That’s what YouTuber JerryRigEverything found at any rate in his Galaxy Z Fold 4 durability testing (opens in new tab). While the Galaxy Z Fold 4 stood up well to the various torture tests featured in the video — indeed, the YouTuber remarks how impressed he is with Samsung’s design — the end result was about the same as the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 test last year. That is definitely disappointing to hear given that Samsung claims the main screen is 45% stronger on the Fold 4 than the Galaxy Z Fold 3. After watching JerryRigEverything’s Galaxy Z Fold 4 testing, you emerge with two key takeaways. First, the phone’s ability to handle dust is impressive, as the Galaxy Z Fold 4 shows no issue with dust entering the hinges. The fingerprint reader also still worked despite being incredibly dusty. in fact, the Fold 4’s fingerprint reader, located on the side of the device, was easily the highlight of the testing. Despite being heavily scratched and then covered with dust, the fingerprint reader still allowed JerryRigEverything to register and use a fingerprint quickly. Given that in-screen fingerprint readers do not always perform ideally, this test is a major point in favor of keeping the fingerprint reader a physical button.
Fold 4 vs Fold 3: Not a leap forward for durability
As impressive as those findings were, the Galaxy Z Fold 4 does not appear to be any more durable than the Galaxy Z Fold 3, at least based on this new video. Despite claims from Samsung that the main screen is 45% more durable in the Fold 4 than the Fold 3, the testing did not really bear that out. The Ultra Thin Glass (UTG) of the interior screen still suffers from scratches at level 2 on the Mohs hardness scale and even more severe scratches at level 3. These results, while not shocking, are similar to the results we saw during the testing of the Galaxy Z Fold 3. While tough to quantify, they certainly don’t indicate a 45% increase in screen durability. The outer cover screen is much more durable, which isn’t a surprise given that this screen is made from Corning Gorilla Glass Victus Plus. Gorilla Glass has always been more durable than the UTG that is used in the foldable interior display. However, despite the cover screen getting upgraded from Corning Gorilla Glass Victus to Victus Plus, the “Plus” does not seem to have added much. As with the Gorilla Glass Victus on the Fold 3, the Victus Plus glass on the Fold 4 still suffers from scratches at level 6 on the Mohs scale and deeper scratches at level 7. Keep in mind that the Galaxy Z Fold 3 was a pretty durable phone in its own right, so the fact that the Galaxy Z Fold 4 matches it is still impressive, even if it doesn’t take a big step forward. And the JerryRigEverything testing isn’t the only indication of the foldable’s durability — the Galaxy Z Fold 4 fared well in the Allstate drop test, too. In the end, the Fold 4 being just as durable is a good thing because that means it’s a very durable foldable phone, which is nothing short of impressive.
