Latest news with #GalaxyZFold5
Tom's Guide
3 days ago
- Tom's Guide
Does your Google Messages app keep crashing? This could be the reason why
There's nothing more annoying than apps crashing and it looks like the latest Google Messages app beta is the latest culprit. According to several posts on Reddit (via 9to5Google,) the latest beta version of the Google Messages app appears to crash as soon as some people try to open it. This makes it impossible to send any new message to a contact, although users report still being able to respond to any received messages via the phone's notifications. The fault does not appear to be an issue with any one brand, as comments have come from people using a wealth of different Android phones, including Google Pixel and Samsung Galaxy devices. It also doesn't appear to be a fault with any one carrier as, according to Android Authority, the issue has appeared on Fido, Google Fi, T-Mobile and Verizon . The only constant in the reports is that the bug only appears to occur on devices running the latest Google Messages beta, version 20250805_00_RC00. To be on the safe side, I checked my Galaxy Z Fold 5 running the current, non-beta version of the Google Messages app and there was no issue. The same was true with other Tom's Guide staff's phones, including the Pixel 9 Pro and the Galaxy Z Flip 7. We also updated a Pixel 8a to the latest beta, and did not experience the problem. While issues with a beta version of software certainly are to be expected, the more common fixes, like restarting the phone or clearing the app's cache, do not appear to consistently help. However, some users have reported that uninstalling and then reinstalling the update can solve the problem. Considering users are still able to receive messages, which is a background process, the fault is likely with the foreground code. In my experience, this would indicate that there is an issue with the foreground code path or with how the app's foreground processes interact with the phone's operating system. Thankfully, both of these possibilities are a relatively easy fix. However, there's always the possibility of it being a different issue. We have reached out to Google for comment about the timeline for a possible fix and will update you as soon as we hear anything. Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips.
Tom's Guide
30-07-2025
- Tom's Guide
I swapped my Galaxy Z Fold 5 for the Galaxy Z Fold 7 — here's why I'm not ready to upgrade
One of the most difficult decisions any device owner faces is knowing when it's time for an upgrade. And when the device is as expensive as the $1,999 Galaxy Z Fold 7, that question becomes even trickier. It's a pressing question for me personally. For the past year, I have been using the Galaxy Z Fold 5, a device that helped me overcome my skepticism about foldable phones to see their appeal. So I watched the recent Galaxy Unpacked event with anticipation to find out more about Samsung's latest foldable. Based on our own Galaxy Z Fold 7 review, there's no doubt this is a fantastic-looking phone with some big improvements. But I keep getting stuck on that $1,999 starting price, which easily surpasses other phones and even a few laptops. And I doubt I'm the only one whether we're talking about current foldable phone owners or anyone considering jumping to a foldable design. With that in mind, I took a closer look at the Galaxy Z Fold, using it over the course of a week to see how big an upgrade it was over my current Galaxy Z Fold 5. Here's what I discovered. One of the main reasons that you would ever consider buying a foldable phone is to have access to a bigger inner display, and the same is true when it comes to upgrading. The Galaxy Z Fold 7 certainly has the advantage here, thanks to the 8-inch inner display that's now the centerpiece of this device. That compares to a 7.6-inch main panel on my Galaxy Z Fold 5. A mere 0.4 inches of extra space may not seem like a big addition. But I really noticed the extended display when using the on-screen keyboard or working in split-screen mode. And yet, one issue remains. I recently tried out the Galaxy Z Fold 5 as a streaming device, and in the process, discovered that many of the best streaming services really don't make use of the bigger screen on foldable phones. The result: much of that larger screen is under-utilized. This same problem persists on the Galaxy Z Fold 7, but in some ways, it's even worse, as there's even more space left to waste. The outer display on the Galaxy Z Fold 7 has gotten bigger, too, and that's a