Apple might be looking at foldable phones as a substitute to spark interest in its mobile devices, as iPhone sales have reached a plateau and are not showing any indications of increasing. Apple is already developing a folding iPad and two foldable iPhones. But it’s possible that we won’t be seeing these gadgets in stores very soon.
Two foldable iPhones in the flip form are presently being developed in Cupertino, though we don’t know exactly how the foldable iPhone will fit into Apple’s iPhone portfolio. Apple intends to develop a foldable iPhone with an external screen, according to The Information. However, because it breaks readily, the engineers working on the project are finding it difficult to do so.
Additionally, it appears that Apple has spoken with “at least one” Asian component manufacturer to source parts for various-sized folding iPhones, suggesting that the tech giant is testing multiple foldable devices.
There are other devices being developed at the moment besides a foldable iPhone. The tech behemoth may also be developing a foldable iPad that would be the same size as the 8-inch iPad mini. It seems that Apple developers are working on a hinge that will allow the phone to lie flat when unfolded and are attempting to lessen the wrinkle that occurs at the middle of every foldable phone. This does not mean that Apple will switch from the iPad mini to a foldable iPad,but it could be a possibility, given the iPad mini isn’t a big revenue puller.
Apple has not yet released a foldable iPhone, despite the fact that rivals like Samsung have already released foldable devices. Unlike smartphones with the current form factor, foldable smartphones enable users to bend the device to close it and then unfold it to expose a larger screen. Nevertheless, foldable phones remain a small market for products. It’s expected by analysts that Apple will release a foldable gadget, but it probably won’t be an iPhone. CCS Insight forecasted two years ago that Apple would introduce a foldable iPad in 2024.
A patent that outlines technologies that would let users touch more than just the screen of a gadget to perform operations was granted to Apple last year. Apple is rumored to have been actively developing a foldable iPhone before it put the project on hold in 2020. Still, it has started working on foldable gadgets again. There’s always a chance Apple won’t release a foldable iPhone until it’s certain the gadget offers a novel feature to the market that the existing iPhone form factor is unable to provide.