Galaxy Z Fold 3 under-display camera might still disappoint some
The first Galaxy Fold was more like a proof-of-concept, demonstrating that foldable phones could actually be done at all. The Galaxy Z Fold 2 was its refinement, addressing many of the durability and usability pain points of its predecessor. If the rumors are on the mark, the Galaxy Z Fold 3 might very well deliver another milestone in the foldable phone dream. One feature, however, stands out almost like an unnecessary nice feature that, while potentially better, might still disappoint those who like to take selfies or live on video chats.
To be honest, the Galaxy Z Fold 3 sounds almost like a set of compromises in order to accommodate new features. In particular, the addition of the S Pen may have incurred a reduction of internal space which, in turn, resulted in shrinking the displays and the battery. That said, if the S Pen will be an external accessory, that reasoning flies out the window entirely.
Samsung's next foldable phone, however, has another rumored feature that may or may not excite fans. Although the company has long been working on an under-display camera, it could debut the technology first on the Galaxy Z Fold 3. Given reviews of the world's first UDC on the ZTE Axon 20 5G, that might not sound so encouraging.
Fold3's UPC transmittance is as high as 40%+, which is much higher than any other brand UPC solutions you have ever seen.
— ICE UNIVERSE (@UniverseIce) June 4, 2021
@Ice universe does offer some comfort in claiming that the Galaxy Z Fold 3's UPC or Under-Panel Camera transmittance will be more than 40%, suggesting that it is higher than the one used by ZTE. In a nutshell, this means that it would be able to let more light through the display and to the camera, which in turn means that the camera will be able to produce better images. This would make it almost comparable to the regular front-facing cameras behind punch-hole cutouts.
Although the light transmittance is high, which is close to the experience of ordinary cameras, its UPC appearance is not perfect.
It looks like mosaic.
You should know which phone I'm talking about.— ICE UNIVERSE (@UniverseIce) June 6, 2021
Unfortunately, the tipster also followed it up by saying that the area of the display above the camera will still have that mosaic-like pattern that will set it apart from the rest of the screen. That is an unavoidable consequence of the technology, at least for now, but it is thankfully not that conspicuous unless you look closely. Hopefully, it will actually fare better than the Axon 20 5G, even if it is far from perfect.