The Galaxy Z Fold 3 wasn’t as far behind the iPhone 12 Pro Max on the 3DMark Wild Life graphics test. The Samsung mustered 33 frames per second, compared to 39 fps on the iPhone.

The under-display selfie camera, which sits behind the phone’s inner screen, doesn’t suffer quite as badly from a washed-out-looking image as some of the others do, but the overall image quality isn’t going to blow you away, either. The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 retains the book-like design and functionality of its two predecessors, with a limited but usable 6.2-inch Cover Display on the outside of the handset that opens up to reveal a massive 7.6-inch display on the inside. The size and resolution of the Z Fold 3’s internal display (7.6in, 2,208 x 1,768) hasn’t changed, although it now supports a maximum refresh rate of up to 120Hz. Of course, just like Samsung’s other flagships, this is simply an adaptive setting rather than a toggle, which means that the screen refresh will vary depending on the app. The camera specs mirror what we got a year ago: a 12MP f/1.8 main camera, a 12MP f/2.2 ultrawide camera, and a 12MP f/2.4 telephoto camera that’s capable of 2x optical zoom. You’ll get optical image stabilization in the telephoto and ultra-wide cameras on this new device, but little else has changed.

The best foldable phone – so far

Foldables are a category of their own and Samsung is essentially the only player right now. While Apple allegedly prepares its own foldable, we can only draw comparisons to what's available right now, and that's the iPhone 13 Pro Max. The only thing we feel is missing here is S Pen support on the Cover Display. Samsung has included its screen-off memos on the larger inner display, and the idea seems like a natural fit for the Cover Display. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 cameras The Galaxy Z Fold 3 ships with two significant display improvements: one you can see and one you can feel. That smaller outer screen is now the same beautifully fluid 120Hz as the inner display, further reducing the friction when moving between the two screens. As you would expect, content on this screen looks stellar, although you'll probably want to limit media consumption on it because of the awkward 22.5:18 aspect ratio. Samsung’s tablet-like 7.6-inch screen, with a 120Hz refresh rate, continues to be the key selling point of its foldable smartphone. Samsung upgraded just about every one of the Z Fold 2's shortcomings on the Z Fold 3. Water resistance and a significantly better screen protector will help everyone, and a lower price makes it easier than ever for regular folks to afford one.

There's no Galaxy Note phone in 2021, but I don't much care after using the Z Fold 3. This is the Galaxy Note form factor I've been waiting for since the debut of the original Note, and it feels like the perfect digital notebook in every way.Samsung is also working closely with third-party developers to roll out more apps that work natively with the Galaxy Z Fold 3. These include Snapchat, TikTok, Netflix, Spotify and YouTube. For example, when you're using Spotify, you'll see the Now Playing window on the bottom left side and the rest of the discover menu on the right side, making it easier to multitask. That being said, Samsung has done a bang-up job when it comes to the camera software. If you partially unfold the phone – at a 90-degree angle – you can choose to place the phone on a table or another flat surface to line up your shots. You also get a live preview in this mode (on the inner and cover screen), as well as an updated camera roll whenever you press the shutter button. The Galaxy Z Fold 3 is compatible with the S Pen – and it’s a difference-maker for a phone that’s unofficially billed as the Note 21 Ultra replacement. The Galaxy Z Fold 3’s main display looks pretty stunning, and a big reason for that is a new under-display camera. Instead of having to stare at a notch or punch hole, the UDC on the Galaxy Z Fold 3 is nearly invisible, especially when you go full screen on content like photos and videos. When the display is dark, say on the home screen, you can make out the tiny hole, but it’s not that noticeable. On our video editing test using the Adobe Premiere Rush app, the Galaxy Z Fold 3 took 50 seconds to transcode a 4K video to 1080p. That’s faster than the Galaxy S21 Ultra’s 1 minute and 2 seconds but still slower than the iPhone 12 Pro Max’s 28 seconds. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 review: Battery life and charging

How do these cameras perform? Well, they’re very good but not the best I’ve come across. The iPhone 12 Pro’s images ever so slightly edged it in almost every side-by-side shoot-out, since the Z Fold 3’s pictures generally looked a bit too overprocessed for my liking and the iPhone managed to capture a touch more detail.The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 cameras are good, but not groundbreaking; you’ll either be satisfied with the finely detailed photos and video, or disappointed that this Note 21 Ultra-replacement doesn’t take things much further than 2020’s Z Fold 2. It depends on how much camera-phone comparison shopping you do. We've got a lot of joy out of playing games without our thumbs covering up the entire display when reaching for on-screen controls. We also showed off a YouTube video to a group of friends without having to hand over our device and without them having to squint – the Z Fold 3 screen is just that big. The rear cameras once again include a trio of 12MP lenses: an f/1.8 wide-angle shooter, an ultra-wide f/2.2 camera with a 123-degree field of view, and a 12MP telephoto camera. Based on our photo comparisons, the Galaxy Z Fold 3 takes colorful and mostly sharp photos. But it's a step behind the iPhone 12 Pro in terms of details and more realistic hues. And you miss out on the zooming power of the Galaxy S21 Ultra. I had my doubts but came away with a level of trust in Samsung's camera software smarts that I simply didn't expect. With Night mode engaged, I compared the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy S21 Ultra, and the Fold has an edge with more realistic colors. The S21 Ultra's shot is brighter but has an orange tinge to it.