Samsung took over London this week for Galaxy Unpacked 2026, and the headline is clear: foldables have grown up. The Korean giant unveiled three new foldable phones, two watches, and its long-awaited entry into smart glasses, signalling that the era of experimental bendy screens is firmly in the rearview.
Leading the charge is the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra, a device that earns its Ultra badge with a 200 MP main camera, an expansive 8-inch inner display, and a titanium-infused frame that measures just 4.1 mm when open. At 215 g, it is the slimmest Galaxy Z Fold Samsung has produced. Under the hood, the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset powers a 5,000 mAh silicon-carbon battery with 45 W fast charging through a new dual-path architecture. The camera system now records 8K video via a new APV codec, and Cine LUT support brings cinematic colour grading to a phone for the first time.
The standard Galaxy Z Fold 8 is arguably the more interesting device. Samsung has completely rethought its form factor, swapping the tall, narrow cover screen for a wider 10:16 ratio that feels more natural for social media and messaging. Open it up and the 4:3 inner display is optimised for reading, gaming and video. At 201 g, it is the lightest Galaxy Z Fold yet. A dual 50 MP camera setup handles wide and ultrawide duties, while a new My FanCam AI feature tracks subjects and reframes footage for social media automatically.
The Galaxy Z Flip 8 arrives 180 g light and 6.1 mm thin when unfolded, making it Samsung's slimmest and lightest flip phone. The FlexWindow cover screen has been overhauled with Gemini Intelligence integration, letting users complete tasks directly from the outer display without opening the phone. A 50 MP camera with ProVisual Engine and new FlipShot and Mirror View features make it the most selfie-capable Flip yet.
The surprise of the show was Galaxy Glasses, Samsung's smart eyewear developed in partnership with Google. Built with frames from Gentle Monster and Warby Parker, the glasses offer up to nine hours of use on a single charge, with real-time translation, whiteboard capture, turn-by-turn navigation and content sharing during calls. They arrive this autumn.
Samsung also updated its watch lineup. The Galaxy Watch 9 gets a new Snapdragon Wear Elite chip, improved battery and a 3,000-nit display readable in direct sunlight. The Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 builds on that with enhanced durability for extreme sports. Both watches integrate Gemini AI for on-wrist assistance, activated simply by raising your wrist.
Across the board, the story is the same: thinner, lighter, more capable, and deeply woven with AI. Samsung is no longer asking whether foldables work. It is showing how they work better. General availability for all devices begins August 7.
