Apple Is Exploring The Feasibility Of 'Foldable iPhones', Again!

A new report reveals that Apple is developing at least two horizontal foldable iPhone models, similar to Samsung's Galaxy Z Flip. Apple has recently started to negotiate with at least one Asian supplier, intending to purchase parts for two different size foldable iPhones.

The report points out that these phones will adopt a clamshell design similar to the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 or Motorola Razr Plus. Moreover, Apple's design team hopes that the thickness of the iPhone Flip is only half of that of the current iPhone, and can still display outside when the device is folded.

However, according to insiders, although Apple has begun negotiations with suppliers for related devices, this foldable device is still in the early stages of research and development. It is not even included in Apple's mass production plan for this year or next year, because challenges related to battery size, display components, and body materials have been troubling Apple's engineers.

Well-known Apple analyst, Guo Mingchi, stated that compared to problems with the production volume, technical challenges are what Apple currently finds most troublesome. The discussions about the production, listing, and sales of their folding devices can genuinely start only once Apple achieves technological breakthroughs.

In fact, over a period of more than ten years, Apple has been exploring the possibility of foldable products. As early as 2018, Apple's CEO, Cook, began to conduct in-depth research into the possibility of a foldable iPhone and solicited opinions from designers and engineers.

Over the years, Apple seems to have applied for a variety of patents for foldable displays, including foldable displays, flip-up displays, and even wrap-around displays. In 2020 and 2021, there were rumors that Apple already had prototypes and samples of foldable phones.

However, technological challenges and the indecisiveness of the Apple leadership regarding foldable products have always stagnated the product development process, and the possible release date has been consistently delayed: according to analyst Ross Young's guess in February, the earliest release date of the foldable iPhone has been postponed to 2025.

Honestly speaking, the bleak sales situation of foldable phones at the moment is probably a concern for Apple's management.

On the one hand, because the production process involves a curved screen, the foldable phone will have a higher price than a traditional phone: Samsung's vertical folding phone Z Flip 5 is currently the most affordable folding phone, but it price still reaches $999. 

For horizontal folding phones similar to the Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Pixel Fold, the price is often twice that of most flagship phones.

On the other hand, issues like screen folds and even broken or deformed hinges that appear during the use of folding phones have made many customers who have purchased the product complain loudly, and these relatively negative user experiences and reviews have caused many potential users to shy away from it.

Nonetheless, looking at Apple's unenthusiastic entry into the mixed reality headgear market, this wealthy company actually does not really care about the quality of the track. What they care about is whether the corresponding product can bring a disruptive change to the industry and bring hefty revenue to the company.

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