Foldable iPhone to Debut These Three Breakthrough Features

[attila]

So it's the size of two iPhones and costs like two iPhones.

 

[EugW]

It'll be a neat flex to have a (nearly) creaseless foldable but I'm not convinced that the crease on existing folding phones is a big deal. I think other factors are more serious (cost, fragility, etc.)

This type of device is of no interest to me but I think it's smart for Apple to be in this market. If they ever come out with a flip form factor I might take a second look, depending on the price.

So that all seems nice, but if it’s anywhere near $2,000, that’s a nonstarter for me. The thing about foldables, in my opinion, is that there’s trade offs when it comes to using it as a standalone phone, and trade offs when it comes to using it as a standalone tablet. For the same price, you can get a separate phone and tablet, and not make compromises with either one.

Now I guess the one thing you’re trading is the convenience and portability. But foldables to me have always come across as trying to solve a problem that doesn’t exist. As Steve has said, don’t start with the technology first and try to make a product to market to people. Start with the customer experience and work backwards.

Yes, I am far, far, far more interested in a flip type iPhone. However, I assume it will also be missing one of the three rear cameras or else will have down-spec'd cameras, or both, so in that context I'd still stick with the slab Pro.

Everyone's different, but in the old days, my devices used to be an iPhone, iPad mini, and iPad/iPad Pro.

Once the large iPhones came out I scrapped the iPad mini. The size just wasn't great, too big for mobile sites and too small for desktop sites. The bigger iPhones solved the issues for me for screen size usability for mobile surfing. For those sites if I really wanted something bigger than a big iPhone, I'd jump straight to the iPad Pro which provides a desktop-like experience.

BTW, for my smaller hands, these days the non-Max iPhone is the most suitable size for me. It's already 6.3" which is a pretty decent size. Go bigger to the 6.9" and it's just too awkward. (I had the 17 Pro Max for a week and returned it to get the 17 Pro.) And then if I want to go bigger than that, I may as well use a proper iPad. The in-betweener size is a compromise that does neither mobile nor desktop well. YMMV.

In addition, Dave2D has said that the screen ratio of foldables alone was a barrier that prevented full-screen experiences from being much bigger than you’d get on a single-screen device.

One of my main usage cases for a larger screen is viewing video, but a squarish video screen is an incredible waste of space in this world of 16:9 streaming video, and having a "minimal" crease down the middle is still going to be an annoyance.

 

[WarmWinterHat]

Yes, no surprise the 1st generation is expensive. Every time this happens, people claim it's outrageous and that they'll never buy it. The 3rd generation unit has a good price point, so then they do. People should at least be less predictable.

Yep, Apple is well known for lowering their prices between generations...

🤨

 

[klasma]

In addition, Dave2D has said that the screen ratio of most foldables' inner screen was a barrier that prevented full-screen experiences from being much bigger than you’d get on a single-screen device.

From the leaked specs, the iPhone foldable will have a different aspect ratio (around 1:1.4), for both inner and outer screen, than most foldables. This is one aspect it seems that Apple is getting right.

 

[klasma]

Yep, Apple is well known for lowering their prices between generations...

Relative to inflation, they do.

 

[Ramchi]

No, Apple did not “solve” the crease problem. Samsung did.

Apple only keeps tabs on the display suppliers and ask for first dibs on whatever they come up with. They don’t do any of the engineering themselves.

If it is solved, then Apple takes the credit, and when it isn't Samsung is always there to take the brick bat!

 

[cdsapplefan]

I’ll wait for version 2 or 3 of this iPhone Fold. Being super thin, the device will have some cutbacks. I like super fast charging, all day battery and large sensor cameras.

 

[DogGone]

Face ID is so much better than Touch ID. Also where would the Touch ID be. On the inside or outside display? Or both.
What if you need to sign on to a website when using the inner display and the Touch ID is on the outside.
I've gone for many first gen Apple Products: Watch, M1 MBP when it is clear that the product would be mature from the start. But it took until the iPhone 3G before I jumped on that bandwagon and that was because of the 3rd party apps.
I would probably wait a few generations before getting a foldable iPhone and then maybe never if the cost is prohibitive.

 

[High IQ Person]

Also, only dual rear cameras. I'd kinda be OK with that if it was main plus tele, but most likely it would be main plus ultra-wide.

I actually prefer Touch ID on phones though.



This isn't really accurate. Often times this is true, but sometimes it isn't. Apple will work with third party manufacturers to create hardware that suits their needs, but sometimes it means creating bespoke designs with Apple only through partnership. Arguably, one of these would be the Pro Display XDR.

Apple does not involve themselves with bleeding edge engineering.

If it’s simple engineering with many solutions, they might involve themselves. They cannot do bleeding edge, high IQ engineering like solving the crease problem. That’s strictly a supplier engineering problem.

 

[EugW]

Apple does not involve themselves with bleeding edge engineering.

If it’s simple engineering with many solutions, they might involve themselves. They cannot do bleeding edge, high IQ engineering like solving the crease problem. That’s strictly a supplier engineering problem.

Of course Apple does. Apple is one of the top chip designers in the world for example. On a much smaller scale, for the folding iPhone Apple will also be using Liquid Metal in the hinge design.

 

[jeremz1ne]

Sounds pretty cool but if it's anywhere near the 2,000-2,500 mark it's an easy pass

 

[Ctrlos]

None of this matters if the thing isn;t IP68 rated like the Pixel 10 Fold. Owners can say what they like but I would never trust the Z Fold 7 with all the dust and lint my jeans accumulate at work.

 

[Ctrlos]

So it's the size of two iPhones and costs like two iPhones.

