Apple's First Foldable iPhone Estimated to Cost Nearly Twice as Much as iPhone 16 Pro Max

[MacRumors]

In an investor research note today with British bank Barclays, analyst Tim Long said Apple's first foldable iPhone could have a starting price in the $2,300 range in the United States, which would make it by far the most expensive iPhone model ever.

If the first foldable iPhone starts at $2,299, that means it would cost nearly twice as much as the iPhone 16 Pro Max, which starts at $1,199.

Long shared this pricing estimate following a recent trip to Asia, where his team met with hardware manufacturers. He said there is increasing discussion within the supply chain about a foldable iPhone launching in late 2026 to early 2027, but he believes that the device's higher starting price would unsurprisingly limit sales volume.

Earlier this month, Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo predicted that the first foldable iPhone would be priced between $2,000 and $2,500, so multiple analysts agree that the device will cost at least a few thousand dollars. Kuo believes there could still be strong demand for the foldable iPhone despite its higher price, however, provided that the device's quality meets expectations. For example, Apple releasing a foldable smartphone without a visible crease in the screen would be a major breakthrough.

Kuo said the first foldable iPhone would feature a 7.8-inch inner display, a 5.5-inch outer display, two rear cameras, one front camera, a Touch ID power button instead of Face ID, and a high-density battery. He expects the device to be as thin as 4.5mm when unfolded, and between 9mm and 9.5mm when folded. He expects the device to have a titanium exterior, but the hinge would use a mix of titanium and stainless steel.

Kuo said the foldable iPhone would enter mass production in the fourth quarter of 2026.

With the foldable iPhone at least a year and a half away, keep in mind that this pricing estimate is surely just an educated guess.

Article Link: Apple's First Foldable iPhone Estimated to Cost Nearly Twice as Much as iPhone 16 Pro Max

 

[Jarutais]

Another day another flop

 

[abatabia]

The Vision Pro of iPhone models? I’ll pass. I never got the appeal of foldable.

 

[I/0]

Honestly, even if it was the same price as the Pro Max I just wouldn’t be interested in a foldable at all.

 

[tubular]

I am so not the market for this.

 

[glenncashuric]

That price actually makes sense. What makes even more sense is me not buying one. But again, that's just me.

 

[jz0309]

Speculating over a price point of a product that is rumored to launch in 18+ months…
Whatever

 

[Lizzard899]

Its a no for me. Im not buying the 16e thats $500 something I certainly wont be buying a phone $2,000. Apple has become a joke. I predict they will go bankrupt or wont be around much longer if they keep this up. Look at what theyve gotten themselves into with the AI feature and siri issue.

 

[rp2011]

Good luck with that.

 

[kwl]

Solutions in search of problems.

 

[Lizzard899]

Speculating over a price point of a product that is rumored to launch in 18+ months…
Whatever

Exactly. Thats why I predict apple wont be around much longer. Look at the problems theyre having with the ai features and siri stuff.

 

[Pezimak]

So that's around £2500 in the UK, for a phone... that will be outdated in 2 years.
That's £500 more than the Mac Studio starting price.
Then again the Apple Vision is £3500 in the UK and hasn't sold well, wonder why??..

 

[kwl]

Its a no for me. Im not buying the 16e thats $500 something I certainly wont be buying a phone $2,000. Apple has become a joke. I predict they will go bankrupt or wont be around much longer if they keep this up. Look at what theyve gotten themselves into with the AI feature and siri issue.

Outside of the wild profitability, huge margins, etc. There is no way this comes true anytime soon. Apple's ecosystem and moat are huge. It would take an enormous fall for me to switch and leave the iTunes ecosystem.....

Additionally, it's not like Apple is putting out terrible products. Their hardware is still large and part the best outside of fringe devices. No compelling reason to switch.

 

[DocMultimedia]

Which way does it fold? Will it be a square chunk or popsicle stick? If the former I would at least be interested.

 

[x-evil-x]

If they do that it will be priced out of really selling. Not sure they want to go down that route on something that is like this. People will just buy an iPad and call it a day.

 

[foggygray]

And people believe this will outsell a mini iPhone?

 

[Biro]

The price is entirely what I would expect. And, no, I won’t be buying one.

 

[Zorn]

Even at double price this will likely be an insta-buy for me. Foldables are amazing and I can't wait to see Apple do this really well.

 

[contacos]

If it folds like a flip then LOL at the price. If it actually folds out to a tablet then I am not surprised considering even OPPO and Samsung charge nearly 2k for their Fold. Also, Apple probably wants to compensate the potential loss in iPad sales that way

 

[sunapple]

I mean are we getting functioning multi tasking? Support for some sort of Pencil? Additional innovative accessories or software features, for example to enable a proper typing experience? A screen ratio that is useful for video? iPad M series chipsets? Same latest gen iPhone cameras? This needs to replace any other iPhone or iPad to warrant such a price. Otherwise it will just seem like another first gen experiment.

 

[Unami]

Other foldables cost around €1200-€1500, 2000€ for the bigger ones. So obviously an iPhone has to cost significantly more. I'd really like a foldable iPhone but even 1,5k is a ridiculously high price for a phone, imho. Regular iPhones are ecpensive enough - I'll pass until the technology reaches "normal" non-pro-phone pro prices.

 

[blairh]

I don't believe it. I don't think it will be more than $1,999.

Even at that price it is a hard sell. And I'm saying this as someone who has wanted a book-style folding iPhone for about 7 years now.

 

[Trausner]

I honestly just checked if it was April 1st already.

 

[ppj845]

Great timing when everybody just have piles of cash sitting around waiting to be spent.

Honestly I held up my friend's Z fold 6 once, instant no. I image if Apple can get it to Find N5 level it may work, but by then Chinese manufacturers will come up even better ones already.

 

[rp2011]

Exactly. Thats why I predict apple wont be around much longer. Look at the problems theyre having with the ai features and siri stuff.

Jobs used to say that whenever marketing took charge of any company, that it was over. This and the Siri mess has "marketing" written all over it.