Galaxy Z Fold 4 and iPhone 14: The most interesting and most boring phone of 2022? Why boring sells

The Z Fold 4 is probably the most exciting phone (and tablet) that we’ll be getting in 2022, why won’t it sell as much?

In many parts of the world Apple has established itself as the premium, reliable and trendy phone brand to go with. Samsung too is wildly popular around the world, with a huge grasp of the low-end and mid-range phone markets in almost every country.So if we put away the idea that a popularity contest dictates who sells more, we can actually see the real reason the Z Fold 4 will sell way, way less than the iPhone 14. Clear as day…

The Galaxy Z Fold 4 is expensive, and in people’s eyes – a gamble

At a recent Galaxy Z Fold 4 hands-on event we attended, we were impressed to see a wall full of mechanical arms, which folded and unfolded Z Fold 4 units over and over. It was a fun way for Samsung to assure the press that the Z Fold 4 is built to last.

However, the general public will never see this show of endurance, instead likely assuming that the current Z Fold 4 is as fragile as the first Fold from early 2019. That one’s display would tear in the hands of reviewers, and even more famously – many people tried to take off its “screen protector” when they first got it, only to realize that doing so destroys the screen. Particles could enter the Fold’s hinge and ruin that too.

Of course, over the following years Samsung would improve on its Z Fold series grealy, with the only minor issue I personally had with the current Z Fold 4 being a very rare creaking sound when unfolding it – but nothing serious. The new Z Fold 4 feels sturdy like a tank, the display feels durable, the hinge is smaller than ever, and seemingly tight and reliable.

But none of this matters for an average phone buyer who, even if interested in something different like a Z Fold 4, would probably think that spending $1,800 or more for something that could break rather quickly is a huge gamble to make. And most people generally don’t have the kind of resources for such gambles.

That’s why buying something tried and tested, with a long-lasting reputation of being reliable and perhaps even more importantly – of keeping its resale value, would make more sense. And what fits this description better than an iPhone?

Sure, the iPhone 14 series isn’t shaping up to bring anything huge and new to the table… In fact it might just be yet another subjectively boring annual iPhone upgrade, once again with just a few camera upgrades and likely a smaller, or completely gone notch.

It’s boring when compared to the Z Fold 4, but infinitely safer of a choice.

I personally constantly buy and sell phones and tablets, as to experience everything there is out there. Switching between iPhones and Android phones all the time, exactly because Android phones can be exciting (not to mention cheaper), but not everyone wants to switch around until they find some perfect phone for their personal needs.

Not everyone’s aware of what a phone’s features mean, which brands are reliable, and what to expect from them. Most people just want a good phone that works, and if it’s trendy, easy to use, long-lasting, and with good cameras – even better.

Here’s what the Z Fold 4 can do…

Let’s talk about what makes the Z Fold 4 so great and exciting, and why you should definitely consider it over, say, the upcoming iPhone 14 Pro Max. At least if you want to try something new and special; to step out from the world of minute, annual slab phone upgrades.

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 is a phone. Obviously, right? A thick one, too. But using it when closed is possible; its cover display is more than suitable to use for any of your regular, everyday phone tasks – checking mails and messages, browsing social media, the web, and so on.

However, the Z Fold 4 is also a tablet. Unfold that beast and you’re getting a square-ish 7.6-inch tablet. A tablet that was just a phone in your pocket 5 seconds ago! Now you can really go to town – gaming, watching YouTube videos or movies, browsing the web – it all looks big and gorgeous.

But Samsung is fully aware that the Z Fold 4 mainly attracts tech enthusiasts and power users, who want to do more than just those basic phone and tablet things. So this device delivers an absolutely empowering multitasking experience – you can run two or even three apps in split screen, taking full advantage of that big, folding display. But why stop there? You have a fixed taskbar on the bottom of the screen, with all of your apps within reach, drag some apps over the three you’ve already opened, and they’ll run too, in windows!

Since the Z Fold 4 has stylus support, jotting down notes like you would on a Galaxy Note or a tablet is no issue too. Even more fun – you can pair your Z Fold 4 to a smart TV via a feature called Samsung DeX. Now your Fold is streaming a full Android desktop mode to that TV – where your apps will open in resizable windows, and you can even snap those windows to the corners of the screen like you can on Windows 11…

Meanwhile your Z Fold 4 unit can serve as either a wireless trackpad for the desktop mode streaming to your TV, or you can keep using it as a phone, while it’s streaming, say, a movie to your TV in DeX mode.

Crazy stuff! I can assure you that your iPhone will never have features like this. But…

Here’s what the iPhone 14 can do…

Unlike the Galaxy Z Fold 4, Apple’s iPhone isn’t trying to be anything more than a phone. Apple would be happy to sell you an iPad and a MacBook separately, though, if you need more, but don’t expect a foldable iPhone or an iPhone with a DeX-like mode anytime soon. Not even stylus support.

Even Apple’s iPad Pro is only about to get decent PC-like multitasking this fall with iPadOS 16. Better than nothing, especially considering that the iPhone doesn’t even have a split screen mode.

But hey, Apple’s philosophy centers around simplicity, and what might seem like a negative for us – tech enthusiasts – is a huge positive for the average phone buyer. The iPhone 14 models, like their predecessors, will be “just” great phones. Reliable – with long-lasting software support, top tier performance, and lots of security and privacy features.

As a phone, the iPhone is fantastic, and love or hate Apple – if you’ve used one – it’s hard to deny it. It’s just nothing beyond a phone, unlike many Android options, such as the Z Fold 4.

And while the iPhone can’t show you more than one app at a time, let alone give you a desktop mode, it does have a library of polished and perfectly optimized apps. For example, you can legitimately edit videos with the LumaFusion app, which is only on iPhone and iPad. Apple’s phones are powerful enough for doing that without a hitch, if you happen to be a creative type “stuck” with an iPhone instead of a Z Fold 4. In fact, the Z Fold 4 would likely struggle to near the iPhone’s video editing performance, even if you find an Android alternative to the LumaFusion app, which I doubt is out there.

Why did I bring that up? To challenge the rumor that the iPhone is not for “pro” users. Its main focus may be being just a great phone, and it’s definitely not a multitasker’s dream phone, but you can do work on it as well. It has a simpler way of doing things, but its capabilities are there, and remain very, very hard to match. Particularly when we look at performance and app optimization.

Most people are comfortable with what’s familiar, especially when there’s a lot of money on the line, but what do you think?

If you’re reading this, then you’re likely a tech enthusiast, so there’s a good chance that you find the Z Fold 4 exciting and novel.

The question is – if you could choose between the upcoming iPhone 14 Pro Max and the Galaxy Z Fold 4 – which one would you get, and why?

What do you need from a phone – do you want all of the cool Samsung features that can make it more than a phone, or… for it to just be a good phone like the iPhone, no special bells and whistles?