Kuo: Apple to Launch 8-Inch Foldable iPhone in 2023

[SuperMatt]

Yeah but my main point is that the Fold isn't "junk" and doesn't "fall apart", that applies to the 1st and 2nd iterations and the exaggeration/FUD just really turns one off to having an adult debate. Personally I would heed all those warnings for any phone screen. Apple can put out all the commercials they want, but will they honor their warranty exchange if your phone shows it has been exposed to water? In my experience if they see the water indicator pink/red they are going to deny warranty service, that's happened to me before. They were sued for it and lost before, and there are current lawsuits ongoing as well. On screen durability my iPhones have tons of microscratches and lifting of the oleophobic coating, does Apple honor the warranty if you say you got the scratches from coins in your pocket? On my Fold 2 there are zero blemishes. Both are treated the same way.

But again, it doesn't change my position that the Fold 1/2 are not "junk" and do not "fall apart"

Fold 1 did fall apart for multiple initial reviewers. Fact. It was delayed to fix the issue. Fact. So the fixed ones may not have fallen apart as often (I don’t have access to Samsung’s repair records). But they did come with many warnings due to the relative fragility of the phone, which Samsung publicly acknowledged. Fact.

The point I was making: being “first” is great if the product is great. But when you give products to reviewers that literally fall apart in a week, you’ve now taken being first from a good thing to a very bad thing. That’s what Samsung did. Even if they release a Fold 3 that is bulletproof and works perfectly, people will remember the first one and be reluctant to purchase it.

One person’s junk is another’s treasure. I think the Fold is junk, but you like it. That’s a cool thing about the world. I’m glad the phone has been reliable for you, and perhaps if Samsung hadn’t released Fold 1 before it was ready, it would be a highly popular phone instead of a niche device with fewer than a million units sold.

But one cannot deny that Samsung’s desire to be first with the Fold backfired on them big-time.

 

[spinedoc77]

Fold 1 did fall apart for multiple initial reviewers. Fact. It was delayed to fix the issue. Fact. So the fixed ones may not have fallen apart as often (I don’t have access to Samsung’s repair records). But they did come with many warnings due to the relative fragility of the phone, which Samsung publicly acknowledged. Fact.

The point I was making: being “first” is great if the product is great. But when you give products to reviewers that literally fall apart in a week, you’ve now taken being first from a good thing to a very bad thing. That’s what Samsung did. Even if they release a Fold 3 that is bulletproof and works perfectly, people will remember the first one and be reluctant to purchase it.

One person’s junk is another’s treasure. I think the Fold is junk, but you like it. That’s a cool thing about the world. I’m glad the phone has been reliable for you, and perhaps if Samsung hadn’t released Fold 1 before it was ready, it would be a highly popular phone instead of a niche device with fewer than a million units sold.

But one cannot deny that Samsung’s desire to be first with the Fold backfired on them big-time.

The released Fold 1 didn't "fall apart" on anyone. Fact. The Fold 1 when released was not "junk" Opinion that we disagree on based on our individual definition of "junk"

Otherwise I don't disagree with some of what you say, Samsung made a terrible marketing move, heck my wife still razzes me for buying her an exploding Note 7. But that's not my point. I do appreciate you agreeing with me that the term "junk" is just opinion. I don't necessarily fully agree that this is why the Fold has a low sell rate, personally I think that's more due to the very expensive pricing and the foibles that it has like the crease, form factor, and yes the durability compared to other phones/tablets. Do I think the Fold lineup will be a success? No, personally I don't, for many of the same reasons why the Note lineup isn't a huge success. But as a paradigm I do think that larger screens that shrink to a pocketable size are going to be market juggernauts, similar to how larger screen phones/phablets currently are.

 

[OmarKhafagy]

Why is the book folding option the only thing that comes to mind when thinking of foldable screens.

Oppo made a great prototype with a rolling screen late 2020 which solves many problems with dust accumulation and center folding crease for the initial foldable phones.

