The best Smartphone Deals from the US, the UK, Germany and India

Samsung unveiled its 5th generation foldable phones this week and they went on pre-order. There are some great deals in some regions and not-so-great deals in other regions. We also look at possible alternatives to the Galaxy Z foldables.

USA

Samsung US is offering some killer trade-in deals. For example, if you send in your old Galaxy Z Flip4, you can get the new Z Flip5 for just $100 (assuming it’s in a good condition, if your old Flip has screen damage you will have to pay $300 instead). $100 to get the new hinge and cover display, plus an updated chipset seems like a no-brainer.

But what if you don’t have a Z Flip4 to trade? A two-year old Galaxy S21 will fetch $400 trade-in credit, so you have to pay $600. Not a bad deal, but it’s not as good as the Z Flip swap.

If you don’t want to trade in an old device at all, check out the deals from Amazon and Best Buy. They give you a free storage upgrade (i.e. the 512GB version costs the same as the 256GB one). Note that Samsung US also offers a free storage upgrade.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 (pre-order)8/512GB

free memory upgrade from 256GB
will be released on August 11
$1,000 AT AMAZON US$1,000 AT BEST BUY

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 (pre-order)12/512GB

free memory upgrade from 256GB
will be released on August 11
$1,800 AT AMAZON US$1,800 AT BEST BUY

Moving on to the Galaxy Tab S9 slates, they also come with a free storage upgrade from the base tier. Amazon also offers 50% off a matching Book Cover Keyboard Slim. As the name suggests, this adds a full QWERTY (note: no trackpad, though).

Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 (pre-order) Wi-Fi, 256GB

free memory upgrade from 128GB
(Amazon) 50% off S9 Book Cover Keyboard Slim
will be released on August 11
$800 AT AMAZON US $800 AT BEST BUY

Samsung Galaxy Tab S9+ (pre-order) Wi-Fi, 512GB

free memory upgrade from 256GB
(Amazon) 50% off S9+ Book Cover Keyboard Slim
will be released on August 11
$1,000 AT AMAZON US $1,000 AT BEST BUY

Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 Ultra (pre-order) free memory upgrade from 256GB

will be released on August 11
$1,200 AT BEST BUY

Finally, the Samsung Galaxy Watch6 pair. These don’t have exciting offers from either Amazon or Best Buy, the most you can score is a free wrist strap.

Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 (pre-order) Bluetooth

free fabric band
will be released on August 11
40MM - $300 AT BEST BUY 44MM - $330 AT BEST BUY

Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 Classic (pre-order) Bluetooth

will be released on August 11
43MM - $400 AT AMAZON US 47MM - $430 AT AMAZON US

Now let’s have a look at alternatives. The Google Pixel Fold is now available and comes with a similar internal display and a more normal cover display (5.8” 17.4:9 vs. a slender 6.2” 23:9 on the Z Fold5). This one is equipped with a 5X periscope (vs. 3x lens) and despite being thinner (12.1mm vs. 13.4mm), it has a larger 4,821mAh battery (vs. 4,400mAh). Note that the Pixel is heavier (283g vs. 253g). Both phones have IPX8 water resistance.

Google Pixel Fold 12/256GB

$1,800 AT GOOGLE US

The Motorola Razr+ boasts a slightly larger cover display and the two cameras (and LED flash) are in punch holes, rather than having the display shy away from them as it does on the Z Flip5. The inner display is a larger 6.9” 144Hz panel (vs. 6.7”, same aspect ratio). The Moto uses the older Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chip and doesn’t have an advantage in the camera department like the Pixel Fold does (expect maybe for the 32MP selfie), the battery situation is only slightly better too (3,800mAh with 30W wired and 5W wireless charging vs. 3,700mAh 25/15W).

Motorola Razr+ 8/256GB

$1,000 AT AMAZON US

If you’re not into the whole foldable thing, the Motorola Edge+ packs a powerful Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset and a 6.67” 165Hz display (FHD+), along with a 50MP main, 12MP portrait (2x) and 50MP ultra wide cameras, plus a 5,100mAh battery with 68W wired and 15W wireless charging. It’s a lot of hardware for Galaxy S23 money.

