In case you haven't heard - or been subjected to countless Twitter ads - Apple is holding its annual iPhone event next week. We're expecting the usual round of iterative updates for the company's newest smartphones, complete with never-before-seen innovations like an always-on display and a hole-punch camera on the Pro models. Hot off releasing its latest flagship foldables, Samsung is seizing the moment to advertise its futuristic hardware, all while mocking Apple's status quo design philosophy.
The ad, titled "Buckle Up," leaves out the Galaxy Z Fold 4 entirely, opting to focus on the Z Flip 4 and the Galaxy S22 Ultra. Those phones are both priced around the $1,000 mark, not too far off from where most rumors have the iPhone 14 Pro pegged. It makes sense to focus on the closest competitors price-wise - asking iOS fans to spend nearly $2,000 on a tablet-sized folding phone might not be the play.
Throughout the ad, the announcer gets in some jabs at Apple, teasing iPhone fans with Galaxy-specific features they won't get to try. Think heads will be turning in your direction? Think again - that honor belongs to the Z Flip 4. What about a 108MP sensor? That's right, the megapixel wars are back, and you ain't winning. And don't forget astrophotography - ever heard of it? You can make your event space-themed all you want, Apple; it won't mean much until you back it up with features.
Jokes aside, it's a good piece of advertising, even if it won't make the rounds for more than a few days. Samsung continues to make some of the best Android phones around, and not just because of its work with foldables. The Galaxy S22 Ultra might not look as cutting edge as the Z Fold 4, but it remains an incredible device months after launch - much better than the iPhone 13 Pro Max.
Still, if you'll allow me to play devil's advocate - and please, hold off on those comments for a moment - it's an odd year for Samsung to stress its own boundary-pushing. There's no doubt that the company has pushed foldables as a mainstream product faster than most would've expected, but the Galaxy Z Fold 4 and Z Flip 4 aren't exactly revolutionary. Both are iterative updates compared to their last-gen counterparts, and some fantastic quality-of-life improvements, but nothing that would convince even the most die-hard early adopter to drop another couple grand just twelve months later.
Then again, Apple is poised to drop four new iPhones next week, each reusing a design first seen in 2020. And while the always-on display and hole-punch FaceID sensors are sure to please Apple fans, it's far from groundbreaking in the world of Android. Who knows - maybe someday, Apple will sell a foldable of its own.