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Z Flip Fallout: What Is Ultra-Thin Glass?
February 23, 2020
Samsung Electronics’ marketing organization continues to confuse consumers by using descriptors that don’t describe. By saying that the Z Flip uses Ultra-Thin Glass (UTG), they caused the smartphone community to believe the display was either made of glass or protected as well as Gorilla Glass. Neither was true!
From Samsung.com: “Meet the first-ever folding glass screen on a Galaxy. Yeah, we said folding glass. Made of Samsung Ultra-Thin Glass, it sets you up for an epic view with a smooth, flat screen.” Samsung Display said the UTG cover window is about 30um thick and is more durable and scratch-resistant than the plastic layers used on the Fold, adding that the product can withstand at least 200,000 folds.
The addition of glass to protect the OLED display electronics seemed like a win in the new Galaxy Z Flip, while plastics were used in addition to protect the glass from shattering, adding multiple layers of plastic-glass sandwich.
As a result, Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip has been a hit with early tech media criticism:
Then Zack Nelson’s JerryRigEverything’s durability test uploaded to YouTube on showed problems.
Samsung responded saying its “first-of-its-kind UTG technology is different from other Galaxy flagship devices. While the display does bend, it should be handled with care,”
Z Flip Fallout: What Is Ultra-Thin Glass?
February 23, 2020
Samsung Electronics’ marketing organization continues to confuse consumers by using descriptors that don’t describe. By saying that the Z Flip uses Ultra-Thin Glass (UTG), they caused the smartphone community to believe the display was either made of glass or protected as well as Gorilla Glass. Neither was true!
From Samsung.com: “Meet the first-ever folding glass screen on a Galaxy. Yeah, we said folding glass. Made of Samsung Ultra-Thin Glass, it sets you up for an epic view with a smooth, flat screen.” Samsung Display said the UTG cover window is about 30um thick and is more durable and scratch-resistant than the plastic layers used on the Fold, adding that the product can withstand at least 200,000 folds.
The addition of glass to protect the OLED display electronics seemed like a win in the new Galaxy Z Flip, while plastics were used in addition to protect the glass from shattering, adding multiple layers of plastic-glass sandwich.
As a result, Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip has been a hit with early tech media criticism:
Then Zack Nelson’s JerryRigEverything’s durability test uploaded to YouTube on showed problems.
- While the device held up to bends and flexes pretty well, the screen showed permanent scratches from fingernails, which assertions that the phone does not having any glass at all. Tests showed the display protection easily punctured, speculating that glass would have endured differently to tests that broke pixels in a vertical line. Samsung covered the glass with a second, plastic layer. That layer is fairly soft, which is why it picks up indentations from fingernails Because the glass underneath that plastic layer is so thin, it can be punctured relatively easily. Puncturing the Z Flip’s glass screen utterly destroys the OLED display underneath, whereas on a regular phone, you might just have a cracked screen to live with.
- iFixit has tested the Z Flip hinge's dust resistance in the early stages of its teardown and dust would infiltrate other parts of the phone (Samsung explicitly warns the phone isn't dust-resistant), the hinge area was still coated in particles -- enough that they produced a disconcerting crunch when iFixit unfolded the device.
Samsung responded saying its “first-of-its-kind UTG technology is different from other Galaxy flagship devices. While the display does bend, it should be handled with care,”
- Performance of UTG under heavy stress has proven to be unreliable
- It is a long way from regular heavy-duty Gorilla Glass normally used on rigid smartphones.
- The Z Flip has proven it is much sturdier than any foldable released thus far, even if it didn’t hold up to puncture tests.
- Expect to see some kind of proof and more detailed information from Samsung about the UTG and what it does
Those early adopters that have used the Z Flip and haven’t tortured it are very positive:
The biggest complaint was the utility (or lack thereof) of the 1.1-inch screen on the outside of the phone. Most of the time, it just shows you the time, date and battery percentage. Swipe right and three notification icons with a "+2" or however many more alerts are queued. Swipe left to get music controls. When a message comes in, a preview pops up and scrolls up to be read. For selfies or photos, the sliver of a screen is a very limited viewfinder. But this display isn't meant to do much more than serve up bits of information, and it doesn't take much effort to open the phone to really get to work.
There are plenty of reasons to prefer Samsung's foldable, including the dual-camera setup on the Flip's rear. The pair of 12-megapixel sensors offer a regular 78-degree field of view as well as a 123-degree wide-angle. The images themselves are pretty standard for a Samsung device -- they're colorful and crisp, but lack the dynamism that on Pixels or iPhones. Still, even garden-variety Samsung cameras are better than the solo sensor on the Razr's rear.
Korean outlet Aju News reports that the Fold 2 might have an under-screen selfie camera, meaning no hole, a prototype we saw at CES 2020. It could also use UTG taking advantage of the increased capacity in Vietnam. The Samsung Galaxy Fold 2 is currently code-named Champ, and is scheduled for a Q3 2020 launch date. Aju News, meanwhile, says the phone will launch in July. The phone will fold out to offer a 7.7-inch display, meaning the screen is slightly larger than the 7.3-inch Galaxy Fold panel. Otherwise, the Korean news outlet says it’s tipped to have a similar price to the original model. Whether UTG has some flaws or not, it still outperforms CPI, so expected UTG to be used as a protective layer for foldable phones in the future.
