Oppo Find N2 Flip vs. Galaxy Z Flip 4: things just got interesting

If you want a compact folding smartphone, you’ve now got a legitimate choice, all thanks to the Oppo Find N2 Flip — a clamshell foldable that’s ready to take on the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4.

I’ve used them both for a while, and this is what makes one better than the other. We’ll start off with a simple specification comparison, and then go into more detail about the differences, focusing on what makes the two special.

Find N2 Flip vs. Galaxy Z Flip 4: Specs

Find N2 Flip vs. Galaxy Z Flip 4: cover screen

The most obvious difference between the two is the size of the cover screen, so we’re going to start there, as it’s the aspect Oppo is pushing as one of the main reasons to choose the Find N2 Flip over the Z Flip 4. The Find N2 Flip’s 3.26-inch AMOLED screen is vertically orientated, taking up almost the entire left-hand side of the closed phone, while the Z Flip 4’s 1.9-inch screen is horizontally set, and occupies a far smaller space on the front of the phone.

Despite the size differences, the functionality is basically the same. Neither screens are “phones,” so don’t expect to see Android’s familiar menus, or to run any apps. Both screens operate widgets, such as a timer, a calendar view, the weather, and for showing your notifications. The sheer size of the Find N2 Flip’s screen makes it all much easier to see, plus the widgets have been formatted to take advantage of the size, so buttons are easier to locate and push. There’s also a lot more space, so you see more of your messages.

The white backgrounds and bright colors of the Find N2 Flip’s widgets make them more eye-catching, and also easier to view outside. The Z Flip 4’s black background and simple layout are far less suited to viewing in sunlight or at different angles. Despite not running apps or Android, the Find N2 Flip’s cover screen has that familiar always-on look, with notification icons under the time display. The Z Flip 4 shows the time, date, battery level, and an orange dot when new messages are available.

You can set different wallpapers on the Find N2 Flip’s cover screen, too, including custom interactive pets. While not as interactive as Oppo claims, they are cute and well-designed and certainly give the phone more character than the Z Flip 4. However, you can set wallpapers and styles on the Samsung phone that match your Galaxy Watch 5’s watch face, which is fun.

The Oppo Find N2 Flip’s big cover screen provides basically the same functionality as the Z Flip 4’s smaller screen, but it is much easier to see and interact with, and displays more information, making it a serious advantage. It does feel underutilized, but it’s still the better overall approach here.

Winner: Oppo Find N2 Flip

Find N2 Flip vs. Galaxy Z Flip 4: cover screen viewfinder

Another feature of the cover screen is its ability to be used as a viewfinder for the camera. Size plays a role here, but is there any other advantage? Open the Z Flip 4’s camera app, and there is a button in the top right of the screen to activate the cover screen display. The preview takes up the entire screen, but due to the size, it only shows the center of the view. But if you tap the preview screen, it switches to a full — albeit tiny — preview. To take selfies like this, you can press the volume key, or show your palm to the camera to activate the shutter.

The Galaxy Z Flip 4’s cover screen preview does the job, but don’t expect to really see much when you use it. It does make it easy to use the superior rear camera to take selfies, but if you’re taking photos of someone else, they will have to be pretty close to check their expression. Alternatively, the Z Flip 4 can support itself as an alternative to a tripod, and the main screen splits in two, with the viewfinder at the top, and controls at the bottom. It’s a helpful feature the Find N2 Flip also shares.

Open the Find N2 Flip’s camera, and a button to activate the cover screen can be found in the top left corner. It works in an identical way to the Z Flip 4, right down to using a palm gesture to activate the shutter. The difference is that you can see a lot more, especially when the phone is held in portrait orientation. The bigger screen makes composition faster, and other people could see the screen from a greater distance away too. Both screens do the same thing, but once again, the Find N2 Flip’s greater size gives it the advantage.

Winner: Oppo Find N2 Flip

Find N2 Flip vs. Galaxy Z Flip 4: multitasking

What multitasking features do the phones offer? The Oppo Find N2 Flip lets you run two apps at the same time, with one taking up the top half of the screen, and the other below it. The apps also display in landscape orientation. A rather awkward three-finger gesture activates split-screen mode, and the software prompts you to open a second app.

Alternatively, you can use the three-dot menu in the recent app view, or Oppo’s shortcut menu that lives off to the side of your home screen. Apps selected in the shortcut menu automatically open in a floating window, giving a little more flexibility. Samsung also uses a shortcut menu in the same way, but when you drag an app out onto the main screen, you can select another app from a menu that appears at the top of the screen.

Tap an app, and it opens as a full-screen version, unlike the Find N2 Flip. Dig into Samsung’s Labs menu, and you can try out different screen layouts — including the Flex mode panel, which works like the viewfinder mode described above, just with different apps on the top and bottom of the screen.

Apps can be opened as a floating window by tapping the icon under the recent apps view. Interestingly, when you swipe up on the screen to close them, the icon remains “floating” on the screen, ready to be used again. It’s a handy feature when you’re using Chrome and replying to a message, for example.

Because both provide similar split-screen features, it comes down to ease of use, and the Galaxy Z Flip 4 has a slight advantage when it comes to versatility. Plus, the way you activate and manage split-screen apps and floating windows is more logical. It gets the win, but there’s not much between them.

