Best Foldable Phone NZ 2026: Which One Should Kiwis Buy?

Choosing the best foldable phone in NZ is trickier than it used to be. OPPO, Motorola, Samsung and Honor all sell book style foldables at the big NZ retailers now, and Apple's iPhone Duo opens for pre-order here on the 17th of October at $4,199.

That is a lot of choice at around $3,000 a phone, and the differences between them are bigger than the spec sheets suggest.

I have used book style foldables as my daily phone for years, and I have put the main contenders sold here through the same battery, camera and performance tests.

Below I go through each one, what it gets right and wrong, how the top three compare head to head, and which one I would spend my own money on. Flip phones are a different buy, so they aren't included.

Best foldable phones in NZ: the rankings

1. OPPO Find N6: the best foldable phone in NZ

The Find N6 is the most complete foldable I have used. At 225g and 8.93mm thick when folded, it goes in a pocket like a normal phone, it sits flat on a table, and it hides its crease better than anything else here.

The screens are excellent. It was the brightest of the phones I tested side by side.

The cameras are finally good on every lens. There is a 200MP main camera, a 50MP ultrawide and a 50MP 3x telephoto. It took the most detailed daylight shots and the brightest low light shots in my testing, although OPPO does love to crank the saturation.

Battery life is excellent. It lasted 11 hours 10 minutes on the cover screen and 9 hours 30 minutes unfolded in my test. It also has 80W wired charging, with a charger in the box.

It isn't perfect. Performance is quick day to day, but it drops off badly in long gaming sessions as it heats up. You can't resize widgets. The optional AI Pen comes with a back cover that adds a lot of bulk. It is dust resistant, but not fully dust tight like the Honor Magic V6.

It launched at $3,299 and is now $2,896 at PB Tech for the 16GB and 512GB model. That makes it the cheapest of my top three, and it is the one I would buy.

2. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold8: best foldable for watching and reading

The standard Z Fold8 is a completely new shape, wide instead of tall, and it is my favourite foldable shape yet.

The wider 5.5 inch cover screen makes typing easier. The 7.6 inch inner screen opens out to a 4:3 shape, which is far better for YouTube, Netflix and reading than the tall, skinny screens on other foldables. At 201g it is also the lightest and most comfortable Fold I have carried.

It is fast, and the battery is much better. It uses the same Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy chip as the Ultra. Battery life is a big step up on the Fold7, lasting 9 hours 45 minutes on the cover screen and 10 hours unfolded in my tests.

There are two catches. The hinge won't hold an angle below about 70 degrees, which drove me mad trying to prop it up on my car dashboard. There is also no telephoto camera, so anything past 2x is a digital crop.

It is $3,099 for 256GB at PB Tech and Noel Leeming. The bigger storage tiers climb quickly, so 256GB is the sweet spot. It sits at number two because it does what most people use a foldable for, watching, reading and scrolling, better than anything else here, and for less money than the Razr or the Ultra.

3. Motorola Razr Fold: best foldable for battery life

The Razr Fold's standout is its battery. It lasted 13 hours 30 minutes on the cover screen and 9 hours 55 minutes unfolded in my test, the best overall result of any foldable I have tested. It backs that up with 80W wired and 50W wireless charging.

The cameras are the other highlight. All three rear cameras are 50MP. Colours stay natural rather than oversaturated, and it took the best zoom shots in both daylight and low light, because it sticks with its telephoto where the others fall back to cropping.

The downsides add up. At 243g it is the heaviest phone here. Its crease is more noticeable than the OPPO's, and the screen isn't as bright as Motorola claims. Its standard Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 also trails the Elite chips in the OPPO and Samsung. Moto AI is forgettable, but you can swap to Gemini.

It is $3,499 at PB Tech and Harvey Norman for 256GB. If battery life matters more than anything else, this is the one to get.

4. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra: best foldable for performance

If you want the most powerful foldable money can buy, this is it. It topped every benchmark I ran, and it held onto 79.6% of its best score when I ran the same stress test 20 times back to back. That was the best result of the lot.

It is also thin and light at 215g, and the anti-reflective inner screen does a good job of cutting glare.

The problem is everything else. Its 5,000mAh battery is smaller than the OPPO's and the Razr's, and it lasted just 7 hours 30 minutes unfolded in my test. The 10MP telephoto falls apart in low light. Charging tops out at 45W. Samsung has also dropped S Pen support entirely.

The RRP is $3,499 for 256GB, the same as the Razr. Harvey Norman currently has it at $3,249 with a $300 gift card, which makes it far more tempting. Buy it if you are a serious mobile gamer. Otherwise the two above are better value.

5. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7: only if it is heavily discounted

Last year's Fold is still a very good phone. It is slim and light at 215g, the 6.5 inch cover screen works well for everyday stuff, performance is fast, and the 200MP main camera captures loads of detail.

It has been overtaken. Its 4,400mAh battery lasted 7 hours 50 minutes on the cover screen in my test, the weakest result here. Charging is a slow 25W, the hinge is fiddly to open without long fingernails, and there is no S Pen support.

