GoKawiilThe latest foldable iPhone leaks reveal a wide, book-style folding device. But leaker Instant Digital says Apple was originally pursuing a different design, but rejected it. Here are the details.
iPhone with top-down flip design was pursued but later abandoned, at least temporarily
We’re only six months away from Apple’s first foldable iPhone launching. Reporting indicates the design is completely locked and Apple is moving steadily toward mass production.
But the book-style foldable we’re getting is substantially different from the design Apple pursued at first.
Reporting from July 2024 said that Apple’s first foldable iPhone would have a top-down folding design, similar to the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip.
By March 2025, however, the direction had reportedly changed in favor of a book-style fold.
Weibo leaker Instant Digital, in a new post, has an explanation as to why Apple rejected its initial flip design.
Here’s the translated post:
Apple abandoned its Flip phone design because most internally felt it was “unnecessary.” It didn’t create any new, essential usage scenarios; its biggest selling point was simply that it could be folded up and fit into a skinny jeans pocket, completely missing the point of Apple’s current hardware development focus. The internal space of the small foldable phone was awkwardly divided in two by the hinge, making every inch precious. Battery capacity was limited, and significant compromises were made on camera performance… If the goal was simply to make the phone smaller, Apple would rather streamline its current [models].
Curiously, recent reporting indicates that Apple is again exploring the possibility of a flip-style design for a future iPhone model.
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