Samsung launched the Galaxy Fold near the tail end of 2019, and a few months later, Motorola released its Edge. Subsequently, the two phones became the talk of the town for a while before, as expected, another tech firm, possibly Apple, launched another attention-grasping phone. That said, if you need to decide whether to buy the Motorola Edge or the Galaxy Fold, here is a review that will simplify that choice. For relevance, this article compares the Galaxy Fold with the 2022 Motorola Edge since the 1st gen model, the Motorola Edge (2020), is no longer available.
Motorola Edge vs. Samsung Galaxy Fold: Side-by-Side Comparison
| Motorola Edge | Samsung Galaxy Fold | |
|---|---|---|
| RAM | 6GB | 12GB |
| Internal Storage | 128GB and 256GB options | 512GB |
| Camera | 50MP+13MP+2MP back and 32MP front camera | 16MP+12MP+12MP triple |
| Face Unlock | Yes | No |
| Screen size | 6.7 inch | 7.3 inch |
| Aspect ratio | 19:5:9 | 16:10 |
| Processor | Dimensity 1050 | Snapdragon 855 |
- 6.7-inch OLED Display
- Up to 256GB memory
- Android 12 operating system
- 50MP high-resolution camera
- Battery lasts up to two days on a single charge
Motorola Edge vs. Galaxy Fold: What’s the Difference?
Design
Motorola Edge
The first thing you will notice about the Motorola Edge is its feather-light weight. Weighing only 170 grams, it is far much lighter than most phones its size and certainly than the Samsung Galaxy Fold, which weighs 260g.
Since the industry associates high density with premium phones, this quickly gives away the fact that this is not a premium phone. Motorola does not try to hoodwink buyers into thinking otherwise. In fact, the back of the phone and the side finish are plastic. However, Motorola avoided the cheap-looking glossy color schemes. It opted for a dark graphite gray finish, which gives the Edge a nice feel.
Under the display is a fingerprint reader, but Motorola seems to have kept the 2020 fingerprint sensors instead of upgrading them. As a result, it does not work as effectively as expected of a phone that was upgraded to suit the 2022 phone market.
As far as dirt and moisture protection goes, the Motorola Edge is IP52 rated. Thus, it can handle light dirt, a few raindrops, and nothing more.
Samsung Galaxy Fold
It was the first generation of foldable phones by Samsung and the first folding phone that actually worked. It prepared the way for the Galaxy Z Fold series. The general build and the quality of material used on the phone is premium.
You can unfold it into a mini-tablet or fold it into a normal smartphone. However, it is bulky and thicker, with a tall, slender look when folded. You will definitely like the unfolded version more. However, its hinge is also its weakest link; it is easy to break, making waterproofing the phone difficult.
Unlike the Motorola Edge, the Galaxy Fold has its fingerprint sensor on the side. As a result, its fingerprint sensor is more responsive than that of the Edge. Unfortunately, Samsung placed it on the Bixby button instead of the power button. It takes practice to avoid accidentally triggering the Bixby Assistant.
Display
Motorola Edge
It is on the display that the Edge takes the lead. It comes with an OLED 6.7-inch display with 144Hz refresh rates. For the uninitiated, most phones offer between 60Hz to 120Hz, with the Galaxy Fold offering the latter. If you go for the previous generation of the Edge, however, you will get a 90Hz refresh rate, which, for 2020, was still better than most of its competitors.
At 144Hz, everything on the screen looks smooth and snappy, which makes the Edge a good phone for playing games and movies. The Edge also comes with a 385ppi pixel density and a resolution of 1080 x 2340. All these factors place Motorola Edge’s display among the best in the budget phones category.
Galaxy Fold
The Galaxy Fold has a tall narrow 4.6-inch screen when closed and is surrounded by thick bezels. If you are accustomed to 5 inch plus smartphones, then typing on the closed Galaxy Fold will be difficult, which is why most people prefer using it unfolded. You can use the screen to have a sneak-peak at notifications or run apps that do not require attentive involvement, like Spotify. Otherwise, for more intensive tasks, open the Galaxy Fold.
The Samsung Galaxy Fold unfolds into an impressively large 7.3-inch display with a different home screen from the front screen. Its 362ppi pixel density is lower than that of the Motorola Edge. However, it makes up for this with a 1536 x 2152 resolution. As a result, the graphics rendition is better and more immersive than on the Motorola Edge.
