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Foldable devices are the hottest trend in the smartphone market, and we are seeing more and more brands launching their own versions of this innovative form factor. The Galaxy Z Fold, which is widely considered the best foldable phone available, now faces a serious contender: the OnePlus Open. How do these two devices compare, and which one is worth the money? Let’s find out.
The Galaxy Z Fold 5 may have a fancy form factor, but it doesn’t go overboard with its design. It has a sleek and minimal look that suits its professional appeal. The back of the phone features a neat triple camera setup that is unmistakably Samsung, and the device has a rather slim profile when shut – it almost feels like holding a TV remote.
The OnePlus Open, on the other hand, has a more flashy design accentuated by the massive disc-shaped camera module on the back. OnePlus has also played around with different materials for this device, giving the black variant a leather back.
When it comes to weight and thickness, both devices are pretty similar, though the Open has a slight edge over the Fold. The OnePlus phone weighs 239 grams, which is a bit lighter than the Galaxy Z Fold 5’s 253 grams. OnePlus made a big deal about this at its launch event, showing how its phone is actually lighter than the iPhone 14 Pro Max. The Open is also thinner at 5.8mm vs the 6.1mm of the Galaxy Z Fold 5, though this difference shouldn’t be that noticeable.
The real difference lies in the displays. Many people have complained about how narrow the Galaxy Z Fold 5’s 6.2-inch cover display is. Meanwhile, the OnePlus Open has a more conventional 20:9 6.31-inch cover display that almost looks like a regular smartphone when folded.
The reason behind Samsung’s choice of such an awkward cover display is unclear, but it might have something to do with how the phone unfolds. A narrower display on the outside allows the Galaxy Z Fold 5 to open into a more manageable 7.6-inch display on the inside, offering more varying aspect ratios depending on how you hold the phone.
For instance, the landscape mode should be better suited for movies and YouTube videos. The OnePlus Open, on the other hand, has a rather squarish 7.82-inch display when unfolded, meaning larger black bars flanking videos no matter how you hold the phone.
That said, the preference for either display depends on how you plan to use the phone. The Galaxy Z Fold 5 seems to push you into using the inner display more often for media consumption or gaming, and leave the outer display for calls and other basic functions. The OnePlus Open’s cover display, however, is versatile enough for all kinds of tasks.
However, the OnePlus Open’s display specifications are clearly superior to the Galaxy Z Fold 5’s. It has a brighter screen at 2,800 nits, both inside and outside (compared to Samsung’s 1,700 nits), supports LTPO technology for adaptive refresh rate, and boasts a near-invisible crease.
OnePlus claims that the Open has “3 main cameras” at the back, and that seems to be true when you look at the specs – all 3 sensors have high megapixel counts. There is a 48 MP Sony LYT-T808 OIS primary camera, a 64 MP telephoto OIS camera with 3x optical zoom, and a 48 MP ultrawide camera. Based on the specs alone, this camera system looks like the most impressive one on any foldable phone. In fact, it seems to pack more power than OnePlus’s own non-foldable flagship – the OnePlus 11.
Samsung, on the other hand, has not equipped its best camera hardware on the Galaxy Z Fold 5, as that honour still belongs to the Galaxy S23 Ultra. The camera specs of the Galaxy Z Fold 5 are closer to those of the Galaxy S23+, which were not bad at all, but not the best that Samsung has to offer either.
Both the Galaxy Z Fold 5 and the OnePlus Open flaunt the top-of-the-line Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset, which means you can expect blazing-fast performance on either device.
However, when it comes to battery life, the OnePlus Open has a clear advantage. Not only does it have a larger battery capacity of 4,805 mAh, compared to the Galaxy Z Fold 5’s 4,400 mAh, but it also supports faster charging speeds of 67W, versus 25W on the Samsung device.
The OnePlus Open is a serious challenger to Samsung’s foldable phone supremacy with its excellent hardware. It’s lighter and slimmer, has more impressive displays, and seems to have an edge in camera tech. The more conventional aspect ratio on the cover display also makes it more appealing to first-time foldable phone owners. Add to that its slightly lower selling price.
But Samsung might still have an edge in software. One UI is widely regarded as one of the best-optimised operating systems for foldable devices, and considering how long Samsung has been in the foldables game, expect better reliability in general. Plus, if you’re already invested in Samsung’s ecosystem of products, the choice is obvious.
