For not-so-tech-savvy persons, that means the new foldables will survive continuous immersion in water up to 1.5 meters deep for up to 30 minutes. That’s basically the same level of water resistance you can find in other conventional flagships, like the Samsung Galaxy S21 UIltra and the OnePlus 9 Pro. However, unlike these two phones, the upcoming Samsung foldables will not be resistant to dust. So if you’re planning to get either of the two devices, you might want to keep it safe from dust. Samsung introduced a brush-like mechanism in the Galaxy Z Fold 2 hinge to keep dust particles away. You can expect the company to have improved on this with the Galaxy Z Fold 3. Perhaps it added a similar mechanism to the Z Flip lineup as well. But, since there’s no official IP rating for dust resistance on either upcoming foldables, you would not want to take any chances.
Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Flip 3 are the first Samsung foldables to feature an IP rating
Durability is one of the major concerns with foldable smartphones. Samsung quickly learned its lessons following the disastrous debut of the Galaxy Fold back in 2019. With the Galaxy Z Flip last year, the company introduced the Ultra-Thin Glass (UTG) foldable display and a new hinge mechanism. It further refined the hinge, adding the aforementioned brush-like mechanism with the Galaxy Z Fold 2 later in the year. However, no Samsung foldable to date has an official IP rating. That’s seemingly about to change this year. An IPX8 rating for both the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3 represents a major improvement in the durability department this year. We are expecting a more durable UTG foldable display and a stronger frame as well. There are also reports of the new foldables having a smaller gap between the two sides when they are folded. Foldable smartphones are on the expensive side of things because of their form factor and complexity associated with their design. But the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Z Flip 3 are shaping up to be quite fitting to the billing. August 11 just can’t come soon enough!