The Oneplus Open got it right. It even has an IR blaster which i use to control my AC. Samsung is just ripping off customers at this point with its lack of significant upgrades.
$100 extra for thinner bezels and cameras that haven't changed in 3 years. That's not okay. My ZF4 doesn't take as good of pictures as my s21 did. The fact that the shortcoming won't be changing and they're still gonna hike the price!? They've lost their minds. They best change this on the ZF7 or they'll lose me.
Lolol brother they should have already lost you. Like what a shit company. Don't give them another excuse. Join me as we vote with our wallets and tell Samsung we're tired of this bullshit. Have owned the Note 9 the s10e and the S20,21,and 23 ultra models. As well as various other Samsung tag. But from the s21 and really even from the S20 things have just barely changed. We're talking one camera sensor that went from 108 to 200 megapixels and now most recently another camera sensor that went from 10 times optical zoom 10 megapixels to five times and then I think 50. A slight design change from the S20 to the s21 plus the inclusion of the s pen in the phone's body. And a brighter screen. That's it in 5 years lol that is absolutely fucking ridiculous. They must think we're stupid like legitimately. They just sort of I don't know magically wave their hand over the phone and say voila a new phone pay me another $1,300 lol. I think not fool me once shame on you fool me twice shame on me fool me three times fool me shame oh ah er... Umm.. you won't can't fool me fourth time.
If they made more of the improvements we wanted, I'd be fine with an extra $100, but man it's a tough pill to swallow that they are increasing the price while not adding a whole lot
Absolutely disgraceful from Samsung. Price increase and no innovation at all. Hope their foldables crash and burn. As soon as the Open 2 is released, I'm trading in my Fold 5. Enough is enough.
I have my hopes set that this will actually be the Ultra variant that supposedly isn't coming. It makes no sense to raise the price of old technology. Like you said, other than 3mm on the front screen, and a different hinge thats already on the fold 5, it hasnt changed in 3 years.
Don't think that makes very much sense. What would be ultra about it? I think a better guess would be whatever extra tech they were going to add to this supposed update they instead decided to save for the ultra model while still releasing this model at its original price point.
With the lack of new hardware and now price hike looks like my focus will be Google or OnePlus. Currently have OnePlus Open (edc) and a Fold 4 (backup) for trade in.
Be thankful you are not paying Australian prices😂 , our dollar is worth dirt and everything is pricey , i saw a z fold 5 for over 3k , a Z fold 4 for 2.5 k , but its not a shock here to see any flagship phone in 2k region , although the pixel 8 pro currently is on special at one of our big stores like your best buy , for 1000 bucks , its rrp in australia is 1600 , so yeah , thats a decent price even for oz . Samsung going up another 100 bucks is just crazy , they are pricing themselves out of the market , some stores here do not even stock the Zfold 5 because no one wants the expensive bugger , it is put an order in only .
It's the same in NZ, and we don't get a lot of the phones, like the Google Pixel Fold here. I paid over $2K for my One Plus, and I love it, but it will be a few years before I think of replacing that. My Pixel Fold I bought from ebay in the States, because that worked out cheaper than buying from middlemen here ($3K - $4K!!!), and likewise, I love it, and am not likely to upgrade at all this year. I am so over the Samsung Folds - they are milking their market share and it's not okay. I hope people take their wallets and invest in something else.
When folds first dropped everyone talked about how it’s new tech and as it gets better and they find better ways to produce them the price of them will start coming down to something a little more reasonable. I told people they were crazy. If Samsung was able to sell a worse version for that much why would they drop the price of a better improved version. This price will continue to go up every 2 or so years by $100 until suddenly we are $500-$600 more than we started at.
To be fair, we have seen companies produce cheaper foldables. Samsung is sort of sticking with the same tier of product, and the price going up isn't super shocking. We've also heard that they've experimented with a cheaper variant. That's more what people were talking about, not necessarily that the main line Z Fold would get cheaper, but that there would be a cheaper variant, which does seem to be potentially happening.
Hey brother that is the lie of capitalism lol Rich people surprisingly enough stay rich. They do that by continually fucking us normal people. You know prices increased during COVID during the pandemic. Because it was more expensive to produce things during the pandemic. But as these restrictions released and the pandemic went from a boil to a sort of simmer in the background the cost of manufacturing products came back down. But surprise surprise our cost of purchasing these products did not come back down. This is absolutely what is driving inflation. It's just more rich dick heads who are arrogant and greedy. I'm legitimately sick of it and I'm about ready to start the revolution. The price is a foldables are not coming down unless a disruptive force comes into the market, as a similar or better product offered at a significantly lower cost. Then in order to compete and stay relevant Samsung would have to find a way to lower their prices. That's how capitalism would function in theory. In reality this new product is being designed to enter the market at a similar price point With the idea that hopefully it will be slightly more attractive, based on its hardware or aesthetics. Because the rich dick head who financed this product also wants to make obscene amounts of money. Capitalism and average citizens be damned. This man needs to own a stadium lol or be able to build a rocket ship to fly his ass to the moon when he feels like it.
One thing you're not really considering is that Samsung wasn't able to sell *very many* of that worse phone for a higher price. They were getting something out there to recoup a little R&D and see how it fared in the wild - the first Z Fold was a proof of concept really. The Moto Razr 2023 can be yours for $449, no strings attached, brand new, from Amazon right now. That there is folding screen technology for midrange prices, and the tech inside it isn't dramatically worse than you would expect for a non-folding $450 phone. The Z Fold 5 launched for $1800, but a few months later I saw it on Amazon for $1300, brand new, no strings attached. Or you could go to Samsung and get it for $600 if you had a Z Fold 3 to trade in. I think the sticker price is first and foremost to make people think they're getting a bargain when they spend $1300 on it. I wish they'd just forego the crazy deals, retail it for like $1500, maybe knock 15% off for Black Friday and the spring sale, and call it a day, but if you shop around for deals it only costs a little more than the S Ultra lineup.
