Galaxy Z Flip is used by US police as a body-worn camera

This may sound like the beginning of a joke, but it’s completely true:

Samsung’s foldable phone, the Galaxy Z Flip, has found a new career as a body-worn camera for police officers. What started as a small remote in Missouri about two years ago has become a surprising police trend, and now 25 police departments in 5 states across the United States will adopt the foldable device for its new role. In a post published on the company’s blog , Samsung describes how Galaxy Z Flip devices, known primarily for their foldable screen, have become part of the routine work of officers in police departments. Additionally, according to the company, this is the first time the foldable device has been used as a body-worn camera.

Samsung also notes in the blog that beyond being used as body-worn cameras, “the devices are also used by police as digital cameras to document crime scenes, as recording devices for witness interviews, and as a means of locating police officers via GPS.”

The Galaxy Z Flip, best known for its foldable screen, has become part of the daily work of officers in police departments (source: Samsung)

The Flip devices used in the program were customized for police needs in partnership with Visual Labs, a company that specializes in customizing mobile devices for use as body-worn and vehicle cameras. The changes included rebranding the volume buttons to instantly activate the camera.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 (source: Samsung)

In fact, Samsung is not the first technology company to get involved in developing products for the police. Ring, an Amazon-owned company, has supplied smart cameras to the US police, while other companies have developed facial recognition technologies and drones for police use.