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Samsung's Galaxy Z 8 series foldables are getting a major battery upgrade, and it's not just because of the capacity boost. Samsung has confirmed that it has made the switch to silicon carbon batteries this year, ditching the traditional lithium ion power packs in favor of something that packs a bit more of a punch.
It's a surprise to hear that this is happening so soon — given Samsung's previous hesitance to discuss when it might introduce silicon carbon batteries. Considering various brands have already made the switch, it's great to see that one of the major holdouts has decided now is the time to jump on the bandwagon.
Here's what you need to know about silicon carbon batteries and what it means for prospective Samsung users.
What are the benefits of silicon carbon?
The main thing you need to know about batteries is that their capacity is linked to their size. A lot of work has been done to improve the density of lithium ion batteries over the years, but there's only so much you can do to shrink them down. That becomes a problem when you're trying to design devices to be super thin and light.
Silicon carbon is a whole new kind of battery design that utilizes silicon on the anode instead of pure graphite, and the key benefit is that it offers far better energy density. In other words, you can pack more power into a smaller space compared to traditional lithium ion batteries. That's particularly important for foldables, which pride themselves on being ultra-thin and lightweight — despite essentially being two phones bolted together.
We've already seen the benefits with the OnePlus 15, which has offers a 7,300 mA battery without any meaningful increase in size or weight. In fact, not only is the phone only a single gram heavier than the 6,000 mAh OnePlus 13, it's actually 0.8mm thinner than its predecessor.
In terms of the Galaxy Z 8 series, we're seeing a 600 mAh jump between the Galaxy Z Fold 7 and Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra — boosting the battery capacity to 5,000 mAh. The Galaxy Z Fold 8 is sitting pretty with 4,800 mAh, while the Galaxy Z Flip 8 is sadly stuck at 4,300 mAh.
Why has Samsung switched now?
Speaking ahead of Unpacked, Kadesh Beckford, Smartphone Specialist Product Manager at Samsung, said the switch to silicon carbon batteries has all been about improving the customer experience — thanks to the ability to offer more power in a smaller space.
In fact the switch to Silicon Carbon is one of the main ways Samsung has been able to add larger batteries to the Z8 series without increasing their size or weight. In fact, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra is almost identical in size and shape to the Galaxy Z Fold 7, and the Z Fold 8 is the lightest book-style foldable ever released.
That said, this decision was not one Samsung took lightly. Back in February Sung-Hoon Moon Samsung's Executive VP and Head of Smartphone R&D, admitted that silicon carbon batteries had not passed Samsung's "very rigorous validation standards."
Beckford also emphasized that Samsung had done its due diligence before adopting silicon carbon. He also emphasized the fact that silicon carbon was how Samsung added such large batteries to the Galaxy Z 8 series, and how much battery life was being improved as a result. Which is a pretty obvious benefit for the end user.
The caution is somewhat understandable from Samsung's perspective. Next month marks the 10th anniversary of the launch of the Galaxy Note 7, which was an unmitigated disaster for Samsung due to various flaws in the phone's (then) new battery design. The absolute last thing Samsung needs is to make the switch to silicon carbon and have something similar happen again.
The good news is that silicon carbon has already proven itself across a multitude of devices, even if the likes of Apple and Google have so far chosen to stick with a traditional lithium ion battery design.
Here's hoping that Samsung's switch gives them an incentive to jump on the bandwagon themselves — especially since the iPhone 18 Pro Max is rumored to be the heaviest iPhone ever, weighing in with a gargantuan 240 grams (8.4 ounces).
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