Apple might explore flip-styled iPhone

While Apple is widely expected to release a foldable iPhone in a book-style design later this year, it looks like the company also wants to go ahead with a flip variant, also known as the clamshell form factor.

Mark Gurman of Bloomberg claimed that Apple is “exploring” a foldable iPhone with a “square, clamshell-style design”. He suggested that Apple would expect its first foldable iPhone to generate significant buzz, which could spur the demand for additional form factors and screen sizes.

A foldable iPhone would also allow Apple to target a different market segment, where users prioritise portability and pocketability over features such as maximum screen real estate.

Rumours of a foldable iPhone have circulated for years. Back in 2021, Economic Daily News reported that Apple had developed two foldable iPhone prototypes. The samples included a clamshell model with a flexible OLED display. Such speculation resurfaced in 2024, with reports pointing to a clamshell foldable iPhone in the pipeline.

That said, Gurman cautions that a foldable flip iPhone is “far from guaranteed to reach the market”.

Source: Bloomberg via MacRumors