Five noteworthy announcements at Samsung’s Unpacked event

Last year, more than 10 million people opened one of Samsung’s foldable devices, TM Roh told thousands of attendees watching the company’s Unpacked event.

The figure, shared by Samsung Electronic’s president and head of mobile experience business, was a precursor to an event that released a barrage of new products, including two new foldables.

To give you a rundown, here’s a list of some of the most notable announcements at the 2022 Unpacked event, in no particular order:

Galaxy Z Fold 4

The Galaxy Z Fold 4 unfolds like a book to reveal a 7.6-inch QXGA+ AMOLED inner display. When folded, the secondary screen sits at 6.2-inches. The device’s primary camera has 50-megapixels f/1.8 and the ultra-wide comes in at 12-megapixels f/2.2. The foldable also features Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chip.

Despite the upgrades, anyone hoping to store their beloved S Pen will surely be disappointed. The Fold 4 doesn’t have in-device storage. The only way to store the separately sold stylus with the phone is with a specific case from Samsung.

The 256GB version of the device starts at $2,269 and comes in Gray Green,’ ‘Moon Beige’ and ‘Phantom Black. The 512GB model starts at $2,429. Learn more about how to pre-order the Z Fold 4 here.

Galaxy Z Flip 4

With many similarities to the Flip 3, what sets the Flip 4 apart from its predecessor is its battery and chipset, along with a few other elements.

The device also features the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset, 8GB of RAM and a 3,700 mAh battery. The main screen features a 6.7-inch FHD+ 120Hz display, Dynamic AMOLED 2X, and Infinity Flex Display (2640 x 1080 pixel resolution). The cover screen features a 1.9-inch Super AMOLED Display (260 x 512 pixel resolution).

Anyone tired of leaving fingerprints on their phone will be happy to know the Flip 4 comes with a matte finish to the glass, uptaking its predecessor when it comes to repelling fingerprints.

The device starts at $1,259 in Canada. It comes in Bora Purple,’ ‘Pink Gold,’ ‘Blue’ and ‘Graphite.’  More information on pre-ordering the Z Flip 4 is available here.

Galaxy Watch 5 and Watch 5 Pro

Samsung revealed two new smartwatches at the event.

The Watch 5 features an armour aluminum case and a sport band. It comes in two sizes: 44mm and 40mm. The former has a battery of 410mAh and the latter 284mAh.

The Watch 5 Pro has a titanium case with a D-Buckle sport band. The watch measures 45mm and has a 590mAh battery.

Both models run on Google’s latest Wear OS 3.5 with Samsung’s One UI Watch 4.5. They also have full-colour always-on displays and are available in Bluetooth and LTE network configurations. Both watches also support several health-focused features, including heart rate monitoring, sleep monitoring, ECG, and fall detection.

The 40mm Watch 5 starts at $349.99 and the 44mm version starts at $389.99. The Watch 5 Pro starts at $559.99.

Galaxy Buds 2 Pro

The smallest and lightest buds part of Samsung’s Buds Pro Series, the Buds 2 Pro feature 24-bit Hi-Fi sound quality and 360-degree audio with direct multi-channel.

The Buds 2 Pro also offer active noise cancellation (ANC), a high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) microphone, ambient sound and voice detection.

With a 61mAh battery capacity in the earbuds and a 515mAh power cell in the charging case, the earbuds provide up to five hours of playtime with ANC on and 8 hours with ANC off. The case will last 18 hours with ANC on and 29 hours with ANC off.

To match the Flip 4, the Buds 2 Pro comes in ‘White,’ ‘Graphite,’ and ‘Bora Purple’ and costs $289.99.

Environmental action

Samsung says it recycles discarded fishing nets and uses them in Galaxy products, as part of its Galaxy for the Planet initiative. The Galaxy S22 series was the first smartphone to include the material. Now, the company says 90 percent of its Galaxy devices launched over the year contain at least one component of recycled material, including discarded fishing nets.

The packaging for the new foldables will also use 100 percent recycled paper. Compare to the first generation of devices, packaging for these new foldables has been reduced by 58 percent.