PB Tech and Noel Leeming still list it at $3,249 for 256GB, which is more than the newer Fold8. Only buy it if you find a serious clearance deal.

6. Honor Magic V6: best foldable for durability (UNTESTED)

I haven't had the Magic V6 in for testing yet, so there are no battery, camera or performance results for it here. This section is based on Honor's specs and current NZ pricing, and I'll update it once I've put one through my tests.

Honor's newest foldable is the toughest one on this list. It is rated IP68 and IP69, which means it is fully dust tight as well as water resistant.

Every other phone on this list falls short on dust. The OPPO and the Magic V5 are dust resistant, while the Samsungs and the Razr have no meaningful dust rating at all. If you spend your weekends at the beach or your weekdays on a building site, this is the one to look at.

It has plenty going for it elsewhere. It runs the same Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip as the OPPO with 16GB of RAM. Its 6,660mAh battery is the biggest on this list, and it supports 80W wired and 66W wireless charging. The white model weighs 219g, a touch lighter than the Find N6.

It is $3,299 for 512GB at Harvey Norman and JB Hi-Fi. That is about $400 more than the Find N6, but you are paying for proper peace of mind.

7. Honor Magic V5: the cheapest way into a foldable (UNTESTED)

I haven't tested the Magic V5 either, so this one is also based on specs and price rather than my own results.

Last year's Magic V5 is now the cheapest book style foldable at a major NZ retailer. Noel Leeming and Harvey Norman both have it at $2,499 for 512GB, down $400.

It still has a big 5,820mAh battery and an IP58 and IP59 rating, so it is dust resistant but not dust tight like the V6. Harvey Norman lists it as final clearance, so stock won't last.

If your budget stops at $2,500, this is the one to look at. If you can stretch about $400 further, the Find N6 is the one I've tested and would back.

Can you buy the Google Pixel Fold in NZ?

Not from any major retailer. Google still doesn't sell Pixel phones officially here, so the Pixel 11 Pro Fold isn't on this list. You could import one, but on a phone with a folding screen I wouldn't give up local warranty support.

Should you wait for the iPhone Duo?

Apple's first foldable is official. The iPhone Duo starts at $4,199 on Apple NZ for 256GB, with pre-orders opening on the 17th of October and stock in stores from the 23rd of October.

That price came in lower than the early estimates, but it is still $1,303 more than the Find N6 at PB Tech, with half the storage. It is also $700 more than the Fold8 Ultra's RRP.

If you are set on iOS, it makes sense to wait for reviews of the Duo. If you are happy on Android, there is no reason to hold off. The foldables already here are excellent, and the Find N6 is great value right now.

Head to head: OPPO Find N6 vs Razr Fold vs Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra

I put the three flagship foldables, the ones with a proper telephoto camera, through the same tests. Here is how they stack up.

Which is the best value?

The OPPO launched at $3,299, $200 under the other two. It has since dropped to $2,896 at PB Tech, while the Razr Fold is still $3,499. That is about $600 less for double the storage.

The Fold8 Ultra is also $3,499, so the OPPO undercuts both by about $600.

Winner: OPPO Find N6

Which foldable has the best battery life?

Winner: Motorola Razr Fold

Which foldable has the best camera?

Winner: Motorola Razr Fold, with the OPPO a close second and better at 1x.

Which foldable is fastest?

Winner: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra

Design, display and durability

The OPPO wins both design and display. It is the only one of the three that sits flat on a table, it hides its crease best, and it gets the brightest.

The Samsung is the lightest at 215g, but it wobbles the most on a desk. The Razr is the heaviest at 243g and has the most visible crease, but it does have the smoothest cover screen at 165Hz.

Winner: OPPO Find N6

Software, updates and stylus

All three multitask well, so software mostly comes down to preference.

Samsung and Motorola promise seven major Android updates, against five from OPPO. If you want a stylus, the OPPO and the Razr both support one (sold separately). The Samsung doesn't support one at all.

How much do foldable phones cost in NZ?

Prices checked on the 9th of October 2026. They change often, so check before you buy.

If the Find N6 is your pick, the big retailers are all within a few dollars of each other, so buy from whoever you like dealing with.

Which foldable should you buy in NZ?

They are all good phones, and at these prices they bloody should be. One stands out, though, and it is the OPPO Find N6.

It is about $600 cheaper than the Razr Fold and comes with double the storage. It has the best design, it pockets like a normal phone, it hides its crease best, it has the brightest screen, and it came second in both the battery and camera tests. The only place it drops the ball is sustained performance, and unless you game for hours, you won't notice.

Get the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold8 if you mostly watch, read and scroll. Its wider shape is my favourite of the lot, and at $3,099 it is only about $200 more than the OPPO, as long as you can live without a telephoto camera.

Get the Motorola Razr Fold if battery life matters most, or you want natural looking photos and great zoom.

Get the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra if you are a serious gamer and want the most powerful foldable available. Just know you are getting a smaller battery, a weaker low light camera and no stylus support.

Look at the Honor Magic V5 if $2,500 is your hard limit, though I haven't tested it yet.

For the best all rounder, the foldable that does the most things well for the least money, buy the OPPO Find N6.

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