Inflation ain't just for rent and groceries. We've had 20 percent inflation over 4 years. A 6 percent increase is a reduction in pricing in this reality.
The price is to high for the little ungraded they are providing. The weight is nice, but what about the battery and the same camera system for 3 years running. 😢I’m boxing up my Fold 5 and going back to iPhone 15 Pro Max as my work phone and looking at OnePlus Open as my personal phone. So long Samsung, you will be losing a few customers with this year update 😢. Also Mr. Craig great video and I live the way you keep thing real and you always give us your honest opinion on all the items you review. Thanks !!!!!
It's probably a safe-ish bet that it'll go pretty similar to the Fold 5's trade in values. At launch, those capped out at 1000, with anything but the newest falling off pretty fast - trade in a 4 and your 5 would cost $800, trade in a 3 for $1000, a 2 for $1200. At Black Friday, trade in values were more generous - $1000 off for both the 4 and 3, and other couple-year-old phones were boosted too, plus the minimum trade in value was $300 for literally any phone. You could dig a junk phone out of your drawer, send it to them, get the 25% off after, and get a Fold 5 for $1125, or trade in your Fold 3 and get it for $600.
I don't care how good phone is, cameras are, AI tech, weight, etc. The days of me spending over a thousand dollars for any phone are over. After awhile, it just becomes a phone. I'll just wait till the phone I want gets old and the price drop.
Great video after some advice please. Got 15 pro max but bored of it wanted some new so was waiting for the fold6 but now looking at s24u what do u think is it worth still waiting.
Brother I would not get the S24U. If you are dead set on getting a Samsung ultra model I would get the s23 ultra. Look up some camera reviews of the two devices. They are remarkably close. Yes the s24 ultra's camera is better but legitimately only very marginally. Instead maybe you could check out the OnePlus 12 or the Motorola edge Plus 2024 version. I think that's what I'm going to try, Or I hope that's what I'm going to try if it gets released over here. I also wonder why Huawei under like incredible pressure and global sanctions is still somehow able to make a camera better than any other company in the world. And have a better design lol their cell phones are beautiful and take the best pictures. I mean it almost seems like in this dystopian hell we call reality China somehow has a more competitive and open market lol communist China lol has a more competitive and open market than the western world. At least that's my best guess because Chinese cell phones are objectively better and cost less. The only force I am aware of that will cause companies to innovate as well as lower their prices is competition. So as less and less phones get offered in the United States. The phones that are offered are able to command a higher and higher price or innovate less and less. But when you remove any sort of restrictions or oversight this is what happens. I get the appeal of libertarianism lol but I'm pretty disappointed and pessimistic for an our future
Assuming finances aren't a concern here (which I assume they aren't if you're buying a new phone after only one year), the Fold series is a lot of fun and I love mine. I switched from an iPhone XR to a Fold 4 and love it. That said, the novelty has worn off by this point and I'm more worried by the concept of it having more points of failure than I am excited by the concept of folding glass, so I'm not currently planning on getting a fold next time. Again, folds really are fun at first, and if you have the kind of money to just throw it at "I'm bored" then the Z Fold is certainly not a boring phone. If you want reliability for years to come though, folds are not it - I wouldn't want to hold onto a fold for more than 2 years in their current state.
At this point, I think the main determining factor on whether I get a fold again or not is how good the deals are on that vs the S24 Ultra and S24 Plus. A $100 price hike does not bode well for the likelihood that I'll see Z Fold 6 deals that are acceptable. Now, if it turns out that the smaller hinge design to allow a larger cover display is real, and it turns out that the way that works is they got rid of the brushes in the hinge (a point of failure), and it turns out that they can do that because they found a way to get it IP68, and it turns out they found a way to make the screen tougher so they don't need to cover it in plastic, then sure, I'll feel more confident in its longevity and more willing to pay a premium without planning to upgrade it every couple years. I don't think it's likely for the stars to align like that though. So I'm guessing I'm getting an S24 Ultra on Black Friday.
Samsung is playing a game in a section of the market that other vendors have yet to break thru. They know this and that's why they are raising their prices even when doing very little in upgrades. I'm not surprised in this approach. Foldable phones are still in a very niche portion of the market and they are being priced a such. When a company (any company) makes it so that you can get a phone sub $300 with carrier incentives (so probably 1000 total cost without) then the foldable space will gain serious momentum.
Looks like i wait for the Z Fold 7 i guess 😅. It is so hard for me to find something that can replace my Duo. I have a S23 now for 1 year and it is ok. Very reliable not many bugs, but it is a normal boring phone. I have still the hope that the S Pen will be in the body of the fold like the S24 Ulta / Note series. But the price of the Z Fold 6 are a bit to hard for me.
Didn’t Samsung originally say that in the future that foldables will hopefully become cheaper. I remember they said that a few years ago. I might be wrong though.
Oh wait I guess I could try a Motorola or a OnePlus. What do you think about those Shane? Specifically the OnePlus 12 and the Motorola edge Plus 2024 model I think. Or maybe also the Motorola razr.
