Foldable iPhone Expected Next Year: All the Rumored Features So Far

[darngooddesign]

Apple themselves said on stage back in 2012 that the iPhone 5 (4") is the ideal size for a phone. The 13 mini is already too big.

That demonstration was based on the assumption that everything should be done with the thumb of the hand you are holding the phone with; which is really silly if you think about it, imagine trying to type out an email with just your thumb. Once Apple added the left-side swipe there was no reason to reach the top left back button with your thumb.

People dont mind using both hands, one to hold the other to operate, which is why larger phones have replaced smaller phones. I still have my iPhone 5 and there's no way I would go back to a screen that small; I even prefer my 15 Pros screen size to my old XR.

 

[Cirillo Gherardo]

It was so much better than FaceID has ever been for me.

Oh yeah, fingering a button precisely a certain way every time single you want to unlock your phone was so much better than ....just looking at it, which you have to do anyway to use it.

I swear there are people who will defend anything no matter how illogical or irrational.

 

[Cirillo Gherardo]

That demonstration was based on the assumption that everything should be done with the thumb of the hand you are holding the phone with; which is really silly if you think about it, imagine trying to type out an email with just your thumb. Once Apple added the left-side swipe there was no reason to reach the top left back button with your thumb.

People dont mind using both hands, one to hold the other to operate, which is why larger phones have replaced smaller phones. I still have my iPhone 5 and there's no way I would go back to a screen that small; I even prefer my 15 Pros screen size to my old XR.

If physics were not a limiting factor, and it were possible to have just as much battery life and just as good of a camera suite on a smaller iPhone, the smaller iPhone would be more popular than it is. People have tried everything, including iPhone's approaching 7" in size, and the thing barely fits in a pocket now, let alone a hand. Ultimately people are going to choose critical things like battery and camera quality, over comfort. This is a big reason why larger phones are as popular as they are, not because the screens themselves provide much utility over smaller versions.

 

[thiscatisfat]

That demonstration was based on the assumption that everything should be done with the thumb of the hand you are holding the phone with; which is really silly if you think about it, imagine trying to type out an email with just your thumb. Once Apple added the left-side swipe there was no reason to reach the top left back button with your thumb.

People dont mind using both hands, one to hold the other to operate, which is why larger phones have replaced smaller phones. I still have my iPhone 5 and there's no way I would go back to a screen that small; I even prefer my 15 Pros screen size to my old XR.

iPhone 5 + iOS6 = chef's kiss

You like phablets, that's fine. I don't, I prefer an actual (i)Phone instead, one that I can hold and operate comfortably with one hand and also fit into my pocked without really noticing it's there. A phone is fine for a quick reply, longer emails are usually a desktop/laptop job for me. You do you, I do me, we're all good.

 

[Cirillo Gherardo]

That's honestly why it annoys me so much when a lot of people just declare the way they like it to be the only way people should have. It's so damn short sighted lol. Neither of our preferences are wrong, but they are right for ourselves.

I'm curious though why 3D Touch was terrible for you? Personally I think the big issue was that people didn't think or know how to use it, but in my opinion it's vastly superior to the long presses we have now. The phone always gets confused whether I'm trying to long press/swipe, or something. With 3D Touch, it provided the phone with another input to help it determine what you are trying to do. If I started pressing, then it reacted both faster, and more correct every time.

Also, why the hate on headphone jacks lol? For me I like it because of the universal/non-proprietary nature of it. Wireless headphones require batteries, which go bad, which makes you have to buy again. It requires you to spend more money in the long run. I still have headphones that are over 20 years old at this point and still work great (if I have a headphone jack to plug them into.) At least for me, it's more about not having things be so disposable. But I do still have and enjoy my AirPods, but they are never going to sound as good as my old wired headphones. The convenience is nice though.

I think of things more in terms of product development and design, because I work in software development and design. So I will often say, "this is the way things should be" because people in those positions have to make those decisions. The fact that there is some user somewhere that disagrees because they either don't understand the difference, or don't care and belligerently want it their way or no way, does not factor in.

