One of the highlights of the Galaxy Z Fold 2 is its improved hinge, which Samsung says includes a sweeper technology to repel dust and other particles from getting inside the body and hinge housing. Now that new hinge has been put to the test.
The Galaxy Z Fold 2 has been subjected to a durability test from Zach Nelson of JerryRigEverything. In it, dust and small rocks are poured onto the main display of Samsung's foldable and then the device is closed and opened repeatedly.
The good news is that the Z Fold 2's hinge seems to handle the dust and rock test just fine. Nelson says that the opening motion of the hinge is still as smooth as it was when the Z Fold 2 was taken out of the box.
We also get to see both the external and internal screens of the Galaxy Z Fold 2 subjected to scratch tests. Both displays come with plastic screen protectors that Samsung warns you not to remove, and they are both easily scratched in this durability test.
After removing these screen protectors, the glass of the external display stands up much better to scratches. It starts to show scratches using a tool at level 6 hardness out of 9. The inner display isn't quite as durable, though, as it's able to be scratched using just a fingernail.
Finally, Nelson tries bending the Galaxy Z Fold 2 the wrong direction and it manages to withstand the bend and not snap.
The original Samsung Galaxy Fold had its launch delayed by several months after durability issues were found in review units. Samsung eventually added caps to the top and bottom of the hinge to fight dust from getting inside it.
Because of all that, it's good to see that the improvements Samsung made with the Galaxy Z Fold 2's hinge appear to really help keep debris out of the hinge. The main display may not be quite as durable as some folks may have liked, but most people who buy a Galaxy Z Fold 2 are likely going to try and be pretty gentle with it after dropping $2,000 on the foldable.
