It’s been a few years now since the rumors of the first foldable iPhone surfaced in 2017. Initially, Apple’s foldable phone was expected to arrive in 2020, but it didn’t happen. Analysts and leakers have been constantly pushing the release date down the road to keep the hopes up. In 2024, Samsung is dominating the foldable smartphone industry with the launch of its sixth generation of Galaxy Fold and Galaxy Flip. In this article, we’ve summed up all the rumors and leaks about Apple’s first foldable iPhone- “iPhone Flip”. Here you go!
iPhone Flip Display Rumors
According to rumors, Apple has considered various display sizes for its foldable iPhone. One is the 6.7-inch display size found on the flagship iPhone 15 Pro Max. According to the analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, Apple will roll out the first foldable iPhone will a huge display that measures 8 to 9 inches. Yes, the rumored iPhone Flip is speculated to be larger than the Galaxy Z Fold 6 that boasts a 7.6-inch display when it’s opened up.
Also, a massive 8-inch display would align the iPhone Flip more with the 8.3-inch iPad mini. Rumors also say that Apple could be working with LG to come up with a 7.5-inch OLED foldable display panel. If Apple takes the 9-inch display route, the first foldable iPhone would dwarf any foldable smartphone available today.
iPhone Flip Design Rumors
Ever since the rumors of the first foldable iPhone came out, people have been speculating what Apple’s Flip iPhone will look like. It’s been a few years now that designers have posted concept renderings depicting the design of the iPhone Flip/Fold. Impressively, Apple seems to have stopped at nothing and has won every patent when it comes to foldable displays, including origami-style folding displays, flip-up displays, as well as a wraparound displays.
At the moment, there’s no solid evidence of which style will make the final out. One of the first reports came from Ming-Chi Kuo and Mark Gurman, where they both reported that the first foldable iPhone would have a traditional fold-out design.
In 2021, Apple leaker John Prosser reported that Apple has considered two different kinds of foldable iPhones: a dual-screen model with two displays connected by a hinge, just like the Galaxy Z Fold or Pixel Fold, and second could be a clamshell flip phone design similar to the Galaxy Z Flip models. Also, several other reports corroborated the rumor that Apple is testing fold-out book style and clamshell designs at the Foxconn factory in Shenzhen, China. A fair share of recent rumors claim that Apple will launch its first foldable iPhone with a clamshell design and several fun colorful options.
iPhone Flip Release Date Leaks
Apple has been super secretive and unpredictable when it comes to its foldable iPhone. It’s been almost a decade that the giant has been registering patents for foldable technologies. While there’s absolutely no guarantee, a few dates have been speculated for the iPhone Flip release. Before we big into the rumors, let me break it to you that we won’t see a foldable iPhone in 2024, and not even 2025.
Back in 2021, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reported that Apple is working on a foldable iPhone that we might see in 2025 or later. The next year, the display analyst Ross Young said the foldable iPhone launch has been delayed until 2025. Well, we are already in mid-2024, and there are no signs of a 2025 release yet.
Recently, The Information reported that Apple won’t launch a foldable iPhone until at least 2026. Also, Analyst Jeff Pu believes that a foldable iPhone could arrive in late 2026 at the earliest, while TrendForce predicts a 2027 release for the iPhone Flip.
Amidst all the confusion, some rumors have further soured the iPhone Flip release date. In February 2024, a rumor from China suggested that Apple suspended its work on foldable iPhones after displays failed to meet Apple’s standards. Some analysts believe that Apple has completely abandoned the concept of a foldable iPhone. Thankfully, a Digitimes Asia article brought a ray of hope saying Apple has re-allocating some of its Vision Pro headset resources to develop the foldable device. So, all hopes aren’t lost.
To sum up the iPhone Flip release date rumors, we won’t see the Apple foldable phone until late 2026.
With this long gap, Apple is giving its rivals more time to stay at the top of the leaderboard. Between 2019 and 2024, Samsung released six versions of Galaxy Z Fold and Galaxy Z Flip. By 2026, Samsung will be ready with two more versions of each design. Also, Google, Motorolla, and other players may offer refined upgrades. That means the competition is only going to level up.
iPhone Flip Possible Price
Foldable smartphones are anything but cheap. At $999, the Galaxy Z Flip 5 is the most affordable foldable smartphone with a clamshell design. On the other hand, book-style foldables like Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Pixel Fold start at $1799, which is almost double the price of most flagship smartphones. Apple’s foldable iPhone won’t be any cheaper than the competition. The cost of the iPhone Flip largely depends upon which design it will arrive in.
If Apple comes up with a clamshell-style design, the iPhone Flip would cost somewhere around $999 to $1099. Whereas, if we see a book-like fold-style iPhone like the Galaxy Z Fold, the price might exceed the outrageous $2000 mark.
That’s everything we know about Apple’s Flip iPhone. While a foldable iPhone is in Apple’s pipeline, the giant might also surprise us by ditching a foldable option and going for a rollable iPhone. A patent suggests that Apple has plans to consider a rollable phone that could store a part of its display inside the phone, which can be slid out on purpose. Until now, no company has managed to launch a rollable smartphone. While a foldable iPhone is likely to make a debut first, it will be interesting to see if Apple takes a less-traveled road to evolve its iPhones.
Sagnik Das Gupta