I almost wish it was two iPhones. Even though it had its flaws, I still think the Microsoft Surface Duo was the right device to copy and improve upon.

 

[I7guy]

It’s not going to be $2,000. More like $3,000.

 

[contacos]

Face ID is so much better than Touch ID. Also where would the Touch ID be. On the inside or outside display? Or both.
What if you need to sign on to a website when using the inner display and the Touch ID is on the outside.
I've gone for many first gen Apple Products: Watch, M1 MBP when it is clear that the product would be mature from the start. But it took until the iPhone 3G before I jumped on that bandwagon and that was because of the 3rd party apps.
I would probably wait a few generations before getting a foldable iPhone and then maybe never if the cost is prohibitive.

It'll be the standby button on the side, like on iPad and Android actually, so it doesn't matter

 

[groove-agent]

"It's the most expensive iPhone ever and we think you're going to love it."

 

[kenta_]

No, Apple did not “solve” the crease problem. Samsung did.

Apple only keeps tabs on the display suppliers and ask for first dibs on whatever they come up with. They don’t do any of the engineering themselves.

Absolutely correct. Many people don’t realize this. Apple just “assembles” parts that already exists.

 

[dannyyankou]

What are these compromises you speak of? While everyone is different, I gave my iPad Mini to my wife after getting my first foldable, the Z Fold 3 and I've never looked back. And, the Z Fold 3 was nothing compared to the Z Fold 7 I own now. Also, have you ever owned a book-style foldable?

For the phone form factor, it’s going to be thicker and heavier, making it more difficult to use with one hand. Foldables also tend to have worse battery life compared to regular phones, so battery life is a trade off compared to tablets too.

Also more prone to hardware failures. As for the tablet form factor, 7.9 inches isn’t that big of a jump from an iPhone 16 Pro Max. If I feel like something isn’t suitable on a 6.9 inch screen and need to switch to something bigger, it’s either a full size tablet, or my Mac. 7.9 won’t be a big improvement in that case. I’d rather get an 11 or 13 inch tablet.

 

[dannyyankou]

No, Apple did not “solve” the crease problem. Samsung did.

Apple only keeps tabs on the display suppliers and ask for first dibs on whatever they come up with. They don’t do any of the engineering themselves.

That’s a little misleading. Samsung manufactures the displays, but they are custom displays designed by Apple. It’s a collaborative effort that requires innovation on both ends.

 

[Eggtastic]

With apple going with the "camera plateau" name, this will be something stupid and pretentious like the "iPleat".

 

[d686546s]

I'm looking forward to buying an iPhone Fold in around 10 years when the prices will have hopefully come down.

In all seriousness, I could absolutely see plenty of areas in which I'd find a book-type foldable extremely useful, both as my private phone as well as for professional use.

My problem is that the value it would add personally isn't worth the additional cost and my employer has stopped giving out anything that isn't a budget-like Android, so there we go.

 

[Ramchi]

For the phone form factor, it’s going to be thicker and heavier, making it more difficult to use with one hand. Foldables also tend to have worse battery life compared to regular phones, so battery life is a trade off compared to tablets too.

Also more prone to hardware failures. As for the tablet form factor, 7.9 inches isn’t that big of a jump from an iPhone 16 Pro Max. If I feel like something isn’t suitable on a 6.9 inch screen and need to switch to something bigger, it’s either a full size tablet, or my Mac. 7.9 won’t be a big improvement in that case. I’d rather get an 11 or 13 inch tablet.

My niece bought all the Z Fold ones from the 4th iteration until the 7th; he has all the ones with broken screens lying unused. He says the screen will break eventually after using it for some time. After that, I wasn't even interested in buying such an expensive foldable one. Though, I liked it when he used it, but not going to buy it - too expensive and too fragile.

 

[iMac The Knife]

For the phone form factor, it’s going to be thicker and heavier, making it more difficult to use with one hand. Foldables also tend to have worse battery life compared to regular phones, so battery life is a trade off compared to tablets too.

Also more prone to hardware failures. As for the tablet form factor, 7.9 inches isn’t that big of a jump from an iPhone 16 Pro Max. If I feel like something isn’t suitable on a 6.9 inch screen and need to switch to something bigger, it’s either a full size tablet, or my Mac. 7.9 won’t be a big improvement in that case. I’d rather get an 11 or 13 inch tablet.

The weight and thickness have been addressed. For comparison, the Z Fold 7 is right in between the iPhone 17 Pro and the 17 Pro Max in terms of screen size, so we will take the average of the two for weight since their thickness is the same:

iPhone 17 Pro & 17 Pro Max Thickness - 8.75mm

Z Fold 7 thickness when folded - 8.9mm

iPhone 17 Pro - 206 grams
iPhone 17 Pro Max - 233 grams

Divided by two = 219.5 grams

Z Fold 7 weight - 215 grams

Also, I can get approximately 9-10 hours of screen on time with my Z Fold 7, with the testing I've done which 75/25 inner screen and outer screen usage. If one needs more battery than this in 24 hours, they have a cellphone addiction.

I will give you the more prone to hardware failures part, because it is a foldable. More moving parts, so this is to be expected. However, they have gotten much more durable over the years.

 

[537635]

- no waterproofing
- worse battery life
- worse selfie camera
- worse back camera
- no FaceID
- not pocketable

Instant no-buy for me.


It's the VisionPro or iPhone Air story all over again. With iPhone Air they even tried not doing the Pro in black and it didn't work. (Almost) Nobody wants an expensive phone with less features.

 

[nfl46]

I have zero interest in this, not even at US$1800. However a friend of mine will be first in line to buy this, probably even if it's $2500.

Naw, I’ll be first in line. Your friend can be second.