The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 is a multitasking powerhouse of a phone, packing a 7.6-inch foldable main display with advanced software tools courtesy of One UI. While OneUI has brilliant features for every Galaxy phone, the Z Fold 5 has new features that make it Samsung’s best foldable.
Whether you recently picked up a Z Fold 5 or are considering it for your next foldable, we collected the features that make it one of the best foldables on the market.
Foldables are often touted as productivity devices first, and the Z Fold 5’s Multi Window feature makes the most of the phone’s form factor. With Multi window, you can open up to five apps at once and store a selection of shortcuts to recent apps in a desktop-like taskbar for easy access.
You can open apps in split screen or pop-up view with Multi window. Opening an app in the split screen view splits your screen in half between apps. The pop-up view turns the app into a moveable window that you can rearrange to your liking. You can activate these modes by dragging apps to the left or right of your screen for the split-screen view or to the center for the pop-up view.
You can use Multi window without tweaking it, but you can customize it through the Settings app to activate some useful features. These include:
You can also toggle the Multi window for all apps switch to force apps that aren’t designed for split-screen or pop-up view to use these.
Flex Mode, introduced on the Galaxy Z Fold 4, kicks into action when you bend your Galaxy Z Fold 5’s display in on itself. Apps shift their controls to the bottom half, while the app stays on the top. It isn’t compatible with every app (and it can’t be forced on them like Multi-window), but it’s a handy tool when you’re tired of holding your phone.
The bottom screen also turns into a virtual trackpad with Flex Mode. It’s finicky but lets you move a cursor around the top screen like a laptop. You’ll find Flex Mode most useful for video calls and media apps like Netflix. You can prop up the phone and interact with the app’s controls without interfering with your conversation or video.
The Galaxy Z Fold 5’s camera can’t compete with the best camera phones, but Pro mode can help you mitigate its shortcomings whether taking regular, selfie, or telephoto shots. Pro mode is under the More tab in the Camera app’s settings. Activating it displays settings for white balance, focus, shutter speed, ISO, and exposure on your viewfinder.
These settings can seem obscure if you’ve never handled a DSLR camera, so explore our guide on manual camera settings to understand what your Z Fold 5 can do.
Many Android phones offer high refresh rates, but the Z Fold 5’s 120Hz main screen is particularly special considering how much screen real estate you have to work with. The most significant application here is gaming. The Z Fold 5’s Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor is more than capable of handling demanding Android games, so setting that refresh rate to 120Hz means you can enjoy most games at a rock-solid 120fps.
You can’t lock your Z Fold 5’s cover screen or main screen to 120Hz, but activating Adaptive in the Display settings’ Motion smoothness screen forces it as high as possible. Pair it with Android games that support high framerates to make the most of the Z Fold 5’s dynamic AMOLED screen.
Good Lock isn’t a Galaxy Z Fold 5 exclusive app. It’s packed with fantastic features for all Samsung phones. It’s a must-download for all Samsung owners, but there are a few unique modules for Z Fold 5 and Galaxy Z Flip 5 owners.
The Good Lock app is composed of individual modules, and a few of these are designed to improve your Samsung foldable experience. There’s a lot to choose from, but here are a few of our favorites.
One Hand Operation Plus
This module makes it possible to use the Fold 5 unfolded with one hand. It creates gesture controls on the sides of your screen and an optional trackpad and mouse that you can control with your thumb. You can customize how this tool appears on your screen, including trackpad size, app exceptions, and gesture control locations.
Pentastic
While the S Pen stylus isn’t included with the Fold 5, it’s a great companion as you have plenty of screen real estate to write on. Pentastic adds considerable functionality to the S Pen and is a must-download if you write a lot on your Fold 5.
While Samsung got a headstart on modern foldable phones, there is a lot of competition in the folding phone market. If you aren’t sold on the Z Fold 5’s unique features, consider one of the other best Android foldables, like the OnePlus Open. Alternatively, if you’re hooked on OneUI, consider the cheaper but no less powerful Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra.
Maybe if we start telling people the brain is an app they will start using it!
