One of the most anticipated devices of the year, the Samsung Galaxy Z TriFold has been officially announced, and it introduces a completely new form factor in the company’s foldable lineup. It’s a device that finally answers the decade-long question: what if your phone could fold not once, but twice? On the other hand, the Galaxy Z Fold 7 continues as Samsung’s mainstream flagship foldable, the one users can actually buy today. With India missing from the first wave of TriFold launch markets, and the phone rumoured to cost around $2,500 (roughly Rs 2.25 lakh), there’s naturally a lot of curiosity about how these two devices compare and what the Galaxy Z TriFold really means for the future of ultra-premium foldables.
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The Galaxy Z TriFold is Samsung’s boldest experiment yet. It’s a triple-folding smartphone that opens into a full 10-inch display, essentially giving you the screen real estate of a tablet while still folding down into something that fits in your pocket. Built on Samsung’s decade-long experience with foldables, this device uses an inward-folding mechanism, reinforced hinge architecture, new display materials and an incredibly slim 3.9 mm profile when unfolded.
Digit was the first to report back in July that Samsung would unveil a tri-folding phone this year, and now that it’s official, the details show just how much engineering has gone into making this design practical. Samsung has introduced two differently sized Armor FlexHinges with a dual-rail structure to keep the folding action smooth. There’s also a shock-absorbing display layer, a titanium hinge housing, and a ceramic-glass fibre back to keep everything rigid yet portable.
While the Galaxy Z TriFold steals headlines, the Galaxy Z Fold 7 remains Samsung’s mainstream premium foldable and the one that represents what most users will experience in the real world. Seven generations down, it is thinner and lighter than ever, at just 8.9 mm when folded and 4.2 mm when open, with a very manageable 215 g weight.
The Galaxy Z Fold 7 features an 8-inch AMOLED internal display, a 6.5-inch AMOLED cover screen, the Snapdragon 8 Elite processor, up to 16 GB RAM, 1 TB storage and a 4,400 mAh battery. The cameras follow Samsung’s familiar flagship template: a 200MP primary sensor, 10MP telephoto, 12MP ultra-wide and dual 10MP selfie cameras on both the inner and outer screens.
Where the Fold 7 excels is refinement: better and brighter displays (up to 2,600 nits), Gorilla Glass Armor on the cover, improved durability and 7 years of software support with One UI 8 atop Android 16. It’s the device meant for real-world use, and right now, it’s the best foldable Samsung sells in India.
Comparing a tri-folding phone with a traditional book-style foldable is not straightforward, simply because they’re designed for very different use cases. Still, looking at the specs gives us a fair sense of how Samsung is positioning these devices.
Display size and flexibility
The biggest difference is the screen. The Galaxy Z TriFold offers a massive 10-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X main display. Think of it as three smartphone screens’ worth of space. This should allow for true multi-window productivity, with room for up to three portrait apps side by side, and a desktop-like layout when using Samsung DeX.
The Galaxy Z Fold 7, on the other hand, keeps things simple with its familiar 8-inch inner display. It’s great for everyday stuff like reading, watching videos or getting through your social feeds, and it still feels like the classic book-style foldable people are used to. But if you’re someone who wants serious space to work across multiple apps at once, the TriFold clearly offers a lot more room to breathe.
Power and performance
Since both devices are powered by the Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset, we can expect the real-world performance to be similar in day-to-day use. But the Galaxy Z TriFold’s large screen should give it an advantage for AI-heavy tasks, multi-window workflows and DeX usage.
Memory options remain stellar on both. While the Galaxy Z TriFold features 16 GB RAM paired with either 512 GB or 1 TB storage, the Galaxy Z Fold 7 also comes in up to 16 GB RAM and 1 TB storage options.
Camera
Surprisingly, both foldable phones feature the same 200MP primary rear camera. The Galaxy Z TriFold also includes a 12MP ultra-wide and 10MP telephoto with 3x optical zoom. This means that camera performance between the two should be comparable, though the Galaxy Z Fold 7 may benefit from being a more standard form factor that aligns with Samsung’s typical flagship camera tuning.
Battery and charging
This is where the Galaxy Z TriFold stands out. Samsung uses a three-cell 5,600 mAh battery, the largest ever in a Samsung foldable, to keep the 10-inch display powered. Fast charging at 45W should also make a big difference for a device this big.
On the other hand, the Galaxy Z Fold 7’s 4,400 mAh battery is respectable, but clearly prioritises portability and weight over capacity.
AI, productivity and the future of foldables
Samsung is very clearly positioning the Galaxy Z TriFold as its most advanced mobile AI device. The larger display should make Galaxy AI features such as Photo Assist, Generative Edit, Sketch to Image, and Browsing Assist more immersive. Gemini Live could also benefit from the extra screen area, allowing real-time AI suggestions based on what you’re looking at on screen or through the camera.
The Galaxy Z Fold 7 also supports all the same Galaxy AI features, but isn’t designed for the kind of three-app workspace flow that the TriFold enables. DeX is also more powerful on the TriFold, with up to four workspaces that can each run five apps simultaneously.
From the looks, if you have been really wanting a productivity-first smartphone that truly blends tablet-like functionality with AI tools, the Galaxy Z TriFold is the more futuristic option.
One of the most important points for Indian readers is that the Galaxy Z TriFold is not launching in India, at least for now. Samsung has confirmed that the Galaxy Z TriFold is expected to be available for purchase in Korea on 12 December 2025, followed by other markets including China, Taiwan, Singapore, the UAE and the U.S. India is not on the list.
This is surprising because India is one of Samsung’s key premium markets and one of the world’s fastest-growing foldable segments. The Galaxy Z Fold 7, meanwhile, is available for purchase in India at a starting price of Rs 1,74,999.
Digit’s July story highlighted that Samsung was preparing a tri-fold device for this year, so the absence of India in the first wave is especially noteworthy. It could be due to supply constraints, yield challenges, or Samsung wanting to limit initial availability until the production scale improves.
As for pricing, the Galaxy Z TriFold is rumoured to cost around $2,500 (roughly Rs 2.25 lakh). Should it eventually launch in India, the pricing will likely be adjusted for local taxes and positioning. Samsung may explore a slightly different price strategy depending on how the market responds.
In the real world, these two devices serve very different kinds of users. The Galaxy Z Fold 7 is ideal for someone who wants a refined, practical, and premium foldable phone today. It’s lighter, more durable, easier to use with one hand, and backed by 7 years of Android updates.
On the other hand, the Galaxy Z TriFold is a device for early adopters who want a multitasking powerhouse. It’s for creators, designers, or users who genuinely benefit from a screen that behaves like a mini laptop. But it’s also a first-generation product, and given its complexity, it will likely be more niche and premium than any Fold or Flip we’ve seen so far.
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