Samsung Galaxy Fold 5G is the UK’s fastest 5G phone

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In a number of OpenSignal tests across Europe, Samsung’s Galaxy Fold 5G has taken top spot for speed, but overall, it’s a different story for Samsung.

OpenSignal graph.
(Image credit: OpenSignal.)

In a series of tests run by OpenSignal, a mobile analytics and insights company, it was Samsung’s Galaxy Fold 5G that ranked as the fastest 5G phone in the UK.

Despite an inauspicious launch, which saw Samsung’s first foldable smartphone getting withdrawn from pre-sale after some ‘issues’ with its folding screen, the most expensive 5G smartphone currently on sale has bagged the top spot as the UK’s fastest 5G phone.

“Samsung continues to have numerous individual smartphone models performing well in each country, most notably its foldable models,” OpenSginal’s report said. “Opensignal expects these to be refreshed in Samsung’s imminent mid-year launch event because we already see measurements from the SM-F926 (likely the upcoming Galaxy Z Fold 3) and SM-F711 (probably the next Galaxy Z Flip) among our users.” 

As 5G phones go, the Samsung’s Galaxy Fold 5G is a headline act, with a 7.3-inch screen, six cameras, and improved screen estate for gaming, but it isn’t all good. Our parent site, TechRadar, had this to say about the Samsung Galaxy Fold 5G:

“We’d only recommend it to early adopters with a penchant for impressing their peers, and who have money to burn. It’s a technical marvel, with technical limitations, and it makes us hopeful for a more fully rounded sequel.”

Overall, Apple won out

Although its Fold 5G model gets extremely fast 5G speeds, overall Samsung models performed poorly, when compared to Apple, Xiaomi, OnePlus, and Oppo, with the brand’s 5G models only managing a 1.6x speed improvement over previous models, whilst the 5G iPhone range boasted a 3.4x increase in speed. 

OpenSignal graph.

(Image credit: OpenSignal.)

“With Samsung’s mid-year launch imminent, we will soon see whether Samsung continues to use Qualcomm modems and chipsets for its foldable range and what kind of network experience they offer Europeans,” OpenSignal’s analysis explained. “And, as we look ahead to Apple’s next iPhone launch event (likely in September), we can see Apple is now making very significant progress with iPhone cellular hardware with the 5G iPhone 12. Once launched, we will analyze how future iPhone models compare and whether this cellular improvement continues.”

Dan Oliver
Dan Oliver

Dan is a British journalist with 20 years of experience in the design and tech sectors, producing content for the likes of Microsoft, Adobe, Dell and The Sunday Times. In 2012 he helped launch the world's number one design blog, Creative Bloq. Dan is now editor-in-chief at 5Gradar, where he oversees news, insight and reviews, providing an invaluable resource for anyone looking to stay up-to-date with the key issues facing 5G.