Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra Review: Six Flaws That Undercut the Ultra Price

Verdict up front: powerful, polished, and overpriced

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra is a book-style foldable smartphone that refines Samsung’s flagship design with a slimmer body, larger silicon‑carbon battery, upgraded cameras, and smarter AI features aimed at creators, while keeping much of the look and feel of its predecessor. In practice, it is a premium foldable phone that feels polished but strangely conservative for the money. The 256GB variant starts at USD 2,100 (approx. RM9,700), which is USD 100 (approx. RM460) more than last year’s model and USD 200 (approx. RM920) above the standard Z Fold 8. You do get a 5,000mAh battery, faster 45W charging, improved ultrawide camera, and better speakers, all of which help creators and power users. But six clear Z Fold 8 Ultra flaws and design compromises make its premium foldable value questionable for anyone who is not obsessed with Samsung’s foldable camera package.

Design: familiar, thin, and not quite Ultra

From the outside, the Z Fold 8 Ultra looks almost identical to last year’s Fold. The exterior design, footprint, and in‑hand feel are essentially the same, because Samsung already did the heavy redesign work with the previous generation. This is not a bad thing: the chassis is a tenth of a millimeter thinner and a few grams lighter, reinforcing its sleek reputation among foldable phones. The crease is slightly less noticeable, and overall build quality feels premium. However, this visual déjà vu matters when you factor in the price: the phone now starts at USD 2,100 (approx. RM9,700), and it rarely feels like a new object of desire when you pick it up. For long‑time Fold users who prefer the established narrow‑cover, tall‑inner layout, the familiarity is comforting; for new buyers chasing cutting‑edge hardware, it may feel like reheated leftovers.

Six key Z Fold 8 Ultra flaws that clash with the price

The core Z Fold 8 Ultra problems boil down to six linked decisions that erode its claim to be the ultimate book‑style foldable. First, the price hike: Samsung’s increase puts the phone in an awkward spot, asking USD 2,100 (approx. RM9,700) for something that does not feel dramatically different from the previous Fold. Second, the Ultra name raises expectations that the hardware does not fully meet; long‑standing foldable phone design issues, like missing features and camera weaknesses, remain. Third, the old 10MP 3x telephoto sensor is still here, the same unit used since the Fold 3, which undercuts the otherwise modern camera stack. Fourth, S Pen support is still absent, even though this line once helped define Samsung’s pen‑enabled “Ultra” identity. Fifth, Samsung has dropped the base RAM configuration, making the price increase feel more like a tax than a reward. Finally, there is still no magnetic Qi2 charging support, so you miss a key quality‑of‑life feature present on other premium phones.

Performance, battery, and cameras: strong specs, uneven priorities

On paper, the Z Fold 8 Ultra refines the formula with several meaningful upgrades. It uses a larger 5,000mAh silicon‑carbon battery instead of the older 4,400mAh cell, and it supports faster 45W wired charging. Samsung positions it as a phone for creators, and that extra capacity is meant to power long sessions on the inner display without anxiety. As one reviewer put it, “Samsung has clearly listened to its users and finally made some meaningful hardware upgrades, like switching to a silicon‑carbon battery with faster wired charging and improving the ultrawide camera.” The new 50MP ultrawide and the upgraded main camera deliver sharper low‑light images and better color, while expanded graphite cooling works with the latest chipset to keep performance stable for editing apps and games. Yet the unchanged telephoto lens remains a weak link in zoom shots, and the lack of pen support limits how professionals can exploit the expansive inner canvas.

Premium foldable value: who the Z Fold 8 Ultra is really for

Samsung’s price increase puts the Z Fold 8 Ultra in a strange place among premium foldables: the wider standard Z Fold 8 now looks like the model that finally narrows the value gap between normal slabs and expensive folds, while the Ultra asks more without changing the experience enough. In many ways, the phone is a niche product for long‑time Fold fans who prefer the existing aspect ratio and want the latest silicon‑carbon battery and camera set without caring about S Pen support. If you push the telephoto and 200MP‑class main sensor hard in your workflow, the extra USD 200 (approx. RM920) over the Z Fold 8 can be worth it. For everyone else, the mix of Z Fold 8 Ultra flaws, from the reused telephoto lens to the absence of Qi2 magnets and stylus support, makes the higher Ultra price a tough sell in a market where rivals are pushing fresh designs and stronger feature lists.

• Buy the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra if you are a long‑time Fold user who likes the familiar, taller aspect ratio and wants the newest version without relearning the form factor.
• Skip the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra if you expect the Ultra branding to mean every feature is maxed out, including S Pen support and the telephoto camera.
• Buy the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra if you value the larger 5,000mAh silicon‑carbon battery, faster 45W charging, and better speakers for long media or editing sessions on the inner screen.
• Skip the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra if you are focused on premium foldable value and want a clearer step up from last year’s Fold or a lower‑priced alternative.
• Buy the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra if you use the main and ultrawide cameras heavily and are willing to pay extra for enhanced low‑light and higher‑resolution shooting on a foldable.
• Skip the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra if stylus input is central to your work and you were hoping to draw, annotate, or take handwritten notes directly on the inner display.