Intro
- 6.7″ flexible AMOLED, 120Hz vs 6.1″ AMOLED, 120Hz, 1080 x 2340 pixels
- Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1+ vs Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1
- Android with OneUI on top in both phones
- 12MP dual camera system (wide/ultrawide) vs triple camera (50MP wide/12MP ultrawide/10MP telephoto)
- 3,700mAh battery on both (rumored)
Table of Contents:
Design and Display Quality
Apples and oranges… but are they?
It’d be easy to dismiss the design similarities between the Galaxy Z Flip 4 and the Galaxy S22 based on form factor alone. Let’s not forget that those two come from Samsung, and they’re more similar than you might think.
Of course, we don’t know how the Galaxy Z Flip will look like but it’s safe to say that any drastic changes in design from its predecessor are not likely to happen. With that being said, Samsung could turn things around and introduce a new camera bump or color scheme. What the Korean company won’t do is change the materials – we’re expecting the same glass/metal design as the predecessor, and that’s one of the biggest similarities to the Galaxy S22.
Moving on to the display part of the equation – we expect Samsung to once again use a 6.7-inch Full HD+ Dynamic AMOLED display with an LTPO variable refresh rate technology in the Galaxy Z Flip 4. Nothing wrong with that – whether or not it’d be the same exact panel from the previous version, we don’t know. We’re tempted to include a comparison between the Galaxy S22 and the Galaxy Z Flip 3 but let’s hold our horses for now.
As for the Galaxy S22 – it’s a known variable in this equation – the phone sports a 6.1-inch Super AMOLED display with 1080 x 2340 pixels resolution and variable refresh rate that goes all the way up to 120Hz. Here are some in-depth display tests.
Display Measurements:
Performance and Software
Top of the crops
Both devices feature the same amount of RAM, and given that they run the same software (Android 12 with OneUI on top), the real-life performance should be very, very close. The benchmark results of the Galaxy S22 are below, and we will include a small reference table of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1+ chipset.
Performance Benchmarks:
| Benchmark | Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 (test device) |
|---|---|
| GFXBench Car Chase on-screen | 83 |
| GFXBench Manhattan 3.1 on-screen | 139 |
| Geekbench 5 Single-Core | 1313 |
| Geekbench 5 Multi-Core | 4147 |
| 3DMark Wild Life Extreme stress test (Highest) | 2788 |
| 3DMark Wild Life Extreme stress test (Lowest) | 1928 |
Camera
Destination unknown
Little is known about the Galaxy Z Flip 4’s camera system. Chances are the phone will use the same dual 12MP wide/ultrawide setup from its predecessor, and that’s not great news. Even though the Z Flip 3 can snap good photos, the lack of a dedicated telephoto lens makes the system less flexible.
The Galaxy S22, on the other hand, adds the aforementioned telephoto lens, alongside a main 1/1.56″ sensor with a bigger pixel count – 50MP, with f/1.8. The ultrawide camera in the Galaxy Z Flip 4 could be the same 12MP f/2.2 we’ve seen through different models and generations (S21, S22, Z Flip 3).
For the moment, though, we should include some Galaxy S22 samples, just for reference (the ultrawide shots could be very close between the two but this is yet to be confirmed).
Battery Life and Charging
As close as it gets
It’s still early days but according to the latest rumors, the Galaxy Z Flip 4 could come with a battery rated at 3,700mAh (that’s actually two batteries working together – first cell has a rated capacity of 2,555mAh, and the second has a capacity of 1,040mAh).
The battery inside the Galaxy S22 has the same rated capacity, and given all the hardware and software similarities, we should expect more or less the same endurance from both devices. The S22 was criticized for it’s less than perfect battery life, and the Galaxy Z Flip 4 will run an overclocked version of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 but all in all, both should be pretty close.
PhoneArena Battery Test Results:
Now, we shouldn’t expect groundbreaking upgrades in the charging department (or upgrades at all, for that matter) when it comes to the Galaxy Z Flip 4. Samsung will probably play it safe and opt for the same 15W charging speed we saw in the Z Flip 3.
Specs Comparison
| Specs | Galaxy Z Flip 4 (rumored) | Galaxy S22 |
|---|---|---|
| Dimensions | – | 5.75 x 2.78 x 0.30 inches (146 x 70.6 x 7.6mm) |
| Weight | – | 5.89 oz (168.0 g) |
| Screen | 6.7 inches, 120Hz | 6.1 inches, 2340 x 1080 pixels, 19.5 ratio, 422 PPI, 120Hz |
| Processor | Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1+ | Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 |
| RAM | 8GB | 8GB |
| Rear Cameras | Dual system 12MP main camera 12MP ultrawide camera | Triple system 50 MP (OIS, PDAF) main camera 10 MP (Telephoto, OIS, 3.0x zoom) 12 MP Ultrawide |
| Front Camera | Yes, auto-focus | 10 MP |
| Battery Size | 3,700 | 3,700mAh |
| Charging Speeds | 15W wired/10W wireless | 25W wired/15W wireless |
| Price | $999 | $799 |
Summary and Final Verdict
Well, there you have it – our preliminary comparison between the Galaxy Z Flip 4 and the Galaxy S22. It might not look like the most obvious comparison but there are some questions that are legit – should you upgrade to the Galaxy S22 or hop on the foldable train and get the Galaxy Z Flip 4?
There’s nothing wrong with the Galaxy S22, and if you want a compact flagship (that doesn’t fold in half), you can go for the S22, no doubt about it, and save some money as a bonus. Stay tuned for our in-depth comparison – we will update this piece once we get the Galaxy Z Fold 4 in our hands.
