Foldable iPhone Like 'Two Titanium iPhone Airs' Joined at the Hinge

[The-Real-Deal82]

Foldables really are unwieldy and awful to use. I’ve never understood the appeal, especially when you add in the plastic screen (that feels horrible) and the atrocious crease. I’m still glad Apple is going to release one for those who want it and to stay competitive, and I trust that they’ll do at least as good a job of it as Samsung and Oppo.

A friend of mine has whatever the latest Samsung foldable is, and the screen didn't feel nice tbh. It's a lot like the days before tempered glass protectors came out and we used to use those plastic film protectors instead. There was a visible lump across where it folds and that would worry me long term. He paid nearly £2k for that phone too! I have no interest in them personally.

 

[Hammerd]

It certainly will be. Even the Galaxy Fold 7 starts at 2,200€ here now and it's the 7th generation

But you can find the Fold7 heavily discounted, almost half the launch price already

 

[uacd]

It's an abomination. Truly hideous. A sad day for design if this gets released.

It eventually will. Apple devices get leaked a year before the release these days.

I always laugh when people on this forum comment when design leaks come (and device turns out to be identical) like "nooo it cannot be that ugly!!! This is 100% fake!". Apple totally lost their ways these days

 

[beowulf70]

I've been waiting 8 years for this paradigm shift in form factor, then Apple forced me to upgrade my iPhone 8 Plus this year after most of their apps require iOS 17. No choice to bite the bullet and drop £2K on the Pro Max... it is lovely, but wanted a foldable phone! (However, colleagues of mine who purchased foldable phones in the past 12 months are seeing significant damage the screen in the fold line....) So, time to wait...

 

[uacd]

It certainly will be. Even the Galaxy Fold 7 starts at 2,200€ here now and it's the 7th generation

They often have deals, saw it for 1500 smth-ish once, but since I am not a fan of form factor I wasn't interested, as well as it doesn't even have 5x telephoto like S25 Ultra

 

[Surrylic]

Why is it always a folding phone? There clearly isn't a huge market for people that desire more screen real estate on a phone who wouldn't just go with a Max/Plus size.

A folding iPad makes much more sense. It would be much more portable, wouldn't require a third screen or external selfie camera like a phone would, could keep FaceID and is just an extra size/form factor within a category already dominated by Apple.

I’m on the opposite side of this. I’d love a phone that was small and easy to use one-handed, but unfolded into a much larger screen if I wanted to watch a video, or use Lightroom, or other apps where a bigger screen is better.
On the other hand, I can’t think of a single use case in my own life for a foldable iPad.

 

[SoyMaxV]

Shocking.

 

[copactback]

They should've gone with a flip phone design. I wouldn't want to hold an iPad size iPhone to do iPhone tasks.

 

[fireguy286]

5.5 for the other display seems...small.

 

[Oohara]

Why is it always a folding phone? There clearly isn't a huge market for people that desire more screen real estate on a phone who wouldn't just go with a Max/Plus size.

A folding iPad makes much more sense. It would be much more portable, wouldn't require a third screen or external selfie camera like a phone would, could keep FaceID and is just an extra size/form factor within a category already dominated by Apple.

Not gonna say it makes more sense to everyone, but I would definitely be down for a foldable iPad. I LOVE my iPad Pro 12.9 but it is kind of unwieldy at times. I also love the iPad mini format. A combo of those would be dangerous for my wallet. And at the 12.9" unfolded size territory, all those bonus uses of the hinge start to be seriously useful: "tent" mode for when you don't have a stand, virtual laptop mode with a flat-on-the-table on screen keyboard + upright display, book mode, etc.

Man, come to think of it, an iPhone + a foldable iPad Pro would be kind of a dream scenario for me.

 

[AbSoluTc]

Gurman is a tool. Where was this "prediction" before he saw the iPhone Air? Oh, it wasn't a thing. Now that he sees the air, he can make up whatever the hell prediction he wants to keep feeding the click bait articles. It's like saying tomorrow, water will be wet!

 

[karnac]

One piece of sand, let alone a tiny pebble, or a car key and this thing is done.

The foldable phone is Tim Cook's final brainlet idea to "innovate". Innovate my ass.

 

[tridley68]

I will be passing on this gimmick I think it will fail .

 

[techfirth]

Good example of Apple being a follower and not a leader. When they finally introduce this in a keynote video they will talk about foldable as if it's a brand new concept.

