Opinion | The Galaxy Z Flip may be what the Motorola Razr 2019 should have been, but it is still a waste of money

The Galaxy Z Flip is a cool-looking smartphone, at least to our eyes anyway. Samsung appears to have righted the wrongs of the Galaxy Fold, both aesthetically and structurally, without compromising on functionality. The so-called "Ultra Thin Glass" display, for example, should make the Z Flip a more durable foldable smartphone than the Galaxy Fold could ever be, while we welcome the move away from the latter's huge notch too.

Refinements like these were always going to be the case when moving on from first-generation tech, with the Z Flip also appearing to offer more than the new Motorola Razr does. We say this as the Z Flip is rumoured to have a faster processor than the Razr, along with more RAM, more storage and a higher-resolution display too. Underpinning all this will be a larger battery, while the Z Flip may even run on a newer version of Android out of the box.

Furthermore, the Z Flip may be US$100 or cheaper than the Razr, too. However, while the Z Flip may offer more for less than the Razr, it starts to look worse value for money when comparing it against other smartphones. The Galaxy Note 10+, for instance, has dropped below US$900, while even the Galaxy S20 Ultra is rumoured to cost less than the Galaxy Z Flip. Even the iPhone 11 Pro Max, a smartphone that could be argued as being overpriced itself, will be cheaper than the Z Flip.

In short, being able to fold a phone in half does not justify charging upwards of US$1,400 for something with last-generation hardware. Motorola is guilty of this with the Razr too, but this is Samsung's third crack at a foldable smartphone. So, the Galaxy Z Flip may be the best foldable smartphone that money can buy, albeit probably briefly, but spending US$1,400 on it would be a colossal waste of money.