First foldable iPhone may be delayed until 2027 as Apple focuses on reliability and crease issues

In brief: Foldable/flippable phones are one of the areas where Apple has yet to venture. There have been reports that Cupertino would release its first foldable in 2026, but it seems that we’ll have to wait until at least 2027 to see an iPhone Flip or Fold.

With Samsung dominating the foldable phone market, and rivals from companies such as Google, OnePlus, and Motorola proving popular, it’s long been expected that Apple would join the pack at some point.

In May, an investor note from an analyst with a reliable track record claimed that Apple plans to unveil a foldable hybrid iPad by late 2025, followed by a folding iPhone the following year.

However, market intelligence company TrendForce says a folding iPhone launch in 2026 is “unlikely,” and that 2027 will probably be the earliest that we’ll see a foldable from Apple.

TrendForce writes that the reason for the delay is that Apple has strict requirements for two of the biggest issues affecting folding phones: the crease and reliability.

Ahead of Samsung releasing its Galaxy Fold (no Z in the name back then) in 2019, reviewers with pre-release units found the screens were breaking due to debris making its way underneath the display via the center crease. It led to the Fold’s launch being delayed by months as Samsung tried to fix the issue.

The reliability of foldable phones and the crease have improved with each new generation, but they’re still not perfect. As an example, I initially loved my Galaxy Z Fold 4, awarding it a score of 85, but despite comparatively low use and working from home, it spontaneously developed a problem with the hinge that prevented it from opening flat – check out the video below.

In recent videos from tech YouTuber Marques Brownlee showing Apple’s iPhone durability tests, John Ternus, Head of Hardware Engineering at Apple, said the company focuses more on making a product that never fails rather than one that isn’t super reliable but is super easy to repair.

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