Samsung has announced three new folding phones, updating its existing models and adding a new one to its lineup, complete with a new form factor.

The flagship model is getting a rebrand. Formerly known as the Galaxy Z Fold series, this year’s entry is called the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra. Like its predecessor, it has a 6.5″ display on the outside, and an 8″ one on the inside. As you’d expect from an “Ultra” phone, it has a triple-camera setup. The main “wide” and telephoto cameras are unchanged from the ones found on the Galaxy Z Fold 7, but the ultrawide has been upgraded from a 12MP Type 1/2.5 (25mm²) sensor with an F2.2 lens, to a 50MP one with an F1.9 lens, which Samsung says will let in 33% more light.

Samsung

The company says it has enhanced its HDR mode for the main camera, as well as its low-light “Nightography” mode. The phone’s 8K video also now records in the APV codec, which Samsung says “gives users greater flexibility and quality for editing and production workflows.”

Aside from the upgraded ultrawide camera, Samsung has included the new Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 processor with 12 or 16GB of memory (dependent on what storage size you get), along with a higher-capacity 5000 mAh battery, up 600 mAh from the one in the Z Fold 7. The company has also re-engineered the phone’s internal screen to make the crease less visible, while making it brighter and nicer-feeling to open. And despite all this, it weighs the same 215g (7.6oz) as its predecessor, and each half is a hair thinner at 4.1mm.

None of these improvements come cheap, though. Last year’s Z Fold 7 was $100 more than its predecessor, and Samsung has bumped the price again, with the Z Fold 8 Ultra starting at $2100 for the 256GB model.

Samsung

There is, however, now a new option below it: the Z Fold 8, which takes on a slightly different form factor. While the Ultra has a relatively tall and narrow 3:7 outer screen and a nearly-square 1.11:1 inner screen, the new model’s cover is a wider, shorter 10:16, and the inner display is 4:3. The Z Fold 8’s outer display has a 5.5″ diagonal, while the inner one is 7.6″.

While the Z Fold 7 (which was, remember, moreso the predecessor to the phone now called “Ultra”) marked a turning point as a folding phone that didn’t come with big compromises to its camera system compared to its candybar counterpart, that trend hasn’t continued with the Z Fold 8. It drops the telephone camera entirely, and its main 23mm equiv. camera is smaller, slower and lower resolution than the one on the Ultra. The ultrawide, however, is the same 50MP model.

Not everything is a downgrade compared to the Ultra, though. The displays may be a different size, but are still just as bright, and the Z Fold 8 has the same processor and storage options. And while it’s thicker both folded and unfolded, it’s also a touch lighter. Even if you don’t prefer the more passport-style form factor, though, the price may be slightly more attractive than the Ultra’s, as the phone starts at “just” $1900.

Samsung

Finally, Samsung has also updated its Z Flip 8, the smaller model that unfolds to be a similar size to a more traditional smartphone. The company doesn’t seem to have made any changes to its cameras – it still has a wide 50MP Type 1/1.57 (50mm²) and ultra-wide 12MP Type 1/3.2 (15mm²) – but it’s lighter and thinner than its predecessor. The company has also updated the processor to that same Snapdragon model (though there’s no option for one with 16GB of RAM like with the larger models), and has made improvements to the front screen’s interface, making it easier to use if you want to avoid opening your phone and potentially getting sucked in by feeds and apps.

The Z Flip 8 retains its position as Samsung’s least expensive foldable, but its $1200 price tag represents a $100 increase over its predecessor’s.

The Z Fold 8 Ultra, Z Fold 8, and Z Flip 8 are all available to pre-order today, and are set to become available on August 7th.

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Viltrox seems poised to start selling lenses for Micro Four Thirds, according to a post on social media platform Xiaohongshu. It shows a puzzle piece about to be slotted into a hole labeled “M4/3,” and teases an announcement coming on July 23rd. While the company hasn’t posted about it on its Instagram pages, the Viltrox US account did comment on a Reddit post about the teaser, saying “Something new coming soon.”

The teaser doesn’t say what to expect, beyond having hashtags that translate to “lens.” But the idea of getting a Micro Four Thirds lens from Viltrox is exciting on its own; the company has become a major player in the world of third-party lenses, and it’s an interesting sign that it’s looking to throw at least some of its weight behind the mount, as we haven’t seen many others do so for a while.

Viltrox

There are a wide variety of companies, well known and not, making manual focus lenses for the system, and a few that continue to sell a handful of autofocus options, too. But beyond Panasonic and OM System, who also make cameras using the mount, there haven’t been any new Micro Four Thirds lenses from a major player in quite some time. Sigma used to have some options for the system, which you can still buy, but they haven’t been updated like we’ve seen with the company’s APS-C and full-frame offerings.

Of course, there are many ways to release a lens for a system. While Viltrox could come out with a lens custom-designed for Micro Four Thirds, with a sensible focal length and a small, compact size. It could also, however, just be swapping out the mount on one of its existing APS-C or, worse, full-frame designs (not that such a move would be unheard of). Even if it is a lens with a larger-than-neccesary image circle, though, it’s still a start. If whatever Viltrox releases ends up being successful, it could lead to the brand giving Micro Four Thirds more attention.

Or it could wind up being something completely unexpected, like a camera that uses the mount. It’s hard to put anything past companies at this point. Whatever it is, we won’t have to wait too long to find out.

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