We test each phone in real-world scenarios, focusing on its features, design, performance, cameras, battery life and overall value. We document our findings in an initial review, which is periodically updated when there are new software updates, or to compare it to new phones from competitors like Apple, Samsung, Google, and OnePlus.
The Galaxy Z Flip 5 largely has the same camera hardware as the Z Flip 4. But the new chip brings some improvements in image processing.
Photography
Photography is a major focus for most phones these days, so we take pictures and videos of different subjects in different settings and lighting scenarios. We try out all the new camera modes, like ProRes log video, which debuted with the iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max, or the Magic Editor photo tool, which launched with the Google Pixel 8 series.
Battery life
Battery testing is done in different ways. We evaluate how long a phone lasts during a typical day of use and note how it performs during more focused sessions of video calls, media streaming and gaming. We also run a video playback test as a simple, reproducible measure of pure battery life, which isn’t always included in the initial review, but is sometimes added later in an update.
Performance measurement
We use benchmarking apps to measure each phone’s performance, along with our own anecdotal experiences using the phone for our review. It should be noted how the graphics and animations look. Are they smooth? Or do they lag or stutter? We also look at how quickly the phone switches between landscape and portrait orientation and how quickly the camera app opens and is ready to take a photo.
Emergency SOS might be one of the most important features to hit any phone this year.
We run CPU-intensive tasks like editing photos, exporting videos, and playing games. We assess whether a newer version of a particular phone includes enough features to make it worth upgrading from older models.
Read it More ▼: How we test phones
