The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 is officially out after Samsung unveiled the device alongside the Galaxy Z Flip 6 at its Galaxy Unpacked event in Paris. The new foldables come with most of the changes we expected in the run-up to the event. The Fold 6 has a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset under the hood, a slimmer and lighter build, and a main screen that can hit an impressive 2,600 nits of peak brightness.
You might also be wondering if the Galaxy Z Fold 6 is waterproof, unlike its predecessor. Well, we have good news for you.
Is the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 waterproof?
The Galaxy Z Fold 6 is water-resistant, offering an IP48 rating. This rating means that it’s protected from dust ingress and objects bigger than 1mm, and it can also survive long-term immersion up to a certain depth (typically 1 meter) and pressure specified by the manufacturer. This means that the Fold 6 doesn’t just repel water droplets and resist penetration — it can (in theory) survive full immersion.
However, to be waterproof, the phone would need to be completely impermeable to water ingress, which isn’t possible for any smartphone. This might be a little confusing because IP water and dust resistance are often used interchangeably with waterproofing, but that’s technically incorrect. Still, when it comes to smartphone IP ratings, this is about as good as it gets.
What does IP48 mean?
Let’s break down what IP48 means. IP stands for Ingress Protection (IP), and that’s usually followed by other numbers that indicate dust and water resistance, respectively. In this case, we have a dust protection rating of 4, meaning the Z Fold 6 is protected from some limited amount of dust ingress, and Samsung has taken measures to improve it by introducing brushes to the hinges (something it added with the Flip 2 and Fold 2). The number after this indicates the water resistance, which is 8 in this case. That means the device can survive long-term immersion up to a specified pressure.
That’s a significant step above the IPX8 rating that came with the Galaxy Z Fold 5, which wasn’t rated for dust ingress protection at all. Notably, the Fold 6 is not as durable as the S24 Ultra, which gets an IP68 rating, meaning it’s protected from total dust ingress. Given the hinges and moving parts, there’s likely only so much Samsung can do when it comes to keeping dust out of the device.
Essentially, this means you shouldn’t worry about taking your Galaxy Z Fold 6 out in inclement weather like rain or fog, and you should also be fine at the pool. As for the beach, you can take it with you because there is dust ingress protection now, but we don’t recommend burying it in the sand. While it can survive some dust, the combination of gritty sand and salt water isn’t good for electronics.