This could be a great idea for larger screen possibilities whiteout increasing product size (though the motorized enlarging mechanism can be swapped with a simple manual one)

Yeah, this is a great point. I do wonder if Apple is likely to do something that like this though, at least as an iPhone. My reasoning is that Apple always considers their supply chain and tries to operate within what they're familiar with and have experience servicing. Let's say that Apple wants to put a specific hinge into a foldable phone. They can test that hinge first in an upcoming laptop where a hinge is already expected. This gives them the opportunity to figure out what the stumbling blocks are in manufacturing using a device that sells comparatively fewer units.

 

[hatchettjack]

Or Apple could just make an iPhone the size of an iPad mini! I’d buy one

 

[spinedoc77]

Or Apple could just make an iPhone the size of an iPad mini! I’d buy one

I bet a lot of people would buy that, but then it would hinder Apple's ability to sell you 2 devices, 3 if you count a laptop.

 

[rafark]

Why is the book folding option the only thing that comes to mind when thinking of foldable screens.

Oppo made a great prototype with a rolling screen late 2020 which solves many problems with dust accumulation and center folding crease for the initial foldable phones.

This could be a great idea for larger screen possibilities whiteout increasing product size (though the motorized enlarging mechanism can be swapped with a simple manual one)

Wow! I mean the concept behind the growing screen is actually kind of simple but it’s visually stunning!

 

[ian87w]

Was the first iPhone crappy???? It's was revolutionary at its time. Ahead of the game in every way.

It shocked and blew the industry to pieces and forced the entire competition to pivot to keep up. Those who didn't, crashed and burned. (Anyone remember Blackberry?)

Do people care that much about flexible displays? Nah.

The breakthrough was the UI. It was crappy technology wise. It’s 2G only, 2MP camera with no auto focus, no front facing camera, recessed headphone jack that requires an adapter, requires iTunes to do anything, expensive with contract.

I'd argue similarly with foldables. We're simply at the early stages where the tech is still immature and expensive.

 

[beanbaguk]

The breakthrough was the UI. It was crappy technology wise. It’s 2G only, 2MP camera with no auto focus, no front facing camera, recessed headphone jack that requires an adapter, requires iTunes to do anything, expensive with contract.

I'd argue similarly with foldables. We're simply at the early stages where the tech is still immature and expensive.

Fair enough but I'd argue the following points.

• Phones weren't really camera devices at that time. It was an addition, but nobody really saw them as camera devices back then. iPhone really set the trend with the camera set-up as people and competitors saw the potential and the rest is history. With regards to front-facing cameras; Tell me which other competitor had that back then?
• I agree entirely on the 2G/EDGE part. This was a big flaw on Apple's part, but back then 3G devices were power-hungry devices so perhaps Apple knew by adding this, their battery wouldn't last long enough so they took the choice to just not include it. Who knows?

The other flaws you mention are.... let's say less than ideal design, but as far as phones went, nobody can argue how much Apple shook the industry to its core.

Going back to flexible displays and folding phones. They are currently garbage. I've played with them in the stores. They show creases, a few I saw in store had dead pixels (not all), which begs the question how long will they truly last, and as somebody that loves photography, shooting videos of my family and spending time reading content on my phone, why would I compromise with a "creased" display?

Moreover, there are numerous reports on folding displays getting scratched easily. Hardened displays can be protected, but a folding display needs to be soft so is prone to scratches easily.

If indeed you don't mind the crease and the scuffs and marks you will get, that's great, but the technology simply isn't there yet and I see zero use for a folding phone. Wrap-around displays could be interesting, but a folding phone is just a gimmick.

ETA: While doing a little research for this reply, I found out that folding phones struggle with waterproofness. Samsung has apparently made improvements but a fix isn't there yet. Again, more flaws and tech companies pushing technology that simply isn't ready for the masses.

