When Could We Expect Foldable iPhone To Be Released?

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Days away from the highly anticipated Apple Event on September 9th, many people are wondering if we’ll finally see the longly rumored foldable iPhone.

Yes, we all want to see a foldable iPhone, and based on many leaks and reports, Apple is actively working on such a gadget!
But I will be completely honest with you – no, we won’t see the iPhone Fold on September 9th, 2025, with the iPhone 17 lineup. Well, technically, we could see some kind of tease, but it won’t be announced at this event for sure.

Then, when will it be released?

When a smartphone is developed and manufactured, it requires a preparation process for building a supplier network and logistics chain. Especially in the scale of the iPhone, with 200+ million iPhones sold each year, such a preparation could not go unnoticed.

Additionally, Apple is working closely with case and accessory manufacturers so their partners can prepare accessories for the upcoming products, and there aren’t any leaks for such a thing happening(I know – it’s confidential, but these things leak, trust me).

Since there aren’t any signs of these things happening, it surely won’t happen in the next few months.

Most of the latest rumors suggest that Apple is planning to release its foldable smartphone at its September 2026 event. Which means it would be announced with the iPhone 18 series. Sounds cool, right?

Well, we all hope so! But as I am waiting for foldables from Apple for a long time – I was really hyped about the rumored foldable iPad, which was planned to be released in 2024 or 2025 – and you know that didn’t happen(latest rumors suggest 2028 release).

Yet there were strong reasons for Apple to make such a device, and here are the main ones:

Using the foldable iPad to test the market on a smaller audience before going big with its best-selling product, the iPhone.
That would have been a test for the durability of the hinge and the foldable display. Meaning there wouldn’t be damage to their smartphone image.

Why were these plans abandoned?

The development of a crease-free inner display, or at least one that meets Apple’s standards, was incredibly tough, especially when considering the bigger tablet display.
The production costs of a high-quality foldable tablet display would have skyrocketed the price to over $2,500 for a tablet, not a price most would afford.
The foldable smartphone market is growing fast(expected to reach $118 billion by 2030), and focusing on iPad instead of iPhone isn’t the best option.

So, Apple decided to put iPhone first and focus on iPhone Fold*; there aren’t currently any indications of iPhone Flip* happening.

Numerous sources come with different information from insiders, but all point out that we will see the foldable iPhone in 2026.

It looks like Apple has found a solution to the crease and hinge durability, so the main cause of the delay is solved. We start to see new contracts and partnerships between Apple and suppliers, so it looks like the company is preparing to start production, possibly around mid-2026 – meaning it is really possible to see the foldable iPhone in 2026 – lining up with the release of the iPhone 18 series.

And there’s more – latest data shows that Apple expects to sell 8–10 million iPhone Fold units in 2026 and 20–25 million in 2027. So the company is quite sure the new release date will be met.

We even got to potential price numbers for the upcoming foldable device, starting from $1,999. But keep in mind, nothing is confirmed until we see it at the next September event in 2026.

But one thing is for sure – it will be one of the biggest releases by Apple in its entire history.

iPhone Fold will surely be a premium quality built, and Apple should come up with some new features that make its product stand out – what will they be? – Follow our website for the latest details.

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*iPhone Fold and iPhone Flip are names used by the public, but most likely, these won’t be the official names of the foldable Apple devices.

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