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Samsung's highly anticipated Galaxy Z Fold 6 Slim might be bigger and thicker than you expect

By Adrian Diaconescu

Published: Jul 29, 2024, 3:04 AM

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Samsung's highly anticipated Galaxy Z Fold 6 Slim might be bigger and thicker than you expect

With Samsung's big July Unpacked event in the rearview mirror, you might think that the world's largest smartphone vendor is all done with the high-profile product announcements for 2024. But before you move all your attention to the Galaxy S25 family, widely expected to see daylight in early 2025, there's a bonus foldable device that aims to turn a bunch of heads around the globe and sell a few hundred thousand units in one or two markets by the end of this year.

We're talking about the Galaxy Z Fold 6 Slim, which started as a somewhat unlikely rumored addition to Samsung's foldable portfolio a few months ago, inching closer and closer to certainty status in recent weeks. While we still wouldn't go so far as to deem its upcoming launch a sure thing, a new report out of South Korea provides a few too many details on the phone's possible specifications and the manufacturer's thinking behind its production for this bad boy not to prove legit.

Slimmer than the Z Fold 6, but not as slim as some "Chinese rivals"

You don't have to be a rocket scientist to figure out the "raison d'être" of a Galaxy Z Fold variant slapped with a "Slim" moniker. But if you were wondering just how much slimmer this device will be compared to the "regular" Z Fold 6, the typically reliable "industry" sources quoted in the latest TheElec report (translated here) bring us all one step closer to our final answer.

While the recently released Galaxy Z Fold 6 measures 12.1mm in overall thickness when folded, the Z Fold 6 Slim could take that figure down to anywhere between 11 and 11.5mm. The first thing that Samsung is expected to remove from the Z Fold 6 to reduce its waist size is the S Pen digitizer, which will have the obvious side effect of no stylus support whatsoever for the Z Fold 6 Slim.

The Z Fold 6 is definitely not the world's thinnest foldable device. | Image Credit -- PhoneArena

This move alone should shave 0.6mm off the Z Fold 6's profile, but it's unclear if Samsung will be able to employ other methods of reducing the phone's thickness any further. That's because the company is concerned about potential durability compromises, and of course, rising component expenses associated with "applying thin interior materials."

Basically, the tech giant may need to choose between a not-so-crazy-slim product with the same first-grade robustness as the Z Fold 6 and a not-so-crazy-high price and an ultra-thin device possibly costing a fortune while cutting corners in the durability department. That doesn't seem like a very difficult decision when you think about it, but it does mean that the Galaxy Z Fold 6 Slim is unlikely to come close to the exceptional thinness of some of the best foldable phones out of China.

We're talking about the Honor Magic V3, for instance, which measures an almost magical 9.2 to 9.3mm in folded thickness, as well as the Xiaomi Mix Fold 4 and Vivo X Fold 3, both of which will most definitely eclipse the Z Fold 6 Slim with their 9.5 and 10.2mm profiles respectively. On the bright side (for Samsung), the OnePlus Open and Google Pixel Fold are likely to be left in the dust, at least from this particular standpoint.

Two big screens, one small-scale release

Because the Galaxy Z Fold 6 Slim was at one point rumored to be branded Z Fold 6 Ultra, it shouldn't come as a big surprise that its displays are expected to be larger than those of the "normal" Z Fold 6 model. We're talking an absolutely massive 8-inch primary screen and a secondary panel of around 6.5 inches, according to this latest information, which would represent an important size increase from the 7.6-inch main display and 6.3-inch cover screen on the existing Galaxy Z Fold 6.

The Z Fold 6 already has a satisfyingly large foldable display. | Image Credit -- PhoneArena

There are no words on things like resolution, refresh rate technology, peak brightness, or aspect ratios just yet, but if those numbers pan out, Samsung's next big foldable will be bigger than both the OnePlus Open and (first-gen) Pixel Fold. Of course, a second-gen Google foldable is right around the corner as well, and the newest rumors point to the Pixel 9 Pro Fold going up to a huge 8-inch primary display too... while keeping things a little humbler on the external panel front at only 6.24 inches.

Unfortunately, all these comparisons might prove largely pointless for the vast majority of global foldable users, as the Galaxy Z Fold 6 Slim is only expected to be shipped in 400,000 to 500,000 units by the end of the year in "some markets such as China." Previous rumors have explicitly called for limited releases in China and South Korea, and until we hear something different from somewhere else, we'll just assume that's indeed Samsung's plan... and continue crying.

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Adrian, a mobile technology enthusiast since the Nokia 3310 era, has been a dynamic presence in the tech journalism field, contributing to Android Authority, Digital Trends, and Pocketnow before joining PhoneArena in 2018. His expertise spans across various platforms, with a particular fondness for the diversity of the Android ecosystem. Despite the challenges of balancing full-time parenthood with his work, Adrian's passion for tech trends, running, and movies keeps him energized. His commitment to mid-range smartphones has led to an eclectic collection of devices, saved from personal bankruptcy by his preference for 'adequate' over 'overpriced'.