There is absolutely no hype or excitement for the fold or flip 6... Samsung has been so lazy with the 4 and 5, no one looks forward to the next generation
Shane, I don't know what these OEM's are doing. Don't know if they are trying to lose customers or gain more. I believe Apple AI will come with a price tag. Now Samsung is charging $100 more with not many upgrades. Ridiculous.....
Guess I'll keep the z fold 5 another year. Bought in December along with 15 pro. Had to trade in my 13 pro max to Samsung to get that $1000 off the fold. It all depends on the trade in values and credits as well. I got a better deal on the fold 5 in December then I did at launch. Hey got Samsung care so probably run with z5 till that runs out and we will see what ios 18 brings with 16 pro max. If that 16 pro max is 6.9 in size and able to customize like android... I can see a lot people switching back.. and holding off on buying any type of folding phone, especially for $1900-2k.
Is A.I that impressive that they can sell you the same exact phone with slightly trimmed down bezels that they can put the price at that point and justify it?
This is part of the reason I went to pixel phones and devices, although I don't like foldable phones. Samsung who I was with for over a decade is starting to be like apple (which I never liked) raising prices just to raise prices and not actually changing much. Even their new phones looks like an iPhone. If I wanted an iPhone or to be treated like apple and be overcharged for the same product every year I would go to apple. But that's the beauty of android we have so many options. I have a Xiaomi as my backup phone and have many Android phones to choose from if I don't like what a company is doing.
The pixel fold was fantastic from a hardware perspective, but the lack of customization compared to samsung was annoying, It had constant issues with Bluetooth and watches, and I had to frequently wipe my watch and reset it up. But what made me return it was the awful keyboard issues. It took me forever to type a single sentence because the keyboard would only allow one key pressed at a time. 2nd try with Google and both were buggy messes. One plus open looked really awesome, but the deals were awful and I've heard of a lot of issues with the software
Dude every Google device I have ever had has had some sort of Bluetooth issue lol. I don't know why we don't hear more about it. Websites like Tom's guide are consistently ranking it as the best Android phone available with never a whisper of the numerous software bugs. Like quality of life software bugs that make the device difficult to use. I don't know what's up with that
@Maxx134a okay you don't hsve to believe a single word. I want to love pixel so badly but my two experiences with them hsve been riddled with bugs. I'm gonna give a few more years before I give them one last try. I'm really sick of giving samsung my money when all they do is iterate and not innovate, but they're my best option for what I want
They'll always want to nudge the price up. How many people really pay that list price? Samsung always offers some kind of trade-in, promo, upgrade, fathers' day, you showed an interest in, etc deal. I still get at least two emails a day with offers when I haven't owned a newer Samsung than the S22. OnePlus looks way more interesting to me, when my no-phone Surface Duo 1 dies.
I just don't understand the persistent focus on the price by the TH-cam community when an iPhone 15 pro Max starts at $1,200 and can go up to $1,600. The foldable device offers more flexibility, functionality and a better experience in my opinion. And I feel that it's comparably priced. Now is it too expensive overall? Arguable but that's where we're at in the market in general. I'm driving a day one ZF 5 and was it easy to buy and justify the cost, no. But at the same time do I love it and enjoy it every single day, absolutely.
That price is nuts, but I'm not surprised. If they don't have a good trade-in, then I'm going to stick with my fold5. It's such a good phone that even with a good trade-in, I'm kind of crazy for making the jump to the 6. It only has mediocre upgrades from the 5.
Looks like I'll be shopping the Pixel Fold 9 pro mega man ultra. Or whatever it'll be finally called. I love this Fold 5, but I just can't settle on picture quality. I'm at the point of wanting to buy a point and shoot camera for pictures, but don't want to carry 2 devices. Plus, decent cameras have gotten so expensive. I need zoom for sporting events, and the S23U takes phenomenal photos, so if the Pixel Fold has good zooming capabilities, I'll be leaving Samsung. As a side note, I recently compared pictures from an old S10e sitting in a drawer with pics from my Fold 5, and 90% of the time, the pictures from the S10e looked better to me, which is really sad. But the good news is that T-Mobile is running a special. My S10e was technically only worth $20 trade-in. But they gave me a Pixel 8 Pro for FREE for the promotion! So for now, I have a Pixel 8 Pro and a Fold 5. I'll test the Pixel camera for the next few months, and if I'm happy with it, Pixel Fold 2 HERE I COME.
Keep an eye out for Black Friday prices, last year you could trade in literally any phone so long as it could turn on and get the Fold 5 for $1125. Newer phones of course would give you more credit, if you had the then-2-year-old Fold 3 you could get the 5 for $600
I think folds are freaking neat but the price was already way beyond what I’m willing to pay for a phone. That’s just me, I’m not knocking anyone that does buy them.
I went from the F4 to the S24 Ultra but I miss the fold. Samsung digging their heels here makes me feel almost guilty for keeping the S24U now. Such a bitter taste after seeing what this company is becomming...
I think this price increase is misdirection, everyone was expecting a price fall so a fake rumour of a price increase will soften the blow for when the price stays exactly the same. Then rather than wonder why the price hasn’t reduced everyone will instead will be saying that’s a relief as we’d expected an increase. It’s marketing BS, but people will fall for it and be very happy paying over the odds for this device as they have been for years.
I feel like the fold 6 is following apples footsteps sadly. Slap a new processor give it a new number and change the round chassis to square. Somehow thats new and ground breaking....go figure 😒😒
I just cannot see how Samsung can justify a price hike when Google and OnePlus regularly have sales with their foldables ranging in around $1,00 to 1,400.