Motorola Edge+ 8/512GB

$100 off

$700 AT AMAZON US

Moving on to regular mid-rangers. The Moto Edge from last year has a 6.6” 144Hz OLED display, compared to 6.4” 120Hz on a Galaxy A54 (both FHD+). The Dimensity 1050 is about on par with the Exynos 1380 (but the Samsung has a microSD slot), the 50+13MP and 50+12MP cameras are comparable too. Both phones have 5,000mAh batteries, but the Motorola has 30W wired charging (vs. 25W) and 15W wireless (vs. none). The Samsung has better resistance against the elements with an IP67 rating and a better software update story.

Motorola Edge (2022) 8/256GB

$350 off

$250 AT AMAZON US

Samsung Galaxy A54 128GB

$50 off
$400 AT AMAZON US

Since we looked at Galaxy tablets, let’s have a quick peek at Apple slates too. The 2022 iPad Pro is powered by the mighty Apple M2 chip and have Stage Manager, which gives them multitasking capabilities similar to DeX (with USB-C ports they support external monitors too).

Apple iPad Pro 12.9 (2022) Wi-Fi, 128GB

$50 off

$1,050 AT AMAZON US

Apple iPad Pro 11 (2022) Wi-Fi, 128GB

$70 off

$730 AT AMAZON US

The iPad Air and vanilla iPad from 2022 both have 10.9” 60Hz IPS displays (vs. 120Hz on the Pros) and use the Apple M1 and A14 chipsets, respectively. The Air does have Stage Manager too.

Apple iPad Air (2022) Wi-Fi, 256GB

$70 off

$680 AT AMAZON US

Apple iPad (2022) Wi-Fi, 64GB

$50 off

$400 AT AMAZON US

Finally, the iPad Mini fills a gap that Samsung barely bothers with anymore – small tablets. The Mini has an 8.3” 60Hz LCD and uses the Apple A15 chipset, making it slightly more powerful than the vanilla iPad.

Apple iPad Mini (2021) Wi-Fi, 64GB

$30 off
$470 AT AMAZON US

UK

The trade-in deals in the UK are not nearly as good as in the US. A 256GB Galaxy Z Flip4 will only fetch £430, which means that you still need to pay £620 for a new Z Flip5.

Instead check out the Amazon deals. The Galaxy Z Flip5 and Galaxy Z Fold5 are both £100 cheaper than on Samsung.com, thanks to a voucher you can collect with a single click. Amazon is giving you a free storage upgrade to 512GB, just like Samsung. So, if you want to trade-in an old device, head over to Samsung.com. If not, Amazon may have the better deal for you.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5 (pre-order) 8/512GB

after £100 voucher
free storage upgrade from 256GB
includes free case
will be released on August 3
£950 AT AMAZON UK

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5 (pre-order) 12/512GB

after £100 voucher
free storage upgrade from 256GB
will be released on August 3
£1,650 AT AMAZON UK

The Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 series also has £100 vouchers that you can collect for any of the three models (both Wi-Fi and 5G versions are available). They come with a free storage upgrade, but since these have microSD slots you can forgo the extra storage in favor of a free Slim Book Cover Keyboard (full QWERTY, no trackpad).

Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 (pre-order) 256GB

after £100 voucher
free storage upgrade from 128GB
will be released on August 3
WI-FI - £700 AT AMAZON UK 5G - £850 AT AMAZON UK

Samsung Galaxy Tab S9+ (pre-order) 512GB

after £100 voucher
free storage upgrade from 256GB
will be released on August 3
WI-FI - £800 AT AMAZON UK 5G - £1,050 AT AMAZON UK

Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 Ultra (pre-order) 512GB
after £100 voucher
free storage upgrade from 256GB
will be released on August 3
WI-FI - £1,100 AT AMAZON UK 5G - £1,250 AT AMAZON UK

The Samsung Galaxy Watch6 pair comes with a gift card code for Google Play (£50 for the vanilla watch and £75 for the Classic), plus a free sport band. Note that we’ve linked the Bluetooth versions below, if you want 4G, that will be £50/60 more on top of the size option you’ve picked.

