Apple’s first foldable iPhone could land much sooner than expected
Is Apple accelerating towards a 2025 launch?
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We’ve been hearing reports of afoldable iPhonefor years, and rumored launch dates have slipped ever later, with recent leaks suggestingthe foldable iPhone wouldn’t land until late 2026 or 2027. However, a new leak suggests we might actually see it as soon as 2025.
This comes from Taiwanese siteUnited Daily News(via@Jukanlosreve), which claims thatApplehas accelerated its development of a foldable iPhone, and has been in frequent contact with Taiwanese manufacturers to try and get key components like the bearings ready for mass production by the end of this year.
This in turn apparently means that the foldable iPhone is likely to launch sometime next year. The site doesn’t say when, but we’d guess that, if this is accurate, it might launch in September, alongside theiPhone 17.
Ever increasing interest and competition
So, why is Apple reportedly accelerating the launch? According to United Daily News, it’s becauseSamsung, Huawei, and other brands are frequently releasing foldable phones, and the product category is getting ever more popular as a result.
So, now that there’s an appetite for these products, the time could be right for Apple to launch one. Many of the early teething problems with foldable phones have also been ironed out in recent models like theSamsung Galaxy Z Fold 6– though minor issues like creases in the screen remain.
All that said, we’d take this rumor with a pinch of salt, since most previous leaks regarding the foldable iPhone suggest we’ll be waiting longer. But it sounds like United Daily News has sources in the supply chain, so they may well be right in saying that production is being accelerated.
In which case, Apple could be launching two totally new models in September, with both the foldable iPhone and the previously leakediPhone 17 Airpossibly landing.
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James is a freelance phones, tablets and wearables writer and sub-editor at TechRadar. He has a love for everything ‘smart’, from watches to lights, and can often be found arguing with AI assistants or drowning in the latest apps. James also contributes to 3G.co.uk, 4G.co.uk and 5G.co.uk and has written for T3, Digital Camera World, Clarity Media and others, with work on the web, in print and on TV.
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