iPhone Flip rumors: A foldable iPhone probably won’t debut at next week’s Apple event – CNET [CNET]

This story is part of Apple Event, our full coverage of the latest news from Apple headquarters.

Apple’s next smartphone, said to be called the iPhone 13, will debut during the tech giant’s event on Sept. 14. The iPhone 13 is expected to be a noteworthy upgrade from Apple’s earlier iPhones with new features, an updated design and upped camera specs. (Here’s how the rumored iPhone 13 compares to the iPhone 12). Although we could see the iPhone 13 soon, Apple may also have interesting plans for a foldable iPhone rumored to be called the iPhone Flip in the future. 

We won’t see the iPhone Flip for another two to three years, according to gossip from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, so it probably won’t make an appearance at Apple’s iPhone 13 event. But, that hasn’t stopped the buzz about the possibility of a foldable iPhone. 

While competitors have released various foldable handsets one by one — Samsung’s bendy Galaxy Fold, Z Fold 2, Z Fold 3 and clamshell Galaxy Z Flip and Z Flip 3 (here’s how Samsung’s foldable phones compare), and the reboot of the Motorola Razr, to name a few — Apple has been slower to market. This may be a smart move, since existing foldables have been met with mixed reviews.

We’ve been following reports of a foldable iPhone for years. Way back in 2017, it was predicted that a foldable iPhone could be coming in the futuristic-sounding year 2020. Obviously, that didn’t happen. Analysts and leakers have kicked the release date down the road ever since, and rumors and wish lists have simmered ever since. Here’s everything we know so far.

Release date: The iPhone Flip launch is a moving target

It’s no secret Apple has its sights set on a foldable iPhone. The company has been registering patents for foldable mechanisms and devices for almost a decade now with no launch date in sight. The question is whether any of them will ever see the light of day, and if so, when?  

Early rumors pointed to 2021 as a potential target date, but a report from longtime Apple analyst Ming Chi Kuo (via MacRumors) suggests 2023 might be more realistic, if it ever happens. According to Kuo, Apple still needs to figure out technology and mass production issues before bringing a device like this to market, hence the two-year wait. 

Read more: Top foldable phones for 2021

Speculation from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman aligns with Kuo’s predictions. In his Power On Newsletter, Gurman says that the foldable iPhone may not arrive for another two to three years. 

Design: What will the foldable iPhone look like?

The 2023 timeline would match up with a report from Bloomberg earlier this year that indicated Apple already has a working prototype of a foldable iPhone display. While it’s not yet a working model, it’s a step up from a patent which, until then, was all we had seen. 

Apple seems to have taken out every patent under the sun when it comes to foldable displays, including an origami-style folding display, a flip-up display and even a wraparound display. And while we don’t know which one will make the final cut, both Kuo and Bloomberg seem to agree that the current prototype is more of a traditional foldout design that would open up to a 7.5- or 8-inch main display. 

Unlike Microsoft’s Surface Duo, which has the hinges on the exterior, Apple’s would have one continuous display with a hidden hinge mechanism like the Galaxy Fold. 

However, Apple leaker Jon Prosser reported in early 2021 that the iPhone Flip will likely use a clamshell design and come in several “fun colors.” Between the flashy purple iPhone 12 and the rumored (or just longed-for) pink iPhone 13, an array of fun colors for Apple’s first foldable device is definitely a possibility.

YouTuber ConceptsiPhone also gave us a glimpse into what the iPhone Flip could look with concept art of the foldable iPhone in the colors blue, red, gold and green.

Roadblocks: What still stands in Apple’s way? 

While Samsung and others have been testing the waters, Apple has been learning from the pain points of their foldable devices and figuring out how they’d be used.

One of these pain points: the crease. A lot of the current cover materials, including the glass and plastic mix that Samsung uses for the Z Fold and Z Flip, show a visible crease when folded out to full screen. To avoid it, Apple would likely have to wait for Corning, Apple’s glass provider, to create some kind of bendable version of its Ceramic Shield screen. The company is already working on a bendable glass, but hasn’t announced a launch date for it. 

Cost: Foldable phones don’t come cheap

Price is another major problem for these types of devices. Although Samsung lowered the price for its most recent foldable phones, its previous model, the Fold 2, cost $2,000 which is over twice the price of Samsung’s other flagship phones. And, a foldable iPhone wouldn’t be any cheaper. Apple’s foldable needs to be in line with current foldable and nonfoldable models to be able to compete against other brands and entice iPhone users to ditch their single-screen devices and pay more for a foldable.

A report in April found that half of American consumers are interested in buying a foldable phone, though Apple customers are slightly less willing to make the leap than Samsung or LG users. But perhaps the “Apple effect” will change those stats if and when a foldable iPhone ever becomes reality.