Camera
Motorola Edge
Motorola Edge offers an enticing camera system. The main camera has 50MP with IOS. There is a 13MP UltraWide camera that offers a 120-degree field-of-view, hence doubles up as a macro camera. At the bottom is a 2MP depth sensor designed to help take pictures in portrait mode.
The 50MP f/1.8 camera offers good contrast details and solid colors when used in decently lit environments. Though it is not so good in areas with too much light or dimly lit spaces. The 13MP f/1.5 UltraWide camera produces more consistent colors, but snapping in lowlight areas is almost impossible since it does not have IOS.
The 32MP selfie camera works fine until you check the images against those taken with a Galaxy Fold or other premium-level phones that have lower prefix values to their ‘MP’ camera label. The lack of details exposes Motorola’s ongoing struggle with its camera features. Nevertheless, it is still better than most options in its price range.
Galaxy Fold
The Samsung Galaxy Fold comes with 6 cameras; three on the back, a dual-selfie camera for use when unfolded, and one selfie camera in front for use when folded. The three back cameras system comprises a 16MP UltraWide camera, a 12MP wide-angle camera, and another 12MP camera for telephotos. You can use all three cameras at the back when the phone is folded. This makes it useful for taking quick pictures. However, for the best pictures, use the main cameras with the screen unfolded, as it provides great panoramic views and large images.
Additionally, Samsung includes several camera features such as Bixby Vision to help identify objects, find similar images, and even translate texts. It also has a Scene Optimizer that adjusts the lighting to make the focused object stand out.
Battery Life
Motorola Edge
Motorola handsets are known for their impressive battery life, and the Edge (2022) does not disappoint. With a 5,000mAh battery, a single charge can last up to 90 hours. You can also improve your battery life using Gametime settings, such as lowering the refresh rates.
On charging, Edge supports 30W wired charging that delivers 20% charge in 10 minutes and a full charge in slightly more than an hour. However, this does not come in-box. Instead, it has a two-wireless charging system that allows you to charge using a 15W Qi-compatible pad and other accessories using the phone’s power. In the latter case, however, it is worth pointing out that the phone is not smart enough to stop sending power when the device being charged is full. As a result, if you do not monitor it, the phone will drain all its power through the 5W reverse charging.
Galaxy Fold
Samsung Galaxy Fold comes with a 4,380mAh battery that supports 15W wired and wireless charging as well as reverse charging, like the Motorola Edge. The Galaxy Fold’s battery can last up to two days with light to medium use and less when under heavy usage, though it has an endurance rating of 90 hours on paper.
Charging the Galaxy Fold takes between 80 to 90 minutes when using the 15W wireless charging, which is slightly longer than the time it will take to charge the Edge. On reverse charging, like in Motorola Edge, you put the accessory being charged on the back of the phone and remove it when full to prevent the phone from discharging completely.
Software and Updates
Motorola Edge
Motorola Edge comes with Android 12 together with Motorola’s trademark My UX interface. The interface is simple, clean, and impressively responsive, which is one of the few reasons those who have owned a Motorola always stick to the brand.
You can turn on the flashlight by chopping the phone or open the camera by twisting the phone a few times, among other customizable gesture options. If you love interacting with and dismissing notifications without powering the entire screen, then the Peek Display feature will be fun to use. In addition, this version of the Edge allows you to connect to laptops and other external displays through Motorola’s Rady for Platform feature.
On updates, Motorola allows up to three years of major Android updates and bi-monthly security updates for four years. This is a significant change in update policy, as all previous Motorola phones only got one Android update.
Galaxy Fold
The Galaxy Fold came with Android 9.0 in the first launch but Samsung has updated it over time, and the latest one has v12.0. Samsung paired it with Samsung’s One UI 4 interface, which takes care of the flaws Android has always had in tablets.
Samsung introduced the App Continuity feature to ensure that the app you opened on the front screen is resized to fit on the unfolded screen. It works like magic but not on all apps, in which case you need to restart the app. Also, by resizing apps, you can have up to three tiles of screens instead of just two, as in most split-screen functions.
Processor
Motorola Edge runs on a Dimensity 1050 processor, while Galaxy Fold uses Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 855 processor. You might not have heard of Dimensity processors before, partly because its manufacturer, MediaTek, is not as popular as Qualcomm. The main reason, however, is that very few phone use Dimensity series processors. In fact, the Motorola Edge 2022 version was the first to run on it. The list has grown ever since, with notable phone models such as the Oppo Reno 8 Pro, Samsung Galaxy A13 5G, and Redmi Note 11 Pro taking it up.
