Technologies
Best Flip Phone of 2023
The Galaxy Z Flip 5 is our favorite, but there are other choices worth your attention.
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Flip phones ruled the early 2000s, and now companies like Samsung, Motorola and Oppo have been bringing them back. But with a modern twist.
Flip phones with bendable screens have been around for the last several years, but they took a leap forward in 2023. The Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Motorola Razr Plus gained larger screens than their predecessors, making them more useful when closed. Oppo’s recently announced Find N3 Flip has an additional camera among other improvements.
While expensive and generally more fragile than standard phones, flip phones provide some benefits you can’t get with regular devices. They fit more easily in your pocket and are more manageable to use with one hand when closed. You can also prop them up by folding them halfway, which makes it possible to take a photo or view the screen without having to hold the device. They also have a distinct design that makes them stand out from other smartphones.
However, if you don’t care about those factors, you should consider one of the cheaper, nonfoldable devices listed in our best phones guide. If you’re considering buying a flip phone in 2023, here are your best options.
What is the best flip phone for most people?
The Galaxy Z Flip 5 is CNET’s top flip phone pick for 2023. It was a close call between Samsung’s new flip phone and the similarly priced Motorola Razr Plus. But Samsung’s design feels more sturdy, the camera takes more colorful photos and the company provides Android version updates for a longer period of time compared to Motorola, making it our favorite choice. Samsung also has a history of rolling out new features to its phones over time through updates to its One UI software, giving it another advantage.
Best flip phones of 2023
The Galaxy Z Flip 5 is the biggest leap forward Samsung’s flip phone has seen in years. Samsung has significantly expanded the size of the cover screen located on the outside of the device, meaning you can look up directions, take photos and send messages without opening the phone. It’s this, combined with the Z Flip’s solid battery life and sturdy design, that makes it a top pick.
The Z Flip 5 may be our favorite flip phone, but there are still some drawbacks to be aware of. At $1,000, it’s still expensive for a phone without a telephoto camera. And not all apps work natively on the front screen as they do on the Motorola Razr Plus. Read our Galaxy Z Flip 5 review.
Pros:
- Big cover screen is fun to use
- New hinge eliminates the gap when closed
- Solid battery life
- More storage in base model
Cons:
- Expensive
- Not all apps work on the cover screen natively
- Apps don’t transition from main screen to cover screen
- Minimal camera updates
Best compact flip phone
Motorola Razr Plus
The Motorola Razr Plus raised the bar for what a flip phone should be in 2023. Its 3.6-inch cover screen allows you to use almost any app without opening the phone, plus battery life is long enough to get you through a busy day. It’s also thinner than the Galaxy Z Flip 5, which could make it the ideal choice for those who prioritize portability in a phone.
While I recommend the Galaxy Z Flip 5 as the best flip phone overall, the Razr Plus is worth considering if you prefer a thinner design and want to use more apps on the phone’s front screen without much extra fuss. The Razr Plus felt more fragile than the Z Flip 5 during my testing, but it’s certainly thinner, making it a great choice for those who care about compactness above all else. Read our Motorola Razr Plus review.
Pros:
- Large, useful cover screen
- Crease is barely visible
- Thin design
- Good battery life
- Fun photography features like photo previews
Cons:
- Not as many Android updates as Samsung
- Flex View feels limited
- Front screen gathers fingerprint smudges easily
- $1,000 is still expensive
The new Motorola Razr Plus
Best flip phone with a telephoto camera
Oppo Find N3 Flip
Oppo’s Find N3 Flip phone is unique for two reasons: It has a telephoto camera and a vertical cover screen, unlike the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Motorola Razr Plus. That could make the Find N3 Flip an ideal choice for those who want closer zoom shots, although this phone also shines for its fast performance, stylish design and speedy charging. The crease on the interior screen is also impressively subtle. That said, there are some downsides to be aware of. The Find N3 Flip lacks wireless charging, and you’ll only be able to buy it in certain markets, which doesn’t include the US. Read our review of the Find N3 Flip.
Pros:
- Cover screen supports Google Calendar, Gmail and other third-party apps
- Addition of a telephoto lens
- Improved durability IPX4 rating
Cons:
- Obvious branding
- Raised edges of cover screen
- No wireless charging
Here’s a sampling of apps you can use on the cover screen of the Find N3 Flip.
