[Galaxy Unpacked July 2026] Inside the Design Behind the Latest Galaxy Z Series and Galaxy Watch

Samsung introduced the Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra, Galaxy Z Fold8, Galaxy Z Flip8, Galaxy Watch Ultra2, and Galaxy Watch9 at Galaxy Unpacked July 2026, marking the first time the company’s foldables and smartwatches share a cohesive design philosophy centered on comfort and natural use. Hubert Lee, Samsung’s EVP and Head of Design for Mobile eXperience Business, highlighted the ‘Emotive Slim’ concept for foldables and refined cushion design for watches, aiming to improve everyday usability through slimmer profiles and ergonomic adjustments.

The expanded Galaxy Z series now offers three foldables tailored to different user needs: productivity-focused Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra, balanced Galaxy Z Fold8, and portable Galaxy Z Flip8, each featuring distinct colorways like Violet Shadow, Lavender, and Pink to reflect varied lifestyles. Design refinements include gentler slopes on foldable frames for easier opening, curved silhouettes for better grip, and minimized flat side profiles for a visually slimmer appearance, while smartwatches prioritize lightweight bands with air pocket structures and computational fit validation using over 100 million wrist data points.

Samsung’s ‘Emotive Geometry’ design approach integrates human warmth into minimalist forms, balancing aesthetics with emotional connection, as illustrated by product sketches and design elements on display. The company emphasized that no single foldable can meet all needs, prompting the expanded lineup to better serve diverse priorities such as multitasking or portability, reflecting deeper insights from seven generations of foldable innovation.

For smartwatches, the Galaxy Watch Ultra2 and Watch9 feature seamless screen-bezel-cushion integration for a cleaner profile, refined button spacing for tactile distinction, and expanded band options for personalization. Samsung underscored that AI-era innovation must align with human-centered values, with design decisions rooted in real-world user behavior, ensuring devices feel as natural to use as they do to interact with.