News

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3: Price, availability in the Philippines

Samsung really wants it to be mainstream

Published

August 11, 2021

Rodneil Quiteles

For years now, Samsung’s flagship Galaxy smartphones have had no particular specialty. They simply throw everything and see what sticks resulting in well-rounded smartphones that seem less flashy. They’ve taken the same approach with the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G, saying it can literally do anything AND it folds.

Lighter, more screen

The differences are subtle but still notable. For instance, the Galaxy Z Fold3 is lighter at 271g vs the Galaxy Z Fold2’s 281g.

Then there’s the Under Display Camera. From the eyesore that it was on the first Galaxy Fold, to the more subtle but still noticeable punch hole, Samsung is now finally introducing their first crack at an Under Display Camera on the Galaxy Z Fold3 5G.

It’s a 4MP camera that you shouldn’t expect much from in terms of quality. The priority here was to still deliver some form of front-facing camera while ensuring that you get as much screen real estate as possible on the Galaxy Z Fold3.

The screen now also has a protective film to prevent accidental scratches. We still don’t know exactly how tough it is but Samsung was confident enough to point it out.

Speaking of the screens, both the main display and the cover display can now go up to 120Hz refresh rate. Previously, this was only available on the main display.

Improved UX, app integration

The biggest challenge of the foldable form factor has been software. Naturally, there won’t be that many apps that could maximize, let alone scale properly to the Galaxy Fold. Three years in, and it’s significantly changing.

Samsung has expanded their partnerships with multiple companies that handle apps to ensure that they are maximized on the Fold form factor. Some of them are the most used ones today like video call apps Microsoft Teams and Zoom.

Apps like Spotify and YouTube should also now work better and feel more organic on the Galaxy Z Fold3. But it doesn’t stop there. On the settings menu, you can turn on the Labs feature which lets you customize the size of your app window so you can use it alongside other apps.

Fold Note?

Samsung already said we’re not getting a Galaxy Note this year, breaking the popular device line’s yearly cycle since it first came out in 2011. Fret not though, as Samsung is bringing S Pen support to the Galaxy Z Fold3.

There are two S Pens compatible with the Galaxy Z Fold3: The S Pen Fold Edition and the S Pen Pro.

As its name suggests, the S Pen Fold Edition is one that’s made especially for the Galaxy Z Fold3. It measures 132mm and has pretty much all the useful S Pen features we know and love like Air Command, instant screen captures and jotting down notes . There’s also a special cover case for the Galaxy Z Fold3 to be able to carry the S Pen Fold Edition.

Meanwhile, the S Pen Pro is larger at 173.7mm and can be used with other supported Galaxy devices like the S21 Ultra, Note 20 Series, Note 10 Series, Tab S7 and S7+, and the Galaxy Book Pro 360. It also has an onboard memory feature that lets you copy from one device and paste it to another.

Spec Rundown

Everything else on the Galaxy Z Fold3 is either a rehash or an expected upgrade from its predecessor. Here’s a spec rundown:

Main Display — 7.6” Dynamic AMOLED 2X, Infinity Flex Display
Cover Display — 6.2” Dynamic AMOLED 2X
Rear Cameras:
- 12MP f/1.8 Wide
- 12MP f/2.2 Ultra-wide
- 12MP f/2.4 Telephoto
Cover Camera — 10MP f/2.2
Under Display Camera — 4MP f/1.8
Processor — Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 5G
SIM — Two (2) NanoSIMs, One (1) eSIM
Battery — 4,400mAh
RAM — 12GB
Storage — 128GB and 256GB (Both UFS 3.1)
Authentication — Pattern, PIN, password, Side fingerprint sensor, Face recognition

Price and availability

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G comes in three colors: Phantom Green, Phantom Black, Phantom Silver. The 256GB version is priced at PhP 87,990 while the 512GB version will set you back PhP 95,990.

Pre-order period is from August 19 to September 21, 2021 in Samsung Experience stores and authorized retailers. Pre-orders also get freebies worth PhP 27,440. These include: PhP 5,000 e-voucher Galaxy Buds Pro worth PhP 9,990, 25W Travel Adapter worth PhP 949, 50 percent off on select cases, and one (1) year free Samsung Care+ coverage worth PhP 9,499.

The device will be available on samsung.com/ph starting September 22, 2021.