3D Touch was worthless. Utterly worthless. Here is why:
- It required special hardware to exist, which not only added cost, but severely limited other important design considerations around the display itself and space. It was not very forward thinking.
- In the 5 years it existed, absolutely no practical application for it materialized. Developers had time to utilize it. Nothing developed.
- No matter what settings you used, it was awkward and difficult to use because of needing to modulate pressure to achieve a certain result.
- It created a fracture in the UI consistency across devices. Long Press was the far superior option from the get-go, that was usable across all models of Apple Watch, iPhone, and iPad.
- Long Press is far more predictable and reliable to accomplish 99% of the same goals. It is a gesture all people can do, consistently, which was a big problem for 3D touch.

It had nothing going for it. Nothing.

As for headphones jacks, well, this just compounds a massive lack of understanding and awareness on your part.
When Apple removed the headphone jack from iPhone, it was certainly early, but ultimately correct.
- Analog audio is rather ancient technology bolted on to state-of-the-art iPhone. It was there for legacy compatibility, and nothing more.
- It presented a major problem in achieving the level of water resistance that is necessary for iPhone, something that far outweighs, by an order of magnitude, legacy audio support.
- AirPods are a runaway success. People love them. Companies love to clone them. No one cares that they have to be charged. An entire ecosystem of nightstand chargers has emerged to make this effortless.
- Wired audio still exists today via lightning and USB-C adapters and headphones. Though it is by far the minority of what gets used in the wild.
- Your AirPods absolutely do sound as good as your old wired headphones. Depending on the model, they can do noise cancellation and even lossless audio. Something analog could never, ever do. This is a simple fact, and not a measure of anyone's opinion of any particular sound from any particular source.

If you find yourself reading this and disregarding all of these points, I can assure you, you are in the wrong. All of the above are simple facts, and it is these simple facts that are used to inform mass market product decisions. It isn't mysterious, or nefarious, or difficult to comprehend.

 

[HVDynamo]

Oh yeah, fingering a button precisely a certain way every time single you want to unlock your phone was so much better than ....just looking at it, which you have to do anyway to use it.

I swear there are people who will defend anything no matter how illogical or irrational.

Ah, you seem to be another one of those "I don't use it that way and it's perfect for me, so it should be fine for everyone else" people. It's not illogical ffs. It's a different preference. Bring a real argument if you want to discuss.

 

[Cirillo Gherardo]

Ah, you seem to be another one of those "I don't use it that way and it's perfect for me, so it should be fine for everyone else" people. It's not illogical ffs. It's a different preference. Bring a real argument if you want to discuss.

I don't want to discuss. Touch ID was replaced with something far superior years ago, for a slew of irrefutable reasons. It isn't up for debate.

 

[HVDynamo]

I think of things more in terms of product development and design, because I work in software development and design. So I will often say, "this is the way things should be" because people in those positions have to make those decisions. The fact that there is some user somewhere that disagrees because they either don't understand the difference, or don't care and belligerently want it their way or no way, does not factor in.

3D Touch was worthless. Utterly worthless. Here is why:
- It required special hardware to exist, which not only added cost, but severely limited other important design considerations around the display itself and space. It was not very forward thinking.
- In the 5 years it existed, absolutely no practical application for it materialized. Developers had time to utilize it. Nothing developed.
- No matter what settings you used, it was awkward and difficult to use because of needing to modulate pressure to achieve a certain result.
- It created a fracture in the UI consistency across devices. Long Press was the far superior option from the get-go, that was usable across all models of Apple Watch, iPhone, and iPad.
- Long Press is far more predictable and reliable to accomplish 99% of the same goals. It is a gesture all people can do, consistently, which was a big problem for 3D touch.

It had nothing going for it. Nothing.

As for headphones jacks, well, this just compounds a massive lack of understanding and awareness on your part.
When Apple removed the headphone jack from iPhone, it was certainly early, but ultimately correct.
- Analog audio is rather ancient technology bolted on to state-of-the-art iPhone. It was there for legacy compatibility, and nothing more.
- It presented a major problem in achieving the level of water resistance that is necessary for iPhone, something that far outweighs, by an order of magnitude, legacy audio support.
- AirPods are a runaway success. People love them. Companies love to clone them. No one cares that they have to be charged. An entire ecosystem of nightstand chargers has emerged to make this effortless.
- Wired audio still exists today via lightning and USB-C adapters and headphones. Though it is by far the minority of what gets used in the wild.
- Your AirPods absolutely do sound as good as your old wired headphones. Depending on the model, they can do noise cancellation and even lossless audio. Something analog could never, ever do. This is a simple fact, and not a measure of anyone's opinion of any particular sound from any particular source.