I smell a double cash grab coming. Not only the raising prices of the fold, they gunna give you less for trade in too. Just watch. I’ve given up on foldables. Just using my S24U and Tab S9 Ultra for next 5 years 😂
Samsung should make Bixby to be powdered by Gemini nano or Chatgpt instead of throwing it away.They should Learn something from how apple innovated Siri.I hope S25 ultra will bring Bixby to life like Siri
Exactly .... when will their Fold get better ...How can Samsung be so arrogant... I expected at least a better battery for fold6 ( because then I would have bought it)... . Everyone who needs a top AI smartphone will wait for Iphone 16 or S25 ... and everyone who would want a foldable will go for new Pixel fold 2 or Honor. I suppose even the flip 6 will have a better performance regarding battery than the Fold 6 . Samsung has still a little bit of time ... but on the day Apple will build a foldable iphone with an AI superprozessor folable Samsung phones will be history and Google and chinese companies will dominate the market Samsung started ... haven't they learnt from history ( Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Motorola, Siemens) at Samsung HQ
I guess we now know why Samsung had that emergency decision to have everyone working double time last month. Management probably saw this garbage and knew they better get them going. Honestly, this is pathetic from Samsung. It's almost as if they are intentionally sabotaging this device.
Get a regular phone and a tablet. Both will be better than the two in one. Front screen on s24 ultra is way lighter. Screen on s9 is way bigger! It’s a no brainer. They will both outlive that bendable screen by several years to boot.
I hope this bites him in the butt! They deserve to fail miserably! I hope the pixel fold takes note and lowers their price and really hammers it home 😂
Do not buy the fold 6!!! Please ... especially if your a Z Fold owner .. Samsung has to know this ain't right ..as a proud owner of a Fold 3. Samsung is dragging thier feet . Especially here in the States cuz they knows theirs hardly any competition...it's not right ..
Is it just me or does it seem like Samsung hit the self-destruct button somewhere around 2021 have they done anything new since then? Have they pushed the boundaries in any way? I don't even think they've changed the look of their devices since then lol what in the actual fuck. And of course I have the unfortunate privilege of living in the United States so my options are Samsung Google or Apple. I'm not going to buy it an apple because I'm not a douchebag, lol jkjk kind of. And I'm not going to buy a Samsung because I already owned the s21 ultra and the s23 ultra. I'm not going to buy another exact duplicate. I mean the S24 doesn't even take better pictures than my s23. And I'm not going to buy a pixel because I don't trust them. I don't trust Google's customer support, both of my experiences owning Pixel devices were terrible. The software was complete trash. I 100% mean this literally, I had more bugs on Google's out of the box software with both the Pixel 6 and 7 pro models then I have with any one UI beta software. So I'm not really sure what phone I'm going to buy lol I sure wish LG was still around
Samsung is out of its mind. Those prices are WAY out of range. The quality of the device is irrelevant if NOBODY CAN BUY IT. OnePlus will crush them if they don't get their heads out of their asses.
It's important to talk about who "they" are and what the full story was though. Last year, dealabs reported a €1,899 price for the Z Fold 5 and people extrapolated that to mean the price would be $1,899 in the US. The report was correct, the extrapolation was wrong. That's my recollection anyway. OnLeaks reporting this is very different.
That's kinda their gameplan right. Be an early adopter to get the latest for half price every year by trading in, vs waiting and your phone value going down, but you're not stuck in the endless loop
Hi Shane I’ve been watching u for a while and the blue light behind u what does it say please I can’t make it out 😅 please get back to me. I think it say scary if literal but I’m not %100. Keep being a nerd. lol
Scaryifliteral! That's actually what the channel name was for a long time. I've slowly shifted away from that branding over the years, but relics still remain.
They are mad if they think that price increase is ok, with cameras that already have been 3 years old and were bad from beginning...
Galaxy Z-unFold Your Wallet 6 Times
The Oneplus Open got it right. It even has an IR blaster which i use to control my AC. Samsung is just ripping off customers at this point with its lack of significant upgrades.
$100 extra for thinner bezels and cameras that haven't changed in 3 years. That's not okay. My ZF4 doesn't take as good of pictures as my s21 did. The fact that the shortcoming won't be changing and they're still gonna hike the price!? They've lost their minds. They best change this on the ZF7 or they'll lose me.
Lolol brother they should have already lost you. Like what a shit company. Don't give them another excuse. Join me as we vote with our wallets and tell Samsung we're tired of this bullshit. Have owned the Note 9 the s10e and the S20,21,and 23 ultra models. As well as various other Samsung tag. But from the s21 and really even from the S20 things have just barely changed. We're talking one camera sensor that went from 108 to 200 megapixels and now most recently another camera sensor that went from 10 times optical zoom 10 megapixels to five times and then I think 50. A slight design change from the S20 to the s21 plus the inclusion of the s pen in the phone's body. And a brighter screen. That's it in 5 years lol that is absolutely fucking ridiculous. They must think we're stupid like legitimately. They just sort of I don't know magically wave their hand over the phone and say voila a new phone pay me another $1,300 lol. I think not fool me once shame on you fool me twice shame on me fool me three times fool me shame oh ah er... Umm.. you won't can't fool me fourth time.
Pixel Fold can REALLY corner the market now in the US if Google plays their cards right.
I've used Samsung for so many years now, I would say I'm a fan. I hope Samsung loses all the foldable phone market share this year.
If they made more of the improvements we wanted, I'd be fine with an extra $100, but man it's a tough pill to swallow that they are increasing the price while not adding a whole lot
Price is a big factor but without the ultra camera and built in S pen it will be a hard sale unless they offer great a trade in.