- “Even after just a relatively short time with the Z Flip, when I use my Pixel, it feels weird that I can't fold it shut. I even find myself trying to bend my Pixel, my fingers itching to fold the Z Flip like they're searching for a phantom fidget spinner.”
- “Folding screens tend to be more damage-prone, but Samsung's "Ultra-Thin Glass" here feels like a massive improvement over the Motorola Razr and the Galaxy Fold. It's more rigid and it held up even as I repeatedly pushed into it with my thumb for leverage to close the phone with one hand.”
- “It really does feel firmer under my thumb than other folding screens. It’s like having a plastic screen protector on a regular phone and Samsung will provide a one-time replacement for $119 if it breaks.
- “Shutting the Z Flip before tucking it away in my coat pocket also made me feel like it's more protected. My fingers sometimes activate my Pixel's lock screen when I stick them in my pockets for warmth, so I end up accidentally skipping a track on Spotify or inputting inexplicably long PINs. It's not a big deal when this happens, but it's nice to know that when I put the Flip away, it won't randomly get triggered. There's something oddly satisfying about the act of physically shutting your phone before putting it away, too, that makes you feel more present.”
- “Of course, when you get a message, you need to take the extra step of unfolding the device before you can reply. Depending on how adept you've become at opening the Flip with one hand, this could be a quick, simple task or a longer two-handed affair. But so far, I've found the Flip well-built enough that I can flick it open with some force, which speeds up the process, and not worry about breaking the hinge. I became somewhat of an expert at opening the Flip with one hand within about two hours.”
- “Another thing I adore is the hinge. Samsung describes this as a "freestop folding system," which is marketing speak for the way the phone can be folded to rest open at any angle. Unlike the Razr, which is only usable completely open or closed, the Z Flip's hinge offers the same amount of resistance from zero to 180 degrees. This makes it impossible to simply snap the phone shut at the end of an infuriating phone call, for example. You'll have to close the device quite deliberately -- don't expect it to be as easy to shut as the original Razr’s. This isn't a big deal, though. I'd rather have a reliable hinge than the petty satisfaction of dramatically hanging up on someone.”
- “The sturdy hinge does make it easy to position the Z Flip like a tiny laptop and adjust the top half of the screen to whatever viewing angle you want. Once you fold the Flip to about 120 degrees or smaller, "Flex Mode" kicks in, splitting the interface in half for more-intuitive use. In the Gallery app, for example, Flex Mode places the photos in the top section and turns the bottom panel into a trackpad-like area so you can swipe horizontally on it to scroll through your pictures. Flex Mode only works with Gallery, Camera, Always On Display and Duo for now, but Samsung says it has an SDK for developers and that it will work with Google to make this more compatible with Android overall. The hinge has the ability to set the Z Flip up on any surface with the selfie camera facing you, perfect for making hands-free video calls. As someone who has to call home with Chinese New Year greetings annually, being able to easily set my phone down while I wave two oranges around in front of the camera is a godsend. I had to prop my Pixel 3 up against the armrest of my couch to wish my parents well, and every so often an incoming alert caused the device to crash to the ground. The self-supporting setup that the Z Flip offers is surprisingly clever.”
- “The crease running across the Z Flip's screen is a lot less noticeable than on other foldable displays. It's barely there when you're using the phone face-on, and you'll really only see it at an angle. Also, when I'm running my thumb up and down the 21.9:9 panel and I feel the slight bump under my finger, it feels oddly satisfying. The screen stays in place and doesn't move, unlike the foldable Razr's screen, which actually shifts up and down as you open and close it. The Razr's plastic-OLED panel looks like a roll of scotch tape that someone peeled back and then tried to re-stick in place but left a gap behind. Plus, the Motorola foldable makes an unsettling creak each time you close it; the Z Flip is delightfully silent.
The biggest complaint was the utility (or lack thereof) of the 1.1-inch screen on the outside of the phone. Most of the time, it just shows you the time, date and battery percentage. Swipe right and three notification icons with a "+2" or however many more alerts are queued. Swipe left to get music controls. When a message comes in, a preview pops up and scrolls up to be read. For selfies or photos, the sliver of a screen is a very limited viewfinder. But this display isn't meant to do much more than serve up bits of information, and it doesn't take much effort to open the phone to really get to work.
There are plenty of reasons to prefer Samsung's foldable, including the dual-camera setup on the Flip's rear. The pair of 12-megapixel sensors offer a regular 78-degree field of view as well as a 123-degree wide-angle. The images themselves are pretty standard for a Samsung device -- they're colorful and crisp, but lack the dynamism that on Pixels or iPhones. Still, even garden-variety Samsung cameras are better than the solo sensor on the Razr's rear.
Korean outlet Aju News reports that the Fold 2 might have an under-screen selfie camera, meaning no hole, a prototype we saw at CES 2020. It could also use UTG taking advantage of the increased capacity in Vietnam. The Samsung Galaxy Fold 2 is currently code-named Champ, and is scheduled for a Q3 2020 launch date. Aju News, meanwhile, says the phone will launch in July. The phone will fold out to offer a 7.7-inch display, meaning the screen is slightly larger than the 7.3-inch Galaxy Fold panel. Otherwise, the Korean news outlet says it’s tipped to have a similar price to the original model. Whether UTG has some flaws or not, it still outperforms CPI, so expected UTG to be used as a protective layer for foldable phones in the future.