A concept render of a potential clamshell foldable iPhone. | Image by Technizo Concept
Apple will release its highly anticipated foldable iPhone later this year alongside the iPhone 18 Pro and the iPhone 18 Pro Max following its new iPhone release schedule. However, the company was also debating another type of foldable smartphone, one that might have sold quite well if it hadn’t been abandoned due to being deemed unnecessary.
Apple abandons foldable iPhone model
According to a leak (translated source), the company had been thinking of designing a clamshell foldable flagship to complement the foldable iPhone. While the latter will compete with the upcoming Galaxy Z Fold 8 and the Galaxy Z Wide Fold, the former was supposed to take on the Galaxy Z Flip 8 and similar phones instead.
This clamshell foldable iPhone has been leaked before, but according to the new report, this model has now either been abandoned entirely or postponed indefinitely.
Which type of foldable iPhone would you have preferred?
Clamshell iPhone “unnecessary”
A clamshell foldable iPhone would have competed with the Galaxy Z Flip 7. | Image by PhoneArena
Apparently, people inside Apple mostly felt that a clamshell-style foldable iPhone would be unnecessary. The company always waits to do something — like it did with entering the foldable segment because it wanted no creases — and tries to make products that fit in better with its other offerings.
Recommended For You
For example, the foldable iPhone is expected to be marketed as the more premium model, above even the iPhone 18 Pro Max. This is a new strategy taking shape centered around Apple’s “Ultra” products, and the company felt that a clamshell iPhone had no place here.
It would be like a traditional iPhone except that it would have been able to be folded in half. Apple allegedly felt that this didn’t do anything new or exciting and that it would only sacrifice the battery capacity and the display because of its foldable nature. Camera performance would have also suffered in such a design.
Apple would allegedly instead just make a smaller traditional iPhone than try to market a clamshell model as being compact enough for smaller pockets.
Missing out on potential revenue?
I’m conflicted on Apple’s decision. On the one hand, it makes sense keeping in mind the company’s ethos, but on the other hand, I still think many people would have bought a clamshell foldable iPhone just because it looks cool.
The Galaxy Z Flip 7 wasn’t as popular as the Galaxy Z Fold 7 but it still sold pretty decently. A clamshell foldable iPhone would probably have been able to give it a run for its money.
Grab Mint's 3-month 5GB plan for $10/mo!
$10
/mo
$15
$5 off (33%)
Right now, you can take advantage of Mint Mobile's 5GB 3-month data plan at a solid discount. This 'last chance' promo lets you save $5/mo on the plan, making it simply too good to resist for those looking for a reliable and affordable service.
Abdullah loves smartphones, Virtual Reality, and audio gear. Though he covers a wide range of news his favorite is always when he gets to talk about the newest VR venture or when Apple sets the industry ablaze with another phenomenal release.
A discussion is a place, where people can voice their opinion, no matter if it
is positive, neutral or negative. However, when posting, one must stay true to the topic, and not just share some
random thoughts, which are not directly related to the matter.
Things that are NOT allowed:
Off-topic talk - you must stick to the subject of discussion
Offensive, hate speech - if you want to say something, say it politely
Spam/Advertisements - these posts are deleted
Multiple accounts - one person can have only one account
Impersonations and offensive nicknames - these accounts get banned
To help keep our community safe and free from spam, we apply temporary limits to newly created accounts:
New accounts created within the last 24 hours may experience restrictions on how frequently they can
post or comment.
These limits are in place as a precaution and will automatically lift.
Moderation is done by humans. We try to be as objective as possible and moderate with zero bias. If you think a
post should be moderated - please, report it.
Have a question about the rules or why you have been moderated/limited/banned? Please,
contact us.
Things that are NOT allowed:
To help keep our community safe and free from spam, we apply temporary limits to newly created accounts: