There’s something dodgy about the awesome Galaxy Z Fold Special Edition: What is Samsung hiding?

The Galaxy Z Fold Special Edition’s taller design is more practical than the Pixel 9 Pro Fold’s

As a current Pixel 9 Pro Fold user, I can say that I find folding phone design to be incredibly important. And I don’t mean superficial subjective stuff like colors or the shape of the camera bump.

And the design Samsung’s gone for with the Korea/China-exclusive Galaxy Fold Special Edition seems at least as tall and rectangular as what we see in the Galaxy Z Fold 6, and honestly, that makes sense to me.

My Pixel 9 Pro Fold’s square inner screen ratio can feel awkward at times, and the narrower form of the Galaxy Z Fold SE would solve issues such as the large black bars you get when watching videos and the wide grip when typing on the inner screen.

The larger cover screen of the Galaxy Z Fold Special Edition is (literally) its biggest advantage it has over the Pixel 9 Pro Fold (and Fold 9)

Although I do quite like the 8-inch inner and 6.3-inch cover displays on my Pixel 9 Pro Fold, Google’s dated design approach has made the cover display (and phone as a whole) feel way wider than it should.

This makes the 6.5-inch cover screen of the Galaxy Z Fold Special Edition very impressive in comparison since this one is larger than the 6.3-inch cover panel of the Pixel (by being mostly taller), but doesn’t sacrifice the one-hand usability thanks to having a slightly narrower aspect ratio but also, significantly thinner borders and frame.

Compare that to the Fold 6’s 6.2-inch cover display and 7.6-inch inner screen, and it’s clear the Fold SE is going to be the more practical “normal phone”. For example, the typing experience on the narrow Fold 5 and Fold 6 is often singled out as one of the biggest drawbacks of going with a Samsung foldable over say a OnePlus Open or a Pixel Fold.

The Special Edition finally takes care of that - so I guess Samsung isn’t so stubborn after all.

Dropping the S Pen support and under-display camera makes Samsung’s Special Edition Fold slimmer and lighter than the Pixel 9 Pro Fold and Fold 6

Of course, one of the best things about the Pixel 9 Pro Fold is its 10.5mm slim profile - especially compared to the 12.1mm Fold 6.

Now, not only is the Special Edition Fold as slim as the Pixel Fold when closed, but it’s actually thinner when opened - 4.9mm vs 5.1mm.

It’s a breath of fresh air compared to Samsung’s previous Fold models, which have always felt bulky. In fact, I’d go as far as saying that the thickness of the standard Fold 6 is the only thing that’s holding it back compared to my Pixel 9 Pro Fold.

The thickness makes the phone dig into your hand because of the sharp corners, which can get annoying after extended use.

The new Fold is also 21g lighter than the Pixel 9 Pro Fold - at 236 vs 257g, which is going to be noticeable when using the two. My Pixel 9 Pro Fold has always felt a little too heavy than it needs to be.

Samsung is feeling the pressure: Why does the Galaxy Z Fold Special Edition exist, and could this be the Galaxy Z Fold 7?

But now to the more intriguing bit… Why does the Special Edition Fold exist in the first place?

It's unusual for Samsung to release two folding phones in the same year, let alone call one of them “Special”. So, what’s the deal with the Fold SE? Well, my educated guess is that the Fold SE exists for a couple of reasons…

• For one, Samsung is reportedly struggling to outsell Huawei in China, and the Fold SE is rumored to be exclusive to China and Korea for the time being; in other words, if the Fold 6 was flying off the shelves, I doubt Samsung would be launching another model just three months later

• But my second, and perhaps more interesting theory, is that we might be asking the wrong question… Maybe the thicker, bulkier Fold 6 shouldn’t have existed in the first place, and Samsung intended to launch the Fold SE from the start (but ended up choosing to play it safe)?

After all, the Fold SE has so many features that just make more sense - larger displays, a slimmer body, and even a higher-res 200MP primary camera. So, maybe it’s the Fold 6 that’s the odd one out, and the Fold SE should have been Samsung’s foldable flagship all along?

Or... Is the Galaxy Z Fold Special Edition the actual Galaxy Z Fold 7?

That being said, I also wouldn’t be surprised if the pressure Samsung felt from the Fold 6’s underwhelming sales (and the launch of the super-innovative Huawei Mate XT) hasn’t forced the company to launch what was supposed to be the Fold 7… almost a year early.

Frankly, I wouldn’t be shocked if the Fold SE is actually the Fold 7 in disguise - Samsung just needed to slap a “Special Edition” label on it to launch it quickly and try to revive its foldable lineup in the face of the competition.

The Huawei Mate XT, for example, features a trifold design that makes the Fold 6 look ancient in comparison. They share the same thickness, but the Mate XT can unfold into a massive tablet, whereas the Fold 6 feels more restrictive.

So, perhaps the launch of the Fold SE is just a rescue plan that gave us the Fold 7 early? I guess we’ll find out if that’s the case when the actual “Galaxy Z Fold 7” is out. But I have a feeling it won’t look much different than the Fold SE. If it all.