Absolutely disgraceful from Samsung. Price increase and no innovation at all. Hope their foldables crash and burn. As soon as the Open 2 is released, I'm trading in my Fold 5. Enough is enough.
One plus isn't until next year. Maybe the Google fold. Else I'm keeping the 5.
I have my hopes set that this will actually be the Ultra variant that supposedly isn't coming. It makes no sense to raise the price of old technology. Like you said, other than 3mm on the front screen, and a different hinge thats already on the fold 5, it hasnt changed in 3 years.
Don't think that makes very much sense. What would be ultra about it? I think a better guess would be whatever extra tech they were going to add to this supposed update they instead decided to save for the ultra model while still releasing this model at its original price point.
With the lack of new hardware and now price hike looks like my focus will be Google or OnePlus. Currently have OnePlus Open (edc) and a Fold 4 (backup) for trade in.
Be thankful you are not paying Australian prices😂 , our dollar is worth dirt and everything is pricey , i saw a z fold 5 for over 3k , a Z fold 4 for 2.5 k , but its not a shock here to see any flagship phone in 2k region , although the pixel 8 pro currently is on special at one of our big stores like your best buy , for 1000 bucks , its rrp in australia is 1600 , so yeah , thats a decent price even for oz .
Samsung going up another 100 bucks is just crazy , they are pricing themselves out of the market , some stores here do not even stock the Zfold 5 because no one wants the expensive bugger , it is put an order in only .
It's the same in NZ, and we don't get a lot of the phones, like the Google Pixel Fold here. I paid over $2K for my One Plus, and I love it, but it will be a few years before I think of replacing that. My Pixel Fold I bought from ebay in the States, because that worked out cheaper than buying from middlemen here ($3K - $4K!!!), and likewise, I love it, and am not likely to upgrade at all this year. I am so over the Samsung Folds - they are milking their market share and it's not okay. I hope people take their wallets and invest in something else.
Did you hear that BANG!! That was Sammy shooting himself in the foot. They should fire their strategy team. 😢
When folds first dropped everyone talked about how it’s new tech and as it gets better and they find better ways to produce them the price of them will start coming down to something a little more reasonable. I told people they were crazy. If Samsung was able to sell a worse version for that much why would they drop the price of a better improved version. This price will continue to go up every 2 or so years by $100 until suddenly we are $500-$600 more than we started at.
To be fair, we have seen companies produce cheaper foldables. Samsung is sort of sticking with the same tier of product, and the price going up isn't super shocking. We've also heard that they've experimented with a cheaper variant. That's more what people were talking about, not necessarily that the main line Z Fold would get cheaper, but that there would be a cheaper variant, which does seem to be potentially happening.
Hey brother that is the lie of capitalism lol Rich people surprisingly enough stay rich. They do that by continually fucking us normal people. You know prices increased during COVID during the pandemic. Because it was more expensive to produce things during the pandemic. But as these restrictions released and the pandemic went from a boil to a sort of simmer in the background the cost of manufacturing products came back down. But surprise surprise our cost of purchasing these products did not come back down. This is absolutely what is driving inflation. It's just more rich dick heads who are arrogant and greedy. I'm legitimately sick of it and I'm about ready to start the revolution. The price is a foldables are not coming down unless a disruptive force comes into the market, as a similar or better product offered at a significantly lower cost. Then in order to compete and stay relevant Samsung would have to find a way to lower their prices. That's how capitalism would function in theory. In reality this new product is being designed to enter the market at a similar price point With the idea that hopefully it will be slightly more attractive, based on its hardware or aesthetics. Because the rich dick head who financed this product also wants to make obscene amounts of money. Capitalism and average citizens be damned. This man needs to own a stadium lol or be able to build a rocket ship to fly his ass to the moon when he feels like it.
One thing you're not really considering is that Samsung wasn't able to sell *very many* of that worse phone for a higher price. They were getting something out there to recoup a little R&D and see how it fared in the wild - the first Z Fold was a proof of concept really.
The Moto Razr 2023 can be yours for $449, no strings attached, brand new, from Amazon right now. That there is folding screen technology for midrange prices, and the tech inside it isn't dramatically worse than you would expect for a non-folding $450 phone.
The Z Fold 5 launched for $1800, but a few months later I saw it on Amazon for $1300, brand new, no strings attached. Or you could go to Samsung and get it for $600 if you had a Z Fold 3 to trade in.
I think the sticker price is first and foremost to make people think they're getting a bargain when they spend $1300 on it. I wish they'd just forego the crazy deals, retail it for like $1500, maybe knock 15% off for Black Friday and the spring sale, and call it a day, but if you shop around for deals it only costs a little more than the S Ultra lineup.
Inflation ain't just for rent and groceries. We've had 20 percent inflation over 4 years. A 6 percent increase is a reduction in pricing in this reality.
The price is to high for the little ungraded they are providing. The weight is nice, but what about the battery and the same camera system for 3 years running. 😢I’m boxing up my Fold 5 and going back to iPhone 15 Pro Max as my work phone and looking at OnePlus Open as my personal phone. So long Samsung, you will be losing a few customers with this year update 😢. Also Mr. Craig great video and I live the way you keep thing real and you always give us your honest opinion on all the items you review. Thanks !!!!!
Shane, any professional guess on trade in values?
It's probably a safe-ish bet that it'll go pretty similar to the Fold 5's trade in values.
At launch, those capped out at 1000, with anything but the newest falling off pretty fast - trade in a 4 and your 5 would cost $800, trade in a 3 for $1000, a 2 for $1200.
