Apple says it absolutely cannot discontinue iPhone... May discontinue iPad first

"Screen durability is the main reason for development halt"
"Foldable iPhone expected only by 2026"

There are speculations that Apple, a competitor that belatedly entered the 'Foldable' smartphone market, which Samsung Electronics commercialized early, has halted its development. Earlier reports indicated that Apple was trying to develop a 'folding' iPhone with an external display as thin as the current iPhone, but faced design difficulties due to the device's fragility and challenges in applying a small battery.

Galaxy Z Flip5
Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

On June 17, 'Fixed Focus Digital,' a tipster with 1.67 million followers on the Chinese social networking service (SNS) Weibo, claimed, "Apple, which is developing foldable display products, purchased various parts from its partners, but the project was temporarily put on hold because the parts failed the tests." The tipster cited Apple's high standards as the main reason for the development halt and added, "Apple has been buying foldable phones made by competitors, including Samsung, for its foldable phone development, and one of the competitor's products broke within days due to Apple's testing."

U.S. IT media outlet PhoneArena also cited the tipster's claims, reporting, "Apple met with one Asian manufacturer to discuss the production of parts for two types of foldable iPhones, but halted foldable iPhone development due to durability concerns," and stated, "Foldable phones are not expected to appear on Apple's roadmap this year or next." It was suggested that the iPad, not the iPhone, might be the first to feature a foldable display. The reasoning was that "a foldable iPad would not spend long periods in users' pockets and would be thicker than the iPhone, giving it an advantage in terms of durability."

Another IT media outlet, The Elec, recently reported that "Apple is considering releasing a foldable iPad to replace the 8.3-inch iPad Mini in 2027, marking the 20th anniversary of the iPhone."

Previously, Apple was known to have obtained a patent for a 'folding' device in February last year, drawing attention to whether it would apply to the iPhone. However, experts expected Apple to apply the 'folding' method to the iPad before the iPhone. The mass production plan for the foldable iPhone remains undecided, with the earliest possible release projected for 2026. This would be seven years after Samsung Electronics launched the Galaxy Fold in 2019.