Samsung Galaxy Watch6 (pre-order) Bluetooth

Free £50 Google Play gift code
free extreme sport band
will be released on August 3
40MM - £290 AT AMAZON UK 44MM - £320 AT AMAZON UK

Samsung Galaxy Watch6 Classic (pre-order) Bluetooth

Free £75 Google Play gift code
free extreme sport band
will be released on August 3
43MM - £370 AT AMAZON UK 47MM - £400 AT AMAZON UK

Now let’s have a look at alternatives. The Google Pixel Fold is currently on pre-order. It comes with a similar internal display and a more normal cover display (5.8” 17.4:9 vs. a slender 6.2” 23:9 on the Z Fold5). This one is equipped with a 5X periscope (vs. 3x lens) and despite being thinner (12.1mm vs. 13.4mm), it has a larger 4,821mAh battery (vs. 4,400mAh). Note that the Pixel is heavier (283g vs. 253g). Both phones have IPX8 water resistance. Note that for a limited time you can score a free Pixel Watch to go with the Fold.

Google Pixel Fold 12/256GB

free Pixel Watch

£1,750 AT GOOGLE UK

The Motorola Razr 40 Ultra boasts a slightly larger cover display and the two cameras (and LED flash) are in punch holes, rather than having the display shy away from them as it does on the Z Flip5. The inner display is a larger 6.9” 144Hz panel (vs. 6.7”, same aspect ratio). The Moto uses the older Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chip and doesn’t have an advantage in the camera department like the Pixel Fold does (expect maybe for the 32MP selfie), the battery situation is only slightly better too (3,800mAh with 30W wired and 5W wireless charging vs. 3,700mAh 25/15W).

Motorola Razr 40 8/256GB
£1,065 AT AMAZON UK

If you don’t want a foldable, how about an Honor Magic5 Pro? This is a proper camera flagship with three 50MP sensors – the one in the main measures 1/1.12” (1.4µm pixels), the one in the telephoto cam sits behind a 3.5x lens, finally the one in the ultra wide is behind a 122° lens. The phone runs on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip and a 5,100mAh battery (66W wired, 50W wireless charging). It has a huge 6.81” 120Hz LTPO display (1,312 x 2,848px resolution, so not quite QHD+).

Honor Magic5 Pro 12/512GB

£150 off
£800 AT AMAZON UK

The Realme GT2 Pro price has been declining steadily and is now under £500. This buys you a 6.7” QHD+ LTPO display, a Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, a 5,000mAh battery with 65W charging and a 50+50MP camera with an impressive 150° UW lens.

Realme GT2 Pro 12/256GB

£210 off
£490 AT AMAZON UK

However, for a bit less cash you could grab the Poco F5 Pro instead. This one has a 12-bit 6.67” 120Hz display (not LTPO, though) and the improved Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chip. The battery is bigger at 5,160mAh capacity and supports both 67W wired and 30W wireless charging. The 64MP camera with a small 1/2” sensor has OIS, but neither it nor the 8MP ultra wide (120°) are particularly impressive.

Poco F5 Pro 12/256GB

£112 off
£447 AT POCO UK

Finally, some PlayStation 5 offers. The disc version of the console is available with a small discount and is now just over £400. You can also pick up an additional DualSense controller for some local multiplayer or grab the Media Remote if you want to use the PS5 as a streaming machine.

Sony PlayStation 5 Disc version

£75 off

£405 AT AMAZON UK

Sony DualSense controller £17 off


£43 AT AMAZON UK

Sony PlayStation Media Remote £7 off


£19 AT AMAZON UK

Germany

A 256GB Galaxy Z Flip4 is valued at only €400 for trade-in purposes, so you will need €800 on top of that to grab a new Z Flip5, which has an MSRP of €1,200. You can pick it up for €100 less than that thanks to a coupon on Amazon. Like Samsung, Amazon offers a free storage upgrade to 512GB.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5 (pre-order) 8/512GB

after €100 coupon
free storage upgrade from 256GB
will be released on August 3
€1,100 AT AMAZON DE

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5 also has a coupon available, worth €150 this time, so if you’re not going to be trading in an old device (e.g. a 256GB Z Fold4 is valued at €600), you may be better off going through Amazon than Samsung.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5 (pre-order) 12/512GB

after €150 coupon
free storage upgrade from 256GB
will be released on August 3
€1,750 AT AMAZON DE

The three Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 slates are available in both Wi-Fi and 5G configurations. There is a free storage upgrade in it for you, but unlike in the UK, giving up the extra storage doesn’t net you a free keyboard cover.

Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 (pre-order) 256GB

free storage upgrade from 128GB
will be released on August 11
WI-FI - €900 AT AMAZON DE 5G - €1,050 AT AMAZON DE

Samsung Galaxy Tab S9+ (pre-order) 512GB

free storage upgrade from 256GB
will be released on August 11
WI-FI - €1,120 AT AMAZON DE 5G - €1,270 AT AMAZON DE

Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 Ultra (pre-order) 512GB

free storage upgrade from 256GB
will be released on August 11
WI-FI - €1,340 AT AMAZON DE 5G - €1,490 AT AMAZON DE

The two Samsung Galaxy Watch6 models get a small perk, a nylon wrist strap. Note that we’ve linked the Bluetooth versions below, the 4G versions are €50 on top.

Samsung Galaxy Watch6 (pre-order) Bluetooth

free nylon strap (black)
will be released on August 4
40MM - €320 AT AMAZON DE 44MM - €350 AT AMAZON DE

Samsung Galaxy Watch6 Classic (pre-order) Bluetooth

free nylon strap (black)
will be released on August 4
43MM - €420 AT AMAZON DE 47MM - €450 AT AMAZON DE

Now let’s have a look at alternatives. The Google Pixel Fold is currently on pre-order (it’s coming next month). It comes with a similar internal display and a more normal cover display (5.8” 17.4:9 vs. a slender 6.2” 23:9 on the Z Fold5). This one is equipped with a 5X periscope (vs. 3x lens) and despite being thinner (12.1mm vs. 13.4mm), it has a larger 4,821mAh battery (vs. 4,400mAh). Note that the Pixel is heavier (283g vs. 253g). Both phones have IPX8 water resistance. Note that for a limited time you can score a free Pixel Watch to go with the Fold.

Google Pixel Fold 12/256GB
free Pixel Watch

€1,900 AT GOOGLE DE

The Huawei Mate X3 has a 5x periscope too and a Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset, rather than that Tensor G2 on the Google foldable. The phone is rated IPX8 and closes down to just 11.8mm, thinner than even the Pixel. Still, the price right now is too high for the X3 to compete.

Huawei Mate X3 12/512GB

€2,200 AT AMAZON DE

The Motorola Razr 40 Ultra boasts a slightly larger cover display and the two cameras (and LED flash) are in punch holes, rather than having the display shy away from them as it does on the Z Flip5. The inner display is a larger 6.9” 144Hz panel (vs. 6.7”, same aspect ratio). The Moto uses the older Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chip and doesn’t have an advantage in the camera department like the Pixel Fold does (expect maybe for the 32MP selfie), the battery situation is only slightly better too (3,800mAh with 30W wired and 5W wireless charging vs. 3,700mAh 25/15W).

Motorola Razr 40 Ultra 8/256GB

€1,200 AT AMAZON DE

The Motorola Razr 40 is €300 less than the Ultra and the Z Flip5. It cuts costs by switching to a 1.5” line display on the outside, but the internal 6.9” display is almost the same – the only difference is that it runs at 144Hz. This may be a limitation of the chipset, which is a Snapdragon 7 Gen 1. This one has a 64MP camera instead of 12MP (still with OIS) and a larger 4,200mAh battery (500mAh more than the Z Flip5) with 30W wired and 5W wireless charging.

Motorola Razr 40 8/256GB
€900 AT MOTOROLA DE 

India

Unlike in the US and Europe, Samsung isn’t offering a free storage upgrade in India – you get what you pay for. You can trade in an old device to lower the final price of the new Galaxy gadgets, but that's about it.

Amazon doesn’t have particularly interesting deals on the Galaxy Z Flip5 and Z Fold5, they cost the same as they do on Samsung.com. We’ll move past these offers quickly to get to the alternatives.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5 (pre-order) 8/256GB

3% off
will be released on August 18
₹100,000 AT AMAZON IN

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5 (pre-order) 12/512GB

3% off
will be released on August 18
₹165,000 AT AMAZON IN

Same with the Galaxy Tab S9 tablets, not much to look at. The Tab S9 Ultra comes in Wi-Fi and 5G flavors, the Tab S9 is available only in Wi-Fi form for now.

Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 (pre-order) Wi-Fi, 128GB

11% off
will be released on August 18
₹73,000 AT AMAZON IN

Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 Ultra (pre-order) 512GB

11% off
will be released on August 18
WI-FI - ₹120,000 AT AMAZON IN WI-FI - ₹134,000 AT AMAZON IN

For around half the price of a Galaxy Z Fold5, you can pick up a Tecno Phantom V Fold. This one features a larger 7.85” 120Hz LTPO inner display and a 6.42” 120Hz LTPO cover display (with a normal-ish 21.25:9 aspect ratio). The Dimensity 9000+ isn’t on par with the new Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 (especially the “for Galaxy” flavor), but in addition to a 50MP main cam with larger pixels (1.2µm vs. 1.0µm), you get a 50MP sensor behind a 2x lens (vs. 10MP 3x). And the 5,000mAh battery is bigger and faster to charge (40% in 15 minutes at 45W).


Tecno Phantom V Fold 12/256GB

₹21,000 off
₹88,888 AT AMAZON IN

The Motorola Razr 40 Ultra is ₹10,000 less than the Z Flip5 and there is a ₹7,000 discount from select banks. The boasts a slightly larger cover display and the two cameras (and LED flash) are in punch holes, rather than having the display shy away from them as it does on the Z Flip5. The inner display is a larger 6.9” 144Hz panel (vs. 6.7”, same aspect ratio). The Moto uses the older Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chip and doesn’t have an advantage in the camera department like the Pixel Fold does (expect maybe for the 32MP selfie), the battery situation is only slightly better too (3,800mAh with 30W wired and 5W wireless charging vs. 3,700mAh 25/15W).

Motorola Razr 40 Ultra 8/256GB

₹90,000 AT AMAZON IN

The Motorola Razr 40 is ₹40,000 less than the Z Flip5 and there is a ₹5,000 bank discount to boot. It cuts costs by switching to a 1.5” line display on the outside, but the internal 6.9” display is almost the same – the only difference is that it runs at 144Hz. This may be a limitation of the chipset, which is a Snapdragon 7 Gen 1. This one has a 64MP camera instead of 12MP (still with IOS) and a larger 4,200mAh battery (500mAh more than the Z Flip5) with 30W wired and 5W wireless charging.

Motorola Razr 40 8/256GB

₹60,000 AT AMAZON IN

Moving on to regular phones, the Motorola Edge 40 combines a 6.55” 144Hz OLED display (FHD+) with a Dimensity 8020. The phone has a 50MP main camera (1/1.55”, OIS) and 13MP ultra wide (120°), plus a fast charging 4,400mAh battery (68W wired, 15W wireless).

Motorola Edge 40 8/256GB

₹5,000 off
₹30,000 AT FLIPKART IN

The OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite is 33% cheaper than the Moto and has an expansive 6.72" 120Hz IPS LCD, this time paired with a Snapdragon 695 chip. The main camera has a 108MP sensor (1/1.67”, no OIS), but it is capped at 1080p/30fps video capture due to the chipset and there is no ultra wide module. The 5,000mAh battery supports 67W wired-only charging.

OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 8/128GB

₹20,000 AT AMAZON IN

These last tow are similar in price, but the Samsung Galaxy M14 is a 5G phone (Exynos 1330), while the Redmi Note 12 is a 4G phone (Snapdragon 685). The Samsung has a 6.6” 90Hz LCD, while the Redmi offers a 6.67” 120Hz AMOLED (both FHD+, 20:9). Both have 50MP main cameras and 13MP selfies, but only the Redmi has an ultra wide (8MP). The Samsung has a bigger battery at 6,000mAh capacity (vs. 5,000mAh) with similar charging speed (25W vs. 33W).

Samsung Galaxy M14 6/128GB

₹3,500 off
₹15,500 AT AMAZON IN

Xiaomi Redmi 12 (4G) 6/64GB

₹5,115 off
₹13,885 AT AMAZON IN

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