Galaxy Z Flip 3 5G — BUY here
Galaxy Fold 3 5G — BUY here
Galaxy Watch 4 and Galaxy Watch 4 Classic — BUY here
Tab S7 FE — BUY here
Galaxy Buds 2– BUY here

News

Amazon Echo Dot Max supersizes the tiny speakers

Published

October 1, 2025

Luigi Leonardo

It’s been ages since we got an upgrade for the Amazon Echo. These past years, Amazon focused primarily on the smaller Echo Dot or the versatile Echo Show. Now, it’s time for the regular speakers to get a shot. During a massive launch event, the company launched a refresh to the Echo Studio and the new Echo Dot Max.

First up is the Echo Studio. Launched in 2019, the original Studio came out to appeal to audiophiles. The large speaker was the first in Amazon’s lineup to feature Dolby Atmos and the ability to adapt to any room. Now, the Studio is getting a much-needed sequel.

The new Studio ditches the cylindrical format of long, long ago. Now, the speaker adopts the lineup’s spherical shape. It’s still the largest one in the lineup, but it’s also 60 percent smaller than the original. Despite that, the new Studio now has a built-in “high-excursion” woofer to improve bass and spatial audio.

Speaking of built-in woofers, the new Echo Dot Max has the same “high-excursion woofers.” It also has custom tweeters for the other side of the audio spectrum. Though we haven’t seen an upgrade to the regular Echo, the Dot Max might be good enough to replace the former.

Despite being an upgrade over the smaller Dot, the Dot Max is apparently good enough to encompass an entire room. We mentioned the hardware inside for audio output, but it also has a new AZ3 chip to better detect your voice in a noisy room.

The Echo Dot Max and the Echo Studio will start shipping out on October 29. The Dot Max retails for US$ 99.99 and is available in Graphite, Amethyst, and Glacier White. The Studio sells for US$ 219.99 and is available in Graphite and Glacier White.

News

Amazon updates the Kindle Scribe with a new colorful option

Published

October 1, 2025

Luigi Leonardo

It’s not uncommon to see a new Kindle these days. Amazon continues to keep its most popular devices updated every year. Now, if you feel inundated with the number of options available for the Kindle, Amazon is focusing on something different this year: writing tablets. The company has just announced the new Kindle Scribe Colorsoft and the Scribe 3.

Color is no longer anything foreign to the Kindle. After the launch of the original Colorsoft, the Kindle can now display images in color. Now, color is coming to the Scribe. For the first time ever, the Kindle Scribe Colorsoft will allow users to write (and read!) in color.

Despite the introduction of color, Amazon wants to keep the writing experience as natural as possible. It won’t be extremely bright. Plus, it has a new texture-molded glass display which will make users feel as if they’re writing on paper, rather than glass.

The Scribe 3, on the other hand, is thinner than its predecessor. However, it (and the Colorsoft) will have a new quad-core chip to make the tablet faster. Turning pages and writing will no longer have significant lags. Amazon says that the writing latency is now under 12 milliseconds.

Both models will, of course, come with pens. However, the Colorsoft’s pen will support writing in up to ten different colors and five shades of highlighter.

Th Kindle Scribe 3 and Scribe Colorsoft will ship out later this year. The standard version will cost US$ 499. However, a version without a front light will sell for only US$ 429. Finally, the Colorsoft will sell for US$ 629.

Apps

The cheaper YouTube Premium Lite finally enters the Philippines

Get rid of ads for a cheaper price.

Published

October 1, 2025

Luigi Leonardo

As it stands, YouTube Premium might be one of the most bang-for-your-buck subscriptions out there. Besides getting rid of ads on the main platform, a subscription also gives users access to YouTube Music Premium. But what if you don’t care about YouTube’s music services? For that, here comes YouTube Premium Lite.

At only PhP 109 per month, YouTube Premium Lite offers only one thing for subscribers: ad-free viewing. Well, mostly.

While the original subscription will keep all videos ad-free, the new tier offers “most videos ad-free.” Users won’t get ads on ads on videos across “gaming, comedy, cooking, learning, and more.” However, they might still see some ads on music content and Shorts.

The subscription also won’t give users access to YouTube Music Premium. It also won’t allow downloads or background play. As the name says, it’s a Lite subscription.

YouTube started experimenting with the lighter subscription tier early this year. At first, the platform introduced the tier to a few countries. Now, after experimenting with the tier, it is coming to more countries just as it was advertised in the past.

The finalized version of the tier looks pretty much identical to the experimental version. Except, of course, the version in the Philippines is much cheaper than the one abroad.