14 DAY TRIAL // We’ve known for a while Apple is working on a foldable iPhone, and while the Cupertino-based tech giant remains tight-lipped on the matter, people familiar with the project say the company is making substantial progress on this highly anticipated release.
Now top Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo says Apple is expected to launch a foldable iPhone by 2023, though he emphasizes everything depends on the market performance of the company this year.
Very little is known at this point about this exciting device, but Kuo says the device would feature a screen of around 7.5-inch to 8 inches.
Most likely, this is the screen size when the iPhone is not folded (in tablet mode), so overall, the device could be much smaller.
Apple, a big fan of the Surface Duo design
By the looks of things, Apple is very interested in adopting an approach that looks and feels like Microsoft’s Surface Duo, a dual-screen device that went live last year running Android. Surface Duo, which Microsoft describes as a productivity device, comes with two separate screens working together thanks to a hinge.
As a result, Apple could also develop its very own hinge-based design and not go for a fully foldable display like Samsung, all because this approach would provide better reliability in the long term and prevent possible screen damage.
For now, the company is most likely still looking into its options, and Kuo’s forecast is another confirmation Apple isn’t necessarily in a rush to launch a foldable iPhone despite competitors investing heavily in this new approach.
Samsung itself has promised many more foldable devices this year, as the South Koreans try to bring this new form factor to a lower price point, all in an attempt to secure the lion’s share before everybody else starts making foldable phones.