Traditional Vs Fold And Flip Phones: What To Consider

If you’re happy with your slab-style smartphone, you might be wondering what all the fuss is about with fold or flip phones. After all, slab-style smartphones have advanced so much that most of them do everything needed of them perfectly well.

But fold or flip phones are all about possibilities. Folding phones can do everything you can do with a regular phone, but you can also unfold it and use it as a small tablet. With a flip phone, the opposite is true: it offers all the benefits of a regular-sized phone, and it can also be flipped closed and used at half its size, making it the most portable phone on the market.

As fold and flip phones seem to be the next big thing in the smartphone market, it’s worth taking a closer look and seeing the pros and cons of each. So here’s what to consider when deciding between a traditional phone, a flip phone, or a fold phone.

The look of it

If you care about how your phone looks and you see it as an extension of your style, the flip phone is hard to beat. These neat little phones fit easily into any pocket and when you whip them out to use them, they immediately draw attention. The same could be said for the foldable phone as they’re instantly recognisable as something different, but they’re more about functionality than fashion.

Durability

Traditional phones win out when it comes to the durability of the main display. A screen protector on your slab-style phone ensures you’re as protected as you can be, but with the flip phone and the foldable phone there’s extra sensitivity because of the hinges. Foldable phones also require thinner glass on the display in order to fold. This makes them more prone to cracks and scratches, and they don’t come with the same level of dust resistance. So both the flip phone and the foldable phone don’t hold up as well as the traditional phone when it comes to repeated dropping – which, let’s face it, we all do.

The battery performance

Traditional phones have varying battery life depending on the model, and there’s not a vast amount of difference in times between the different brands. The flip phone tends to last as long as slab-style phones. However, the foldable phone has a larger fold-out screen, which generally eats away at battery quicker. That means some of the larger fold phones struggle to make it through the day without needing a quick recharge. Samsung has made major improvements in battery-conserving technology so the Galaxy Z Fold 5 is around 30% less long-lasting than the Galaxy S24, but in all, the foldable phone still lags behind the flip and the traditional phone.

Taking photos

If you usually buy your phone based on the camera size, and taking professional-style photographs is a high priority, the traditional phone is definitely the best option. Flip phones and foldable phones are fun, but because of their size and the folding/flipping action, there’s less room for the bigger camera sensors.

But there is one cute feature on the foldable phones that you don’t get with the others. We all know that the front/selfie camera is not as good as the rear camera – across most devices, that’s just a fact. But with the foldable phone, in the folded-up mode, you can use the rear camera to take selfies. The smaller screen lets you look at your shots before you decide to take more or keep them.

The cost

Of course, price might be the biggest factor when deciding what phone to buy next. Traditional phones range wildly in price, with budget options, flagship models, and premium ultra hi-tech phones. For the moment, foldable phones are expensive in comparison. Because of the innovative technology and novelty, they can command a higher price. This will come down in time as foldable phones become more mainstream, but for now, you need a pretty hefty wallet to afford one.

Flip phones are much more affordable then foldable phones, but, again, the prices are rivalled by really good slab-style phones. For example the Samsung’s flagship foldable phone (Galaxy Z Fold5) costs from £1749; the flip phone (Galaxy Z Flip5) costs from £1049; and the regular flagship smartphone (Galaxy 24) costs from £799.

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