change I can definitely appreciate. We're talking 6.5 inches compared to a 6.2-inch cover panel on the Z Fold 5. That always felt too small to me, causing me to unfold the phone to perform basic tasks like sending a message. In contrast, the 6.5-inch screen on the Galaxy Z Fold 7 is much more comfortable to use so I can get a lot more work done without ever having to open up the device. The Galaxy Z Fold 7 gets a 200 MP main camera, matching the one on the Galaxy S25 Ultra and handily topping the Z Fold 5's 50MP shooter. In the comparison shots below, you can see the improved definition on the Galaxy Z Fold 7's camera, although the colors do appear a bit more muted than they are in the Z Fold 5 shot. If you want a better idea of how the cameras compare, we did a 10-round shoot-off between the Galaxy Z Fold 7 and the Galaxy Z Fold 6, which has the same cameras as the Z Fold 5. It isn't just the cameras that have seen a marked improvement, as the Galaxy Z Fold 7 comes with the stellar Snapdragon 8 Elite chip. Meanwhile, the Galaxy Z Fold 5 only has the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, which is a couple of generations behind. In real world use, it may take you a while to notice the difference; it certainly did for me. But I do think the Z Fold 7 is really quick and holds up when playing the more modern games. The Galaxy Z Fold 5 features a 4,400 mAh battery, and two years later, Samsung's still using that power pack in the Galaxy Z Fold 7. Even with the Snapdragon 8 Elite inside the Z Fold 7 offering better power management, battery life on either phone had yet to break the 11 hour mark on our battery test. The Galaxy Z Fold 7 ships with One UI 8, which doesn't feel like a particularly feature-rich update to me outside of a few improvements to features like Circle to Search and more. However, you'd expect these features will eventually come to older phones like the Galaxy Z Fold 5 as Samsung makes its new software available. On top of that, the Galaxy Z Fold 5 actually has features that the Galaxy Z Fold 7 doesn't, namely, it can use an S Pen. In an attempt to get the Z Fold 7 as thin as possible, Samsung had to remove the digitizer from the screen, which is a bit of a step back from my perspective. Now that I've mentioned it, I suppose I should talk about the elephant in the room… the very skinny elephant. Yes, the Galaxy Z Fold 7 is much thinner than the Galaxy Z Fold 5, with the newer phone measuring 0.35 inches when folded and 0.17 inches when unfolded. Meanwhile, the Galaxy Z Fold 5 is 0.53 inches thick when folded and 0.24 inches when unfolded. It's a noticeable difference, and from a hardware standpoint, it's pretty impressive. But I'm not necessarily a fan of the change. Initially, I thought the thinner design might hurt durability, though recent durability testing has put that concern to rest. For me, though, the camera bump on the Galaxy Z Fold 7 feels more noticeable because of that thinness, and it makes balancing the phone in clamshell mode a nightmare — something I noticed when using it for Samsung DeX. The Galaxy Z Fold 5 keeps weight more evenly distributed. When the older phone is lying flat, it doesn't rock around nearly as much. That said, I will admit that the crease on the main display is much less noticeable on the Galaxy Z Fold 7, which leads to a more immersive viewing experience. The Galaxy Z Fold 7 is also much lighter at only 7.5 ounces compared to the Galaxy Z Fold 5's 8.92-ounce weight. Even after gong through all these changes — some good, some less so — I can't forget about the $1,999 price for the Galaxy Z Fold 7. And so the upgrade question boils down to whether the changes are enough to justify that kind of expense, even if the best Galaxy Z Fold 7 deals can drop the price? Frankly, I think Galaxy Z Fold 5 or Galaxy Z Fold 6 owners should hold off on upgrade. The main appeal of the new phone is its larger screens and thinner design, and while both changes impress, I just don't see enough apps taking advantage of that display. Ultimately, the high cost of foldable phones — especially Samsung's — means they don't follow the typical update schedule of most devices; instead, they are phones you want to keep for as long as possible rather than upgrading after just a year or two. If you've got an older foldable device, though, or you've never tried a foldable before, the appeal of the Galaxy Z Fold 7 is undeniable. Samsung has improved on many elements of the foldable experience, and the seven years of guaranteed support means that large price can be spread out over time.
