The Galaxy Z TriFold is placed in a resting position. Here is what I want his successor to fix

The Samsung Galaxy Z TriFold is, by almost every measure, a phone that shouldn’t have existed in the first place, and yet here it is: a large 10-inch screen, two hinges, and a price tag that will make your wallet ring.

Samsung knew it was a first-generation device, which is why it kept production deliberately limited, a controlled showcase of engineering ambitions rather than a full market release.

However, “more hits than misses” is not the bar you set for a device that costs about two or three times more than conventional smartphones. For now, the TriFold is gone, but its successor — the Galaxy Z TriFold 2 — is reportedly on the company’s road, possibly being sketched out, debated, and pressure-tested in the lab.

5 things the Galaxy Z TriFold 2 desperately needs to fix

When the Galaxy Z TriFold 2 arrives, it needs to arrive in a different way, not just as a smaller, sleeker version of the current foldable generation, but as a phone that earns its place in most pockets.

Here’s a list of things that need to change on the Galaxy Z TriFold 2, in my honest opinion, as they could make the difference between a phone people like (from afar) and one they actually want to buy.

Thin, durable hinge and chassis

The original TriFold’s dual-hinge system was, in my opinion, an engineering marvel, but it was also a very obvious compromise. At 12.9mm thick when folded and weighing in at 309 grams, the TriFold looked pretty good compared to Samsung’s Fold 7.

Now, I understand that two hinges will always take up more space than one, which explains the thickness of the TriFold. However, this is where the two-fold Fold 7 feels like a polished product, and the TriFold doesn’t. The good news is that the company already knows this.

Recent rumors suggest that Samsung is making a “new hinge solution” for the TriFold 2 debut, with the aim of making it even thinner. However, being thin alone is not enough. If a phone wants to be considered a daily driver, it needs to survive the harsh reality of everyday life.

Dust, drops, unorganized objects inside the bag, and the pressure put on the hard jean pockets on the phone: the TriFold 2 should be able to survive all this better than the TriFold, and reducing the hinge should not cost the integrity of the structure.

A better measure of intrusion prevention

The Galaxy Z TriFold was delivered with an IP48 rating, the same as the Fold 7, and which is already better than the Huawei Mate XT (which came with an IPX8 rating without dust protection).

However, “better than Huawei’s Mate XT” is not exactly a glowing benchmark, especially when the Pixel 10 Pro Fold has become the first foldable to achieve the full IP68 rating, similar to the standard flagship.

For a device positioned at the highest level of Samsung engineering, IP48 feels a little reassuring. The TriFold 2, in my opinion, needs to match IP68 as a base, as well as the Fold 7.

The maximum brightness of the internal display

Screen estate is the TriFold’s entire argument. It’s the reason you pay a premium, for the idea of ​​fitting a large-screen foldable smartphone in your pocket (technically, you can). However, for me, it’s confusing that the phone’s large 10-inch screen tops out at just 1,600 nits, which is less than the internal screen of the Galaxy Z Fold 5 from 2023.

For context, the internal screen of the Galaxy Z Fold 7 reaches 2,600 nits, as does the Galaxy S26 Ultra, and the external screen of the TriFold. And although these may sound like empty numbers, they are very important if you use the smartphone outside, under direct sunlight.

It’s the difference between confidently holding a phone on the street on a bright sunny day, and running in the shade to read a notification and respond. Since the company sticks to its displays, I would really appreciate a bright display for everyday use, accompanied by modern symbols and regular folders.

A more powerful chip to do more things better

The Galaxy Z TriFold featured the Snapdragon 8 Elite chip, which at the time was the most powerful smartphone chip. However, due to heat problems, the device is slower than other 8 Elite smartphones, such as the S25 Ultra.

While I don’t expect the TriFold 2 to completely fix that problem, since it will also feature a thinner chassis with limited space for a dedicated cooling system, the chipset upgrade could improve multitasking, gaming, and overall responsiveness.

This year, the TriFold 2 should feature the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip, which we saw in the Galaxy S26 Ultra (worldwide) and the S26 and S26 Plus (US, China, and Japan). Even with thermal throttling, the chipset can unlock meaningful performance improvements.

The TriFold 2 desperately needs better selfie cameras

The Galaxy Z TriFold’s rear camera setup is even better. 200MP main camera, 10MP telephoto, and 12MP ultrawide; all of this allows users to fiddle with multiple perspectives and zoom levels to get the image they want without moving around too much. Selfie cameras, however, are a slightly different story.

The TriFold’s selfie camera setup is the same: 10MP (f/2.2) on the cover screen and a 10MP (f/2.2) camera on the main 10-inch foldable screen. But in my opinion, it’s not what consumers expect to get from one of the most expensive smartphones I can buy.

While selfies may not be an issue for most consumers, I’m not sure if they consider it from a quality standpoint; it’s the software that does the hard work there.

I appreciate the ultrawide field of view from the internal screen sensor, I really do, as it helps to get more people in the selfie, but I honestly want Samsung to increase the resolution of both sensors. Additionally, selfie cameras can use larger sensors to perform better in low light.