shot without micro

Macro of orange peel

Macro of orange stalk

The macro lenses work particularly well.  It managed to enable the phone to capture the details of both the orange peels and the stalk.

Next up are the wide angle lens.

Wide angle shot of Habullock View

Non wide angle shot ie plain Z3

The wide angle shots weren't particularly impressive.  I couldn't see a discernible differences in the view captured.  And to make matters worse, it added a dark ring to the shot as seen in the wide angle picture above.

The last lens in the package is the fish eye test.

Fish eye lens

This lens certainly give that classic fish eye effect so nothing much to say here.

Fish eye shot of Halbullock View

Conclusions
The lens clips damaged my glass protectors, chipping them slightly.  The manual instructed me to "spread" the to fit but I was scared to do that in fear of damaging the clips.  In addition, unless you align them properly, you will get a black ring effect around the photos as you can see in the corner of the wide angle shot above.  All in all a mix bag.  In conclusion, unless you want to take macro shots and fish eye lens, you should stay away.  For £8.99 (as of the writing of this blog), you can't go wrong.