Could Apple’s first foldable iPhone copy one of its biggest competitors? One analyst expects a futuristic, Huawei-inspired wraparound design

Rumors of a foldable iPhone have been circulating for years now, and while companies like Samsung and Google have already tried their hands at making foldable devices, Apple is yet to take foldable displays for a spin. That’ll surely change eventually, and now one analyst believes that Apple might have a surprise up its sleeve.

While many would have expected the first foldable iPhone to be something similar to the Pixel Fold or Galaxy Z Fold 5, Haitong International analyst Jeff Pu believes Apple will take a leaf out of Huawei’s book instead.

The Huawei Mate Xs 2 is a foldable phone with a wraparound display that covers the outside of the device rather than being hidden when the phone is closed. It’s fair to say it has the wow factor, but is this really the approach Apple will take?

That’s a wrap

That’s what Pu appears to believe according to a research note seen by 9to5Mac, at least. Pu says that the phone will have a 7.9-inch display that will sport a “wrap around foldable design” that is “similar” to that shown in the picture at the top of this post.

As for timescales, Pu believes that this mystery iPhone will ship in late 2026, so there’s still plenty of time for the rumors to change or, indeed, for Apple’s plans to change as well.

Apple is of course also thought to be working on a foldable MacBook of some sort with a 20-inch display that could arrive much sooner — rumors point to mass production kicking off at the end of next year.

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Oliver Haslam has written about Apple and the wider technology business for more than a decade with bylines on How-To Geek, PC Mag, iDownloadBlog, and many more. He has also been published in print for Macworld, including cover stories. At iMore, Oliver is involved in daily news coverage and, not being short of opinions, has been known to ‘explain’ those thoughts in more detail, too. Having grown up using PCs and spending far too much money on graphics card and flashy RAM, Oliver switched to the Mac with a G5 iMac and hasn’t looked back. Since then he’s seen the growth of the smartphone world, backed by iPhone, and new product categories come and go. Current expertise includes iOS, macOS, streaming services, and pretty much anything that has a battery or plugs into a wall. Oliver also covers mobile gaming for iMore, with Apple Arcade a particular focus. He’s been gaming since the Atari 2600 days and still struggles to comprehend the fact he can play console quality titles on his pocket computer.