At Black Friday, trade in values were more generous - $1000 off for both the 4 and 3, and other couple-year-old phones were boosted too, plus the minimum trade in value was $300 for literally any phone. You could dig a junk phone out of your drawer, send it to them, get the 25% off after, and get a Fold 5 for $1125, or trade in your Fold 3 and get it for $600.
I don't care how good phone is, cameras are, AI tech, weight, etc. The days of me spending over a thousand dollars for any phone are over. After awhile, it just becomes a phone. I'll just wait till the phone I want gets old and the price drop.
It would be easier to except if we could write on the outter display
Great video after some advice please. Got 15 pro max but bored of it wanted some new so was waiting for the fold6 but now looking at s24u what do u think is it worth still waiting.
Brother I would not get the S24U. If you are dead set on getting a Samsung ultra model I would get the s23 ultra. Look up some camera reviews of the two devices. They are remarkably close. Yes the s24 ultra's camera is better but legitimately only very marginally. Instead maybe you could check out the OnePlus 12 or the Motorola edge Plus 2024 version. I think that's what I'm going to try, Or I hope that's what I'm going to try if it gets released over here. I also wonder why Huawei under like incredible pressure and global sanctions is still somehow able to make a camera better than any other company in the world. And have a better design lol their cell phones are beautiful and take the best pictures. I mean it almost seems like in this dystopian hell we call reality China somehow has a more competitive and open market lol communist China lol has a more competitive and open market than the western world. At least that's my best guess because Chinese cell phones are objectively better and cost less. The only force I am aware of that will cause companies to innovate as well as lower their prices is competition. So as less and less phones get offered in the United States. The phones that are offered are able to command a higher and higher price or innovate less and less. But when you remove any sort of restrictions or oversight this is what happens. I get the appeal of libertarianism lol but I'm pretty disappointed and pessimistic for an our future
Assuming finances aren't a concern here (which I assume they aren't if you're buying a new phone after only one year), the Fold series is a lot of fun and I love mine. I switched from an iPhone XR to a Fold 4 and love it.
That said, the novelty has worn off by this point and I'm more worried by the concept of it having more points of failure than I am excited by the concept of folding glass, so I'm not currently planning on getting a fold next time.
Again, folds really are fun at first, and if you have the kind of money to just throw it at "I'm bored" then the Z Fold is certainly not a boring phone. If you want reliability for years to come though, folds are not it - I wouldn't want to hold onto a fold for more than 2 years in their current state.
At this point, I think the main determining factor on whether I get a fold again or not is how good the deals are on that vs the S24 Ultra and S24 Plus. A $100 price hike does not bode well for the likelihood that I'll see Z Fold 6 deals that are acceptable.
Now, if it turns out that the smaller hinge design to allow a larger cover display is real, and it turns out that the way that works is they got rid of the brushes in the hinge (a point of failure), and it turns out that they can do that because they found a way to get it IP68, and it turns out they found a way to make the screen tougher so they don't need to cover it in plastic, then sure, I'll feel more confident in its longevity and more willing to pay a premium without planning to upgrade it every couple years.
I don't think it's likely for the stars to align like that though. So I'm guessing I'm getting an S24 Ultra on Black Friday.
That would be a big no for me as I would be getting the 512GB size. Not to mention the improvements are minimal at best AFAWK
Samsung is playing a game in a section of the market that other vendors have yet to break thru. They know this and that's why they are raising their prices even when doing very little in upgrades. I'm not surprised in this approach.
Foldable phones are still in a very niche portion of the market and they are being priced a such. When a company (any company) makes it so that you can get a phone sub $300 with carrier incentives (so probably 1000 total cost without) then the foldable space will gain serious momentum.
Looks like i wait for the Z Fold 7 i guess 😅. It is so hard for me to find something that can replace my Duo. I have a S23 now for 1 year and it is ok. Very reliable not many bugs, but it is a normal boring phone. I have still the hope that the S Pen will be in the body of the fold like the S24 Ulta / Note series. But the price of the Z Fold 6 are a bit to hard for me.
In today's age, I can't imagine new products being released that are cheaper than the previous iteration.
Didn’t Samsung originally say that in the future that foldables will hopefully become cheaper. I remember they said that a few years ago. I might be wrong though.
Oh wait I guess I could try a Motorola or a OnePlus. What do you think about those Shane? Specifically the OnePlus 12 and the Motorola edge Plus 2024 model I think. Or maybe also the Motorola razr.
I think you are pretty good at assuming things Weird Al Yankovic 😂 actually really good!
Screenshot worthy comment
Samsung galaxy S 24 ultra was $100 so I knew the Z-fold is gonna be a lot more expensive because it is going up by 1800
There is absolutely no hype or excitement for the fold or flip 6... Samsung has been so lazy with the 4 and 5, no one looks forward to the next generation
Shane, I don't know what these OEM's are doing. Don't know if they are trying to lose customers or gain more. I believe Apple AI will come with a price tag. Now Samsung is charging $100 more with not many upgrades. Ridiculous.....
These prices will be extra joke if the screen size and ratio is the same as before...same crease there, and still no s pen support on front screen!
@@Maxx134a yeh enough is enough ...
I had a z fold five I also had the OnePlus open I don't know I traded them both in I'm solidly happy with my s24 ultra
Guess I'll keep the z fold 5 another year. Bought in December along with 15 pro. Had to trade in my 13 pro max to Samsung to get that $1000 off the fold. It all depends on the trade in values and credits as well. I got a better deal on the fold 5 in December then I did at launch. Hey got Samsung care so probably run with z5 till that runs out and we will see what ios 18 brings with 16 pro max. If that 16 pro max is 6.9 in size and able to customize like android... I can see a lot people switching back.. and holding off on buying any type of folding phone, especially for $1900-2k.