Tom's Guide
21-07-2025
- Tom's Guide
Google Maps just lost a useful feature — this will make future road trips more frustrating
Google Maps remains one of the most popular navigation apps on the market, but a recent change might turn users off of it. Last year, Google removed Assistant Driving mode from the bottom of the Google Map app, which allows users to interact with Google Assistant while navigating, a useful way of controlling media playback while on the move. When this mode was removed, users instead had to use the Show media playback control feature, which works with apps like YouTube Music and Spotify, to easily control what they were listening to while driving. However, as first reported by 9to5 Google, the playback control feature appears to have been removed. In past versions, the playback bar would appear at the bottom of the screen while you navigated, allowing you to pause, play and skip songs or podcasts without needing to leave the app. However, as of Google Maps version 25.28, the controls have vanished alongside the toggle to show them. I checked the app on my Galaxy Z Fold 5 with the most up-to-date version of the app and, sure enough, I could not find the toggles, which usually live in the Navigation tab. However, my colleague's Honor 400 Pro, running Google Maps version 25.29, did have the toggles in place. It should be noted that, at time of writing, the feature still appears on the iOS version of Google Maps. As such, we can't say for certain if the removal from Android is an intentional choice or a bug in the app. The advantage of easy Playback Control tools is that they allow users to quickly change songs without needing to divert their focus from the road. If you remove them, it means that a user has to leave Google Maps, find the relevant media app, change the song and then head back to Google Maps. At best, that's a solid ten to twenty seconds where they are not focused on the road as much as they should be. If this removal is an intentional choice, it will certainly be a disappointment and will likely lead some users to head to alternative apps like Waze, which still has media controls in the app. However, Google Maps has released several recent updates that might help to keep users on the app. For instance, Google Maps on iPhones recently rolled out a screenshot recognition feature that can find locations from images you've saved in your camera gallery. Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. For the time being, we'll need to wait and see if Google keeps this change, or if this is simply a hiccup that will be addressed. If this is going to be the new normal for the app, let us know what you think and if this will lead to you changing navigation apps. Follow Tom's Guide on Google News to get our up-to-date news, how-tos, and reviews in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button.
GSM Arena
19-07-2025
- GSM Arena
Some Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7 units are reportedly not opening completely flat
Victor, 19 July 2025 It seems Samsung might be in some hot water over a growing potential issue with the hinge on its Z Fold7. We've been keeping an eye out for developments and still can't quite decide whether the issue is a real cause for concern or not. Still, it is worth reporting. The facts we have so far are at least a couple of photos published on Reddit of what seem to be store demo units. Indeed, these appear not to be opening fully. That said, the poster does mention that they could "help it a bit", so it's more a case of the hinge not snapping properly than not opening. This might be due to a defect in the hinge, something caused by rough treatment (though that shouldn't be the case on such new units), or a case of preproduction units not quite meeting the standards. There is also always the possibility that the users didn't open the phone fully, intentionally or not. For the record, we have no such issues with our review unit. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5 unit not opening fully Whatever the case, there is still no talk of a manufacturing defect or a recall of any kind. For some context, the new and redesigned Armor FlexHinge should not only reduce display creasing but also be more durable by distributing stress more evenly. Samsung hasn't released any formal cycle durability figures regarding its new hinge yet, but we do know that the Z Fold6 is rated for over 200,000 open and close cycles without any issues. It is also worth noting that the "original" "zero-gap" hinge introduced with the Z Fold5 had an official tolerance of between 178.5 and 181.5 degrees when fully open. Anything more should be covered by warranty. Perhaps the new hinge has a similar degree of tolerance; we just aren't aware of it. We'll keep an eye on how this story develops once the first deliveries begin to arrive. Source | Via
GSM Arena
19-07-2025
- GSM Arena
Some Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7 units are reportedly not opening completely flat
It seems Samsung might be in some hot water over a growing potential issue with the hinge on its Z Fold7. We've been keeping an eye out for developments and still can't quite decide whether the issue is a real cause for concern or not. Still, it is worth reporting. The facts we have so far are at least a couple of photos published on Reddit of what seem to be store demo units. Indeed, these appear not to be opening fully. That said, the poster does mention that they could "help it a bit", so it's more a case of the hinge not snapping properly than not opening. This might be due to a defect in the hinge, something caused by rough treatment (though that shouldn't be the case on such new units), or a case of preproduction units not quite meeting the standards. There is also always the possibility that the users didn't open the phone fully, intentionally or not. For the record, we have no such issues with our review unit. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5 unit not opening fully Whatever the case, there is still no talk of a manufacturing defect or a recall of any kind. For some context, the new and redesigned Armor FlexHinge should not only reduce display creasing but also be more durable by distributing stress more evenly. Samsung hasn't released any formal cycle durability figures regarding its new hinge yet, but we do know that the Z Fold6 is rated for over 200,000 open and close cycles without any issues. It is also worth noting that the "original" "zero-gap" hinge introduced with the Z Fold5 had an official tolerance of between 178.5 and 181.5 degrees when fully open. Anything more should be covered by warranty. Perhaps the new hinge has a similar degree of tolerance; we just aren't aware of it. We'll keep an eye on how this story develops once the first deliveries begin to arrive. Source | Via
