Apple’s foldable iPhone Ultra has ran into a hilarious problem

Poor Apple has been trying for years to make the kind of foldable iPhone that it wants. By all accounts, it seemed that 2026 would finally be the year when the company would be able to push its flagship foldable out the door.

Now, problems keep arising. Problems that Apple can’t ignore, but it also doesn’t want to delay the iPhone Ultra — as it is being called by some — any longer. Everyone is waiting with bated breath and manufacturing has entered the early stages.

However, an even more pressing issue has emerged. An issue that almost sounds hilarious, and a compromise that Apple will most certainly not accept.

The foldable iPhone is rattling

Yes, according to a new report (translated source), the foldable iPhone Ultra starts making rattling noises once it has been folded and unfolded a few times. The noises are bad enough that the hinge is continually failing to meet Apple’s standards.

Apple has used a different method for the manufacturing of the foldable iPhone hinge. It is a 3D-printed hinge where filler material is used to cover up dents and irregularities.

This made the hinge more affordable to manufacture, helping Apple keep the price of the iPhone Ultra below expected figures. Unfortunately, this might also be the reason that the phone starts rattling after some use.

Will Apple delay the iPhone Ultra?

Though reports keep claiming that Apple will still release the iPhone Ultra alongside the iPhone 18 Pro models later this year, it now seems like the company might be forced to abandon that plan.

A rattling foldable iPhone would do immense damage to the brand that Apple has built for itself. The first foldable phone from the company needs to make a perfect first impression if Apple wishes to win over and retain new customers.

As such, according to the report, if this problem is not resolved on time, then there is almost a guarantee that the foldable iPhone Ultra will be delayed yet again. Not just until later this year after the iPhone 18 Pro, but perhaps even to the next year.

The display is also imperfect

Apple has waited this long to release a foldable iPhone because the company wanted to address two concerns that foldable smartphones had and, to an extent, still come with:

• Durability
• Display crease

The company wanted its first foldable flagship to blow everyone’s minds. A phone with absolutely no crease across its display and a sturdy chassis to boot. That is not happening either.

The iPhone Ultra might be sturdy, but its display is most definitely not the kind that Apple has always hoped for. Problem is, now that manufacturing is so far ahead, Apple can’t just keep delaying the phone year after year until it can be provided with the display of its dreams.

As such, according to previous reports and now corroborated by this one as well, Apple has had to accept the display as it is. The foldable iPhone Ultra will have a practically unnoticeable crease on the display, but only when being used under normal lighting conditions and being viewed from straight in front of it.

Like most other foldable phones on the market today, the crease will be visible if you look at it carefully or from an angle.

What an ordeal

The iPhone Ultra has been so long in the making, and the manufacturing is now so far ahead, that delaying it again will be very disappointing. But keeping in mind Apple’s insistence on premium experiences, it is also very unlikely that the company would allow an iPhone that rattles.

At this point, I think it would be better to just get it over with and focus on making the successor to the iPhone Ultra better. That’s sort of what Apple is already doing with the iPhone that it has poured a lot of resources into: the iPhone 20 Pro display is imperfect.

Also, this is precisely why I say that you shouldn’t buy the foldable iPhone. At least not this first-generation model.

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