I guess i have been very close in the past to buying a fold 5 or 6 over the past year or more... but my own anxiety about the hardware reliability has always stopped me from making the jump to a foldable.
With the opportunity to trial a Galaxy Fold 6 as a part of our members stars group, I jumped at the chance to use one. I have been using the Fold 6 for around a week as a trial unit. Thanks to@Lucy C and@SocietyGirl for this opportunity.
There are hundreds of reviews circulating on YouTube and by our favourite reviewers, so this review is purely going to focus on MY OWN typical use cases. I am not going to talk about specs... but just my own experiences during week1.
For context I own already an S25 ultra and which I am very happy with... but this phone is a completely different concept.
Video and media
I like to watch some streams... netflix... nowTV... Disney... amongst others. There are a number of ways to watch content with the fold. From an open 7.6" screen, partially folded 'flex mode,' and also in 'tent mode'. All of these methods have their own conveniences.
The full screen is subjective, and although you can zoom and dabble with the aspect ratio a little, unless you want to lose some of the cinematic ratio then you will find considerable black bars. In fact the actual screen size of the 7.6" screen is not much bigger in viewable area than the S25 ultra.
Video format unfolded
'Tent mode' adds a convenient way of table viewing and although on the smaller outer display, this gives a good experience and way of watching.
Tent mode
To use the internal display in a 90 degree 'flex' mode also is a convenient way to watch... and with some apps like YouTube also providing playback buttons on the other half of the display.
Partially folded flex mode
Youtube with playback controls
Reading books and magazines (kindle style)
I enjoy reading magazines on Readly... and also occasionally books on a kindle reader.
This fold format sets up very well to achieve this without the need for a separate device. I have found this experience really good for my magazines and kindle reading !!
Readly magazine
Kindle teader
Gaming with controller
I have done previous posts of gaming with my S25 ultra and kishi, but the additional screen 'real estate' with the fold 6 takes this up another level !
I did see a few drops in performance of the SD chip in the fold as it is not as powerful as the elite in the S25u... but in the gameplay it was magnificent as a handheld !
Tombraider remastered on GeforceNow... and Indiana Jones and golden circle on Xbox game pass. Much easier to play with a screen this size !
Tombraider on GeforceNow
Indy !!
Social Media and website browsing
Like many... I spend quite a lot of time with content... and there is no better way to do this in the evening than with a 7.6' unfolded screen. So much better to see, create, type, surf, enjoy. A few examples of use cases below. With two handed typing this is so much easier.
Youtube .media view
FB
Ebay selling
Camera (unfolded)
With the new OneUI7 interface and the larger screen it is great for the cameras unfolded.
This is not a comparisons with the S25u... and clearly will not be as good in the end result.
I am not going to talk about photo quality as I haven't taken enough shots yet...but rather the interface in the unfolded format.
The interface has all the usual modes for expert Raw, pro, and others. When using the more advanced settings, the adjustment sliders appear just under the left thumb area... so this makes it really convenient to adjust zoom, focus and other settings.
You can also enter a viewing mode with the recent pictures appearing aside the view display, which is a great view to use.
Left Thumb controls
Recent photo view
Photo and video editing
The editing is so easy with a large display... it truly is. Lightroom tweaking of Raw image format, lumafusion editing and collaboration of media is a joy to work with.
Additionally scrolling through gallery albums with such a large screen is fantastic.
Lightroom
Lumafusion
Gallery navigating
Week1 summary
In a nutshell... I LOVE❤️ LOVE❤️ LOVE❤️ THIS PHONE.
I never thought i would enjoy this so much. My S25 ultra is an amazing phone, but right now I am yearning for the fold phone when I am out and about without it.
There is a 'Cool kid' aspect to having this in my hand. I also expect i an riding a wave of 'novelty value' right now, but even so I feel i may be anew convert to the concept of folding phones that also work well as a tablet.
With a week of use, I now feel less anxious about the hardware reliability and more keen to make a switch. With the fold 7 release upcoming and the rumours about taking the already great fold6 and improving on it, I think perhaps July might be an expensive month for me !
Hope you enjoyed this usage review from my Stars🌟 trial unit.
Smiley.
Quite a comprehensive initial review, great stuff 
glad you are impressed though fairly early days and more to explore. similarily I was intrigued when I tested the Z Fold 6, a lot to enjoy and whilst there can be some apprehension this latest version is more dureable.
Hi @smiley ,
Great review! As an S25 Ultra user, I’ve always been tempted to switch to a Fold. If they release a Fold with similar specs to their Ultra phone—especially in terms of cameras—that would seriously make me consider switching.
