The Galaxy Z Flip 5 is even more appealing thanks to a major step forward

I really love the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4, and I think it'd be my pick of the best folding phones if I were in the market for high-spec Android phones.

Now a new report says that the Galaxy Z Flip 5 is going to be even more useful thanks to its larger external display.

It looks like Samsung is going to do something similar to the Moto Razr 40 Ultra, which we absolutely love. In our Moto Razr 40 Ultra review we said that its external screen was genuinely useful and a great alternative to a smartwatch. And it seems that Samsung is similarly keen on bringing your essential apps to the external screen. 

What can you do with the Galaxy Z Flip 5 cover display?

According to the report from SamMobile, the 3.4-inch cover display will be optimised for key apps including the Samsung Keyboard – so you can write messages and use voice to text without unfolding your Flip 5 – and Google apps including Google Maps, Messages and YouTube. Once again that means you'll be able to access them and their data without opening up your phone.

I think this is a superb idea, and genuinely useful - it's a step up from the always-on displays that we're used to seeing in everything from the best cheap phones to the best iPhones, with the added benefit of being much, much smaller – and in the case of Google Maps, a little less obvious that you're using a maps app if you're in an unfamiliar city. 

The only negative I can think of here is that, unfortunately, this feature isn't for me. As a long-term iPhone owner with heavy investment in Apple's ecosystem, I can only look at the Z Flip 5 and Moto Razr 40 Ultra and wish Apple made a folding iPhone to match them.

Maybe one day...