Best foldable for budget buyers
Motorola Razr 2023
The Motorola Razr 2023 is the most affordable, widely released foldable phone with a $700 price tag, notably below the $1,000 prices of clamshell foldables like the Razr Plus and Samsung Galaxy Flip 5. Motorola made some obvious compromises for affordability, like losing its competitors’ full-front screen for a small 1.5-inch thumbnail-size external display.
Less obvious are more painful shortfalls: three years of Android OS updates and 128GB of nonexpandable storage (you’ll have to rely on cloud storage if you go over). If you can stomach those compromises, the Razr 2023 is a great phone with a svelte design, large 6.9-inch internal display and sharp 64-megapixel main camera (the less said about its other ultrawide lens, the better). It’s a phone that suits a specific niche: Folks who want to try out foldables for a few years, but don’t want to shell out a lot of money if they’re still iffy on whether this «flexible display» thing will take off.
Pros:
- Solid and svelte build quality
- Great main camera
- Fun foldable functionality
- Good price
Cons:
- 128GB onboard storage is limited
- Outer screen is very small
- 3 years of OS updates is less than competitors
How to buy a new phone
Know what you care about most: Is it screen size? Camera quality? Battery life? This will help narrow down your choices. If you’re interested in a foldable phone, design and screen size should be more important to you than camera quality
Don’t discount the midrange: Features of last year’s flagships always trickle down to this year’s midrange handsets.You can get a great phone that does almost everything that a premium phone can do for a fraction of the price. Google’s Pixel 7 Pro packs a great zoom camera, but the base Pixel 7 has most of the same key specs and comes at a more reasonable price. But if you’re trying to save a few bucks, you shouldn’t be considering a flip phone. Devices like the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Motorola Razr Plus are priced like high-end premium phones, although Motorola plans to release a cheaper Razr this year.
Shop the sales: Look for deep discounts and promo deals around major holidays, especially Amazon’s Prime Day and Black Friday. And find out what your grace period is in case you need a quick return or exchange.
Last year’s phones: They can often be a great deal, too. Wait for this year’s launch to get last year’s phone for less, when stores and carriers may be trying to offload their existing stock. However, keep in mind you’ll miss out on the spacious cover screens found on the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Razr Plus by going for last year’s models.
Hold the phone in hand at a store first: You may love or hate the way it looks and feels in person. This is especially important for flip phones and other foldable devices, particularly if it’s your first time using one.
Check if you’re already invested: Have you already bought a lot of iPhone apps and iTunes movies? Stick with an iPhone if you still want access to them. Likewise, if you’ve invested in loads of Android apps, you’ll want to stay on that side of the fence. Otherwise, it’s simple enough to switch platforms. However, those interested in flip phones only have Android devices to choose from for now.
Buy a case and screen protector: You’ll protect your phone from costly damage, and will increase the phone’s resale or trade-in value for when you’re ready to move on.
How we test phones
We test every 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 that is periodically updated when there are new software updates, or to compare it against new phones from competitors such as Apple, Samsung, Google and OnePlus. Below is our methodology for testing smartphones in general, which also applies to flip phones.
Photography
Photography is a major focus for most phones these days, so we take pictures and videos of various subjects in a variety of settings and lighting scenarios. We try out any new camera modes, such as Action mode that debuted with the iPhone 14 line, or the Unblur photo tool that launched with the Google Pixel 7 series.
Battery life
Battery testing is conducted in a variety of ways. We assess 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 conduct a video playback test, as a simple, replicable measure of pure battery life, which isn’t always included in the initial review but sometimes added later in an update.
Performance measuring
We use benchmarking apps to measure each phone’s performance, alongside our own anecdotal experiences using the phone for our review. Of note are how graphics and animations look. Are they smooth? Or do they lag or stutter? We also look at how quickly the phone switches between horizontal and vertical orientations, and how fast the camera app opens and is ready to take a photo.
We perform processor-heavy tasks like editing photos, exporting videos and playing games. We evaluate whether a newer version of a particular phone includes enough features to make it worth upgrading from older models.
Read more: How we test phones
Flip phone FAQs
Technologies
Meta and AMD’s Multibillion-Dollar Deal Is All About the AI Chips
Meta will take a stake in the chipmaker in exchange for a commitment to buy billions of dollars’ worth of AI chips.
Meta is joining OpenAI as one of the major tech companies to take a stake in chipmaker AMD, as part of an AI hardware buying frenzy. Meta and AMD on Tuesday announced a partnership that will involve CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s tech giant buying billions of dollars’ worth of AMD Instinct GPUs in order to fuel its ambitions to build out AI offerings across Meta platforms, including Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp.
