Everyone thinks the iPhone Ultra will crush Samsung. They’re wrong

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Apple won’t be able to waltz in and best the Galaxy Z Fold 8 by default. I understand the company’s track record and mass appeal, but the general consensus I’ve been seeing about Apple’s rumored iPhone Ultra assumes too much. I loved my hands-on time with the Galaxy Z Fold 8, and I can’t wait to get my review unit. It’s a refreshing form factor. And given how much I still enjoy my original Pixel Fold , I don’t expect the novelty to wear off as some claim.

The Galaxy Z Fold 8 has made me more interested in the upcoming iPhone Ultra, but Apple has more work to do than people think. I know Apple is still formidable, but Samsung has a chance to hold its own with the Galaxy Z Fold 8.

Book-style foldables have to be excellent productivity tools. Having a bigger phone to watch media on is great, but it’s not a reason that completely justifies the high premiums we pay.

Unfortunately, we don’t have a complete picture of what multitasking on iOS would look like. iPadOS gives us some clues, offering a windowed mode and split view for apps, but iPhones still don’t have that functionality. It’s not a given Apple would be able to port that experience seamlessly, and I’m not convinced the company is willing to give up that kind of control on iPhones.

For all of Samsung’s faults, multitasking is a solid experience on Galaxy phones. 90:10 multitasking is fantastic, and I love the flexibility of moving windows around with different orientations. App pairs are a wonderful tool that allows me to quickly open my frequently used favorites. iPadOS doesn’t have that, and given Apple’s hesitancy to allow anything that can change the user experience too much, I don’t know if we’d see them on an iPhone Ultra right away.

Hinges are hard. They have to work flawlessly for tens of thousands of folds without letting in debilitating dirt and debris. Foldables have undoubtedly become more durable over the last few years, and Samsung has learned the hard way. Apple wouldn’t be starting from scratch, and the company’s industrial design has always been strong. But creating a system that works reliably will have growing pains.

Samsung’s also worked out a number of other problems. App continuity between the cover screen and the internal display is smooth, and there’s a taskbar to keep things orderly and make better use of the expansive, unfolded canvas.