Apple will launch a foldable iPad instead of an iPhone in 2024, an analyst predicts

Apple is likely to launch an iPad with a foldable screen in 2024, analyst firm CCS Insight said on Tuesday, predicting the US tech giant will soon start experimenting with foldable technology.

CCS Insight released its annual outlook report on Tuesday, in which the group’s analysts make predictions about future products and trends.

In the latest report, CCS Insight predicted that Apple would launch a foldable iPad in two years, rather than starting with a foldable iPhone.

This is in contrast to other smartphone makers like Samsung, which have launched foldable smartphones rather than tablets.

“Right now, it doesn’t make sense for Apple to make a foldable iPhone. We think they’re shying away from this trend and will likely dip a toe in the water with a foldable iPad,” Ben Wood, research director at CCS Insight, told CNBC in an interview.

“A foldable iPhone will pose a very high risk for Apple. First, it would have to be incredibly expensive not to cannibalize existing iPhones,” Wood added.

The analyst said a foldable iPhone would likely cost around $2,500. Apple’s iPhone 14 Pro Max with the most storage, currently the most expensive model, costs around $1,599.

Wood also said that if Apple had any technical issues with the foldable phone, it would be a “feeding frenzy” with critics attacking Apple over the issues.

Still, Apple has “no choice but to respond as the trend toward foldable devices gains momentum,” Wood said, so the company will start with an iPad.

He said it would give Apple the opportunity to learn how to implement and scale foldable screen technology and “breathe new life” into the iPad lineup.

Apple was not immediately available for comment when CNBC contacted him.

There have been a number of rumors about Apple’s intentions with foldable screen products. Earlier this year, market research firm Display Supply Chain Consultants said Apple wouldn’t enter the foldable smartphone market until 2025 at the earliest. However, the company said Apple is researching foldable technology for displays around 20 inches in size. That could focus on a new foldable notebook product, the research firm said.

Forecasts about a foldable iPhone have been around for at least four years now. Last year, TF International Securities’ Ming-Chi Kuo, a prominent Apple analyst known for his credible predictions, said the company could release an iPhone with a foldable screen in 2024.

CCS Insight also predicts that Apple will continue to invest in its own chip design.

The Cupertino giant is currently designing its own custom chips for the iPhone and iPad. It relies on US chip manufacturers Qualcomm for modems that allow these devices to connect to mobile internet networks for 5G connectivity.

However, CCS Insight said Apple will likely integrate its own 5G modem into the A-series of processors for a “single-chip” solution for iPhones in 2025.

Apple acquired Intel’s modem business in 2019. That led to speculation that the tech giant would very quickly drop Qualcomm and use its own modems in its devices. However, that has not happened yet.

TF International Securities’ Kuo said in June he expects the company to continue using Qualcomm chips for iPhones due out in 2023.

Wood said Apple “built internal capabilities” so it could use its own modems in iPhones.

“They (Apple) have been firing at this target for years. You have acquired the assets of intel the modem unit, they’ve been working hard to increase that, they’re very keen to make sure they continue to build out the control points that they have,” Wood said.

“They don’t want to constantly have to pay a third party for their technology.”