Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Foldable iPhone Reportedly Facing Mass Production Issues
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
The real life data out of forums confirm the statement that it will flop. Price is too high so the probability is high it will end up like VP. Fold market is still very small. We are approaching year 7 and they still don’t sell well. Apple won’t change the fact this phones were created as a solution in search of a problem. Phone companies needed a new gimmick back then because phones are matured so they put a plastic screen in a phone so it can fold.
I really don’t. I bet people will open it for like two weeks because its new and then it will stay folded and barley used. There is a reason why they put a second screen on the outside. No company dares to remove the outside screen and have people use just in inner screen because they also know folds don’t solve a real life problem that people have.
Its as a solution in search of a problem and I don’t know why Apple wants to enter a dead end market. I thought Apple would at least have some balls and ship a fold without an outside screen because you would thing the fold screen is the main feature but even they don’t dare to ship one without it because the fold is just a gimmick. People want a typical smartphone form factor.
Imagine telling people pre 2017 people will spend 2k plus for a fckng phone in the future. They would laugh. 2k for a phone that doesn’t solve any problems or can be used for real professional work its just too much.
Last edited:
Before it's too late, please write a detailed letter to John Ternus at Apple letting him know that this iPhone will flop.
Apparently his systems and design engineers having not done any research don't know what they are doing, and have never designed consumer mobile phones before. /s
If its delayed its delayed. Gives me more time to save up the 2 grand for the damn thing anyways. Right now i much rather have a Steam Machine and Steam Frame first.
with that logic, imagine telling people in 2007 that they would be spending $1200+ on their slab phones in the future where the only difference will be the screen will be bigger hardware wise. Then this actual form factor change does seem more significant as a functional evolution. Samsung has been making foldables for 7 generations now, obv theyre not insane and ppl find these foidables to be productive (and im sure enterntaining). I for one am looking forward to this and would much rather see this than an OLED ipad mini that I cant put in my pocket.
To add, we see these "next new device delayed" news stories prior to any release, and frankly these "delayed...not delayed...delayed...and not delayed" news stories are quite tiresome and IMO useless.
Queues
macrumors member
Seems like they perhaps could’ve actually thought more about whether they could, after all
H.E. Pennypacker
macrumors 6502a
Not every feature has to be designed around your personal use case. Plenty of people absolutely use the inner display daily, media, multitasking, work, gaming, travel, reading. The outer screen exists because flexibility is the entire point, not because the product failed. By that logic the iPad shouldn’t exist because people already use their phone for all of the same things.
Last edited:
rchaser
macrumors regular
Unami
macrumors 68000
SMD doesn't get easier with smaller components or complicated board layouts like supposedly in the ultra. You can absolutely mess that up. Luckily for Apple, they don't have to produce a ton of foldables, because not a lot of people are going to buy them for the supposed price. But we'll see, Samsung's Galaxy Fold z7 cost's around €1179 (without VAT) atm, so that's the competition to beat.
I make a bold prediction and say that this phone is going to flop just like the Vision Pro. At a USD 2000 price point uptake will be very limited.
Apple's first foldable iPhone is running into mass production yield problems at the pre-assembly stage, the leaker known as "Fixed Focus Digital" claims.
In a post today on Weibo, Fixed Focus Digital said Apple's troubles are not related to hinge reliability, as was previously reported, but rather due to surface-mount technology (SMT) during pre-assembly, with production yields failing to ramp up. The leaker framed the situation as somewhat concerning, stopping short of suggesting the fall launch is at risk.
The update arrives days after a separate leaker known as "Instant Digital" reported that the device's hinge was consistently failing to meet Apple's quality control standards under conditions of prolonged, high-frequency opening and closing. Instant Digital described that issue as one that "must be resolved with absolute perfection," though a follow-up post suggested the hinge difficulties were unlikely to affect the expected release window.