A brand new concept for them, yes. Revolutionary new tech, for them.

I haven’t watched a Google/Samsung keynote recently where they say “Everyone else has stated to add magnets to align wireless charging in their devices, so we’re going to do it too!”

This sort of thing would be absurd if every company acknowledged it, so what’s your point exactly?

 

[tomtad]

a new experience combining iPhone & iPad UI, cannot wait.

I'm intrigued how they'll approach this. But I'm thinking we'll be seeing a return of splitview (and maybe slideover) the from the previous iPadOS to handle multitasking

 

[Dimka]

Next year's rumored foldable iPhone will showcase an ultra-thin design resembling "two titanium iPhone Airs side-by-side," according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

Writing in the Q&A section of his latest Power On newsletter, Gurman says Apple's first foldable device will be "super thin and a design achievement," combining Apple's thinnest iPhone form factor with cutting-edge folding technology. However, this engineering feat is still expected to come with a premium price tag of at least $2,000.

Apple launched its ultra-thin new iPhone Air last week. The device is 5.64mm thick and represents the company's thinnest iPhone to date, though it's still shy of the M4 iPad Pro's impressive thinness at 5.3mm.

Gurman says manufacturing the foldable iPhone will involve Foxconn in China, despite recent speculation about potential production in India. The device remains slated for 2026, dropping around Apple's traditional fall launch window, "give or take" hedges the Bloomberg reporter.

Industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo previously outlined specifications for the foldable iPhone, including a 7.8-inch inner display and 5.5-inch outer screen, with pricing between $2,000 and $2,500. Apple reportedly plans to forgo Face ID in favor of Touch ID integrated into the side button to optimize internal space. The titanium device is expected to include a dual-lens rear camera, with a front-facing camera for both folded and unfolded states.

• 2026 Foldable iPhone: All the Leaks So Far

The foldable iPhone will compete in an increasingly crowded market dominated by Samsung's Galaxy Z series, establishing Apple's late entry into the folding smartphone category after years of the rumored device's development.

Article Link: Foldable iPhone Like 'Two Titanium iPhone Airs' Joined at the Hinge

I wish they would make the compute/camera plato to extrude inside, thus making the second screen a bit smaller, but nothing would stick out

 

[Rradcircless]

I suspect the removal of Face ID is an indicator the two sides will be thinner than the Air. How much thinner who knows, but with two sides to play with they’ll have more wriggle room for the battery.

I need to know what about FaceID causes a device to be so chunky. Can it really not be miniaturised like everything else seemingly can?

 

[Johnny Steps]

If it's more than £1800, it'll be dead in the water by the time it reaches the market.

Pretty sure people finance their phones… or least they definitely do in the US lol.

 

[Lizzard899]

If it's more than £1800, it'll be dead in the water by the time it reaches the market.

Yea no one is gonna buy a phone $2,000 or more. I wouldnt even buy a phone $1,000. I swear Apple will go out of business by 2030 if they keep this behavior up. This is why more ppl are going to driods or other style phones

 

[Lizzard899]

Pretty sure people finance their phones… or least they definitely do in the US lol.

Who cares, I still wouldnt buy it for that much. Apple will go outta business by 2030 if they keep this behavior up

 

[BuffaloTF]

2028 at the earliest

I’m thinking more ‘27… coming in as the iPhone XX with the iPhone 19 being standard shapes - similar to how the 8 was the outgoing look and the X was the new one… and then after they fall in line to the year model names.

 

[azentropy]

I'm sure there is a market for this, just not a big one. As with many of these "hybrid" type devices they end up being worse at two things for the convenience of being one device.

 

[Lizzard899]

it will but think, even Android offerings are more than that.

but it will be like an iPhone + an iPad mini + the convenience of not carrying two devices. I think its a fair price point.

No not a fair price. Apple will go outta business by 2030 if they keep this behavior up.

 

[PTLove]

A 5.5 inch outer screen will be interesting. It wont be the same aspect ratio as the current iphones as they want it to unfold to 4:3 so it will be shorter and wider. Interested in seeing how they handle the phone UI on this screen.

 

[Lizzard899]

Hmm. So Gurman's saying what everyone has said after seeing the iPhone Air. He's probably not wrong, but it's hardly exclusive insider info.

That guys been wrong the last 6 months on things. Dont trust him