Comparisons between the Dimensity 1050 and the Snapdragon 855 processor show that they are on par on many levels, with the former even being slightly better on certain features. For example, both have 8 cores, 5G support, and run on LPDDR4X RAM. However, the MediaTek processor supports LPDDR5 RAM, Bluetooth version 5.2, and Wi-Fi 6E, while Snapdragon 855 only supports Bluetooth v5.0 and Wi-Fi 6.
Nonetheless, Snapdragon 855 still supports a 4K Ultra HD+ display at a maximum resolution of 3840 x 2160. Dimensity 1050, in contrast, can only manage Full HD+ at a 2520 x 1080 resolution.
Effectively, if you want to squeeze out all the processor power you can get from the two phones, the results will be the same on many levels. Also, since both are mid-range chipsets, their performance nosedives when running heavy apps and games, like Asphalt 9.
Performance
Even though these two phones have very similar processor power, they vary in performance. The Motorola Edge comes with 6GB RAM, while the Galaxy Fold gets 12GB RAM. The 6GB RAM gap makes all the difference in what you can get out of the processor. Therefore, the Galaxy Fold performs better than the Motorola Edge. You can open up to five apps simultaneously without noticeable lag. Graphics intensive games and applications also benefit from the large RAM.
On storage, the Motorola Edge offers 128GB or 256GB, with the option of an external SD card slot. The Samsung model, however, comes with a satisfactory 512GB storage. Given the availability of cloud storage, even 128GB is already a lot of space for a phone. Still, it is understandable that, given the phones’ excellent display and graphics performance, many would want to store and watch their movies and TV shows on the phone.
- 12GB RAM
- 512GB internal storage (not expandable)
- 7.3 inch screen
- Fold open to use as a tablet or even run three apps side-by-side
Please note: As of July 18, 2023, the Samsung Galaxy Fold is out of stock on Amazon. Check the retailer for future availability.
Motorola Edge vs. Galaxy Fold: 6 Must-Know Facts
- Motorola Edge has 6.35% higher pixel density than Samsung Galaxy Fold
- Motorola Edge is dustproof and more water-resistant than Samsung Galaxy Fold
- Both Edge and Galaxy Fold were first-generation models in series with similar names.
- Samsung Galaxy Fold is a foldable phone, and Motorola Edge is not.
- Motorola Edge has an external memory slot, while Samsung Galaxy Fold does not.
- The main camera on the Galaxy Fold has two times better video recording quality than that on the Motorola Edge
Motorola Edge vs. Galaxy Fold: Which One Is Better? Which One Should You Use?
Taste and preference play a pivotal role in choosing between either the Motorola Edge or the Galaxy Fold. If you desire a foldable phone, the decision is straightforward; go with the Galaxy Fold. Choose the Motorola Edge if you need a lighter phone with a long-lasting battery for streaming movies during long travels. Otherwise, if you care about photography, productivity, and storage and want to belong to the foldable club, go for the Galaxy Fold or its other later versions.
- $499.99Buy Now on Amazon
- 6.7-inch OLED Display
- Up to 256GB memory
- Android 12 operating system
- 50MP high-resolution camera
- Battery lasts up to two days on a single charge
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11/30/2023 07:04 am GMT - $724.99Buy Now on Amazon
- 12GB RAM
- 512GB internal storage (not expandable)
- 7.3 inch screen
- Fold open to use as a tablet or even run three apps side-by-side
We earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you.
12/01/2023 06:36 am GMT
Motorola and Samsung in the News
Both Motorola and Samsung are making headlines with their take on the modern day flip phone. In February 2023, Motorola released their newest smartphone, the Motorola Edge 30 Ultra. This smartphone is the newest version of the Motorola Edge and has a 6.7-inch OLED display and a triple-lens rear camera.
Samsung is holding a huge event in July 2023 called the Galaxy Unpacked event, which is rumored to announce new smartphones and upgrades to existing models. The Galaxy Z Fold 5 will be announced at this invite-only event, which is the newest upgrade to the Galaxy Z Fold 4.
Looking Forward
Samsung and Motorola are huge competitors in the smartphone industry and both companies continue to grow and improve upon their latest technology. Motorola’s Edge X40 is set to be released sometime in the fourth quarter of 2023. As for Samsung, there has been buzz around the Galaxy community that the newest model will have a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset and have a 6.7-inch foldable screen and a 2.1-inch cover display.
The image featured at the top of this post is ©Mr.Mikla/Shutterstock.com.
