Folding iPhone: How Apple Could Do It
Speaker 1: Whenever folding phones are in the news, the inevitable question is, will Apple make a folding iPhone? What will a folding iPhone look like? I know we are buzzing about this because Google is flaunting the pop and fresh pixel fold, but okay, I'll give it to you. There are some signs that Apple is tinkering with folding smartphones, but will a folding iPhone be something people really want or is it one more thing that'll end up being a passing fad? Let us break down what we know so far about Apple's possible folding [00:00:30] iPhone and what people are saying about the timing and the design. I'm Bridget Carey, and this is one more thing. Google is strutting. Its stuff this week with a pixel fold. You could call it a phone or you could call it a mini tablet that scrunches up into your pocket. The design concept is similar to Samsung's Galaxy Z fold four.
Speaker 1: It is also similar to a hotdog bun with how it opens up flat to a larger surface. I gotta stop writing these shows during lunchtime and all of these Bendi screen phone, [00:01:00] tablet, hybrids are so pricey. Both the Z fold and the pixel fold will set you back about $1,800. And sure there are some cheaper foldables. The Motorola Razor with its clamshell retro throwback is now $600. It's three years old now. Of course, it's cheaper. This all makes Apple the only major US phone maker that's left without a foldable device. But we know Apple is not in a hurry to jump into new uncertain territory. The reason we have foldable phones is [00:01:30] because other phone companies are doing nutty things to stand apart from Apple, to be different from the iPhone. We know this game. So many filmmakers are out here doing flips, some actually doing flips to stand out for crying out loud.
Speaker 1: We had 3D phones with 3D screens and 3D cameras. Some innovations were cute like kickstands, and for a while there were dual screen phones. Moment of silence please. For Microsoft Surface Duo different doesn't always mean it's gonna take off, [00:02:00] but folding phones do seem to be growing in numbers. So of course Apple is going to ticker and test. In this space, there is nothing official, but for years the usual suspects of Apple Analyst insiders and reporters are saying that Apple is playing with the idea and working on foldable prototypes. We have heard this song sung since 2016 when LG was reported to have started making foldable displays and supplying them to Apple. But I wanna fast forward a bit. January, 2021, [00:02:30] we got Mark Germond writing from Bloomberg saying that he heard Apple began early work on an iPhone with a foldable scream. A month later, we got John Prosser at Front Page Tech saying he's got sources telling him that Apple could be putting all efforts into an iPhone that folds like a clam.
Speaker 1: Shell like the Motorola Razor, and it could come in bright, happy colors instead of the more serious colors of the high-end iPhones. Then a few months later in May, we have analyst Ming quo shaking it up, saying [00:03:00] it could be something between an iPhone and an iPad. That's not a clam shell. He also thought it was gonna be this year, but later revised it to say, we may not see anything folding from Apple until 2025. That's two years from now. So which way is the iPhone gonna fold like a clamshell makeup compact, like a butterfly wing thing with a tablet esque center? Maybe it's both. Who said Apple couldn't be testing all sorts of things? Patents hold more clues. A patent awarded [00:03:30] to Apple earlier this year shows a folded phone like a clamshell, and the patent describes technology that would allow you to control the phone just by touching the sides or the walls of a device when it's closed.
Speaker 1: Patents don't mean anything is real, but it does show you where the company's head is at. So is Apple serious about folding phones as cnet managing editor and iPhone reviewer extraordinaire, Patrick Holland noted recently. Apple typically positions products as a solution to a problem [00:04:00] highlighting quality and innovation. So a folding iPhone needs to be more than just a stunt for Apple. It needs to do something to make your life better or give us reasons why the design is more useful for different lifestyles. Does it help with battery life? Does it make for more creative projects? Does it feel better? In my hand? It's possible. A larger screen design could be the next evolution of the iPad Mini something that is portable bigger but not as big as a normal iPad [00:04:30] screen. So you get the perks of a larger screen for watching movies or working, but you don't need to lug another tablet to the airport when you're traveling.
Speaker 1: More moving parts mean more potential problems. Apple can afford to wait it out to make sure it doesn't go through a disastrous launch like Samsung experienced in 2019 with a $2,000 galaxy fold. You know, the first fold where it was failing in the hands of reporters, protective screens just peeling off and whatnot, Samsung [00:05:00] had to canceled that launch and some pre-orders were refunded. And while Apple has to get all the moving parts down perfect, the software team has to also create a new look to make something that works well as a hybrid iPhone iPad, and it makes sense in a folded form. Otherwise, the only selling point is that you can yell to your friends, Hey, look, my iPhone can sit here on my desk all bent like a Barbie doll, and I don't need a pop socket to prop it up. We don't know if apple's gonna bend to the pressure of the competition [00:05:30] and turn these little test ideas, prototypes and patents into reality.
Speaker 1: But maybe it depends how much enthusiasm there is for things like the Pixel and how much Apple thinks people want an iPhone that can open and close, or maybe they're just gonna target those of us who are fond of a folding feature. Phones back when we were young. What are your feelings about folding iPhone? Sound off in the comments if it's something you'd be into trying or not, and what do you think is gonna lure you into Foldy [00:06:00] land? If your comments are clever, it can make into a future episode because yes, I read all of your comments. Thanks for watching. See you next time.
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