If you find yourself reading this and disregarding all of these points, I can assure you, you are in the wrong. All of the above are simple facts, and it is these simple facts that are used to inform mass market product decisions. It isn't mysterious, or nefarious, or difficult to comprehend.

Ah, so here is the real response. Could have done without the other one.

That said. I completely disagree. I am an Electrical Engineer who does embedded software engineering. So this is in my wheelhouse too. Your stance is riddled with arrogance and ignorance.
On 3D Touch:
3D Touch was not utterly worthless. how the hell does requiring special hardware mean it's worthless. It provided a better experience exactly as I described in the message you responded to. That extra input helps the software make a smarter determination on what the user intends on doing. It baffles me that you would see that as a negative as a software guy having to write software that would make those decisions. The phone I have today often can't tell if I want to swipe, long press or just touch because there are too many conflicting possibilities. That "usless" hardware made that more seamless and faster because it was easier for the software to accurately detect what you where trying to do. that WAS the practical use, it was there from the start as just an interface to the OS like having a right mouse button. The fracture of consistency I do get since not all hardware had it, but they should have put it in all hardware to solve that issue. But I do not agree at all that long press is superior in any way whatsoever other than it being cheaper. I've found it more annoying than 3D Touch. It honestly sounds more to me like you didn't know how to effectively use 3DTouch.

On the Headphone Jack:
I have no lack of understanding or awareness. Bold of you to assume. Just because a technology is old doesn't mean it's useless or needs changing. There is such a thing as reaching a point of diminishing returns with any technology or design. All audio you hear is analog. ALL of it. When it is driven into the speaker it's analog... Always.

Water proofing was not the issue. Galaxy a52/a72 5g exists with both water proofing and a headphone jack. It's not more complicated than waterproofing the lightning/usb-c which if I'm correct STILL exists on all iPhones that have water proofing. 3.5mm audio jack is not legacy either. It's an industry standard. The problem with making it Lightning or USB-C is well, now those headphones are obsolete the moment that port is no longer standard. So what do you do with headphones that had a lightning end on them? Toss them and buy new. Sorry, but I prefer a world where we don't just waste ****.

Also, I do care that I have more **** I need to charge. Batteries also make things more disposable by nature as the batteries don't last nearly as long as my set of wired headphones I've had for 20 years that still work perfectly. Bold of you to assume no one cares. More arrogance...

Also... Analog is lossless by nature. Sheesh. For the level of confidence you have, you sure don't know **** about how this stuff actually works. Oh, and my 20+ year old headphones I mentioned? Bose QC2 Noise Cancelling. Has a 3.5mm jack, takes analog input and does noise cancellation on the headphone itself using just a single AAA battery for power.

 

[Lioness~]

Don't appeal to me.
If this is the only folding phone Apple will release, I'll pass.
Samsung it will be then, sorry Timmy.

But we'll see what happens the coming ~2 yrs?

 

[python0704]

Touch ID over Face ID is a dealbreaker for me.

 

[dalestrauss]

1. For some. We’ll see how many.
2. Jobs would have never built it even if he had the tech available in his era.
3. No. Not even close. The price alone will make it a sliver of the iPhone market.
4. Doubtful.
5. Doubtful.

1. This is a DAY ONE purchase.
2. This is NOT a Jobs vs Cook issue. It wasn't (or barely) even possible in the Jobs era.
3. This WILL be the fastest selling iPhone release - a lot of waiting/frustrated customers.
4. My biggest hope is that it is an iPadOS device at heart - not just limited iPad OS availability.
5. PLEASE support the Apple Pencil.

Sorry for re-quoting my original that you replied to, but need the context. I mostly wanted to address the last three. Since it will have limited supplies (per most rumor sites) you are probably right on number 3. As for 4, I seriously hope you are wrong, because that will doom it for sure. Lastly, number 5 would be a big swing and miss for Apple if number 4 is true. Oh well, we'll see fairly soon (my bet is this slips to a Spring 2027 event at the earliest).

 

[DeepIn2U]

Apple themselves said on stage back in 2012 that the iPhone 5 (4") is the ideal size for a phone. The 13 mini is already too big.

Yet the phone itself is MUCH smaller than any of the iPhone SE 2ND Gen or later or the 16e.

Unfortunately the worlds in-satiating thirst and hunger for video consumption won out the engineering dept and both Jobs and their Executive of Marketing's original thoughts.