In a release, Meta described the deal as «multi-year,» and said the AI purchase will provide Meta with up to 6 gigawatts of AMD GPUs, «the silicon computing technology used to support modern AI models.»
According to the US Department of Energy, a single gigawatt (1 billion watts) is equivalent to nearly 2,000 large solar panels or 100 million LED bulbs.
In AMD’s version of the announcement, CEO Lisa Su said, «We are proud to expand our strategic partnership with Meta as they push the boundaries of AI at unprecedented scale.» As part of the deal, Meta will take a 10% stake in AMD.
AMD, based in Santa Clara, California, previously signed a deal with ChatGPT-maker OpenAI that it announced last October, which is similar to the Meta deal and also gives its AI rival 10% ownership of AMD.
(Disclosure: Ziff Davis, CNET’s parent company, in 2025 filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.)
What does this mean for the rest of us?
AMD’s two megadeals may not have an immediate impact on people who use Meta’s social networking and communications apps, or even on those who buy AMD’s products, including desktop processors and graphics cards.
But it signals that large companies making huge bets on the future of AI are doing what they can to secure the hardware they need as supplies tighten and prices rise for components such as RAM. Some of those constraints aren’t expected to end anytime soon, and shoppers could begin to see prices rise even more than they already have for computers, smartphones, vehicles and other products that heavily rely on computing components like these.
It is also a sign that Meta’s ambitions for AI are not slowing down as it continues to compete with companies including OpenAI, Microsoft and Google to develop AI products and tools.
Also a factor: Meta’s push into wearables
Another reason AMD may want access to AI chips goes beyond its own data centers and online platforms: Meta has increasingly been focused on wearables such as its Oakley Meta AI Glasses and other potential new portable products.
In addition to what AMD’s GPUs can offer Meta for AI infrastructure power, AMD may also be part of its wearable future.
«With AI models requiring unprecedented processing power to process real-time data and information, Meta is focused on securing the supply chain necessary for its wearable devices,» said Michael J. Wolf, founder and CEO of the consulting firm Activate.
Wolf believes that the deals Meta and OpenAI have signed won’t be the last time a major AI-focused company locks down a supply of semiconductors.
«As consumer hardware transitions from smartphones to smart glasses, we will absolutely see more of these mega-deals,» Wolf said.
Technologies
Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for Feb. 25, #520
Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for Feb. 25, No. 520.
Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.
Today’s Connections: Sports Edition features a mix of difficulties. The green one is kind of fun today. If you’re struggling with today’s puzzle but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.
Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by The Times. It doesn’t appear in the NYT Games app, but it does in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for free online.
Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta
Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups
Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.
Yellow group hint: Whack it!
Green group hint: Halloween colors.
Blue group hint: The airport is YUL.
Purple group hint: It’s also a hat.
Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups
Yellow group: To hit a baseball hard.
Green group: Orange and black teams.
Blue group: Associated with Montreal.
Purple group: ____ derby.
Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words
What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?
The yellow words in today’s Connections
The theme is to hit a baseball hard. The four answers are belt, blister, hammer and tattoo.
The green words in today’s Connections
The theme is orange and black teams. The four answers are Bengals, Flyers, Giants and Oklahoma State.
The blue words in today’s Connections
The theme is associated with Montreal. The four answers are 1976 Olympics, Canadiens, Expos and Youppi!
The purple words in today’s Connections
The theme is ____ derby. The four answers are home run, Kentucky, Merseyside and roller.
Technologies
Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Wednesday, Feb. 25
Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for Feb. 25.
Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.
I thought today’s Mini Crossword was a tough one! Read on for all the answers. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.
If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.
Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword
Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.
Mini across clues and answers
1A clue: Computer function represented by a floppy disk icon
Answer: SAVE
5A clue: Want more than anything
Answer: CRAVE
7A clue: Enticed, with «in»
Answer: ROPED
8A clue: In the company of
Answer: AMONG
9A clue: Something to do «like it’s 1999»
Answer: PARTY
Mini down clues and answers
1D clue: Something to do «like it’s 1999»
Answer: SCRAP
2D clue: Fragrance
Answer: AROMA
3D clue: What a humidifier emits
Answer: VAPOR
4D clue: Curling or speed skating, for the Winter Olympics
Answer: EVENT
6D clue: Risqué
Answer: EDGY
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