Is A.I that impressive that they can sell you the same exact phone with slightly trimmed down bezels that they can put the price at that point and justify it?
This is part of the reason I went to pixel phones and devices, although I don't like foldable phones. Samsung who I was with for over a decade is starting to be like apple (which I never liked) raising prices just to raise prices and not actually changing much. Even their new phones looks like an iPhone. If I wanted an iPhone or to be treated like apple and be overcharged for the same product every year I would go to apple.
But that's the beauty of android we have so many options. I have a Xiaomi as my backup phone and have many Android phones to choose from if I don't like what a company is doing.
The pixel fold was fantastic from a hardware perspective, but the lack of customization compared to samsung was annoying, It had constant issues with Bluetooth and watches, and I had to frequently wipe my watch and reset it up. But what made me return it was the awful keyboard issues. It took me forever to type a single sentence because the keyboard would only allow one key pressed at a time. 2nd try with Google and both were buggy messes. One plus open looked really awesome, but the deals were awful and I've heard of a lot of issues with the software
Dude every Google device I have ever had has had some sort of Bluetooth issue lol. I don't know why we don't hear more about it. Websites like Tom's guide are consistently ranking it as the best Android phone available with never a whisper of the numerous software bugs. Like quality of life software bugs that make the device difficult to use. I don't know what's up with that
@Maxx134a okay you don't hsve to believe a single word. I want to love pixel so badly but my two experiences with them hsve been riddled with bugs. I'm gonna give a few more years before I give them one last try. I'm really sick of giving samsung my money when all they do is iterate and not innovate, but they're my best option for what I want
@@kylehughes1619 the issue with Google is that it's such a fucking coin flip. Some people gave no issues, others can't even use their phones
They'll always want to nudge the price up. How many people really pay that list price? Samsung always offers some kind of trade-in, promo, upgrade, fathers' day, you showed an interest in, etc deal. I still get at least two emails a day with offers when I haven't owned a newer Samsung than the S22. OnePlus looks way more interesting to me, when my no-phone Surface Duo 1 dies.
If not good cameras than Pixel 9 Pro XL in October
I just don't understand the persistent focus on the price by the TH-cam community when an iPhone 15 pro Max starts at $1,200 and can go up to $1,600. The foldable device offers more flexibility, functionality and a better experience in my opinion. And I feel that it's comparably priced. Now is it too expensive overall? Arguable but that's where we're at in the market in general. I'm driving a day one ZF 5 and was it easy to buy and justify the cost, no. But at the same time do I love it and enjoy it every single day, absolutely.
That price is nuts, but I'm not surprised. If they don't have a good trade-in, then I'm going to stick with my fold5. It's such a good phone that even with a good trade-in, I'm kind of crazy for making the jump to the 6. It only has mediocre upgrades from the 5.
Looks like I'll be shopping the Pixel Fold 9 pro mega man ultra. Or whatever it'll be finally called. I love this Fold 5, but I just can't settle on picture quality. I'm at the point of wanting to buy a point and shoot camera for pictures, but don't want to carry 2 devices. Plus, decent cameras have gotten so expensive. I need zoom for sporting events, and the S23U takes phenomenal photos, so if the Pixel Fold has good zooming capabilities, I'll be leaving Samsung.
As a side note, I recently compared pictures from an old S10e sitting in a drawer with pics from my Fold 5, and 90% of the time, the pictures from the S10e looked better to me, which is really sad. But the good news is that T-Mobile is running a special. My S10e was technically only worth $20 trade-in. But they gave me a Pixel 8 Pro for FREE for the promotion! So for now, I have a Pixel 8 Pro and a Fold 5. I'll test the Pixel camera for the next few months, and if I'm happy with it, Pixel Fold 2 HERE I COME.
It's about time we get a navy blue Galaxy phone. Hopefully we get a darker blue color on the S25 as well.
I was considering on getting this but with it’s prices I just can’t justify it
Keep an eye out for Black Friday prices, last year you could trade in literally any phone so long as it could turn on and get the Fold 5 for $1125. Newer phones of course would give you more credit, if you had the then-2-year-old Fold 3 you could get the 5 for $600
I think folds are freaking neat but the price was already way beyond what I’m willing to pay for a phone. That’s just me, I’m not knocking anyone that does buy them.
You can't raise your price with the same specs ish from last year. This has to be wrong
I went from the F4 to the S24 Ultra but I miss the fold.
Samsung digging their heels here makes me feel almost guilty for keeping the S24U now. Such a bitter taste after seeing what this company is becomming...
This is really bad. If the actual internals were a sea change I would understand but it isn't it's a slight update
Oh boy, will this phone not sell well...
Looks like if you stick a new skin on Z Fold 5, you will have the same functionalities and the same feeling of novelty but for a peanut...
The thing I'm least interested in is AI on my phone. So I'm sad that it appears to be the main selling point these phone manufacturers are pushing.
I think this price increase is misdirection, everyone was expecting a price fall so a fake rumour of a price increase will soften the blow for when the price stays exactly the same. Then rather than wonder why the price hasn’t reduced everyone will instead will be saying that’s a relief as we’d expected an increase. It’s marketing BS, but people will fall for it and be very happy paying over the odds for this device as they have been for years.
I feel like the fold 6 is following apples footsteps sadly. Slap a new processor give it a new number and change the round chassis to square. Somehow thats new and ground breaking....go figure 😒😒
I just cannot see how Samsung can justify a price hike when Google and OnePlus regularly have sales with their foldables ranging in around $1,00 to 1,400.
