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'iPhone Ultra' Likely to 'Repeat the iPhone X Story' With Delayed Launch

963852741 said:
I think it will support iPad apps in unfolded mode and iPhone apps in folded. That way friction will by less.
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Apple introduced resizable iPhone Apps at WWDC with the clear implication that they're expecting developers to implement the feature. Whether or no they do, remains to be seen,
 
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MacRumors said:
Apple will likely "repeat the iPhone X story" by unveiling its foldable iPhone at the same time as the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max…
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Now hold on a second; the iPhone X story was that this is an iPhone with tech well ahead of its time (OLED, edge to edge screen, Face ID, etc), but in the future all phones will look like this, and to a large extent that did indeed come to pass. That is not the story here. Folding phones are just not going to be the dominant form in a decade. There are, and will continue to be, too many trade offs.
 
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The “iPhone X Story” was about massively increasing an existing product line’s price with minimal fallout to the brand. The iPhone X was how Apple was able to justify a $1,000 smartphone when the previous iPhone 7 sold for $699. Releasing the iPhone 8, a dud that was simply an incrementally updated iPhone 7, for $699 alongside the $999 iPhone X, a majorly upgraded model, meant Apple could advertise that the iPhone price was staying the same ($699) while everyone rushed out to buy a $999 iPhone X. It also worked perfectly for Apple, and iPhone has had a ~$1k Pro model ever since.

This new iPhone Ultra may then be the way Apple breaks the $2k iPhone price barrier (and watch, there will be an iPhone with today’s pricing available too, but missing enough features that makes it a dud compared to the Ultra model).
 
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shawnforever said:
It's way out of my budget, but boy do I want one.
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The only way I would actually get one is trading my current iPhone to reduce the monthly cost, and keeping that phone for a good 6+ years or more to make it worth the cost, and I figure having a phone/ipad like device is neat I won’t lie
 
Every time I see a photo of the iPhone X I think, I want that. Too bad it’s something that has already passed… and the replacements are massive with a ridiculous camera bump.
 
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awer25 said:
The “iPhone X Story” was about massively increasing an existing product line’s price with minimal fallout to the brand. The iPhone X was how Apple was able to justify a $1,000 smartphone when the previous iPhone 7 sold for $699. Releasing the iPhone 8, a dud that was simply an incrementally updated iPhone 7, for $699 alongside the $999 iPhone X, a majorly upgraded model, meant Apple could advertise that the iPhone price was staying the same ($699) while everyone rushed out to buy a $999 iPhone X. It also worked perfectly for Apple, and iPhone has had a ~$1k Pro model ever since.
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The 8 was essentially replaced by the XR, which was $749 I believe. A little more, but it’s not like the less expensive phone immediately disappeared.

People wanted the new higher tier phone because of the OLED and eventual larger size. But I don’t think it will be the same case for the Fold. Or at least not as quickly.
 
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lilkwarrior said:
Many waste their time on such things when all that matters for most is if a product meets their needs or not at a price point they’re OK with or better.

There’s people who will waste hours and even days of their time arguing and shaming a product exists that they never intended to buy nor any variant for reasons that most will never understand.
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Yes, I am one of those, as I would have a few use cases for a foldable. But I am no longer optimistic I can meet the price point.
 
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citysnaps said:
Loving all of the 2026 versions of: Who asked for this?

Reminding me of when Jobs released iPod back in 2001, and many here said: "Who asked for a thousand songs in your pocket? Flop."

Clearly Apple doesn't know what they're doing. Again. Will Apple survive?
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I am with you on that one. If Google and Samsung can make a foldable why should Apple not? Are skeptical Apple iDevice users worried that an iPhone foldable will adversely impact them if it fails?? (unless they are shareholders, maybe)
 
I was so happy to get my iPhone X with its steel and glass construction following generation after generation aluminium phones that didn’t look or feel as good as the iPhone 4S. But after a few weeks of use I didn’t like its large size and how hard it was to try to use one-handed. My iPhone 13 mini is a good size, but I wish it looked and felt more premium.
 
Nyx1 said:
Price more than $2k just DOA product like vision pro and scalper will take all.
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The Vision Pro was not DOA...it took months for sales to drop off.

