As Samsung continues to push foldable devices as the next big thing in mobile technology, many people have been wondering if Apple has been working on a foldable iPhone as well. At this point, Apple is four years behind Samsung and other OEMs that have worked on foldable phones, and it begs the question: is Apple waiting too long to make a foldable phone?
As we’ve seen many times, Apple works on its own schedule. It often introduces features that Android phones have had for years (opens in new tab) — occasionally introduce something really innovative like Dynamic Island (opens in new tab) or emergency SOS satellite connection (opens in new tab) — and typically presents them as if they never existed in the past.
You won’t be able to do that with something as obvious as a foldable phone, but there’s no doubt Apple will make waves with it ultimately launches its first foldables. But will it really matter when they get to it, and will Apple users even care?
Great artists steal
When the iPhone was first announced, it promised a revolutionary experience unlike any smartphone before it. Apple didn’t invent the smartphone, it did newly invented it, to quote Steve Jobs himself.
Back then, many pundits wondered if the phone would pick up or not. After all, it couldn’t even record video, and Jobs’ play with smarter software didn’t go beyond what came with the phone – there weren’t any apps you could install, although other smartphones offered the option.
To further this notion, the iPhone didn’t invent the modern touchscreen aesthetic. Indeed, that honor goes to the LG Prada, which launched the year before, in 2006, which not only sported the now-standard look of a full-screen smartphone without a keyboard, but also launched capacitive touch technology.
But LG’s lackluster marketing was no match for Apple’s prowess. Additionally, the apparent user interface improvements that shipped with the iPhone — along with Jobs’ usual penchant for words like “revolutionary” and “magic” — helped push Apple’s product in ways others hadn’t, even if it wasn’t the first product of its kind in every respect.
Over a decade later, Samsung introduced the world’s first commercially available clamshell phone. While it didn’t offer a major user interface improvement or a revolutionary software feature to live up to its name, it did offer something consumers couldn’t buy before: glass that bends without breaking.
Just as with displays over the years, Samsung has pioneered ultra-thin glass, giving designers a new way to deliver a full-screen phone without the extra bulk that comes with a modern smartphone size.
But since Samsung clearly “borrowed” from Apple’s user interface innovations over a decade ago, it’s highly likely that Apple will “borrow” Samsung’s displays and foldable technology when it announces a foldable iPhone at some point in the future.
The difference this time is that no matter who is ultimately crowned the victor of the foldable phone wars, Samsung wins. That’s because Samsung makes almost every single foldable display you’ll find on the market today — with the exception of BOE Display, a Chinese company that makes foldable displays for the Motorola Razr and Huawei’s foldable devices.
TCL and Royole – two other manufacturers of foldable displays – have yet to launch a successful consumer product with a foldable display. As far as we know, that won’t change any time soon.
Will Apple reinvent the foldable phone?
History often repeats itself and logically one would wonder if Apple will do this or not reinvent the folding phone if it finally launches one in the future. So what is taking so long and will Apple be too late to change anything?
I spoke to Ben Bajarin, CEO and senior analyst at Creative Strategies in California, who says he thinks, “Apple is still working on the technological flaws surrounding this product and won’t release anything until they believe it’s theirs.” Crosses quality barriers at all levels. “
If I had to guess, I’d say Apple will likely wait until the display crease is either almost non-existent or completely gone. After all, we’ve already established that current-gen Samsung foldables are incredibly strong (opens in new tab) and withstands hundreds of thousands of wrinkles (opens in new tab) before you need some TLC.
“Given that patents have surfaced around this form factor from Apple,” says Bajarin, “it shows they’re exploring it, but it’s likely that they believe both the technology and the market aren’t ready.” .”
Last year we saw Samsung’s biggest sales surge ever, thanks largely to the Galaxy Z Flip 3 and this year’s Galaxy Z Flip 4 (opens in new tab) should sell more units. Samsung sold around 10 million foldables last year. That’s a drop in the bucket compared to the total 235.7 million phones Samsung sold in 2021 (opens in new tab)it’s about half of the Galaxy S21 phones they sell, making the number far more impressive in context.
Still, Samsung’s best-selling line is the Galaxy A series, which often makes up our list of the best cheap Android phones (opens in new tab) each year.
In comparison, Apple sold 233 million iPhones in 2013, with the top 5 models being premium phones with high prices and higher margins.
I asked Bajarin if margins might be stopping Apple from launching a foldable device right now, but he didn’t think so, saying, “Not necessarily, they can charge enough for something like this if they want to keep their margins.” I think the main problem is that they just don’t think the technology or the experience is ready for the mass market.”
Because if Samsung can get away with almost $2,000 for its highest-end foldable device, Apple certainly can.
Better late than never
In many ways, being late to a party in the tech sphere is not a bad thing. You give other companies time to fix the mistakes — literally in some cases — and look like a hero when you get a product right the first time.
It’s very likely that people wouldn’t think foldable phones are fragile if Samsung launched them right away. If you remember, the first generation Galaxy Fold had serious durability issues, was recalled and eventually replaced with a better product. But that first impression is what sticks in people’s minds, and Samsung has had to do a lot of repair work over the past four generations to ensure its folding devices are ready for real life.
When Apple finally releases a foldable iPhone — and it certainly will — sales will almost certainly eclipse those of any foldable device before it. Apple may not have the largest phone market share in the world – only 233 million of 1.39 billion units sold in 2021 was an iPhone — but it has the highest volume of premium phone sales of any company, and that’s exactly what a foldable phone is right now. A premium device.
As Bajarin puts it, “Apple’s customers are extremely loyal because they have one of the most loyal customer bases of any company.” When the foldable iPhone comes out, it will be a huge success, and that’s all that needs to be said about it .
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