Two Folds, One Family: The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 and Z Fold 8 Ultra

Samsung has done something it's never done before: split its flagship foldable into two separate phones. Until now, "Z Fold" meant one device, one shape, one set of trade-offs. That's changed. There's now a Galaxy Z Fold 8 and a Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra, and they're aimed at genuinely different people — not just different budgets.

If you're browsing our fold-ables range and wondering why there are suddenly two Folds sitting side by side, here's the breakdown.

Why Samsung Split the Fold Line

Every previous Z Fold tried to be one phone for everyone: pocketable when closed, tablet-like when open, and priced at the very top of the market. The trouble is, "pocketable" and "tablet-like" pull in opposite directions, and something always had to give.

This year, Samsung stopped compromising and built two phones instead:

• The Z Fold 8 leans fully into the tablet side — wider, squarer, built for reading and watching.
• The Z Fold 8 Ultra leans into the phone side — the familiar narrow shape, now paired with genuinely top-tier hardware for the first time.

Both share the same Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy chip, run Android 17 with One UI 9, and come with Samsung's Gemini-powered Galaxy AI tools baked in — Now Brief, Now Nudge, Photo Assist, and My FanCam among them. From there, they go in different directions.

Meet the Z Fold 8: A Screen You Actually Want to Read On

Open the Z Fold 8 and the first thing you'll notice is the shape. Instead of the tall, narrow rectangle Fold owners are used to, you get a squarer 7.6-inch panel in a 4:3 ratio — closer to a paperback or a small tablet than a stretched-out phone screen. For scrolling news, reading e-books, or watching video without giant black bars, it's a genuinely different feel in the hand.

Samsung also managed to make it the lightest Fold it's ever shipped, at just 201g — lighter than a lot of standard slab phones, despite the hinge and dual screens.

Z Fold 8 Specs

• 7.6" 4:3 foldable Dynamic AMOLED 2X display, 120Hz
• Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy
• 50MP wide + 50MP ultra-wide rear cameras
• 10MP + 10MP selfie cameras (cover screen and inner screen)
• 4,800mAh battery, 45W wired charging
• 201g, 4.5mm unfolded
• Graphite, Cream, or Lavender
• 256GB, 512GB and 1TB versions also available

This is the Fold to pick if you want the "unfolds into a mini tablet" trick without spending Ultra money, and you're not fussed about having a zoom lens in your pocket.

Meet the Z Fold 8 Ultra: The One Fold Fans Have Been Asking For

The Ultra is the phone that actually replaces last year's Z Fold 7 — same tall, narrow silhouette that made the original Fold a phone first and a tablet second. What's new is that Samsung has, for the first time, let a foldable wear the "Ultra" badge, and given it the camera and battery hardware to earn it.

The headline upgrade is the camera. Where the standard Fold 8 sticks to two lenses, the Ultra gets a proper triple system led by a 200MP main sensor and a 3x optical telephoto — the first time a Z Fold has had real zoom. Battery life gets a boost too, with Samsung quoting up to 27 hours of video playback.

Z Fold 8 Ultra Specs:

• 8" foldable Dynamic AMOLED 2X display, 120Hz, 3,000 nits peak brightness
• 6.5" cover display
• Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy
• 200MP wide + 50MP ultrawide + 10MP telephoto (3x optical zoom) rear cameras
• 10MP + 10MP selfie cameras
• 5,000mAh battery, 60W wired charging, up to 27 hours video playback
• 215g, 4.1mm unfolded
• Violet Shadow, Graphite, or Cream
• 256GB, 512GB and 1TB versions also available

If photography and video are why you're upgrading, or you just want the "proper" Fold shape with nothing held back, this is the one.

Side by Side

Our Advice

There's no wrong answer here, but there is a wrong phone for the wrong person:

• Pick the Z Fold 8 if the appeal of a foldable, for you, has always been screen real estate — for reading, streaming, note-taking, or just having more room to work with — and you'd rather put the savings toward a case, screen protector, or trade-in top-up.
• Pick the Z Fold 8 Ultra if you want the camera to genuinely rival a standalone flagship, you care about squeezing out every extra hour of battery, or you simply prefer the classic narrower Fold shape you can still close up and slip into a jacket pocket.

Check the latest prices:

https://www.phonesonline.ie/products/samsung-galaxy-z-fold-8

https://www.phonesonline.ie/products/samsung-galaxy-z-fold8-ultra