The time had finally come; time to move out of my Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 and into the supposedly step-up Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra. You can see how vastly different they are in the image above.
But from the very moment I finished copying all my apps and data across, handling this new top-tier foldable just felt immediately, well, tiny.
I know that many have criticised Samsung's foldable over the years for being "too narrow". It was marginally rectified in its Galaxy Z Fold 7 of last year – which is of a similar blueprint to this Z Fold 8 Ultra.
Samsung has arguably become a victim of its own success by releasing two broadly different foldables in tandem. The Ultra has been finessed to an undeniable degree – but may become the more niche format in the future.
Change the format
This isn't just "a Samsung thing", mind, as I've made sure to pick up various other handsets around my office (and when you've been reviewing the best phones for as long as I have, there are plenty around).
Oppo Find X9 Pro? Love it. Except, hold up, I can't easily reach the top. It's quite a tall bit of kit, despite being totally "the norm" for a 2026 flagship. I think that the Galaxy Z Fold 8 has effectively rewired my brain in only a matter of days of use.
The story feels the same with any other handset I dare to pick up: Nothing Phone (4a) Pro? It's actually a minuscule amount larger in size than the Oppo. Google Pixel 10 Pro XL? Same deal in terms of height – despite being a mite narrower.
For the first time in a long time, the change in shifting between one handset and another has felt dramatic. That gives me all the more reason to call on Samsung to do yet more with its One UI 9 software though – as the Z Fold 8 would definitely benefit from the option to utilise more app icons per row, among other adjustments unique to the format.
Small beginnings
Phones have changed so much over the years that it's sometimes easy to forget just how much smaller the handsets of yesteryear were. I picked up an iPhone 3G for the first time in years the other day and my first thoughts were: "where is it?"
The days of 3.5-inch phone displays are behind us, though, and I'm fully here to embrace the advancements that have come along the way. The Galaxy Z Fold 8, however, is a signal to an incoming step change.
No, not everyone can afford a foldable. Not everyone even wants a dual-screen phone, for that matter. But when Apple reveals the iPhone Ultra next month, I suspect it'll help "normalise" this new frontier in phone formats.
When I first handled the Galaxy Z Fold 8 I assumed it would be too wide. Now that I've been forced to part ways with it, I'm already missing its currently unique offering. And everything else just feels too narrow and tall – especially the Ultra.
