Samsung basically tricked everyone with the Galaxy Z Flip 7—and I’m kind of impressed they pulled it off. I daily-driven this phone for almost two weeks, and the whole strategy is obvious: distract you with that ridiculously gorgeous 4.1-inch outer display that curves edge-to-edge with basically no bezels. It’s legit “Netflix on the cover of your phone” levels of good, and it makes the Flip feel actually useful when it’s closed. Add in a crease that’s nearly invisible now, surprisingly all-day battery life, and the outer screen tripod trick for selfies… and yeah, it feels like carrying a piece of the future. But once you stop staring at the screen, the compromises hit. I compared it to my iPhone 15 Pro and Pixel 9 Pro and the camera falls apart the second you try to zoom—because there’s no telephoto lens at all. You’re stuck with digital zoom that looks like it was shot through a screen door. Then there’s the chip situation: while the Fold 7 gets the Snapdragon 8 Elite, the Flip 7 gets Exynos 2500, and Samsung still bumped the price. My verdict is weirdly positive though: if you want the coolest phone at the coffee shop and you’re not a spec-maxer, it works as a daily driver—just try to catch it on a sale because $1,100 is steep for what you’re giving up.