 

[KevinN206]

So you choose to ignore the fact you have a crease in the middle of your display or it's not there?

Probably in the same ways that the notch on the iPhone is ignored after a few days.

 

[spinedoc77]

Probably in the same ways that the notch on the iPhone is ignored after a few days.

Much less conspicuous than that IMO. With the brightness of the screen I can only see the crease faintly, not at all on white or very bright screens/colors, and that's only if I concentrate on it. It becomes slightly more visible with darker screens, and with the screen off it's very conspicuous. It's difficult to describe but IMO it's not an issue at all. Sure I would prefer it wasn't there, but the benefit of having a tablet that fits in my front pocket far far outweighs it.

The notch on the iPhone is worse IMO because it actually blocks portions of the screen, although with that said I never found the notch to be particularly onerous in the least.

 

[beanbaguk]

Probably in the same ways that the notch on the iPhone is ignored after a few days.

Not quite. A notch is a designed part of the display. Granted it’s not ideal but applications work around it.

A crease is a flaw in the hardware and impacts the user experience without any chance to resolve it.

 

[Surne]

I really want a foldable so I'm looking forward to it. I'll upgrade my 11 Pro Max to this foldable, providing Apple abandons it's plan for installing government abusable back doors into their phones.

 

[Soulife]

As a foldable phone user, I'll never go back. You have a tablet in your pocket. For me, it has been a productivity life saver for work. Maybe it's a 3D TV for Apple users judging by these comments, but not Android. Especially once the price drops, tech improves, devices get thinner, and unfolded displays get larger. Oh, that website you can only access at the office because the page doesn't work on mobile- boom! Unfolded. Sharing a hotel room with coworkers that come back from dinner and want to watch the game an hour into your movie- boom, unfolded, now streaming to Netflix. Need multiple windows for that spreadsheet, office doc, calculator, and Xoom meeting- BOOM.

Her I thought Apple users were about productivity. Then again, if you can overpay that much you probably have a laptop with your iPhone 14 pro max+

 

[cupcakes2000]

What apps do you use? Probably the main issue here. Can’t get anything decent on my android tablet outside a few consumption apps. Secondary, how’s the crinkle in the middle? Have heard nothing but issues. Maybe it’s alright, and maybe there’s a future, but it’s a big gimmick until it’s done flawlessly, if you ask me.

 

[ggx12]

Not a fan of folding phones but I was not a fan of smartwatches before apple released the apple watch. If the company manages to do something similar, then it’ll be successful.

 

[ghanwani]

What apps do you use? Probably the main issue here. Can’t get anything decent on my android tablet outside a few consumption apps. Secondary, how’s the crinkle in the middle? Have heard nothing but issues. Maybe it’s alright, and maybe there’s a future, but it’s a big gimmick until it’s done flawlessly, if you ask me.

The flip has the same crinkle and it’s a hit worldwide so I’m assuming it has held up well. Never heard complaints from friends that have it, only praise.

 

[cupcakes2000]

The flip has the same crinkle and it’s a hit worldwide so I’m assuming it has held up well. Never heard complaints from friends that have it, only praise.

It may be fairly popular but it’s nowhere near iPhone popular. Certainly not a ‘hit’ in the iPhone league of things.

 

[Greenmeenie]

I am sure Apple will do a foldable iPhone someday. And when they do, it will outsell all other foldable smartphones no doubt. It might be awhile tho. I just don’t think the technology is there yet. We’ll see. I guess the biggest casualty besides the competition will be the iPad mini.

 

[anthonymoody]

It may be fairly popular but it’s nowhere near iPhone popular. Certainly not a ‘hit’ in the iPhone league of things.

I have zero data to back this up, but I'd wager that the Flip has sold less than the iPhone Mini which, despite having some 6 million (I believe) in sales, was nonetheless cancelled by Apple.

So, yeah. the Flip may be 'popular' and 'a success' but it doesn't play on the level of the iPhone or even Samsung's regular phones.