What you need to know
- Samsung might be ditching the hidden selfie cameras and bringing back punch-holes on both the Z Fold 7’s inner and cover screens.
- UDC tech still struggles with clarity, thanks to screen layers over the lens.
- If these changes stick, the Z Fold 7 might just be Samsung’s ticket back to the top of the foldable race.
A new Galaxy Z Fold 7 rumor has surfaced, and it’s hinting that Samsung might be swapping under-display cameras for punch-holes on both the main and cover screens.
According to PandaFlash on X, the Galaxy Z Fold 7 is likely ditching the under-display selfie cameras for a classic punch-hole setup (via TechRadar). Recent renders back this up, clearly showing the new camera cutout right on the main screen and cover display.
Going back to the recently leaked renders, it becomes clear that the Galaxy Z Fold 7 will adopt punch-hole cameras on both the cover and inner screens. But for some fans, this might feel like a step back in both looks and tech for the Fold lineup.
This move throws it back to the Galaxy Z Fold 2, the last time we saw a punch-hole on the main and cover screens. Since then—even up to the current Galaxy Z Fold 6—Samsung has stuck with under-display cameras (UDC), starting with the Z Fold 3, which was the first to hide the inner selfie camera under the screen.
Why the switch?
There’s no official explanation as to why Samsung is ditching the under-display camera on the Z Fold 7, but the likely reason is simple: better photo quality. Even with improvements, UDC still struggles to match the clarity of a regular punch-hole shooter, thanks to the extra display layer sitting on top of the lens.
Sure, under-display cameras are a cool flex tech-wise, but hiding the lens under screen layers tends to wreck photo quality. The camera must contend with multiple display layers, which typically results in noisy, underexposed photos, along with issues like excessive lens flare and peculiar artifacts.
A punch-hole camera, on the other hand, skips the visual gymnastics and usually delivers way cleaner, sharper photos.
Samsung’s foldable reset?
Assuming these rumored tweaks actually make it to the final Z Fold 7, Samsung might finally have the spark it needs to take back the foldable crown. After years of playing it safe, this could be the shake-up that puts it back at the top of every best foldable list.
Samsung keeps quiet for now, but all signs point to a July 9 reveal for the Galaxy Z Fold 7 and Z Flip 7.