Brother Cavil said:
It'll sell a lot better than Vision Pro! I find it hard to believe than there's a large market for such an expensive phone, but I'm not ready to call it DOA either. I don't believe that price was the main reason Vision Pro flopped. There are plenty of people in the world who can afford Vision Pro, but they weren't interested in wearing a headset and, more importantly, did not see the "spatial computing" experience as a significant improvement over their current devices.

Will the iPhone Ultra's additional screen real estate be worth the extra price? We'll see! I think Apple will deliver a very well-engineered product and I can see the appeal of a larger screen. Unlike Vision Pro, which asked customers to embrace a whole new way of doing things, a folding iPhone takes a product people already love and adds a great feature, a bigger screen. I can imagine many situations where being able to double my screen real estate would be a great benefit.
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A lot of people will go for this and some because it might become unobtainium for the first few months. Picture the first class jetset crowd— if you can unfold your phone and watch movies on board without carrying a second device and fiddling with the terrible inflight LCD screens, that might be enough.

xxFoxtail said:
I can potentially justify a $2000 price point if it can replace my iPad Pro and iPhone Air. I'd need full external display support with it and Pencil Pro support would be nice.

I’d also prefer to have it fully useable folded. I’d likely daily drive it like that (as a mini-like iPhone), and unfold it as needed at work or home.

I’d much prefer to manage one device over two.
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If they had Pencil Support and some cool notetaking features, that would be the only killer feature that would tempt me. But still a hard sell without the third camera.
 
Kuo today said manufacturing challenges have limited early production of the foldable iPhone...
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Thanks largely to AI and wokism, every time I read or hear the word challenge(s), it's clearly used to dilute the intensity or seriousness of issues and their real meaning.

Challenges has become a go‑to euphemism that softens or dilutes the truth, struggles, or issues. Journey is also rammed down our throats to soften the harsh reality like when someone with stage 4 terminal cancer has a journey to death they wish to share.

Why can't we go back and call challenges and journey what it really is: it a delay, shortfall, failure, or tragedy instead? I guess that's no longer possible because we live in a world of clickbait, denial and toxic positivity or optimism. 🤦‍♀️
 
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Westside guy said:
... Slashdot ...
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robin-williams.gif
 
The brokie cope in the comments are insane. The ultra will definitely be popular. If you like the size of an iPhone mini then use that as the main and if you’re playing a game or watching a video on the couch then fold it out and you got an iPad mini
 
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Nobody cares about a foldable that’s old tech at this point which costs $1,000 more per device and is lacking the basic Face ID feature that made the iPhone X a great device.

The real successor to the iPhone X will come out next year, in 2027, during the actual 20th anniversary of the device.
 
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I recall when the iphone 8 and X came out I upgraded to the 8. The price difference was significant but the functionality for my needs less so. You almost always pay a higher premium than it's worth to get the "best of the best". But eventually the key worthwhile aspects of such a phone trickle down to more mainstream ones. The new iPhone Ultra is extra so on this as the wrap around display has almost no advantage other than being "cool" and would be hidden by my case. But I'm fine that others like it -- more power to them.
 
citysnaps said:
Loving all of the 2026 versions of: Who asked for this?

Reminding me of when Jobs released iPod back in 2001, and many here said: "Who asked for a thousand songs in your pocket? Flop."

Clearly Apple doesn't know what they're doing. Again. Will Apple survive?
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They didn’t know what they’re doing when they greenlighted the Vision Pro or iPhone Air based on sales. Will the iPhone Ultra make it a post-Covid Apple product failure trio? We’ll see.
 
Wow at that price point I might stay at Samsung. At least it has 8 years of experience and usually good pre-order deals with corporate benefits discount and trade-in on top
 
dampfnudel said:
They didn’t know what they’re doing when they greenlighted the Vision Pro or iPhone Air based on sales. Will the iPhone Ultra make it a post-Covid Apple product failure trio? We’ll see.
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The good news from the consumer perspective is who cares. As long as they don't stop making models that satisfy your needs then it's all good. And at least the failures often mean some new tech or ideas that may eventually be more practical for the mainstream. Now the higher prices due to chip shortages is a problem I hope gets fixed sooner than later.
 
Macaholic868 said:
Nobody cares about a foldable that’s old tech at this point which costs $1,000 more per device and is lacking the basic Face ID feature that made the iPhone X a great device.

The real successor to the iPhone X will come out next year, in 2027, during the actual 20th anniversary of the device.
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Yes, that one will be much more appealing to consumers and the one that keeps Apple profitable. Apple doesn’t do niche that well.
 
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