Winner: Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4

Find N2 Flip vs. Galaxy Z Flip 4: hinge and design

The Oppo Find N2 Flip is marginally larger than the Galaxy Z Flip 4, and a little heavier too, but not to the extent one is easier to live with than the other. The Z Flip 4’s screen isn’t as wide as the Find N2 Flip’s, which is a disadvantage. The Find N2 Flip’s 21:9 aspect ratio makes it more “normal” when it’s unfolded, and if you’re coming from a non-flip phone, it takes less time (if any) to adjust to it. The Z Flip 4 does take a little getting used to, but it never feels compromised.

Opening and closing the Galaxy Z Flip 4 is a better experience. The hinge has a lot more resistance than the Find N2 Flip, taking more effort, but in a good way. It gives the impression of being very solidly built, and that it will absolutely stay in any half-folded position you put it in. It closes with a wonderful thunk, and the flat chassis sides make it easy to open again, as they provide plenty for your fingertips to grip.

The Find N2 Flip’s hinge puts up less resistance, and although it has never closed unexpectedly when placed half-open, there’s a springiness that makes it feel less precise than the Z Flip 4, and its limits are less clearly defined. The motion isn’t as smooth either, and you can feel there’s something mechanical moving when you open and close the phone, and that’s entirely missing from Samsung’s hinge. The curved chassis has less grip, and opening it requires more precision with your grip and hold.

I find the Z Flip 4’s side-mounted fingerprint sensor easier to quickly locate than the Find N2 Flip’s, which also doesn’t activate as quickly either. The Galaxy Z Flip 4 feels like the more mature design, which is unsurprising given it’s Samsung’s fourth attempt and the Find N2 Flip is Oppo’s first. The Find N2 Flip isn’t unpleasant to use, but the Z Flip 4 is easier to live with.

Winner: Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4

Find N2 Flip vs. Galaxy Z Flip 4: camera

There’s little to choose between the main cameras, with the Galaxy Z Flip 4 showing more saturation than the Find N2 Flip, but the Samsung phone’s wide-angle camera is considerably better. The Find N2 Flip’s wide-angle photos have poor color accuracy and little detail, while the Z Flip 4’s wide-angle camera is vibrant and fun. The Find N2 Flip does have a 2x optical zoom mode, which is not available on the Z Flip 4.

Neither are camera superstars, and making a decision between them will come down to whether you value the optical zoom more than a decent wide-angle camera. The other aspect that may sway you is the selfie mode. The Find N2 Flip’s big cover screen makes selfies taken with the rear camera much easier, plus the colors and detail are superior to the Z Flip 4, often producing very atmospheric selfies with the rear camera.

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We’re going to call this one a draw, as there are clear advantages and disadvantages on both sides, and neither stands out as offering a far better camera experience than the other. If you want to take shareable photos mostly with the main camera, then both will suit you well.

Winner: Draw

Find N2 Flip vs. Galaxy Z Flip 4: battery and charging

If the camera section was difficult to judge, the battery and charging section has a clear winner. The Oppo Find N2 Flip has been cleverly engineered to squeeze in a 4,300mAh battery, plus 44W SuperVOOC wired fast charging. In our tests, it has lasted around a day and a half with moderate use (without gaming), and the battery takes about 23 minutes to reach 50%, and 60 minutes to fully charge.

The Galaxy Z Flip 4 has a much smaller capacity 3,700mAh battery that will last a day with moderate use, and stretching it much beyond this is difficult. It does not have a charger in the box, but if you use a compatible 25W charger, it takes around 75 minutes to fully charge, and 30 minutes to reach approximately 50%. However, the Z Flip 4 does have 10W wireless charging and reverse charging, unlike the Find N2 Flip.

It’s a shame the Find N2 Flip does not have wireless charging, especially on a phone that costs this much. However, there’s real value in recharging the battery quickly, and the extended life you get from the Find N2 Flip’s battery makes it the winner here.

Winner: Oppo Find N2 Flip

Find N2 Flip vs. Galaxy Z Flip 4: price and availability

It’s important to know the Oppo Find N2 Flip is not available to buy in the U.S., but the Galaxy Z Flip 4 is widely available. This makes it the most obvious choice if you can’t buy the Oppo phone. However, if you live in the U.K., the Find N2 Flip is available online and through a variety of stores and carriers — making it equally as easy to find as the Z Flip 4. You can import the Find N2 Flip into the U.S. if you really want it, but expect to pay more if you do so.

The Galaxy Z Flip 4 starts at $1,000 or 1,000 British pounds, while the Oppo Find N2 Flip costs 850 pounds, which is around $1,025. This makes it considerably cheaper than the Samsung phone in the U.K., and an extremely tempting purchase.

Winner: Oppo Find N2 Flip

Is the Find N2 Flip or the Z Flip 4 the top compact folding smartphone?

The Oppo Find N2 Flip has taken four of our categories, while the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 has taken two, with a single draw between them. It makes the Oppo Find N2 Flip the winner here, but this does come with some caveats. If you can’t buy the Find N2 Flip, the Galaxy Z Flip 4 is still an excellent choice, and the Samsung phone did win the important Hinge and Design category, which highlights how well-engineered it is.

There’s good news on the software update front, as Oppo will match Samsung’s four years of major Android updates and five years of security updates too. The Galaxy Z Flip 4 does have a higher IP rating, so it’ll withstand water more effectively than the Oppo phone.

However, all this does not take anything away from the Find N2 Flip. The aggressive price, long battery life, and standout cover screen ensure it genuinely beats the Z Flip 4 in key areas — and given it’s Oppo’s first model of its type (and only its third folding smartphone overall), it’s a highly impressive achievement. If you can buy one, then it’s absolutely worth it.