Firstly this past fall, we saw the launch of the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro, and based on rumors, work has already started on 2023’s iPhone 15 updates. But none of those phones can bend in half.
Secondly that’s a missing gap in Apple’s lineup, since its chief rival Samsung does make foldable phones. In fact, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 and Galaxy Z Flip 4 rank among the best foldable phones you can get right now. Will Apple one day be able to challenge these devices?
Rumours suggest they might, even if recent reports about Apple’s upcoming phones have been largely silent about an iPhone Flip. Apple foldable phone patents, along with concept drawings from independent designers, suggest that Apple can really make its mark with the iPhone Flip/Fold.
Release date speculation
The launch date of the iPhone Flip is open to speculation, but the latest rumors are pointing toward a 2023 or 2024 launch.
Display analyst Ross Young, who has a track record for being accurate with such tips, has suggested Apple could introduce a foldable iPhone in 2023. That said, even Young believes that 2024 is probably the more likely launch year for such a device.
However, a report from Ming-Chi Kuo states that a foldable iPhone may not arrive until 2025. Another analyst, Ben Wood, believes we will at least get a foldable iPad before then.
If we go back to beyond 2020, we can see earlier musings on foldable designs from Apple, including a patent for a tri-folding display. And going back even further back to 2016, we can see one of the earliest foldable iPhone patents, courtesy of MacRumors, depicting a vertically-folding handset similar in orientation to the Galaxy Z Flip 4 and Motorola Razr.
More recently, a pair of patents won by Apple cover durable foldable displays as well as a foldable screen with textured flexible areas. Those patents don’t mention a phone specifically, so Apple could also be mulling a foldable tablet.