I smell a double cash grab coming. Not only the raising prices of the fold, they gunna give you less for trade in too. Just watch. I’ve given up on foldables. Just using my S24U and Tab S9 Ultra for next 5 years 😂
Just imagine how much the Z Fold Ultra will be ... Yikes
It's not even called Ultra, from what I've seen It's called "Z Fold 6 slim" and drops s pen support. Everything is the same except thinner.
It’s never going to go down with inflation …. remember the first 1000 dollar phone
At least inflation is back down to fairly normal levels... Greedflation is the real problem 😂
I called it as soon as the S24 released with an increased price.
Need an S pen slot
Samsung should make Bixby to be powdered by Gemini nano or Chatgpt instead of throwing it away.They should Learn something from how apple innovated Siri.I hope S25 ultra will bring Bixby to life like Siri
I am not waiting another year to upgrade my z fold 4. This is a big disappointment, so I will just go with open 2, pixel fold 2 or vivo x fold 3
vivo 3 fold is a beast
And this price increase isn't even from a supposed titanium frame.
if i was easrning US dollars, it wouldnt be a problem but being in NZ you can double that price 😂
Samsung Knight here. Hell no. Skip. 😂
Same cameras it's definitely Not worth $1800
Exactly .... when will their Fold get better ...How can Samsung be so arrogant... I expected at least a better battery for fold6 ( because then I would have bought it)... . Everyone who needs a top AI smartphone will wait for Iphone 16 or S25 ... and everyone who would want a foldable will go for new Pixel fold 2 or Honor. I suppose even the flip 6 will have a better performance regarding battery than the Fold 6 .
Samsung has still a little bit of time ... but on the day Apple will build a foldable iphone with an AI superprozessor folable Samsung phones will be history and Google and chinese companies will dominate the market Samsung started ... haven't they learnt from history ( Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Motorola, Siemens) at Samsung HQ
I guess we now know why Samsung had that emergency decision to have everyone working double time last month. Management probably saw this garbage and knew they better get them going. Honestly, this is pathetic from Samsung. It's almost as if they are intentionally sabotaging this device.
Get a regular phone and a tablet. Both will be better than the two in one. Front screen on s24 ultra is way lighter. Screen on s9 is way bigger! It’s a no brainer. They will both outlive that bendable screen by several years to boot.
Tablets don't fold up and go in my pocket. They also don't offer the same continuity that a phone that transforms into a tablet does.
More expensive for a very little tiny upgrade. Makes no sense.
I hope this bites him in the butt! They deserve to fail miserably! I hope the pixel fold takes note and lowers their price and really hammers it home 😂
Do not buy the fold 6!!! Please ... especially if your a Z Fold owner .. Samsung has to know this ain't right ..as a proud owner of a Fold 3. Samsung is dragging thier feet . Especially here in the States cuz they knows theirs hardly any competition...it's not right ..
$2k for a foldable that's still hardware-wise not even on par with the Chinese foldables.
Is it just me or does it seem like Samsung hit the self-destruct button somewhere around 2021 have they done anything new since then? Have they pushed the boundaries in any way? I don't even think they've changed the look of their devices since then lol what in the actual fuck. And of course I have the unfortunate privilege of living in the United States so my options are Samsung Google or Apple. I'm not going to buy it an apple because I'm not a douchebag, lol jkjk kind of. And I'm not going to buy a Samsung because I already owned the s21 ultra and the s23 ultra. I'm not going to buy another exact duplicate. I mean the S24 doesn't even take better pictures than my s23. And I'm not going to buy a pixel because I don't trust them. I don't trust Google's customer support, both of my experiences owning Pixel devices were terrible. The software was complete trash. I 100% mean this literally, I had more bugs on Google's out of the box software with both the Pixel 6 and 7 pro models then I have with any one UI beta software. So I'm not really sure what phone I'm going to buy lol I sure wish LG was still around
Samsung is out of its mind. Those prices are WAY out of range. The quality of the device is irrelevant if NOBODY CAN BUY IT. OnePlus will crush them if they don't get their heads out of their asses.
Pretty soon we'll need to take out a loan to purchase phone's. Smh
I'm still paying on my Pixel Fold.. lol
Yeah... I'll be sticking with OnePlus.
They said the exact same thing last year and then never happened
It's important to talk about who "they" are and what the full story was though. Last year, dealabs reported a €1,899 price for the Z Fold 5 and people extrapolated that to mean the price would be $1,899 in the US. The report was correct, the extrapolation was wrong.
That's my recollection anyway. OnLeaks reporting this is very different.
Samsung's trade in value will hopefully soften the blow.
Very true
That's kinda their gameplan right. Be an early adopter to get the latest for half price every year by trading in, vs waiting and your phone value going down, but you're not stuck in the endless loop
Hundred dollars is $100 I'm like 50/50 now
🤔More money for less phone! No Thanks!!!
Your paying $100 extra for AI. If we actually got better cameras and bigger displays, it would cost at least $2,000
No gen 4, no real improvements in terms of front screen… pass, I’ll see ultra maybe
Hi Shane I’ve been watching u for a while and the blue light behind u what does it say please I can’t make it out 😅 please get back to me. I think it say scary if literal but I’m not %100. Keep being a nerd. lol
Scaryifliteral! That's actually what the channel name was for a long time. I've slowly shifted away from that branding over the years, but relics still remain.
@@shanecraigtech nice one. Keep going bro
Samsung continues to rob their users 😂😂😂
😆😆😆😆😆😆😆😆 SMH
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