Samsung unveils W27 with satellite calls and a 200 MP camera
Samsung and China Telecom have unveiled the W27, a foldable smartphone for the Chinese market. Based on the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra, it combines gold-colored accents, 16 GB of RAM and satellite calling support.
Design
The Samsung W27 comes in blue and red. Its frame, hinge and camera island are finished in gold. The back panel features the “Heart of the World” series logo.
The cover screen and back panel are protected by Corning Gorilla Glass Ceramic 3. The frame is made of reinforced Armor Aluminum. The inner display’s construction includes a two-layer titanium support.
The smartphone weighs 215 grams. Its dimensions are 158,4 × 72,8 × 8,9 mm when folded and 158,4 × 143,2 × 4,1 mm when unfolded. It is rated IP48.
Display
The device has two Dynamic AMOLED 2X displays:
- a 6.5-inch cover screen with a resolution of 2520 × 1080 pixels;
- an 8-inch foldable inner screen with a resolution of 2504 × 2256 pixels.
Both displays support an adaptive refresh rate of 1 to 120 Hz and peak brightness of up to 3,000 nits. The inner screen has an anti-reflective coating.
Performance and battery
The Samsung W27 is powered by a 3 nm Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy processor clocked at up to 4.74 GHz, with Adreno 840 graphics. All configurations have 16 GB of RAM and either 512 GB or 1 TB of storage.
The battery has a typical capacity of 5,000 mAh. The phone supports 45 W wired charging and 20 W wireless charging.
Cameras
The rear camera system consists of three cameras:
- a 200 MP main camera with an f/1.7 aperture and optical image stabilization;
- a 50 MP ultra-wide camera with an f/1.9 aperture and a 120° field of view;
- a 10 MP telephoto camera with an f/2.4 aperture, optical image stabilization and 3× optical zoom.
Digital zoom goes up to 30×. The main and ultra-wide cameras support 8K video recording at 30 frames per second. The phone supports the APV codec and LUTs for color work.
The cover and inner screens each have a dedicated 10 MP front-facing camera with an f/2.2 aperture.
Software and connectivity
The smartphone runs Android 17 with the One UI 9 interface. The Galaxy AI suite includes tools for search, translation and image editing. On the inner screen, users can open two or three apps at once and drag content between windows.
The Samsung W27 supports 5G, 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6.0, NFC, GPS and GLONASS. It has a USB Type-C port, stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos and a side-mounted fingerprint scanner. Cellular connectivity is available via nano-SIM and eSIM.
The Tiantong satellite system enables calls and SMS outside terrestrial network coverage. Using it requires subscribing to the corresponding China Telecom service.
Prices and release date
Registration for buyers in China opened on October 29, 2026. Sales will begin on November 13. The recommended prices are:
- 16 GB of RAM and 512 GB of storage – 18, 999 yuan (≈ $2850);
- 16 GB of RAM and 1 TB of storage – 21, 999 yuan (≈ $3300).
No announcement has been made about the Samsung W27 launching in Europe or its official European prices.
The box includes a magnetic Kevlar protective case, a 45 W charger, a cable and a SIM-eject tool. Buyers are also offered a one-year satellite service package that includes 300 minutes of calls and 100 SMS messages. It must be activated separately.
