Samsung 'FlexCam', And How The Handy Feature Can Be A Goldmine For Meta

When the market demands screens that have clearer and sharper display, manufacturers create bigger screens with more pixels.

But when bigger is just too big, the only way to keep screens crisp without making them too big, is by folding them. In Samsung's case, it's both a Fold and a Flip. When the former divides a screen vertically, the latter divides the screen vertically.

The Samsung Galaxy Flip series as the South Korean manufacturer calls it, is considered the first-ever folding phone to use a glass display, as opposed to plastic displays, like the Motorola Razr and the Galaxy Fold. This allows it to have a more durable screen, that is also more resistant to screen crease at the folding point.

Another advantage of the Flip, is its vertical crease, which essentially flips the phone in half right at the vertical center.

This allows the phone to be placed on level platform, like on a table, allowing users to create video calls or create videos, without having to hold the phone.

And this time, Samsung has announced a feature called 'FlexCam', which should give content creators and influencers more flexibility and a new way of creating hands-free content.

According to Samsung:

Flex Mode referred to the automatic layout changes that happen in the Camera user interface when the phone is folded halfway to create an L-shape.

This means that the shooting options usually at the top half of the screen would transfer to the bottom half for easier control when the phone was folded halfway.

FlexCam takes this a bit further.

FlexCam was announced by Samsung at the Unpacked event, along with the Galaxy Z Flip 4 and Galaxy Z Fold 4.

What the feature does, is allowing users leverages the Flip 4’s hinge design, making it possible for users to prop up the camera on different surfaces and capture selfies and group photos at any angle between 75-115 degrees, without asking others' help.

"It’s like having a camera and a tripod all in one," summarized Samsung’s Dillon Hesse during the company’s August 2022 Unpacked event.

In a news website post:

FlexCam isn’t just built into the Camera app.

This is because it also works with Meta-powered apps.

In this case, users can use FlexCam to easily post to social platforms that include Facebook and Instagram.

Users can also take advantage of this feature to take hands-free calls using WhatsApp and Messenger.

In other words, FlexCam is essentially a product from Samsung, created in a partnership with Meta.

This partnership is something that Samsung doesn't really showcase.

While having various Meta apps up and ready right from the start is certainly a welcome experience, but in terms of privacy, no so much.

By partnering with Meta, the Samsung feature is definitely providing Meta more access to its users that it normally would. After all, it's this kind of partnership that allows Samsung to share data with, according to its Privacy Policy.

In the tech world that is connected via the internet, partnerships that include data sharing is a concern, simply because companies are making money from it.

One tech company partnering with other tech company is nothing new. But Samsung in partnering with Meta, the company that made various violations of public trust, is certainly not a good news for privacy-concerned individuals.

"We will continue to evolve our products so that they are easy to use, whether you are creating content or connecting with others," Samsung further added.