DigiTimes reported in April that production was already running roughly one to two months behind schedule, while still maintaining that a fall 2026 launch remained on track, with mass production planned to begin in July. Fixed Focus Digital reported in April that price negotiations with Apple's assembly partner were a potentially disruptive factor.
Whatever the precise nature of the problems, the picture that has emerged across multiple supply chain sources in recent weeks is one of unusual production difficulties. That said, a fall launch does not appear to be at risk; Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reported in April that the foldable iPhone remains on track for a September debut alongside the iPhone 18 Pro models, and that Apple is aiming to put it on sale at roughly the same time or slightly later. Gurman noted at the time, however, that "the release is six months away and production has yet to ramp up" and "the timing isn't final."
The foldable iPhone is expected to feature a 7.8-inch inner display and a 5.5-inch cover display, the A20 chip and C2 modem, a Touch ID power button instead of Face ID, and two rear cameras, with pricing rumored at around $2,000.
Article Link: Foldable iPhone Reportedly Facing Mass Production Issues
I have a Pro Max and an ipad mini. I touch my ipad Mini maybe once a month to check if I need to charge it. Otherwise, I am just using my Macbook Air with the convenience of a real OS.
Let's see...
JTK Awesome
macrumors 6502a
Until I can fold my 12.9 iPP into the size, shape, and functionality of my iPhone 17 Max - and back again - I fail to see the point.
johnsawyercjs
macrumors 68000
It's not Apple directly that's having these issues, but rather their manufacturers. The iPhone Ultra will contain some pretty thin circuit boards and flexible cables connecting them, so if its specs call for thinner and more densely packed circuit boards than has been common industry practice (which it seems will be the case), then those manufacturers may not yet have entirely ramped up, from their prior practices, to what the Ultra needs.
One problem is the heat that's applied to solder components and cables to the boards. The thinner these become, the more they're subject to deformation due to this heat during assembly, which could lead to breaks over time, as the phone is folded over and over, as some of the force from folding gets transferred to the internals of the phone. Manufacturers can't reduce the heat below a certain point, since this can lead to cold solder joints that can crack later, causing resistors, capacitors, microchips, etc. to become disconnected from the rest of the circuitry. If a thin board or cable which contains components flexes too much during assembly and later use, it can create microscopic fractures in the solder. Apple has some pretty strict quality inspections, and they'll reject boards with even the slightest structural problems.
And those are just some of the heat-related problems encountered during assembly. These delicate connections inside the Ultra will also need to survive the heat generated inside the phone over the course of its lifetime. It's not nearly the same amount of heat as is required to solder parts during assembly, but its effects accumulate over a longer period of time, and so that too can lead to failures if Apple doesn't catch and prevent these issues before the Ultra gets into people's hands.
Last edited:
No no no, no … nothing funnier than interacting with Siri. -
I still have my XS. A foldable would get to me at least to consider upgrading.
Nope. Because you have to duct-tape three iPhone Air to get an outer screen. With just two, you would have to leave a considerable slack in the center to be able told them both ways. And you have to figure in duct tape replacement as well as double charging electricity costs. 😂
My even hotter take, they make up “OH NOES! iPhone manufacturing problem that they haven’t figured out in the 5 years they’ve been working on it, guys!” because Apple and “something negative” gets clicks. If they actually ship it, they just say, “Oh, guess they resolved their issues huh?”
Dark_Omen
macrumors 65816
Why would I want to spend extra money on an additional device (an iPad) and pay extra for the data plan?
The foldable iPhone would solve both of those issues with one device. It's also nice that the size offers the capability to use a split keyboard on both screens so I can type with my thumbs. I can also do real multitasking on a foldable device. I can type an e-mail while looking at information on the web. I can write a text while checking my e-mails. I can open my teams call and take notes by using both screens.
The foldable market share is low because of a couple of different reasons:
- Apple is much more popular hone brand in the US.
- People are too lazy to try change.
Simple.